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Saltash Sailing Club
Newsletter Spring 2015
Page 1
Commodore’s Report
Items inside this
issue:
Commodore’s
Report
1
Sailing
3
Cadets
4
Cruising News 5
Motor-boating
on the French
Inland water-
7
RNLI News
and events
11
Rags or Revs! 13
Moorings
14
Icicle racing
with a difference!
15
A forthcoming
Jester challenge event
16
A flying pastime for a
sailor!
17
The Social Committee
have done sterling stuff
providing entertainment
for us through this last
half of the winter. We
have enjoyed talks on a
variety of topics including our own members’
exploits across the Atlantic, into Scottish
lochs and distilleries
and racing around Ireland, we have had carbon fibre model yachts
as well as the RollsRoyce of racing Toppers inside the new
extension (isn’t that
what it was built for?)
and supported the
RNLI with a Quiz night,
the Share Our Soup
lunch and the Boxing
Day Treasure Hunt and
Auction, proceeds from
the latter split with the
British Heart Foundation. Our MP, Sheryll
Murray, gave us an
insight into life as an
MP and attended the
RNLI lunch, as did our
Mayor and Consort
Jean and Bill Dent who
also presented awards
at the Cadet Prize giving.
The new extension has
come into its own this
Spring with the introduction of Sunday lunches
and for several private
parties. The Best of British dinner and the Fitting
Out supper proved popular, while the entire clubhouse throbbed to the
sounds of ‘Elton John’ as
over 70 of the ‘oldest
swingers in town’ enjoyed
the Cruisers and Friends
evening.
possibly the largest J24
fleet along the south coast.
Many of you will know that
two of our cadets, Tamsyn
Hills and Danni Middleton,
have been selected for the
SW Topper Zone squad
and have been travelling
some distance to different
training and competition
venues every weekend,
And so to the Sailing sea- whatever the weather,
son… At the time of writ- throughout the winter. We
ing, our boats have been are very proud of them
craned into the water and (and their parental support
we look forward to Yacht teams!) and wish them
Racing on Thursdays, and every success this season.
the Duchy Timber Spring
Series on Saturdays in
April. Dinghy racing started on 14th April, together
with dinghy cruising on
Wednesdays, and the
Cadets go afloat on Friday 24th April. We can be
proud of our recently qualified Instructors and Senior Instructors. It’s going
Late May Bank holiday
to be all eyes on the new- weekend sees the Topper
ly independent J24 Fleet, Zone Regatta here at Saltmaking their first ‘splash
ash, the Plymouth/Fowey
of the season’ and now
weekend racing is 6/7th
Commodore’s report continues on Page 2
Editorial: Still Seeking a New (replacement) Editor !
(Further editorial comment appears on Page 19)
Newsletter Spring 2015
Page 2
Commodore’s Report continued
Thursday evening racing 2015 - a photo
taken by a drone
June and during the Town Regatta on June 27th we will be providing a sailing event for French twinning
youngsters.
I haven’t yet seen a Cruising programme for the season, but I am sure that Mike Barrett’s flair for entertainment will make for some enjoyable cruising, no doubt with Fowey as one of the familiar and popular destinations?
The Gasworks has been well-used this winter for boat storage, with the rebuilding of the Wayfarer in the
workshop by a band of skilled and willing helpers as well as the refurbishing of safety boats. Volunteers are
currently involved in building the railings for the new sunny end of the clubhouse veranda, and much careful
planning is going on to prepare for development of the gasworks to create better access and to make best
use of that space all year round.
Cornwall have finally managed to issue us with correct and up to date invoices for the leases on the cadet
hut site and the SE dinghy park reclaimed area and we have relinquished all responsibility for the town pontoon.
Moorings are nearly full and we expect
only a very moderate price rise from
Plymouth City Council. Mooringman’s
problems with his barge are now resolved and surveys are going ahead as
quickly as possible.
So we are looking forward to what I am
sure will be an enjoyable and successful
season, both on and off the water. Let’s
Get Out There!
Finally, what do you call a group of nine
past and one present Commodore?
This photo was taken at a recent lunch.
Nina Lillie, Commodore
Newsletter Spring 2015
Page 3
Sailing - The season begins...
Welcome to the 2015 Sailing Season. I know many of you will have been busy over the past weeks preparing your boats for the water and making your plans for the seasons. Some will be venturing afar on a
grand cruise whilst others will be content to potter and explore the delights of the River Tamar and local
ports. However, this year my article focuses on the racing being organised by the club.
This season sees a few changes to the Fleets and hopefully we will provide the mix of fun yet competitive
racing that appeals across the board.
For the yachts the season kicks off
with the popular Duchy Timber Spring
Series held over the first four Saturdays in April. I hope some of you enjoyed the early season practice at the
Ullman Sails training weekend on
11/12th April with on the water coaching and video debriefs. The second
weeks racing of our Duchy Timber
Spring series will formed an element
of this event with 2 windward/leeward
races.
Turning to the Thursday evening series, we have
added a separate start for the J24s. It is great to
see the class growing with potentially nine boats
on the water providing affordable one design racing. Don’t forget to put the Fowey weekend in
your diary, the event was well supported last year
with over 30 yachts in total. The race forms part
of the PPSA Ullman Sails Plymouth Yacht Series.
The Commodore’s Cup was not well supported
last year so we have decided to revert to a previous format with keelboat match racing. The exact details have yet to be finalised but we are
looking to offer match racing for teams of four
over the weekend of 8/9th of August.
Dinghy sailing continues to thrive with a welcome resurgence of the Topper fleet last season. This bodes
well for the Topper Open meeting which we are hosting over the late May Bank holiday. The Tuesday
evening series promises a good cross section of racing with the medium handicap fleet building with several new boats out on the water this year.
The debate on identifying a suitable cruiser handicap system continues. The new RYA progressive handicap scheme, the National Handicap for Cruisers (NHC) was run last year. Whilst most enjoyed their racing the handicaps varied considerably from race to race. This year the intention for Thursday evening
racing is to run a modified NHC system with ratings fixed for a series with adjustments being applied
ready for the next series. PPSA port handicaps will once again be used for the Spring Series and Fowey
weekend. The Sailing Committee wishes you all an enjoyable 2015 season.
Neil Trathen (Rear Commodore, Sailing)
Newsletter Spring 2015
Page 4
Cadets
Another winter of training is nearing its end with none of the drama of high tides and storms we had last
year. Some great news is that ex-cadets, Samantha Gerry and James Torr, have successfully qualified
as Senior Instructors, and a mix of parents and cadets have done brilliantly to qualify (in mid February!) as
dinghy instructors: Beth, Alex, Alice, Matt, James M and Colin. They will all be a great addition to the instructor ranks and should help deliver even better training this year.
We had a great presentation evening with the Mayoress, and it was excellent to see cadet names read
out both for dinghy prizes and for such a wide range of RYA
qualifications. Congratulations to all. A special mention to
Alex Hirst who also qualified as a powerboat instructor, and
to Tamsin Hills and Dani Middleton who have made it onto
the SW Topper Zone Squad.
We will be getting the boats out ready for the new season on
APRIL 17th and our first night on the water is APRIL 24th –
so noise, activity and cheesy chip sales will all be on the up!
We are anticipating a really strong cadet fleet of
toppers racing again this year. There will be of
a wide range of abilities so thank you in advance for your patience as the younger ones
learn. This is the point at which they start to
really get into racing and your support is invaluable to help produce the new zone squad members/Olympic hopefuls or even just flexible foredecks for Thursday racing. We are hoping to
run a number of race training and J24 training
days through the season to hone those skills. I
am also hoping to integrate a number of cadets into yacht racing this year and will look for the continuing
positive support we had for the Ullman Youth Race, which will be July 16 th this year.
Many thanks to all members who contribute to cadets with time and financial support. It remains a really
strong part of the club and has become a respected and appreciated part of the Saltash community. I
know from my travels that we are envied in our success by many from outside and that is down to the
great support of club members.
Please look out in Waitrose for the Cadets green token collection, we should be there throughout April, it’s
a great opportunity for us to refresh the cadet funds while you shop. For those of you linked up to the digital world, you can follow club events, activities and cadet escapades on our Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Saltash-Sailing-Club/139849354377?ref=hl
Mike Robins (Cadet Principal)
Newsletter Spring 2015
Page 5
Cruising Report and Notes
“In the spring, the young man’s fancy lightly turns to thoughts of……antifouling”, or that’s what I think
the quotation said. Well, ours is on, and Albatross is re-launched and on her mooring. The crane-ins
have come and gone, so I have to believe that most are ready for the forthcoming season. So what’s
going to occur?
First, to re-cap. With the benefit of our Club extension and the greatly increased space it affords us, I
decided to broaden the scope of our annual Cruisers Supper and invite the Cruisers friends as well.
More people meant that I had greater flexibility to provide entertainment and so we were honoured to
spend “An EVENING with ELTON JOHN”.
I have to say that I am not normally a huge
fan, but Gary Setterfield looked, sounded and
indeed was, the man himself. The act was
most professional and judging by the numbers
of folk who knew all the words, particularly
the ladies, I’m safe in saying it was well received.
73 of us sat down to supper and that required
just about every table and chair the Club possesses.
It’s at the Cruiser’s Supper that I normally
announce my plans for the season, but last
year, turnout was so poor that I have decided
to ask you what you would like to do first.
That doesn’t mean that I have no ideas, indeed Frankie and I have already done some research.
Although we have been past it many times,
we’ve never called in at “The Smuggler’s
Cottage” at Tolverne. It’s on the River Fal,
past the King Harry Ferry and on the starboard side as the river turns east. They
have a visitor’s pontoon and it was reported
that you can get a pint and a meal, so it
seemed ideal. We called in by road earlier in
the year and have to report that it is closed
and the tenants who have been there for
many years have retired. A new couple have
taken over, but they are establishing a
school and charter business there, so it
doesn’t look like a suitable venue for us anymore. Half a mile further on, just past Ruan Creek is a long pontoon run by Truro.
It’s very peaceful, so this might be an option.
Our late season jaunt to Sutton Harbour always proves popular, so we will repeat that in October, but
with a view to finding the shortest cruise possible, I considered the Royal William Victualing Yard at
Stonehouse. Yes, they do accept visitors, but at £12 for a 4 hour lunchtime stay and £35 for overnight,
it does seem a tad expensive, particularly as there are no facilities, so I’ve kicked that into touch.
Newsletter Spring 2015
Page 6
Cruising Notes continued
I did think that our planned, but impromptu cruise on a Saturday lunchtime had merit and although we
had a good crowd for a pint and pasty, only four boats went to Cawsand/Kingsand. Geoff Evans runs
the Dinghy Cruising Section and I have been speaking to him about a joint venture. Watch this space.
I have often joked about forming a Campervan/Caravan section of the SSC, with so many members
branching in that direction, and perhaps there’s some mileage in this.
We called in at Penmarlam a few weeks ago. For those who don’t know, it’s a small “marina” operated
by the Fowey HC up at Mixtow, past the Bodinnick Ferry
and opposite the China Clay wharfs. You can walk ashore
to the showers etc. and there is a café on site. At the top of
the hill is a caravan site which accepts tourers and you can
walk across the field to the “Ferry Pub” at Bodinnick. Get
the idea? The caravan site is not open yet, but I will talk to
them and FHC about a “sea and land” get together.
As usual, April brings the “Spring Series” and on each of the
4 Saturdays there will be racing in the Sound and a party
with live music following, kicking off about 18.00hrs. We’ll
be there as “Albatross” is to be the Committee boat again,
but come and join in, it’s great fun and the Racers don’t
bite, well, not much anyway!
Of course, Fowey’s Regatta will be taking place as usual about the third week in August and whatever I
do, there is bound to be good support from the SSC.
Now I want some feedback. Please let me know what sort of cruise you
would subscribe to.
Should it be only at weekends or would mid-week be popular? Should
we take into account children and visit beaches? Is visiting a club/
restaurant popular, or too expensive, or should we have more barbeques? How far should we go? Locally, one, two or three days sail, or
across the channel. I say sail, but even motor boats are welcome.
What’s your favourite venue?
Please drop me a line at [email protected]
Let’s all hope for plenty of sunshine and a force 3 to 4 on the beam!
Mike Barrett (Cruising Secretary)
Jazz News! Home from the MED
Follow this link to read about Norman Curnow’s exploits as a
renowned long-distance cruiser in his J36, Jazz
http://jboatnews.blogspot.com/2014/11/j36-cruising-frommediterranean-to.html
Newsletter Spring 2015
Page 7
Motor boating on the French Inland waterways Part 2.
The Canals Lateral Loire and Nivernais
The following spring we returned to France by car
using the Portsmouth to Le Havre ferry, taking our
very good friends John and Monica with us. We were
pleased to find Perseverance had over wintered well
and only required a few hours washing and cleaning
the exterior to bring her back into commission. I
could not understand how her bottom was so clean
having been afloat now for 12 months. Apparently
there are a lot of catfish in the water and they feed on
the weed forming on boat hulls. A much cheaper option than overpriced antifouling!
Our plan was to keep going south, join the Canal Lateral Loire as far as Decize, then cross the Loire
River to pick up the Canal Nivernais which would take us back North to Auxerre. The River Yonne continues northwards and eventually joins the Seine above St Mammes completing a circuit in central
France of 350 miles and 250 Locks. John and Monica would be with us as far as Nevers where they
would take the train back to Paris before flying home.
We showed our friends around the area and visited Guedelon, a government sponsored project to build
a medieval castle as it would have been built in the period. This proved to be very interesting as all the
work was being carried out in an authentic manner. Quarrying/ stone cutting/ moving the prepared
stones in reproduction horse-drawn tipping carts. The cut stones were then raised using a human squirrel wheel type crane before bedding in with traditional lime mortar made on site. The project also provides compulsory work for offenders. Why can’t we do something like that in England?
One Day a very old Naval Dockyard 52ft pinnace built in 1931 arrived at Rogny. It was in very poor
condition and the owner, a young chap called Adrian, told me he had bought it further south in France
and was trying to get it back to England. He had apparently pulled it with a rope further than it had travelled under power to reach Rogny. The boat was fitted with a Foden 2 stroke diesel engine that kept on
breaking down. With the help of the boat yard engineer, Adrian set of again under power. I often wonder if he ever managed to get the boat back to England as it was in dreadful condition. I certainly would
not have ventured to sea in it.
Leaving the ancient seven locks behind, we made our way to Briare, a day’s travel from Rogny. Here
the original canal drops down into the town of Briare where the lower basin beside the Loire now acts as
a popular mooring. Originally, boats wishing to gain access to the Canal Lateral Loire would have to
lock out into the River, and lock in again three miles upstream on the opposite bank, to continue their
passage. This was very unsatisfactory as the Loire was either in flood or almost dry in drought conditions. To overcome this problem an aqueduct was built. Opened in 1897, and at 623 metres, it is the
longest aqueduct in Europe. This crosses the Loire and joins the two canals. Much safer for the barges
and time saving when the river was not navigable. Mr Eiffel of Eiffel Tower fame was involved in the
construction. Typical of the period, it is very ornate with cast iron Viking type ships at each end of the
bridge and elaborate cast iron lamps lighting the way across. Briare offers a good selection of shops
and restaurants, fuel is also available at the lower lock and, very important for crew changes, it has a
main line railway station. The town organises a very good firework display the night before Bastille Day.
We managed to see this two years running. The waterway network is closed on Bastille Day so once
there, it is a 2 day stop at least.
Article continues ...
Newsletter Spring 2015
Page 8
Leaving Briare we climbed the short section to the junction with the "new route” where we turned to starboard
and shortly reached the ornate crossing. Boats cross on
a first come claims right of way basis, so if the bridge is
occupied, some hasty backing up is needed! After
crossing, we were in the Canal Lateral Loire. Passing
through Chatillon sur Loire we enjoyed a free night’s
stopover at Beaulieu. After an easy run with very few
locks we entered the Sancerre wine producing district.
An enterprising lock keeper at lock number 36 held a
good selection of this superior quality wine and was very
quick to offer his stock at a competitive price. Perseverance’s wine store was quickly topped up before pressing
on to the Port of St Thibault, a quiet branch off the main
canal which at one time had access to the Loire. A lot of
the port was occupied with live-aboards and a sad selection of unloved, no longer used boats. The dock master was very friendly, he found us a berth close to the
facilities and he offered to drive us up the hill into Sancerre the following morning.
We took up his offer and enjoyed the fine views from
this hilltop town over acres of vines. The Sancerre group
of wine growers has an excellent museum here devoted
to the history of Sancerre wines. John and Monica were
with us and we agreed to separate and meet up again
later at the bottom of the hill in St Satur's supermarket.
Unfortunately unbeknown to us there are two supermarkets in St Satur. John and Monica found one and Verona and I found the other! After much confusion we did all
meet up back at the boat some hours later.
Our route took us through Marseilles les Aubigny to
Guelin where a 9.2 metre lock raised us onto another
aqueduct crossing the River Allier. Shortly after, a short
branch off to port leads to the large basin and marina in
Nevers where our friends caught the train back to Paris
after a very enjoyable time with us. Without our extra
crew we headed off again for Decize. On reaching St
Maurice we activated the automatic sequence of locks
to drop down into the Loire. The river was very high with
a strong current flowing due to flood water. However, we
negotiated this tricky part of the journey without mishap.
The turn to starboard into the Nivernais Canal is just
above the huge barrage at St Leger des Vignes. The
thought of being swept over the top of the dam is a bit
unnerving! I did have the anchor ready to drop, an engine failure or fouled prop here would have been catastrophic. The passage closed the following day for a
week as the river rose even more causing the bouyage
to be submerged.
We locked into the Nivernais and found an excellent
mooring at St Leger town quay. Water and electricity
alongside, a choice of two supermarkets within easy
walking distance and a main line train station to pick up
our next couple of friends crewing for the next leg.
The barrage at St Leger des Vignes
Newsletter Spring 2015
Page 9
Cruising the Canals in France cont...
We were moored between a family from Birmingham and a Cockney both of whom had opted for the
water gypsy lifestyle. After a few days I asked our new found friend from Brum about paying mooring
dues as nobody had been around. Much to my surprise he told me there is no set charge it’s up to individuals to go to the Marie and make a donation to the Mayors charity fund! We did this the following
day so we could stay a little longer without having a guilty conscience. Close by was a sign post to a
town called La Machine. This fascinated me, so we went there one day. It seemed to be a mining
town but we were unable to find out why it was so named.
Our friends another John and his partner Sylvia arrived by train at 1500hrs later in the week. They had
left Exeter airport at 0800 UK time and taken the train
from Paris to us. Even allowing for the time difference
they had made very good time. The Nivernais has
been restored and reopened purely for tourism .There
is no commercial barge traffic on it. It is a beautiful
waterway, initially passing through lovely lush water
meadows full of white charolais cattle. In fact there is
a small village called "Champvert" (Green fields). I
have never known a place so aptly named. The Nivernais climbs out of the Loire valley to a summit
where there is a lake and short tunnel before dropCanal du Nivenais, Ecluse de Roche
ping down again to the ancient town of Clamecy. On
this part of our trip fresh bread and croissants were
delivered by a van driving along the tow path announcing his arrival with much horn blowing! We overnighted at the summit boatyard and booked a passage through the tunnel for 1000hrs the following
morning. The tunnel is single line working controlled by a traffic light operator. On leaving the tunnel a
lock keeper assists passage down the multiple lock system, dropping steeply down the other side of the
hill through beautiful wooded countryside.
Clamecy is home to the early balloonist Andre Giroud de Villett who made
an ascent in 1783; it was also home to yacht racing ace Alain Colas who
was unfortunately lost at sea while competing in the Route de Rhum sailing event. There is a sports field named after him here and his relatives
run an excellent porcelain shop next to the Town Bridge and lock.
Clamency was also noted for its Flotteurs. Years ago timber would have
been cut from the forests and the Flotteurs would float it all the way to
Paris for firewood. A large statue is erected on the town bridge showing a
typical Flotteur with his long handled spiked stick to coax the timber along
on the long journey.
John and Sylvia caught the train back to Paris from here and Barry and
Fiona, two more friends, joined us for the leg to Auxerre. An interesting
overnight stop was at the Caves Bailly Lapierre. This was once a huge
underground quarry creating a network of caves. The stone was used for
buildings in Paris. Now used as a wine store and 5 million bottles of wine
are stored at any one time! The complex is high enough for motor coaches bringing tourists to view this spectacle to off load and park inside the
cavern! It was near here we passed through the best decorated lock we
saw. The eclusiers go to great lengths to make their lock the most attractive. This particular lock was exceptionally good with an old decorated
tipping farm cart spewing flowers out to represent tipping the load.
Article continues
Newsletter Spring 2015
Our next major Port of call was Auxerre with its huge
Cathedral dominating the waterfront. It has the advantage of the best boat yard we came across in the
Waterway network. Run by a Dutchman, "Aquarelle”
was very well organised, being agents for Linssen steel
motor cruisers and a fine selection of these very fine
vessels adorned the waterfront. Out of our league I am
sorry to say! Auxerre proved to be an interesting old
town with many old houses some with ornate carved
beams. The town also has an interesting arch with a
fancy town clock plus recent additions of fibreglass colourful street art.
Page 10
Auxerre cathedral and
waterfront
It is was very noticeable in France that, compared to England, the efforts the local authorities go to in
providing sports complexes and playing fields for even the smallest settlements . Also, there are a
number of free facilities provided for overnight berthing to encourage boating people to use the a town’s
facilities.
We were now on our own and about to tackle the awkward sloping sides of the locks on the River
Yonne which took us back to the Seine above St Mammes. Here we joined our previous route completing the circle. Perseverance then returned to the boatyard at Rogny where we had left our vehicle. After
closing her down for the winter we returned home. The following spring we travelled again by car and
prepared to set off once more. Unfortunately many of the rivers were in flood restricting movement until
the flood waters dropped.
Another ambition of mine
was to visit The French
National Motor Museum
in Mulhouse originally
started by the brothers
Schlumpf. So we took
the opportunity and
drove down for a visit
while the rivers were in
flood. We were not disappointed; the museum
holds an amazing collection of veteran and vintage cars and grand prix
racers.
By the time we returned, the waters had settled and my daughter Catherine and husband Steve arrived
with Dan our grandson to experience living afloat. Dan was only 4yrs old at the time but he loved it, pulling on ropes and sitting on my lap steering. Before they travelled home, we all enjoyed Disneyland Paris together.
After spending a few more weeks pottering around and entertaining Verona’s brother Jeff and his wife
Val, we decided to start to make our way homewards. We retraced our steps via the upper Seine to Paris and on to Conflans St Honorine where we made a short journey up the River Ouise to Port Cergy, a
fine marina type complex with shops and restaurants.
We could not resist stop at Vernonette and another visit to Giverny. While here I changed the engine oil
and filter and fitted new primary and secondary fuel filters as we would shortly be going out to sea.
Newsletter Spring 2015
Page 11
On arrival at Rouen we were surprised to find a tall ships festival in full swing. The Armada, as it was
called, was well supported with a very good selection of vessels. Our Royal Navy were in attendance
with a frigate. We met some of the young ratings on a run ashore later. My comment that they had
done well to bring such a big ship so far inland was not altogether appreciated!
An overnight stop at Honfleur saw us out to sea making a 22 mile trip to Ouistreham. Here we caught a
bus and trains back to Central France to recover our motor car. Luckily we met another English couple
who were leaving their boat at Ouistreham and returning home on foot by ferry. They were delighted to
be able take our car with all their gear home. I arranged to collect it from them at some time in the future. To vary our ports of call from the outward leg our next stop over was at St Vaast, before rounding
Cap Barfleur and making a 50 mile passage to Alderney.
Unfortunately the weather closed in overnight and we were stuck for a few days in Alderney waiting for
suitable conditions to cross the Channel. After a rough crossing we were pleased to enjoy a good
night’s sleep in the Bag at Salcombe before the short passage home to the Tamar.
I had fulfilled my lifelong ambition and explored some of the many miles of beautiful French Inland Waterways. Over three summers we had covered 1467 miles with average fuel consumption for the whole
trip of 4 litres per hour. Perseverance had proved to be very comfortable for long term living aboard and
served us well mechanically. The only problems experienced were a burst water hose where the domestic hot water feed joined the calorifier and a broken circlip on the marine toilet pump shaft.
I have been a small boat sailor for over 50yrs but this trip will always be looked on as our
‘Great Adventure’.
Alan Davis (with Verona)
RNLI NEWS
Thanks once again to the hospitality of the renowned
Saltash Sailing Club, the local branch of the RNLI fund
raising group have had a very successful year. Last autumn at the club, we hosted a ladies night where Councillor Sue Hooper gave an interesting presentation of
the life and times of Maya Angelou. We were also entertained that evening by Florence Bonner her granddaughter singing.
In December we took advantage of the monthly Ladies Ashore meeting and provided a small buffet
lunch which was well attended and enjoyed. We also did well on the Christmas card sales tables during
the autumn; and over Christmas we were very happy to receive 50% of the proceeds from the Boxing
Day auction, so entertainingly procured by Frank Ellwood and Dave Oliver, from the gathered throngs
who had enjoyed the car rally and treasure hunt.
In January we hosted our usual quiz night which was lots of fun. Quiz master Mike Hughes kept his
cool and kept us on our toes. The Bardwell-Jones and Oliver’s team took the honours by one point…….
AND the winner’s bottles of wine. Also in January we had another regular event - the SOS event –
Share our Soup and fed 90 people with lovely homemade soup and rolls.
We have had a couple of coffee mornings in club members houses and helped to top up the RNLI
coffers. This month we hosted a very successful skittles evening at the Westward Inn at Lee Mill, where
quite a few sailing club members supported the event.
RNLI news continues on Page 12
Newsletter Spring 2015
Page 12
Word Spiral Number 5 - a quick (?) brain teaser!
1
2
3
9
10
14
15
8
Starting from 1, fill in the grid in a clockwise
direction with four-letter words. The clues appear below and the last letter of each word
becomes the first letter of the next.
11
4
A seven-letter key word in the shaded boxes
will be revealed.
16
13
7
Keyword clue: Where a boat is kept
12
6
5
Answers appear on Page 14.
1. Bucket
9. E-mails not wanted
2. Part of a chain
10. Miserly
3. Monarch
11. Wanted
4. Medal
12. Information
5. Popular sport
13. Absent without leave
6. Found in the sea
14. Bread
7. To cause an injury
15. Speak as ye should ...
8. Red planet
16. Portal
RNLI News continued
Our next gathering will be a cream tea afternoon at the home of Sylvia and Bill Caldwell, Castle
View Farm, Burraton Coombe on Friday 8th May from 2.30 – 4.30pm. Do come along and enjoy
the scrummy cakes and scones.
If anyone would like to host something similar, please contact any of the committee, or even
come and join the committee. You would be most welcome.
Another large event that we are planning at the moment is a “Sunday Splash” in the garden of exCommodore Alan and Verona Davis at Coombeview, Harrowbarrow. PL17 8JQ They have a lovely property overlooking the Tamar Valley and have a pool in the garden. So from 12 noon on Sunday 7th June, there will be a BBQ, a bar, live music, model yacht racing on the pool plus if the
weather is kind – bring your cosies and enjoy a swim. Lots of other garden activities are also being planned so watch out for posters and tickets which will be available shortly from committee
members. Entry will be £2 for adults and £1 for children.
As you can see the RNLI committee keep busy raising funds, providing fun and having fun themselves with the help of Saltash Sailing Club. So many thanks to you all for your continued support.
Angie Payne-Hanlon (Chairman, Saltash Branch RNLI)
Newsletter Spring 2015
Page 13
Rags or Revs?
To my fellow sailors and boating enthusiasts, I felt so inclined to put pen to paper and
write a piece that some may find slightly amusing, you may even relate to my plight
and some may just find it plain insulting!
As a relatively new member of the club, I have spent many an hour frequenting the bar
and sitting in contemplation at the season ahead or the drowning my sorrows after a
trip that gave the usual teething problems following the acquisition of my latest project.
It is now the second season and this gets easier with increased familiarity and having
replaced most serviceable parts at great expense and much cursing. Now that’s
enough moaning…. Phil, get to the point!
My subject matter is about ‘’what really makes a sailor accepted?’’ Many believe a
‘mast’ differentiates a sailor and any other craft must surely mean you are a caravan
lover? That’s not to say that I like caravanning but instead have chosen the route of a
motor cruiser …of sorts. Many a time, as a’ ropes and rags’ man, I have thrown my
purist tendencies aside by starting the engine seeking a sheltered hideaway from the
inevitable August depression that we always seem to face?
So are we too hard on the engine lover?
Take into account the kids and the long suffering wife, who we desperately try to convert to our way of thinking. We Shanghai them aboard at the first available opportunity
at the end of the working week and the compromise seems to be finding some allround solution that moderately pleases all crew members. So, was I full of dread at the
thought of losing my mast? Yes I was! However, I say, don’t underestimate it when
you have the ability to get in to safe harbour before dark, whilst your purist friends
struggle in witnessing you
enjoying your second ‘nip’ of
the evening. Moreover, the
wife and kids seem to be
surprisingly keen to venture
out again with the shelter of
the wheelhouse and spacious accommodation. Is
Dad happy? Well of course,
I am on the water, and we
are all looking forward to a
happy and sunny 2015 summer on-board!
Answers on a postcard!
Phil Warne
Newsletter Spring 2015
Page 14
Moorings
There has been a small run on members either retiring from sailing or relinquishing their need for a
mooring and so we have some vacant moorings for newcomers requiring swinging or trot moorings
both above and below the bridges.
The Winter surveys of the moorings have been progressed well with Diving Belle able to undertake the
work more quickly than last year because of the better weather. Their tri-annual replacement schedule
means that we are expecting a lower bill for our Henn Point moorings with only a couple of buoys requiring replacement.
Nick Grenny was also progressing well ... until on the
evening of 14th Feb his barge sank. His immediate
efforts to refloat it were complicated by the fact that it
was attached to the mooring he was surveying previously that day. Eventually he was successful by cutting it free underwater, and then suspending it under
another barge to get it back to Torpoint where he was
able to right it and recover his equipment. He then
decided to use the other barge to re-build his rig so
he could get back to undertaking the maintenance in
time for our first crane in. The priority being the repositioning of the Golden pond trots which have been
creeping out into the river over a period of time. After
a phenomenal effort, he managed to get this done
with 24hrs to spare!!
Jeremy Stevenson (Moorings Officer)
Word Spiral Answers:
1. Pail; 2. Link; 3. King; 4. Gong; 5. Golf; 6. Fish; 7. Harm; 8. Mars;
9. Spam; 10. Mean; 11. Need; 12. Data; 13. AWOL; 14. Loaf; 15. Find; 16. Door.
Keyword: Mooring
Newsletter Spring 2015
Page 15
And now for something completely different!
When my brother suggested we go dog sledding up in the Artic Circle I thought no way, but after seeing
the Ben Fogle TV programme, I agreed to go. It turned out to be an enjoyable and a completely different
experience.
We flew up to Kiruna, the most Northerly town in Sweden and well into
the Arctic Circle. There we met Gaynor of Voyage Active; Gaynor was a
‘high flyer’ in London but wanted a lifestyle change and with her husband, who is a keen dog racer, now offers the opportunity of ‘mushing’ a
dog team across the frozen lakes and hills.
There were 9 of us trying it out and we were each given 4 dogs to look
after for the 3 days. After being given a short introduction, we set off in a
convoy, over some 25 kilometres to a musher’s hut further North. The
dogs were very keen to run and the main problem was how to slow them
down – there is a brake and you have to keep your foot on this most of
the time!
The temperature whilst we were there was mild! in that it only fell to -15
deg C. But it can go a low as -25 to
-30 (plus a wind chill factor ) and
some of the dogs were sleeping out.
We were lucky enough also to see the Northern Lights – quite
spectacular, but not as it looks on the photos you see.
We also went to the Ice
Hotel a marvelous work of
art with some fantastic ice
sculptures in each of the
bedrooms.
All in all, a very enjoyable few days and something completely
different to sailing!
Derek Prickett
Newsletter Spring 2015
On Sunday 14 June the Jester Challenge will start its biennial trip to Baltimore in Ireland (and as per the Sailing Instructions leaving Draystone, Bishops Rock and Fastnet
Rock to starboard). Our sister club Tamar River Sailing
Club is again hosting the event and the Jester Challengers
will arrive in the week leading up to the 12/13/14 June.
Saltash Sailing Club will have an entrant - Sixpence, one of
the four Ballads in the club and her skipper Chris Jackson
who took part in the 2013 Baltimore Challenge (and the
Jester Challenge in 2010 to Newport RI) although 6 weeks
after the main fleet such are the flexible rules (there are
none) of the Jester Challenge. With any luck there will be a
bit more to say in the Autumn Newsletter."
Chris Jackson
A photo of the newly formed
SSC Gardening Club
working hard at the Old Gasworks Site.
More members are welcome
for these invigorating outdoor
events and no additional membership fee is required!
Page 16
Newsletter Spring 2015
Page 17
The Focke Wulf 190A-8 Warbird Project; a sailor involved in flying!
I have a friend in Sweden whom I have known since 1982, after I met his father at the TT races in the Isle
of Man. Carl-Olof is now a retired airline captain who worked for “Scandinavian Air Systems” (SAS). His
beautiful daughter is now also an airline captain. Carl-Olof (his Christian name), has visited various model
flying sites with me over the years and sometimes “has a go” at flying a model using a buddy lead.
He is NO model pilot, and I am NO airline pilot, but we appreciate each other’s skills…. and a good pint !!
His Son-in-Law is also an airline pilot and happens to have a 25% share in this full size, rebuilt, WWII Focke-Wulf 190A-8 currently being
prepared for it’s first flight since 1945.
Earlier this year, I acquired an ST Models, electric powered “foamie” version of the FW 190A, with a view to
re-creating the same aircraft, but to one tenth scale. Although it was an allegedly a RTF (ready to fly) model, I had to double-check and modify and adjust almost everything, especially all the fittings and control
movements.
The ST Models FW190A, as supplied by Ripmax, can fly reasonably well but are very sensitive and have a
tendency to rip the undercarriage out of the wings when nosing-over on landing. This is due to the sprung
undercarriage legs compressing below the level of the undercarriage doors and catching on the ground!
This is easily cured by removing the original soft metal weak internal springs and replacing them with better
quality external springs which become coil bound at the limit of the linkage travel. Also, extra clearance is
achieved by removing 8mm from the lower edges of the undercarriage doors to prevent contact with terrafirma.
Waiting for take-off clearance
As two of the plastic retainers that hold the control linkages
onto the servo horns, dropped off when static testing, I replaced ALL SEVEN with similar metal rod fittings with the
nuts secured using “loctite”.
The rudder, elevator, and aileron horn linkages were all
moved to the inner holes on each servo arm to reduce the
control surface movements, which also reduce the loadings
on the servo motors.
The Flaps mechanism was carefully adjusted to give the
correct 60 degrees of down movement at the point of maximum servo leverage. The scale retractable undercarriage
mechanism was also carefully adjusted to maximise the servo leverage at each end of the retract cycle.
The Ailerons were adjusted to give 3 millimetres UP on each wing at the neutral position to provide “washout” at each wing tip, which also provides mechanical “aileron differential” to avoid any adverse yaw !!
All control rods, wires, and linkages were lightly lubricated with PTFE oil, as well as the wheel axles.
Newsletter Spring 2015
Page 18
Flying is just like sailing! - or at least, there are similar skills
As I wanted to use the same “Overlander” 2200 Mah 60C 3S Lipos, which power my similar sized Mk XXIV
Spitfire, I fabricated a “miralite” plywood tray to secure the battery under the fuselage hatch. This meant turning the rudder servo around to provide more clearance for the servo arm, and fitting the tray between the servo mounting plate and the motor mounting plate at a 30 degree downwards angle, towards the cockpit. This
was glued in place using epoxy, which also stiffened up the motor mount and the front part of the fuselage.
The standard propeller and spinner components were all very carefully balanced, painted, and re-balanced
again. The standard 1000 Kv motor, propeller, and the Ripmax 40 amp Electronic Speed controller (ESC)
were all carefully tested to check the maximum current used and the voltage drop at various speed settings.
The standard 10” x 6” scale profile, three blade propeller draws 30 amps at full power on a freshly charged
3S 60C Lipo. At half throttle (cruise power) the motor only draws about14 amps.
A slightly larger 11” x 6” three blade propeller draws 33 amps at full power and 16 amps at half power.
Most of the original detail stickers were removed, in order to re-spray the camouflage and hand paint the correct detail. Matching the camouflage paint was a nightmare! I wish the model manufacturers would use standard colours or market their own. But, as most wartime aircraft differed as to the exact shades of camouflage
used due to paint availability, it is quite difficult to get it completely wrong!
My Leccie “Swedish” version has now had
six flights to date, with no damage. Each
flight had a test flight plan to optimise all the
mechanical and transmitter rates, exponential and mixing adjustments, AND make it
easy to land when using full flaps………so
far so good! Its aerobatics are most pleasing and realistic to fly, with no nasty vices.
The FW 190A now flies in a very similar
manner to my much modified “Durafly” Mk
XXIV Spitfire.
Its a close match to the full size version
Both models use the same “Overlander”
3S, 60C, 2200Mah Lipo batteries, which
supply more voltage for longer periods,
than standard 25C Lipo’s without them becoming too hot due to the high currents
used. They are also 15gms heavier, which
is preferred to using lead to achieve the
optimum Centre of Gravity!
This model has now had over 17 flights to date. It is now easy and most realistic to fly and landings on full
flap are rock steady with 20% power ON until touchdown. It is aerodynamically very neutral in all control
axes with the ability to perform all aerobatics flown by the original aircraft. I had a problem with the plastic
undercarriage fittings twisting on the carbon fibre coated, steel undercarriage legs after the first couple of
landings. This was due to them being glued together with cyno-acetate adhesive in the "as purchased"
state. Nothing was broken in the one nose-over on landing when a wheel dropped into a small hole in the
grass flying patch.
The fix was to strip down both undercarriage assemblies and the glued areas were roughed up and rebonded using slow setting "ARALDITE" epoxy adhesive, and re-painted. Both undercarriage legs are now
working much better with external springs fitted, with the wheel fairings cut back a further 2mm to avoid
catching the vegetation when landing on grass! No further modifications or adjustments to the FW 190 are
envisaged, other than to set up the Multiplex training "stick" and dual control "buddy" transmitter with this,
and my Spitfire XXIV, so that others may experience flying them.
For those interested in reading more, follow this link:
http://www.forcedlandingcollection.se/LWe/LW141-Fw190.html
Nigel Rollason (Hon.Sec. Exeter & District Radio Control Club)
Newsletter Spring 2015
Saltash Sailing Club
Page 19
‘A multi-faceted, vibrant, thriving sailing club
situated on the Cornish banks of the River Tamar, just south of the Tamar
Bridge and the iconic Brunel Railway Bridge’
The Club has good launching facilities and its pontoon is accessible at all states of
the tide. It caters for all — yacht racing, dinghy racing, cruising; has a very active
cadet section and plenty of social activities.
___________________________________________________________
Name the lighthouses:
Saltash Sailing Club
Tamar Street,
Saltash, Cornwall,
The lighthouses featured in the Autumn 2014 Newsletter were, The Eddystone,
which you all probably recognised. The other one may be familiar to those who have
ventured to the Morbihan in southern Brittany. It was the Teignouse light off the Quiberon peninsula.
For this edition, the two lighthouses featured below have a ‘connection’ and will be
familiar to those club members who have participated in a famous 600+ mile race.
PL12 4EL
Telephone: 01752
845988
Fax: 01752 848166
Website:
www.saltashsailingclub.
co.uk
Light characteristics are:
e-mail:
Fl 5s 49m 27M (above) and
enquiries@
Fl(2) 15s 44m 20M (right)
____________________________________________________________________
_
saltashsailingclub.co.uk
Editorial SSC Newsletter Spring 2015
Newsletter designed,
edited and published
by Peter Sims with
the aid of Microsoft
Publisher.
As I mentioned in the autumn 2014 Newsletter, now is the time for a change! The
newsletter needs to move on and this can best be achieved by a new format and
approach which implies a change of compiler/editor. I’ve had a minimal response to
my request for ‘new blood’ and this may regretfully mean that the Newsletter will not
be published for a while. I personally feel this would be a pity as producing it is not
that onerous, and the skills required are not exceptional!
So, come on, have faith in yourself and offer your services to keep the Newsletter
going. You might even find it enjoyable!
Either contact me, the Commodore or the Club Administrator and we will facilitate a
smooth hand-over. No CV is required, just a willingness to take it on.
As always, a big thank you to all of the contributors of material in this edition. There’s
the usual mixture of reports and feature articles, some of which give an indication of
other things Club members are involved with.
Peter Sims
__________________________________________________________________