Lilldraken
New Member
Hello forum members!
I'm a journalist from Poland looking for some information about our Thames 'A' rater. Before posting here I'd tried to contact the Thames Sailing Club, but unfortunately their website is down. Hopefully there some 'A' rater experts here willing to share some of their knowledge...
A few years ago my father, whose family has long traditions in inland sailing, purchased a rather sorry looking Thames 'A' rater in Austria with the intention of restoring it and eventually sailing on calm waters for recreational purposes. The boat, known as "Albatross", had been sailed on Ebensee (I think) for at least a few decades under sail number X-383. Other than the previous owner's story, the only indication of the boat's heritage was a brass plate affixed to the back of the cockpit, stating that it was built in 1904 by Alfred Burgoine. We have rebuilt the hull from the ground up but unfortunately very little of the original wood could be reused in the restoration due to decades of neglect and decay.
Despite our troubles during the rebuild I'm happy to report that the restoration is nearing it's end, with the hull now enclosed and awaiting paint. At the moment we're debating whether to leave it in its natural wooden finish and clearcoat it, or perhaps paint the sides dark blue (see pictures below).
Other than a few articles there is very little information about these boats on the Internet, so any hints about who to contact or where to look would be more than welcome. My father has some documentation given to us by the previous owners, I'll post its soon as sift through his archives. In a few weeks' time we'll also roll the boat out of its workshop and take some pictures of the finished hull. Hopefully that will help us decipher its past.
Meanwhile, here are some period pictures from the previous owner's family album:
Isn't she lovely?
Kind regards,
Tony
Warsaw, Poland
I'm a journalist from Poland looking for some information about our Thames 'A' rater. Before posting here I'd tried to contact the Thames Sailing Club, but unfortunately their website is down. Hopefully there some 'A' rater experts here willing to share some of their knowledge...
A few years ago my father, whose family has long traditions in inland sailing, purchased a rather sorry looking Thames 'A' rater in Austria with the intention of restoring it and eventually sailing on calm waters for recreational purposes. The boat, known as "Albatross", had been sailed on Ebensee (I think) for at least a few decades under sail number X-383. Other than the previous owner's story, the only indication of the boat's heritage was a brass plate affixed to the back of the cockpit, stating that it was built in 1904 by Alfred Burgoine. We have rebuilt the hull from the ground up but unfortunately very little of the original wood could be reused in the restoration due to decades of neglect and decay.
Despite our troubles during the rebuild I'm happy to report that the restoration is nearing it's end, with the hull now enclosed and awaiting paint. At the moment we're debating whether to leave it in its natural wooden finish and clearcoat it, or perhaps paint the sides dark blue (see pictures below).
Other than a few articles there is very little information about these boats on the Internet, so any hints about who to contact or where to look would be more than welcome. My father has some documentation given to us by the previous owners, I'll post its soon as sift through his archives. In a few weeks' time we'll also roll the boat out of its workshop and take some pictures of the finished hull. Hopefully that will help us decipher its past.
Meanwhile, here are some period pictures from the previous owner's family album:
Isn't she lovely?
Kind regards,
Tony
Warsaw, Poland
