The Medway . Ted Heath.

[johnalison]

Snipes & Fireballs
Member of Broadstairs SC

Oh yes, Snpes, of course (), I’d forgotten or never knew about the Fireballs. My neighbour claimed to have raced Fireball. Since he is the slowest sailor I have ever sailed with I was disinclined to believe him until he showed me a photo of himself sailing one.

 

[Rum Run]

Regarding Tyler's having a yard / factory at Hoo, they certainly did for a while in the early 90's. As I remember it, prior to that the building had been Medway Mouldings, and prior to that it had been Tyler's as well.
The front yard had a lot of moulds for various boats from about 25' up to a behemoth 85' motor vessel, that had been lengthened from a 65' in the 80's.
I worked there for a bit, learned to laminate then moved on when I got the vibe that things were going badly financially.
Mr Tyler was retired by then and had a big boat in SOF where he spent most of his time. I always remember that he had a pair of Mercedes estates with identical built on roof boxes for boat kit that he used alternately for the trips to the boat. The men I worked with from the old firm had a lot of respect for him.
As an aside, Tyler's had pioneered a hull building system years before, using pultruded GRP strip-planks about 35x4mm, which were laid over a frame then laminated over with CSM and gelcoat for one-off hulls. Possibly this was superceded by the foam core method as I've never heard of it anywhere else except in that yard.

 

[Daydream believer]

I went sailing with John Tyler on one of the boats he had the moulds built for. It was owned by John Dungey & won the round Britain on handicap. Called Ocean Beetle.
I really wound Tyler up when we went from Burnham to Mersea via the Ray Sand Channel. He & John Dungey( who built & owned the boat) did not know where to go. One had to do 2 tacks past the outer Crouch then head North past the yellow buoy at the start of the channel The Buxey beacon & some measured line poles on the shore for setting the log could be seen as a marker. ( Something like that, it was a long time ago)
Then aim for the end of a line of beach huts on the beach at Mersea. I insisted that Tyler should aim for the third beach hut from the end & he religously aimed for it, straining to see it all the way, until we had enough water to change direction. I kept saying - The third one John or you will have us aground.Every time he started to talk to anyone , if he strayed of course, I would tell him about the THIRD beach hut. So he had to keep concentrating really hard.

So when we arrived at the yacht club for the Crouch/Mersea club meal, he stood at the bar where everyone wanted to talk to the great builder. He had much delight telling them that he had come through the Ray Sand safely, because of my local knowledge about the "third beach hut from the end". It was some time before he twigged that it was a load of b..x & we just had to aim somewhere in that general direction. I never got invited to sail with him again.

When the boat building industry collapsed he went back to building prefabricated concrete farm buildings. One can still see the little boat emblem in the gable end of some old concrete portal frames to this day. He told me that It was the construction of the moulds for concrete frames that got him into moulding boats in the first place.

 

[Rum Run]

I went sailing with John Tyler on one of the boats he had the moulds built for. It was owned by John Dungey & won the round Britain on handicap. Called Ocean Beetle.
I really wound Tyler up when we went from Burnham to Mersea via the Ray Sand Channel. He & John Dungey( who built & owned the boat) did not know where to go. One had to do 2 tacks past the outer Crouch then head North past the yellow buoy at the start of the channel The Buxey beacon & some measured line poles on the shore for setting the log could be seen as a marker. ( Something like that, it was a long time ago)
Then aim for the end of a line of beach huts on the beach at Mersea. I insisted that Tyler should aim for the third beach hut from the end & he religously aimed for it, straining to see it all the way, until we had enough water to change direction. I kept saying - The third one John or you will have us aground.Every time he started to talk to anyone , if he strayed of course, I would tell him about the THIRD beach hut. So he had to keep concentrating really hard.

So when we arrived at the yacht club for the Crouch/Mersea club meal, he stood at the bar where everyone wanted to talk to the great builder. He had much delight telling them that he had come through the Ray Sand safely, because of my local knowledge about the "third beach hut from the end". It was some time before he twigged that it was a load of b..x & we just had to aim somewhere in that general direction. I never got invited to sail with him again.

When the boat building industry collapsed he went back to building prefabricated concrete farm buildings. One can still see the little boat emblem in the gable end of some old concrete portal frames to this day. He told me that It was the construction of the moulds for concrete frames that got him into moulding boats in the first place.

I think I only saw him the once, and was too lowly a bod to make conversation anyway. The moulds for concrete angle I did know, maybe his innovation in his father's building business (William Tyler?)
The main laminating crew commuted from Tonbridge (not Wells though) and had been with the firm's various incarnations for years. It was in that job that I learned the free and easy use of middle english that I have to be careful if in certain company to this day

 

[Capt Popeye]

Humm , well recall seeing Ted Heath being driven away from the Medway Yach Club , in an official car , after a days racing I suppose ;

Went for a Sales job at Tyler's when t'ween jobs many years ago now ; did not get offered it , so all lost history , ah well

 

[oldgit]

The last we had a boat capable of getting up to Tonbridge the Tyler building was visible from the river as you approached.....
Cannon Bridge.

 

[Concerto]

The last we had a boat capable of getting up to Tonbridge the Tyler building was visible from the river as you approached.....
Cannon Bridge.

Fred, I cannot see the Tyler building in you photo.