Guadalcanal, January 1945 A yacht club was formed about two months ago and quite a number of the boys have spent all their spare time and a lot of the Air Force’s too on building boats. Nothing can be bought here so it is just common sense that all the material from mahogany plywood to calico sails has been donated (?) by the tax payers of N.Z. The official opening was held at Tui Rest Camp and about eight boats were ready for the water. There are about eight more almost completed. The whole affair was very well organised and…
Author: Gavin Pascoe
The chances are that if you ask anyone in the world to name a famous yacht race, it will be the Sydney to Hobart. Alongside the Fastnet race, it carries a certain cachet that all racing people think at some time in their life, they’ll like to have a crack at it. It’s enough to be able to say “I have been there” to make others sit up and take notice. The list of our sailors who have participated as crew is far too large to contemplate, however, we can consider some of the boats, which itself is a considerable…
I first met Nigel about 20 years ago when I moved into the shed next door to his. He owned the beautiful 16-foot Spitsgatter, Saga, moored on the inner row next to my boat Shemara. We would spend a lot of time talking boats and poring over the latest issue of Woodenboat, lines plans, and discussing (mostly me listening) the pros and cons of building techniques, hull shapes, and local lore. I remember his sparkling blue eyes which seemed to see into vistas broad and deep. His manner wasn’t shy or reticent, but sometimes he had a look about him…
Pork Chop was purchased in February with expectations that we would sail her to Wellington within a couple of weeks. Cyclone Gabrielle put paid to that, with reports of rafts of slash floating around the coast of Gisborne and Napier. However, this provided time to prep the boat for the trip, we undertook an extensive review of all the gear and systems and ensured we had spares, charts and good food. We finally got a weather window and set off on the 6th of May. Karl Mabitt, Philip Taylor, Mark Waters and myself left Tauranga at 1.20pm on the Friday…
For many years we had raced Flying Machine in the Port Nich Y88 fleet, and then moved to a bigger boat when we bought Xanadu II, a round bilge Spencer 40. She had always been a Wellington boat, and held the Wellington Akaroa record for many years until Chain Reaction, an Elliot 1050, took it off her. So she is a good sea boat with few vices, a moderate rig and an easily driven hull. And so, I started to look for more sailing challenges, and ended up taking her around the North Island twice and the South Island once.…
Some readers may recall the incident at Pt Jerningham about 15 years ago when Esprit, a Beale 9m which admittedly tended to sail bow down, decided to bury her nose into a wave, and well, just keep on going. For a moment there all that could be seen above water was the mast as water poured through the forehatch. Luckily there was enough reserve buoyancy for her to come back up with no loss of life or limb. This incident is one of many in an area which gives me the creeps. Here’s why: Many years ago, on a northerly…
There were five Freyberg brothers, three in particular stand out as swimmers, yachtsmen, and fighters. One, Lord Freyberg, was an honorary life member of the RPNCY. This is their story.
Minutes of the Port Nicholson Yacht Club state that out of a membership of 130 in 1917, 54 members were away at war. They include Kenneth Cole, owner of the Ethel, a good looking chap with a taste for ladies of easy leisure, who after the Samoa campaign of 1914 was sent to France where he won the Military Medal. He was killed in action at the Somme in 1918. Also Colonel J. J. Esson (Wylo), mentioned in dispatches from Gallipoli, invalided back to NZ in 1916. Some, like Rifleman Keith Mitchell (Nancy Stair), who spent three years in the…
When I got up Friday morning I checked in on the wind forecast and saw that it was northerly with gusts expected up to 25 knots. This bodes well I thought, if the breeze stays in, with any luck the committee will give us a blat to Somes Island and back. Not only will we finish the race, but we’ll be in with a shot for the rum. And that’s how it turned out, more or less. The wind backed off a bit, but I’d picked the course. Yay for me. My boat is Oyster, a cruising yawl built by…
Lizzie was built in 1909 in Balaena Bay here in Wellington. Somewhat later I grew up above Weka Bay one bay south of Balaena Bay, with a view out over Balaena, Evans Bay and the harbour. Our family had Ruawaka a 41 ft yacht moored in the boat harbour, that had been a top boat in the 50’s before my time. As a young fella I hung out at the boat harbour with my father, between day sails cruising on the harbour in the weekend and down the sounds in the summer with family. Later more sailing beckoned crewing on…