All our yesterdays

[zoidberg]

There's much I miss of last century's way of going sailing..... Sitting in a group-huddle around a crackling longwave receiver, tuned in to 'Sailing By', then the team sport of "Did anyone get that bit...?" Over-frying the sausages and beans in the hope no-one notices the faint taste of paraffin.... Rolling like a pig in Baleine Bay/Sark again, sitting in the driving rain, again, while on anchor watch, again, half the night, again, hoping the old Danforth will not drag, again..... The deck-leaks always right above your sleeping face.... Peering through the half-dawn drizzle, trying to make out which part of the Devon coast was just ahead - or was it Cornwall....

And I miss the regular doses of canny east coast humour from the likes of Mike Peyton....

A little tale, or 'dit'....

He was signing his books, sat at a small table in the YBW marquee, at an ExCeL Boat Show. I was sat opposite him. He opened the book of his cartoons he was signing for me at the above 'toon. A few yards behind him stood a gaggle of YBW Editors.... He silently 'eye-pointed' to the cartoon and the character spot-lit by the torch, then rolled his eyes 'over his shoulder'. I followed his indication, to recognise the prominent profile of Andrew Bray, YM Editor for many years..... and his caricature on the page.

"See if you can spot any others," he smiled quietly, handing the now-closed book to me.

 

[capnsensible]

Ships were wood and men were steel.

I recently found my original RYA logbook. The entries start in 1971.......

Yellow wellies and bobble hats, anyone?

 

[zoidberg]

Ships were wood and men were steel. I recently found my original RYA logbook. The entries start in 1971....... Yellow wellies and bobble hats, anyone?

So did mine..... and I have a 'gifted' yellow oilcloth so'wester which I still haul out, on occasion, just to underscore the role-playing..... 2B pencils, brass singlehanded dividers, a dog-eared copy of Burton's Tables, with a dedication in the flyleaf from the man hi'self..... Boy, do I get some 'rolled eyes'!

 

[johnalison]

Leaving the children outside the pub with a packet of crisps to keep them quiet. 'Oilies' that necessitated thick woollen layers to keep one warm and scarves to keep dry, ish. Sailing up to every buoy in the Thames Estuary to read the name or number. Changing jibs endlessly, at some unspecifiable site in the North Sea. Watching some massive great 28ft yacht glide effortlessly past while we pitched into every wave. At least the Romford navy could muster no more than three or four water-skiers.

 

[sarabande]

Pah, all this modern technology...

My first boat was an Eastbourne Penguin, copper-clenched, varnished with boiled linseed oil which went sticky in the sunshine, cotton sails (Egyptian - posh !) with manilla sheets, nary a bit of stainless steel on board. And nearly all the club boats had small inset compasses painted Admiralty grey and with the broad arrow of His Majesty's Royal Navy. Buoyancy was much patched tyre tubes, and the LJs were solid cork or kapok if you were rich.
And the boats were winched up the beach by hand on large greased planks called "trows"; power provided by handturning a huge windlass with a galvanised wire rope and a jute heart that had to be kept oiled.

 

[dslittle]

Ships were wood and men were steel.

I recently found my original RYA logbook. The entries start in 1971.......

Yellow wellies and bobble hats, anyone?

Didn’t the papyrus get wet and spoil???

 

[capnsensible]

Didn’t the papyrus get wet and spoil???

Chislled into stone tablets so you could wipe the blood of complaining crew off with their hair.

 

[Barnacle Bill]

I followed his indication, to recognise the prominent profile of Andrew Bray, YM Editor for many years..... and his caricature on the page.

"See if you can spot any others," he smiled quietly, handing the now-closed book to me.

What a lovely story.

 

[AntarcticPilot]

Leaving the children outside the pub with a packet of crisps to keep them quiet. 'Oilies' that necessitated thick woollen layers to keep one warm and scarves to keep dry, ish. Sailing up to every buoy in the Thames Estuary to read the name or number. Changing jibs endlessly, at some unspecifiable site in the North Sea. Watching some massive great 28ft yacht glide effortlessly past while we pitched into every wave. At least the Romford navy could muster no more than three or four water-skiers.

Crikey, you must be old - I WAS one of the children outside the pub (Britvic pineapple juice for us!), and I am a pensioner!The pub was the one at South Ferriby...

But I do recall that my dad's first boat didn't even have a depth-sounder, and the engine was a Thorneycroft Handy Billy. The second had a Seafarer depth sounder!

 

[Piddy]

Hmmm... Parents started with a 'cruiser' of 18' - a gaff rigged West Highland sloop. Freeboard of about 8". Everything was wet; the Stuart Turner was always a bit reluctant to start - especially when hot; Sister and I shared a bunk lengthways - Mum had the bunk opposite and Dad was on the floor - but Oh, so happy in Chichester Harbour in the mid-60's.
I honestly don't remember the poor waterproofs/buoyancy aids/lack of electric anything - just hot sunny weekends sailing to East Head and swimming ashore.

We moved through a set of ever increasingly older boats - the storm ridden Cowes Old Gaffers race of 1970 (I think) where we nearly wrecked the Itchen Ferry they owned - I was 11 at the time and thought it was all good fun - nowadays I am sooo much more cautious.

 

[Stemar]

I have a copy of a review of the Snapdragon 24, a boat which, while tough and capable of handling far worse weather than I want to be out in, is never going to win any races and is best treated as a motor sailor if the wind's noticeably forward of the beam. She's described as a capable 5-berth family cruiser. What size of boat would fit that description today?

 

[zoidberg]

I have a copy of a review of the Snapdragon 24, a boat which, while tough and capable of handling far worse weather than I want to be out in, is never going to win any races and is best treated as a motor sailor if the wind's noticeably forward of the beam. She's described as a capable 5-berth family cruiser. What size of boat would fit that description today?

'European Boat of the Year' Amel 50..... http://amel50.com/en/

 

[Kukri]

Buying rope for halyards on my first boat in Clarke and Carter’s chandlery in West Mersea...

“Do you want Yacht or Number One?”

Manila of course and sold by weight. My pocket money dictated “Number One”!

5s6d Chinese hurricane lamp as riding light. Ex Army groundsheet over the boom for a tent.

 

[Frank Holden]

A few weeks ago I came across - in Club Nautico Reloncavi, Puerto Montt, Chile of all the most unlikely places - a 1971 copy of PBO.

It even had an article onthe future of ferro cement..!!!

Largest yacht advertised ... 24 foot......

Left it in the care of an english chum in the port.

I recall many years ago having a copy of YM... maybe early 60's... which had an article on colour photography... illustrated entirely in black and white....

 

[doug748]

I have an article entitled: How to Spend Your Money, torn out of Dec 1973 Yachting Monthly. It must have been put by, against the day when I hoped to be outfitting a boat of my own.

It sets off by listing Basic Essentials amongst which are:
Mast and spars
Rigging
Pencils and rubber
Charts
Knife, tools
Log, etc

And goes on to Highly Desirable:
Sea Boots
Ensign and Staff
Oilskins
Code Flags, etc

Next, Cruising Gear:
Cooker
Matches
Tea Towel
Toilet Paper, etc

Finally Luxuries:
Radio Direction Finder
DTI Registration
Outboard for dinghy

It made no mention of VHF but pictured a masthead aerial being fitted with the caption:

The Ultimate Luxury.

 

[johnalison]

In our first year cruising, 1972, the jib on our Cirrus tore on the radar reflector hoisted for crossing Harwich Harbour. The tear was about three inches long but we didn't have sail repair tape in those days, so I took it to Ipswich via train from Felixstowe to find the sailmakers at the dock, whose names I've forgotten. I went up several flights of stairs to a loft where they were making barge sails and gnomes made cringles and things. The sailmaker snorted a bit but agreed to repair my sail, carefully sewing on a patch, cutting out the old and sewing round again. He said to someone something like 'eight square inches', so I went down all the steps again to the office to pay the bill. Five shillings.

 

[Seajet]

Captain OM Watts chandlery which smelled of tar even at Earls Court

my first proper boat via pocket money a gunter rigged Caricraft 10 in I think 1974 or earlier

OSTAR and the other 5 chandleries in Emsworth

West Havant Marine near where Halfords is now

Dinghy Den on Hayling

Chicester Chandlery with the diabolical manager ( I temped there for a while and am lucky not to be incarcerated for murder )

Emsworth Marina chandlery in various shapes and forms

Chris Hornsea at Southsea


The chandlery & sailmakers in Old Portsmouth whose name I forget

Ladymarine ( ? ) in Bristol

 

[JumbleDuck]

Ships were wood and men were steel.

I recently found my original RYA logbook. The entries start in 1971.......

Mine tells me that I have Elementary Dayboat with Tidal Endorsement. A bit later than yours, but not much.

 

[JumbleDuck]

A few weeks ago I came across - in Club Nautico Reloncavi, Puerto Montt, Chile of all the most unlikely places - a 1971 copy of PBO.

We picked up a couple of mint PBOs in a marina laundry last summer. Apart from boat size and page layout, they could have been current ones. There are only so many articles about MoB routines and coming alongside in marinas to be written.

 

[Tranona]

The Ultimate Luxury.

Thought that was preserved for Fray Bentos pies.