Shrimpy pdf.

Rustyknight

Rustyknight

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For those that haven't got a copy of Shane Actons book Shrimpy, or haven't read it yet and can't source a copy, it's available as an Adobe Reader pdf file from the link below......

Shrimpy pdf.

After reading some of the posts mentioning how much the book was selling for on e-bay, this should be easier on the pocket. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 
I don't get it, what's this thing all about? De mortuis nil nisi bene so won't go into what I sometimes read as living very happily off other people's hospitality. Right, he may have done and achieved something that most of us haven't and never will but the book's also packed with loads of bad seamanship and not very well written either. May sound harsh but I was rather disappointed.
 
Everyones entitled to an opinion.

To circumnavigate the globe in an 18 foot bilge keeler must have required some degree of seamanship I would think?

I 've read it several times ,signed copies are like gold dust.
 
I would like you to give some examples of bad seamanship that the book is "packed with".

I read it years ago and I will again, now that this comment has been made. I don't remember anything frightfully bad. In such a small boat, he had little potential to harm anyone but himself. It most likewise have been screamingly obvious to anyone who went with him what they were getting into.

As for living off other people's hospitality, it was the hippie era after all, many people did it in various ways, some good some bad. If you read some of the yacht cruising stories from the Golden Age, the thirties, fifties and early sixties, we are constantly being told about free stays at yacht clubs, generous help from expat communities, shipping companies and armed forces.

cheers.
 
In the 'For Sale' area :

"It took me 2 years to find a copy I could afford - I'm passing it on at cost.

Shrimpy Shane Acton 1st edition h.b. + dust jacket unsigned.

It is a 'yacht copy' with a small amount of mildew and damp staining to the rear cover. None inside.

£15.00 + £2.00 p+p "
 
Bob:

I wasn't for example too impressed with him turning in for some healthy six hours of sleep. Keeping a permanent lookout has always been an obvious problem for singlehanders but that's a bit much. Setting off inspite of gale warnings because he was "eager to see Iris again" doesn't go down too well either. That he got away with it means nothing. He made quite a few decisions out of ignorance especially in the beginning and he freely admits that too.
Right, he didn't pose a threat to others but that's hardly the pinnacle of good seamanship. Don't get me wrong, I do have sympathy for him an his followers but I can't understand the hype. Let me put it that way: there are others whom I prefer to read.
 
As for hospitality: I don't blame him but you'll find that later generations seem to have used it up. No wonder as they had nothing to give in return. That's a shame. Spoilt some of the most beautiful places out there. Remember you'll have to proof what you're worth in cash in some parts of the world? Guess why! Cruising on a budget: yes, absolutely! Cruising on no-budget, well there you have it...
 
"Setting off in spite of gale warnings?"

OOOh, HOW COULD HE?
Well, if you're going to cross an ocean in an 18' boat, you are likely to meet gales and your boat needs to be well found. The distances he covered and the time spent afloat prove it was well found. Do you think he should have stayed in a marina a few more days just in case? Get real will you!

Balancing watchkeeping & Sleeping as a singlehander is an essential part of survival. In shipping lanes you stay awake as much as possible without getting too tired to make decisions. out of the way of shipping, travelling at 3kts, you sleep as much as you can to stay alert & fresh. I don't see anything unseamanlike in either of your examples. Different if you're a Solent sailor tho' - both would be silly/ dangerous there.
 
If you're out there and get hit by a gale, right. Nothing you could do about it. BUT setting of against better judgement for no good reason is something else. http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,,2216283,00.html

Ask yourself why Tristan, sailing the Tucker designed Debutante Sea Dart, decided against crossing the Atlantic during the hurricane season. Instead he had her shipped as deck freight even though he couldn't afford it.

I don't think that a craft of that size was designed to take whatever might hit her in the Red Sea.
 
I've not found one so far, unfortunately. I did post a link to e-bay in the "For sale" forum day or so ago for the book, that still hasn't had a bid on it, and which might be worth watching. Having said that, Amazon are selling 2 copies for £98........ so it might not be too long before the ebay one gets a bid or three.

<edit> Possibly a bit simplistic, but if you only want to read it once, why not call in at your local library and see if they can order it if it's not on their shelves. Might cost 50p or so....... but hey! /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif
 
Many singlehanders seem to happily admit to getting a solid 6 or 8 hours of sleep at night when out in the open ocean - another one who slept her way around the world and lived to tell the tale (and write the book!) was Tania Aebi in her Contessa 26 'Varuna'.... she has written an excellent book called 'Maiden Voyage' (not to be confused with Tracy Edwards' 'Maiden').
 
Ann Davison hove-to every night for a good night's sleep on her solo Atlantic crossing in the mid-fifties. Hers was probably the slowest ever crossing, but it was safe enough in a small clinker long keeler (Felicity-Ann). She was probably also the first female to make a solo crossing. Good book too,
 
Rustyknight - Thank you so much for providing this pdf. I have read the whole book virtually non-stop. What an inspiring story!

I think this extract from the appendix sums it all up:

Length of voyage: 30,000 miles approximately.
Duration: 8 years.
Cost of nav gear: £50
Amount of previous sailing knowledge: nil
Funds for voyage: £30
 
Ask yourself why Tristan, sailing the Tucker designed Debutante Sea Dart, decided against crossing the Atlantic during the hurricane season. Instead he had her shipped as deck freight even though he couldn't afford it.
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Shane was most careful to choose he best times for his passages

I agree Centreborder; Shane was no Conrad, but he was a most remarkable man and a competent writer and he was prepared to work his way around the world- he certainly has my admiration

Forget your intellectual snobbery 2nd App.

My son bought me a near pristine copy of Shrimpy for Christmas - see Christmas Presents on Scuttlebutt.
 
There is always a question of did he or did he not with Tristan Jones. fab stories, just not always true. Shane Acton, on the other hand, was a hard b*****d who knew a great deal about survival.
Nicki
 
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