Egret
Active member
North Norfolk News reports that Blakeney Council are going to take steps to auction some 'abandoned boats' if they cannot find/identify owners.
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I fear similar here.A similar local series was wildly popular, oversubscribed to the point that new entrants were not actively encouraged. Then it was designated ORC 3 instead of 4 - liferafts etc. Pretty soon it was down to single figure entries.
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Just for the record, cat 4 already requires a handheld VHF. Is your committee requiring a fixed VHF? If so it sounds like they are discouraging the sorts of boats who do not have a wired 12v system. E.g sportsboats etc. Cat 4 races ought to be applicable to sportsboats I'd have thought.I fear similar here.
Relevant to the OP in that it will disproportionately affect, and so prevent participation by older/cheaper/smaller boats. Those that might just join in on an occasional nice day?
This is, and always has been (at least for very many years) a Cat 4 event. It still is, but those that know best seem to have invoked the OSR clause 2.01 and upgraded to Cat 4 plus VHF (fair enough, imho, but that's odd in it's own right- that VHF is still not an OSR requirement? ) AND liferaft.
"OSR . SECTION 2 - APPLICATION & GENERAL REQUIREMENTS 2.01 Categories of Events ** Organizing Authorities shall select from one of the following categories and may modify the OSR to suit local conditions".
Those boats are 45 years older now! Most should be museum pieces now! Most plywood dinghies will have been burned on a bonfire. Two of mine have.Question is what can be done to get all the boats that used to race Burnham Week and similar in the 1980's back out racing again.
Yes. Still lots of people enjoying the water.Interesting how it is in your part of the country. It seems therefore we are lucky overall on the Thames Estuary / East Coast with boating still being relatively active, racing dinghies, catamarans, kites, paddleboards (with dogs), coastal rowing, cruising generally (dare I say) mainly in lower budget older GRP boats and the traditional boats, gaffers, smacks, barges, local clinker 15-18ft one designs, (plastic copies not expensive) club local handicap cruiser racing, Sonatas and similar. Young people as well as older, mainly localish people. Certainly not just the 'wealthy' here. Club had an SB3 fleet for a while, now big fleet of Sonatas as they are cheaper to buy, with a number of club boats for 'pay as you go'.
The reduction at Burnham seems to have been the 25 - 40 ft cruiser racers that needed a large crew (maybe difficult to get commitment from people to crew each week, now people don't tend to work and socialise together so much) - and with boats of the size of Contessas, Twisters and Stellas no longer doing the races across the North Sea, maybe due to the rules.
Following from the OP, just looking for people to dust off some of the still OK boats lying around, maybe by paddleboarders (lots of them here), and sail or race them again, or just as a floating beach hut, as mine is generally.
…… no but he may have an eBay account!His wife visited the yard at weekend and said anyone was welcome to whatever they wanted before it got carted off to the knackers yard. A guy down the yard took off the Aries self steering system and the boom but what's funny is he hasn't even got a boat !
Sadly a blog on the chainsawing might be more useful - best tools to use, temporary support for keels etc.
Has anyone's club ever organised a demolition party? Don't think our's has, despite a good proportion of the yard being occupied by (ostensibly) abandoned wrecks.
Guess health and safety is a bit part of it - going to be lots of potential for limbs to be chainsawed off
and feet crushed under falling keels.
Probably be on eBay then very shortly. !! Where is this poor old boat.His wife visited the yard at weekend and said anyone was welcome to whatever they wanted before it got carted off to the knackers yard. A guy down the yard took off the Aries self steering system and the boom but what's funny is he hasn't even got a boat !
When i worked down Leigh old town i broke quite a few wrecks up on the beach at Southend & a few subsequently.
Its hard heavy dangerous work, If the boat is grp horribly dusty too. Several days in a respirator itching like fury with the dust. It isnt something that you should ask club volunteers to do. It costs money to chop boats up & rightly so.
Buggered if i will do it for nowt!
As far as restoring them goes its simple economics, My last two yachts have been restorations of what would be classed as end of life boats. The first an Anderson 22 was sold 12 years ago in immaculate condition & is now back to where she was an end of life wreck.
The second my Sabre 27 i could have bought twice over with what it cost to bring her back. That without new sails etc last year. Old yachts are a mugs game!
Still i enjoy it.
We’re one of those cruising families with our kids. Last summer we actually met another family with kids the same age as ours. Only that one time mind you. Most other people we meet are retired couples or solo sailors. Interesting thread with lots of reasons given for the decline of new small boat sales in the UK, and young people getting into boats at all. The main ones that stand out to me are:Yes. Still lots of people enjoying the water.
One thing that seems quite rare these days are cruising families with their children in the school holidays.
I don't know why. Perhaps so many things youngsters can do now.
They're all doing it interesting Med with guaranteed sunshineYes. Still lots of people enjoying the water.
One thing that seems quite rare these days are cruising families with their children in the school holidays.
I don't know why. Perhaps so many things youngsters can do now.
Not that many. Have you seen the price of med charter these days? Absolutely eye watering, we have a share in something older for minimal cost for us but no normal families eg public sector workers are chartering yachts in the med.They're all doing it interesting Med with guaranteed sunshine