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Guest
Guest
A response to the earlier Spirit of Cardiff thread, re. fund raising.
From Clive Tully, Spirit of Cardiff crew.
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Spirit of Cardiff is a 3 year project which set out as a serious attempt to challenge Cable & Wireless Adventurer's 74 days 20 hours 58 minutes round the world record. Had we achieved our original budget, had we not been let down by companies and organisations who pledged to support us and then did nothing, we might have set out better placed to attack that record. I think that rather than sneering at us, you should give us credit for setting off even though we knew we were underfunded.
We did so in the hope that publicity during the voyage would fit the last pieces into the sponsorship jigsaw, although of course we could never have imagined the Queen Mother dying the day before we set off, or the blanket coverage given to a few football matches in Japan and Korea, to the exclusion of all other news.
To describe Spirit of Cardiff as a "homebuild" displays breathtaking ignorance. She was designed by Alistair Cameron, a leading naval architect, and built to Lloyds A1 spec by Northshore Composites and Ribtec. Indeed, the hull is now commercially available. Some homebuild!
The engine and outdrive were supplied by Yamaha, and the navigation electronics by Raymarine. None of these leading lights of the marine industry would have provided many thousands of pounds worth of hardware over several years if they regarded Alan Priddy as a crackpot, and Spirit of Cardiff as a "no hope" project. On the contrary, they use us as a testbed to prove all the equipment which eventually will become available to all you experts - real and armchair.
As to the criticism that we have been dawdling - I would respectfully ask any true powerboater whether they would venture out from harbour in 40 knot plus winds. Remember that although we can carry 3 tons of fuel, it has to be used sparingly to give us a thousand mile passage. And what would you have us do while in port waiting for the weather conditions to become safer? Sit around and mope? We get enough depression when we're forced to endure the physical hardship of heavy head seas when we're hundreds of miles and days away from land.
The carpers of this forum are just that. They have no concept of endurance offshore powerboating, and whilst they might consider themselves experts as far as sorties across the Solent are concerned, I suspect none of them has ever done several thousand mile passages one after another.
Taking a powerboat around the world as quickly as possible is infinitely more difficult than sailing around the world. Perhaps you should ask the likes of the round-the-world yachties how many times they have had guns raised at them during the Vendee Globe. How many delays forced upon them by bureaucrats, military chiefs and corrupt officials? How much money did they have to pay out in bribes in order to be allowed to leave port? How much angst caused by taking on low-grade contaminated fuel? How many hours wasted simply to clear customs and immigration at each port while the clock is still ticking?
It takes a well-oiled and well-funded machine to overcome those obstacles. The Cable & Wireless attempt had that machine. We would have had it too had we not been let down by people that promised to support us. With all due respect to round the world yachties, all they do is battle the elements. We do that, and in addition we have to do battle with all the petty bureaucrats in places such as Egypt, Indonesia, Russia and Sri Lanka, who don't give a fig for round-the-world records or turning round a boat in port as quickly as possible.
If you don't want to support us, fine. We much prefer to appeal to people who recognise our attempt for what it is - a milestone in endurance powerboating. We WILL return to Gibraltar with the UIM under 50ft record for circumnavigating the world. If you would like to make a donation to help us complete this attempt, any contributions are still gratefully received. But we feel inclined to listen to strong criticism only from those who are furnished with ALL the facts about the SoC project.
Clive Tully
Spirit of Cardiff
===============================
From Clive Tully, Spirit of Cardiff crew.
===============================
Spirit of Cardiff is a 3 year project which set out as a serious attempt to challenge Cable & Wireless Adventurer's 74 days 20 hours 58 minutes round the world record. Had we achieved our original budget, had we not been let down by companies and organisations who pledged to support us and then did nothing, we might have set out better placed to attack that record. I think that rather than sneering at us, you should give us credit for setting off even though we knew we were underfunded.
We did so in the hope that publicity during the voyage would fit the last pieces into the sponsorship jigsaw, although of course we could never have imagined the Queen Mother dying the day before we set off, or the blanket coverage given to a few football matches in Japan and Korea, to the exclusion of all other news.
To describe Spirit of Cardiff as a "homebuild" displays breathtaking ignorance. She was designed by Alistair Cameron, a leading naval architect, and built to Lloyds A1 spec by Northshore Composites and Ribtec. Indeed, the hull is now commercially available. Some homebuild!
The engine and outdrive were supplied by Yamaha, and the navigation electronics by Raymarine. None of these leading lights of the marine industry would have provided many thousands of pounds worth of hardware over several years if they regarded Alan Priddy as a crackpot, and Spirit of Cardiff as a "no hope" project. On the contrary, they use us as a testbed to prove all the equipment which eventually will become available to all you experts - real and armchair.
As to the criticism that we have been dawdling - I would respectfully ask any true powerboater whether they would venture out from harbour in 40 knot plus winds. Remember that although we can carry 3 tons of fuel, it has to be used sparingly to give us a thousand mile passage. And what would you have us do while in port waiting for the weather conditions to become safer? Sit around and mope? We get enough depression when we're forced to endure the physical hardship of heavy head seas when we're hundreds of miles and days away from land.
The carpers of this forum are just that. They have no concept of endurance offshore powerboating, and whilst they might consider themselves experts as far as sorties across the Solent are concerned, I suspect none of them has ever done several thousand mile passages one after another.
Taking a powerboat around the world as quickly as possible is infinitely more difficult than sailing around the world. Perhaps you should ask the likes of the round-the-world yachties how many times they have had guns raised at them during the Vendee Globe. How many delays forced upon them by bureaucrats, military chiefs and corrupt officials? How much money did they have to pay out in bribes in order to be allowed to leave port? How much angst caused by taking on low-grade contaminated fuel? How many hours wasted simply to clear customs and immigration at each port while the clock is still ticking?
It takes a well-oiled and well-funded machine to overcome those obstacles. The Cable & Wireless attempt had that machine. We would have had it too had we not been let down by people that promised to support us. With all due respect to round the world yachties, all they do is battle the elements. We do that, and in addition we have to do battle with all the petty bureaucrats in places such as Egypt, Indonesia, Russia and Sri Lanka, who don't give a fig for round-the-world records or turning round a boat in port as quickly as possible.
If you don't want to support us, fine. We much prefer to appeal to people who recognise our attempt for what it is - a milestone in endurance powerboating. We WILL return to Gibraltar with the UIM under 50ft record for circumnavigating the world. If you would like to make a donation to help us complete this attempt, any contributions are still gratefully received. But we feel inclined to listen to strong criticism only from those who are furnished with ALL the facts about the SoC project.
Clive Tully
Spirit of Cardiff
===============================
