Southerly Magazine - Issue 19 by Northshore Yachts Ltd.

YACHTING MAGAZINE TEST REPORTS

Southerly 42RST BY CRUISING WORLD

Southerly 38

BY SAILING TODAY

Southerly 32

BY YACHTING MONTHLY

ROUND THE ISLAND WINNERS 2008

SOUTHERLY TEAM Southerly 42RST

GEOFF GRAY Southerly 110

Working Lives: ADRIAN HEYWORTH DAVID MILLES

W O R L D L E A D I N G VA R I A B L E D R A F T C R U I S I N G YA C H T S

Issue 19

Welcome to this edition of the Annual Southerly Magazine. This has certainly been another busy year for Northshore, and we are pleased to announce that our new factory is now fully operational, providing us with the much needed, extra capacity. In addition to the increased volume, the new factory will also enable us to build bigger yachts to meet the demands of those customers looking for large, long distance ocean cruisers. Our design team have been busy with the first ‘Southerly Custom 48’ build project, which is just about to be launched. The owner plans a 6 year voyage, sailing around the world in her, before reaching his home destination of Australia. This stunning yacht instantly ‘caught the eye’ of TV presenters Paul & Sheryl Shard. They will be saying goodbye to their 2yr old Southerly 42RST in USA and will take delivery of their new Southerly 49 early next year (previewing at London Boat Show). Filming locations of the 49, for future episodes of ‘Distant Shores’ (viewed on Travel Channel) will include travelling through the French Canals and sailing around the coasts of Europe.

New Southerly 38 launches at Southampton Boat Show

RTI RACE - Winning team: Southerly 42RST

The new Southerly 57RS is another exciting project which is currently in build, due for launch in 2010. The highlight of this year, so far, has to be the Southerly Regatta, held in Guernsey. This was a huge success, enjoyed by everyone. We would like to thank our owners for showing ‘true spirit during windy conditions’ and a special thankyou to our suppliers for their generous support and great prizes.

New factory now operational

We hope you enjoy our magazine which will give you an up-to-date insight into our company. Lester Abbott NORTHSHORE YACHTS LTD Southerly Regatta - St. Peter Port, Guernsey

2-9

Southerly Regatta St. Peter Port, Guernsey

10 -17 Southerly Rendezvous Fecamp, N. France

CONTENTS

18-19 Southerly Owners Dinner Beaulieu National Motor Museum 20

Northshore Annual Open Day

22-23 Latest News 24-25 Southerly America 26-31 Product Update 32

Southerly Owners Association

Dates for your Diary

36-37 Two wins for Southerly, Round the Island 39

‘’First RTI race in the new boat’’ Two Tribes Southerly 110, by Dominic McKay

40-47 Southerly 38 Test by SAILING TODAY 49

Blockaded in France by Malcolm King Southerly 46RS, Gneiss Fantasy

50-51 WORLD RECORD - DEE CAFFARI first woman to sail solo non stop both ways around the world 52-53 Southerly 42RST Test by CRUISING WORLD 54-61 The Way South Southerly 42RST ‘DISTANT SHORES’ by Paul & Sheryl Shard 62-63 OWEN PARKER Edward Heath’s sailing master 64-67 Working Lives: David Milles 68-72 Southerly 32 Test by YACHTING MONTHLY 74

‘’Called to the bar’’ by Mark Feldman Southerly 38, Snow Goose

76-79 Working Lives: Adrian Heyworth 80-83 Incompetent Crew Southerly 110, by Babs Wythers 84-86 Pure Therapy... around Britain Southerly 110 by Tim Banks 87-88 New Owners take delivery of their yachts

Southerly 38 ‘Cardio’, Herm CI

ST. PETER PORT, GUERNSEY Twenty six Southerly’s ranging in size from 32 to 46 feet arrived in St Peter Port during the weekend of the 23rd May. Some of the Southerly’s taking part were ‘fresh out of the factory’ and Owners enjoyed wonderful weather on their voyage across to the Channel Islands. We met our Owners during the afternoon of the 24th for registration and race briefing and that evening, the Southerly Regatta started with the customary Vin d`Honneur and were welcomed with a short speech by Mike Garrett, Deputy Minister for Culture and Leisure from the States of Guernsey.

The Guernsey Yacht Club provided a sumptuous barbecue and the weather for this occasion which was very warm and sunny. The barbecue was held on the veranda of the yacht club, with spectacular views of St Peter Port with Castle Cornet as the backdrop. It was a very pleasant evening where friendships were renewed, and new owners were welcomed into the Southerly family. Owners were also keenly discussing tactics and looking forward to the next few days of racing

ST. PETER PORT, GUERNSEY The first days racing started in not a great deal of wind, this was clearly a race that would be won based on spotting the wind shifts and using the tide to your best advantage. As the fleet crossed the line, most ventured out into the main channel opting to follow the prospect of more breeze further offshore. Two Southerly 42RST’s however opted to stay close to shore in an attempt to stay out of what little tide was remaining against them as they beat down towards the South of Guernsey. As it happened, the fleet converged against the first mark as they quickly furled headsails and reached off towards Herm and Jethou with their cruising shutes and gennakers. The race restarted as the fleet reached the next mark as the wind died away and left the boats at the mercy of the tides. The return leg provided the most excitement for the day’s racing as the sea breeze filled in to take the fleet back towards Castle Cornet for the finish. There was then a close run finish between the first two 42RST’s crossing the line within seconds of each other.

The ‘Round Sark Race’ day was fantastic ! and the complete opposite weather conditions compared to the day before. The race began in gusts of over 30 kts, which continued all the way around this 26 mile course. This race saw a fleet of 20 Southerlys set off over the start line in what can only be described as perfect sailing conditions for these boats. Sunshine and strong breezes, combined with spectacular scenery round Sark meant there were plenty of stories to be shared in the bar later that day. The Southerly fleet took roughly three and a half hours to round Sark, reported by the race committee to be on one the faster times for this popular course. The round Herm race the following day was one that took its toll on the crews. With rain squalls and still very strong winds, the boats participating set off into the distance disappearing in no time into the rainy mist. Local sailor Adrian Heyworth and his crew on board his new Southerly 42RST was the first to appear round from the bar of the island, closely followed by Derrick Gill onboard his new Southerly 38. The week’s racing proved a superb opportunity to sail in class against equally matched boats and also for our Owners to take up there competitive spirits.

ST. PETER PORT, GUERNSEY

ST. PETER PORT, GUERNSEY On Tuesday evening we chartered the Trident ferry for the 30 minute journey to Herm. This followed the Round Sark Race which had taken place earlier in the day. Everyone who had raced were eagerly discussing the day with those who hadnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t taken part. The race was held in blustery weather conditions which at times saw 35kts of wind witnessed across the decks, and 2 metre swells greeted the fleet at the race between Sark and Herm, a spectacular sight of these Southerlyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s racing for home. Once on Herm the Mermaid Tavern was the venue for the evening. We were welcomed with Sea Breeze cocktails followed by a Hog Roast, it was not long before everyone was tucking in following the days excitement, the food was fantastic and the venue superb, however there were many tired faces on the ferry ride back to Guernsey.

Following a fun filled afternoon of dinghy racing on Thursday, the final dinner and prize giving was held at the Guernsey Yacht Club. Following the formalities, a superb three-course dinner was served in the lower restaurant. Photographs of the weeks activities were playing in the background which was greeted with cheers when owners were viewed, especially those taken at the optimist sailing event held on the boating pool. Les Webb of the Southerly Owners Association gave a short speech of thanks to the Southerly team on behalf of the owners.

Southerlyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s beached on Herm

ST. PETER PORT, GUERNSEY FINAL DINNER & PRIZE GIVING AT GUERNSEY YACHT CLUB SOUTHERLY CUP - OVERALL WINNER Adrian Heyworth

Champagne was served on arrival, which with the splendid weather took place on the veranda to enjoy the evening sunshine. John Warne, Managing Director of Northshore gave a short speech thanking everyone for attending and also thanking our sponsors for their generous support during the Regatta. Robert Hughes then took over and officiated the prize giving.

SOUTHERLY REGATTA TROPHIES

New Southerly Owner Adrian Heyworth, from Guernsey was the overall winner of the ‘Southerly Cup’ for 2009 - Southerly 42RST Maid Honor.

ST. PETER PORT, GUERNSEY . . . RESULTS

RACE 1 - LOMBARD INSHORE 1st 2nd 3rd

S42RST Aqua Regina S42RST Maid Honor S42RST Hexadex

Nigel & Yvonne Rudlinger Adrian & Pennie Heyworth David & Judith Milles

RACE 2 - SELDEN INSHORE 1st 2nd 3rd

S42RST Maid Honor S115 Dutch Courage S38 Snow Goose

Adrian & Pennie Heyworth Nigel Campling Mark & Phillipa Feldman

RACE 4 - RAYMARINE ROUND HERM 1st 2nd 3rd

S42RST Maid Honor S110 Augusta S32 Spirit of Ardennes

RACE 5 - MASTERVOLT INSHORE 1st 2nd 3rd

S42RST Maid Honor S38 Distraction S42RST Hexadex

OVERALL RATINGS

RACE 3 - LEWMAR ROUND SARK 1st 2nd 3rd

S42RST Maid Honor S38 Distraction S110 Augusta

Adrian & Pennie Heyworth Derrick & Janet Gill Mike &Kay Vickery

Adrian & Pennie Heyworth Mike & Kay Vickery Christopher Armstrong

Adrian & Pennie Heyworth Derrick & Janet Gill David & Judith Milles

(FIRST 10 PLACES)

1st

S42RST Maid Honor

Adrian & Pennie Heyworth

2nd

S115 Dutch Courage

Nigel Campling

3rd

S110 Augusta

Mike & Kay Vickery

4th

S42RST Hexadex

David & Judith Milles

5th

S38 Snow Goose

Mark & Phillipa Feldman

6th

S38 Distraction

Derrick & Janet Gill

7th

S42RST Aqua Regina

Nigel & Yvonne Rudlinger

8th

S32 Spirit of Ardennes

Christopher Armstrong

9th

S32 Tullygay

Richard & Rosemary Mounce

10th

S38 Cardio

Bill & Sharon Hopkins

17th ANNUAL RENDEZVOUS

Fecamp, Northern France Day 1 Slowly the Fecamp marina basin began to fill up with Southerlyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s old and new as our owners braved the rioting fisherman and barricades which welcomed them upon arrival. An eventful start to the 17th annual Southerly Rendezvous. Soon flags were flying with pride as our rendezvous veterans made Fecamp their home for what promised to be a bright and sunny few days. It was fantastic to see so many new owners turn up to the event this year even with young families having completed their maiden voyage cross channel in less than favourable conditions. This year also saw the arrival of one of the new Southerly 46â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s for the first time, having only very recently been launched and handed over to their new owners in Itchenor. The rendezvous got started with the usual drinks reception on the pontoon, this year hosted by Easter Snow a new Southerly 42RST. As rain threatened to spoil the party and the pontoon started to sink under the weight of so many people we soon moved on to the Capitanerie for the Southerly welcome buffet.

The Ennis family with Les & Jenny Webb

The Oliver family

Nigel Campling

The Maidment family

17th ANNUAL RENDEZVOUS

Fecamp, Northern France Day 2 During the Wednesday afternoon we visited the Palais Benedictine probably the worlds most ornate distillery, the home of the liqueur Dom Benedictine in a noe-gothic palace and art gallery with the working distillery still in its grounds. If you haven’t been already this is a trip well worthwhile making should you visit Fecamp. Despite an attempt at Anglo French negotiations over a bottle of whisky the night before by one of our owners, it did not seem likely that the strike would show any sign of finishing in time for the Southerly racing to begin. Surprisingly the fisherman were not willing to make any special exceptions for the Southerly fleet ! Not to be deterred we soon arrived at the decision to race inside the harbour.

The Mounce family

Even with the lifting keels, the Southerly’s would have struggled for room to race in the marina so we divided into teams to race in the local sailing schools fleet of dinghies. Fully fuelled from the Benedictine tasting session earlier that afternoon the race was on. The day finished with dinner in Café De La Boucane overlooking the marina. What a fantastic evening and setting with the sun setting across the water and the boats all moored up in view of the restaurant.

4 12

Sue & Nigel Gee and friends

The Greenwood family

Mr & Mrs Hammond

David Dunn and crew

The Thomas family

17th ANNUAL RENDEZVOUS

Fecamp, Northern France Day 3 With the strike still in full swing and competition close on the dinghy racing front, there was no shortage of volunteers for the dinghy race. Some were even considering this as a possible means of escape from France back to England ! Before that the rowing race alongside the main promenade attracted lots of attention from the locals as racing teams of all generations rowed blindfolded back and forth to return without loosing any balloons collected from one end of the course. After the more serious racers had arrived early to fine tune their rowing skills. The last minute rule of rowing blindfolded meant many were caught by surprise and although quick at rowing, this was usually in circles and in some cases into the harbour wall. As dinghies set of in all directions team work prevailed and meant that those who adopted the best technique with their partner calling directions got away quickly to win.

The Rendezvous finished with the prize giving and dinner at the restaurant Les Terre-Neuvas overlooking the seafront and boardwalk in Fecamp. The evening started with a cocktail party and concluded with the prize giving hosted by the Northshore team. It was sad to announce the retirement of Robert Hughes a valued member of the team and one that is known well to many owners after more than ten years with the company.

Southerly Welcome Buffet

Robert Hughes retires

Cafe De la Boucane

Owners were still increasingly concerned and anxious to return to their work back in England wondering when the fisherman would allow them to leave the marina, this of course had to fit in with the weather and tides. It seemed that things were looking up and progress with talks meant the fisherman offered an hours reprieve that following morning. Owners hastily prepared their boats for the mass exodus of Southerlyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s back to England at sunrise.

Les Terre-Neuvas

17th ANNUAL RENDEZVOUS

PRIZE WINNERS Prizes presented by John Warne, Managing Director of Northshore. 1. For recent article in Southerly Magazine ‘Working Lives’ Malcolm King, Southerly 46RS Gneiss Fantasy 2. For recent test report by Yachting Monthly Richard Mounce, Southerly 32 Tullygay

3. Laminates competition -1st place Scott Latham, Southerly 110 Wopa 4. Laminates competition -2nd place Ben Lane, Southerly 110 Wopa Prizes presented by Ben Davies, Sales Manager of Northshore. 5. Most Rendezvous flags Ken & Jean Sutton Vancouver 34 Wakulla Spring 6. Most Rendezvous flags (special prize) Les & Jenny Webb on board Southerly 42RST Easter Snow 7. The Youngest Crew prize went to 4 year old Katie on board Southerly 110 Annie Jo 8. Newest Southerly Owner Malcolm & Claire King Southerly 46RS Gneiss Fantasy

Prizes presented by Rupert Pearn of Raymarine. DINGHY RACING 9. 1st place Team ‘Over the Hill’ David & Ken Thomas 10. 2nd place Team ‘Mini Wopa’ Nigel Campling & Scott Latham

PRIZE WINNERS 11. 3rd place Team ‘Golden & Oldie’ Peter Maidment & Ben Lane

12. 4th place Team ‘Far and Away’ Geoff Brown (handicapped with Robert Hughes)

Prizes presented by John Warne, Managing Director of Northshore. DINGHY ROWING: 13. 1st place Team ‘Pebblette’ Charles Gilchrist & Lauren Betts 13

14. 2nd place Team ‘Anaconda’ Jenny Webb & Josephine Ennis 15. 3rd place Team ‘Flash’ David Oliver & Scott Latham 16. 4th place Team ‘Easter Snow’ Patience & Finn Ennis

17. 5th place Team ‘Row Quickly’ Kitty Ennis & Ben Lane

Prizes presented by Francine Hedley Goddard of Northshore. DINGHY RACING - THURSDAY:

18. 1st place Team ‘Dead in the Water’ David & Ken Thomas, Geoff Brown 19. 2nd place Team ‘Hole & Stick’ Scott Latham, Ben Lane & Nigel Campling

20. 3rd place Team ‘No Hopers’ Chris Ennis, David Dunn & Frank Swinton

Owners Dinner The National Motor Museum, Beaulieu Held in the heart of the New Forest, the world famous National Motor Museum at Beaulieu was the interesting venue for the 2008 Southerly Annual Dinner. Guests enjoyed a Pimms reception whilst browsing around the fascinating and unusual collection of 250 vehicles that tell the story of motoring in Britain from the 1890's to the present day. Clive Pett & Deborah Strelley-Upton

Phillipa & Steve Norbury, Stephen & Anita Jones, Lester Abbott, Claire Horsman

Claire & Malcolm King

Lisa & Mike Goode

Christine & Alan Cooper

A welcome speech by Sales Manager, Ben Davies was followed by a three course sumptuous dinner with wine flowing freely. The museum was the perfect setting for an extremely enjoyable evening with guests browsing late into the evening, at their leisure with after dinner drinks.

Flic, Peter & Marisa Maidment

Richard & Pauline Wheeler, Ed Hurn & Vicky Stallward

Harriet & Richard Coleman

Joanna Lewis & Arthur Grant

ANNUAL OPEN DAY The main purpose of the Annual Open Day is to provide a ‘wealth of knowledge’ at a time when Owners are planning for winter storage, servicing, maintenance, repair and restoration work. Organised at the beginning of November, for the start of the ‘laying up’ season, Northshore Shipyard was once again turned into an exhibition centre for the day. Refreshments were served on arrival and throughout the day with pleasant background music by a local String Quartet, and a marine art exhibition for guests to view at their leisure, whilst socialising with old and new owners. Everyone was keen to see the newly finished factory which factory, filled with Northshore’s major suppliers displaying their latest products. Guests were invited to step on board the yachts in build at various stages of construction. The new Southerly 38 was of particular interest to many owners considering upgrading to a larger Southerly. A hot two course meal, accompanied by free flowing wine was served at lunch time and a splendid day was enjoyed by all.

LATEST NEWS

NEW FACTORY PROVIDES INCREASED CAPACITY Building works are almost complete for the additional 20,000 sq ft factory and offices at Northshore Shipyard, with the main factory, now fully operational. The increased capacity will allow 70 - 90 yachts to be built per year, and will also enable larger Southerly’s to be built on site. The new sales showroom is due for completion later this year. Production Director, Miles Webb comments ‘The ability to increase our capacity provides significant opportunities for us. We have now become the largest sail yacht manufacturer in the UK and we are recognised, throughout the world, for our high standards of build quality and engineering. We are strongly investing in R&D which is putting us at the forefront of british boat building’’.

Dee Caffari launches NEW SOUTHERLY 38 at Southampton Boat Show A champagne and buffet reception to celebrate the World Premiere launch of the New Southerly 38 was held at Southampton Boat Show. Hosted by solo yachtswoman Dee Caffari, with yacht designer Stephen Jones and sales manager Ben Davies, press and TV media from the UK and around the world, enjoyed the event.

SOUTHERLY DEALER OF THE YEAR AWARD FRISIA YACHT SERVICE of Germany Sales Manager, Ben Davies, congratulated the german Southerly Dealer, Heinz Wendler on winning the ‘Southerly Dealer of the Year 2008’. Frisia Yacht Service in Norden has been selling Southerly’s for almost 20 years and is pleased to have won the award for the last six consequetive years.

SOUTHERLY 32 nominated EUROPEAN BOAT OF THE YEAR The New Southerly 32 was chosen as one of the finalists in the 'Cruiser' category - ranked as one of the most interesting and promising newcomers of its class. Unfortunately, the time scale to test the yacht in Europe was impossible to meet.

Southerly entries in ARC (Atlantic Rally for Cruisers) The annual transatlantic rally which starts each year in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria how now become a popular way to cross the Atlantic and is the largest transocean sailing event in the world. The 2700 nautical mile passage to St. Lucia usually takes between 14 and 21 days. Two Southerly’s have entered for 2009. Southerly 46RS, Nightsong Andrew Beveridge Southerly 35RS, Sylvia III Tom Harrison

Little Britain Challenge Cup Little Britain Challenge Cup is a sailing regatta for the construction industry and has grown into 250 entries, with 3000 competitors, making it the biggest regatta after Cowes Week. Jim Henry with his Southerly 42RST, St. Christopher is currently preparing for the regatta.

SOUTHERLY AMERICA NEW DEALERSHIP ON EAST COAST We are pleased to announce, the New American Dealership for Southerly has been awarded to Sharon & Jack Malatich, ideally located in Rock Hall, Maryland on the upper Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay. With a wealth of knowledge of the marine industry, Sharon & Jack can help you with whatever you need, from new yacht sales, to brokerage sales, to after sales service for all Southerly owners. Sharon & Jack enjoy working as a team and have found this to be very helpful as they can offer different perspectives to their clients. Having owned and sailed many yachts, both large and small, enjoyed racing, extended cruising and living aboard, they bring a broad base of experience for their clients to draw from. There is a full-time service department is on site which offers an array of services including commissioning, after-market installations and service for new and used yachts. There is also a charter management program available. Docking and storage facilities are close at hand. Rock Hall is a small town with a huge sailing appetite. In fact, almost everyone and everything in Rock Hall relies in one way or another on the water, boats, and the people who love them. Some of the finest marinas on the Chesapeake Bay are located here with over 2000 boat slips. This combined with numerous restaurants, B&Bâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, plenty of room to anchor and only a short sail to places like Annapolis and Baltimore make this one of the best boating havens on the Bay. The Chesapeake Bay is centrally located on the East Coast of the United States and is a boaterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s paradise that stretches about 200 miles long from Havre de Grace, Maryland to Norfolk, Virginia, and covers six states and more than 64,000 square miles. Although the Bay averages about 21 feet in depth, most of the Bay is extremely shallow, with over 700,000 acres being under 6ft in depth. The Bay itself has an abundance of wildlife and offers uncountable anchorages in pristine coves and creeks. If you want more excitement, you can sail right into the harbours of cities like Norfolk VA, Washington DC, Baltimore and Annapolis, Maryland, or down through the waterways to Florida and on to the Islands. The extreme shoal draft capabilities combined with deep draft performance make the Southerly, the perfect yacht for these waters.

Sharon & Jack Malatich

Southerly being shipped to USA

SHIPPING TO THE USA Shipping can be arranged - from the UK to the USA usually takes about 2-3 weeks. Your finished Southerly will be rigged, tested and commissioned at Northshore Shipyard, prior to handover. Your yacht can then be prepared for shipping, and transported by road to the nearby Southampton Docks. From there, your yacht can be shipped to a suitable port and unloaded, where arrangements for re-commissioning can be made. To find out more about the benefits of owning a Southerly in USA, call Sharon & Jack at Southerly America. PO Box 501, Rock Hall, MD 21661 Tel: 410 639 2777 email: info@southerlyamerica.com

Southerly at its home dock

Sunset at Southerly America

Southerly America

USA PREMIERE OF SOUTHERLY 42RST Many customers were eagerly awaiting the USA premiere of the Southerly 42RST at Annapolis Boat Show. Paul & Sheryl Shard, TV presenters from Distant Shores, kindly exhibited their yacht at the show, and sailed down form their home in Ontario, Canada through the intra costal waterways. Marine press were also keen to test their first 42RST after the show.

SOUTHERLY OWNERS DINNER ANNAPOLIS, MD During the Annapolis Boat Show, Southerly Owners met up with each other and enjoyed a wonderful evening dinner in a restaurant overlooking the water. Paul & Sheryl Shard, TV presenters from Distant Shores, joined them for the evening.

PRODUCT Update ...

NEW SOUTHERLY 49

PREVIEW AT SOUTHAMPTON BOAT SHOW, September 2009

Rob Humphreys was commissioned to work alongside our development team to design the new Southerly 49.

S49 deck plan

S49 raised saloon layout

S49 lower saloon layout

The hull is characterised by a long waterline, fine entry and beam carried aft to ensure the highest degree of performance, comfort, stability and safety. Primarily designed for a high cruising specification, with easy handling , and can be sailed by just two people.

PRODUCT Update ...

NEW 3 Cabin SOUTHERLY 38 The new 3 cabin option is available on the Southerly 38 which will comfortable sleep six, with the master cabin forward, enjoying ensuite facilities. The saloon can provide an additional two single berths, and as a further option, the port saloon seating can convert to a double berth if required - totalling 9 berths.

ADDED COMFORT & PROTECTION - FOR ALL CLIMATES FREE STANDING BIMINI For sailing in hot weather, the option of a free standing bimini will give protection against the sunâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s rays. This is set at a higher level than the sprayhood, to give good headroom. The stainless steel frame will fold back when not in use. COCKPIT TENT For sailing in northern climates where the weather can be wet or cool, the option of a cockpit tent can give protection against the elements. This zips on to a special height sprayhood, and has roll up sides and back for ventilation.

PRODUCT Update ...

NEW SOUTHERLY 57RS by DUBOIS The Southerly 57RS is currently in build and due for launch in 2010. Innovative design, contemporary styling, powerful sailing performance, superior build quality and luxurious accommodation are all hallmarks of the New Southerly 57RS. This ultimate blue water cruiser offers the very best in cruising yacht design. The hull is characterised by a long waterline, fine entry and beam carried aft to ensure the highest degree of performance, comfort, stability and safety. The beautifully stylish sleek lines of the raised pilot house coachroof exudes sophistication and elegance, normally only seen on much larger yachts. The aft cockpit is extremely spacious, yet secure, with comfortable seating and a large cockpit table for entertaining guests in style. The optional arch provides a frame for a bimini, for use in hot climates. The twin wheeled helming position allows the helmsman to enjoy the powerful performance of the yacht, with dedicated areas for sail controls and sailing short handed. Further seating aft allow for guests to relax in comfort, whilst enjoying all round views. The New Southerly 57RS is primarily designed for easy handling, and can be sailed by just two people. The tall powerful rig with swept back spreaders will keep the yacht sailing fast in all weather conditions, with minimum effort.

Rhoades Young have been commissioned to work alongside our in house design office to create a seamless interior - very careful space planning, extended diagonal sight lines and views beyond the cabin boundaries create an illusion of space which leaves the interior feeling light and airy.

PRODUCT Update ...

The double headsail is suitable for most wind conditions and sailing environments; the self tacking jib allows you to sail easily on short tacks without any effort - ideal for coastal cruising. The overlapping genoa enhances upwind performance in light airs, and together, the double headsail is perfect for down wind trade wind sailing. An asymmetric gennaker, for off wind sailing, can be flown from a stainless steel bowsprit. A choice of three or four cabin layouts are available with the option of a tender/garage. With this option, the transom door, discreetly hides the garaging for a Williams Turbojet 285 with a system for easy deployment and recovery of the tender. Deck plan

Standard 3 cabin layout

Optional 3 cabin layout with jet rib garage

Superyacht Designer ED DUBOIS, teams up with Southerly to design larger Swing Keel cruising yachts

PRODUCT Update ...

Ed Dubois was born in London in 1952. He grew up near London – in the landlocked county of Surrey. But an innate love of the sea, boats and sailing meant that the career choice of yacht design was set from his early teens.

This background of racing success and understanding of hydrodynamics has been vital in the success of the many large cruising yachts now being designed by Dubois.

He graduated from the Diploma course in Yacht and Boat design at Southampton College of Technology in 1974 and was employed by Alan Buchanan and Partners, naval architects in Jersey, for a year before leaving to design his first yacht Borsalino III. This boat, a 34’ offshore racing yacht was launched in 1976 and won the British 3/4 Ton Cup trials and the RORC Class IV points for that year. Following on from this success Ed Dubois began Dubois Naval Architects Ltd. in 1977. Malcolm McKeon, Ed’s co-Director in the Company, joined in 1981 and became a Director and shareholder in 1989. International recognition came with the Admiral’s Cup and the 1979 winner, Australia’s Police Car. This was followed by the 1981 winning yachts Victory of Burnham and Dragon, racing for the British Team.

Dubois Naval Architects moved into Superyacht design in the late 80’s and has now designed over 40 yachts between 106 ft (32 metres) and 216 ft (66 metres). This relatively new market began in the 1980s and amongst other design companies Dubois saw the possibilities of combining good sailing performance with great comfort and ultimate seaworthiness. The current opportunities, presented by new materials to enhance sailing performance together with the open minds of a new generation of owners, allow a completely new approach to the overall architecture and space planning. The philosophy at Dubois, therefore, is to combine ultimate seaworthiness and excellent performance with imaginative space planning and well-proportioned and elegant outboard lines.

Racing successes continued in such events as the Southern Cross Cup and the Sardinia Cup, together with victories in the Sydney to Hobart Race, Fastnet Race, Newport to Bermuda Race and the China Sea Races.

Hull lines of S57RS

Ed Dubois has been commissioned to work alongside the Southerly in house design team on the new Southerly 57RS, flagship of the Southerly range.

PRODUCT Update ...

PRODUCT Update ... Further designs, by Dubois, for a larger 65 foot sister ship are already at the initial concept stage. Whilst keeping as many characteristics of the Southerly 57RS, the increased size and volume will allow for a large enclosed cockpit with a spacious aft deck. There will be a choice of interior cabin arrangements, which can include crew cabin facilities with a separate entrance. The dinghy garage in the stern can accommodate the larger Williams 325 Jet Rib.

Concept drawings for the new Southerly 67RS

SOUTHERLY OWNER’S ASSOCIATION The Southerly Owner’s Association is run independently and organises regular sailing events throughout the year, mainly around the South Coast of England.

LAYING UP SUPPER Following on from Northshore’s Open Day, the Laying up Supper, held close by at Crouchers Bottom, is always a popular way to end the day, socialising with old and new acquaintances. Guest speaker, trans atlantic rower Sally Kettle joined many Southerly Owners for the annual event. Following pre dinner drinks and three courses of ‘Nouveau Cuisine’, Sally told her tale of her Trans atlantic races to raise funds for an Epilepsy Charity. A great evening was enjoyed by everyone. MEMBERSHIP - All Southerly Owners are welcome to join the Southerly Owners Association and take part in any of their events and rallies. For more details, please email: lesjennywebb@btopenworld.com

Newport Rally - high tide

Newport Rally - low tide

Newport Rally

Poole Rally

Sally Kettle

See the Southerly 42RST ‘DISTANT SHORES’ on TV on Sky’s Travel Channel

... with world sailors, Paul & Sheryl Shard

‘Distant Shores’ features TV presenters and world sailors, Paul & Sheryl Shard, as they sail to exotic faraway locations in their Southerly 42RST. Distant Shores plays regularly on the Travel Channel in over 40 countries. Visit: www.travelchannel.co.uk. for viewing times and details on each programme. Distant Shores also plays regularly on the Sailing Channel, Wealth TV in USA and Canadian Learning Television (CLT) in Canada.

DISTANT SHORES on DVD DVD’s of Distant Shores are available to order, please visit www.distantshores.ca for more details.

Dates for your Diary ...2009/2010 JULY Friday 10th - Sunday 12th July

Hornet/Island Harbour BBQ, Southerly Owners Association

Friday 24th - Sunday 26th July

East Coast Rally Southerly Owners Association

AUGUST Friday 7th - Sunday 9th August

Plymouth Rally , Southerly Owners Association

Friday 28th - Sunday 30th August

West Wales Rally, Aberystwyth, Southerly Owners Association

SEPTEMBER Tuesday 1st - Sunday 6th September

Amsterdam Seaport Boat Show, IJmuiden, Netherlands

Friday 4th - Sunday 6th September

Poole Event, Southerly Owners Association

Friday 11th - Sunday 20th September

Southampton Boat Show, England

Saturday 12th September

Southerly Owners Dinner, Royal Southern Yacht Club, Southampton Guest speakers: TV celebrities and round the world sailors, Paul & Sheryl Shard

OCTOBER Saturday 3rd - Sunday 11th October

Genoa International Boat Show, Italy

Thursday 8th - Monday 12th October

Annapolis Boat Show, Maryland, USA

NOVEMBER Saturday 7th November

Owners Annual Open Day, Northshore Shipyard

Saturday 7th November

Laying Up Supper Southerly Owners Association

JANUARY 2010 Friday 8th - Sunday 17th January

London Boat Show, Excel, England

Saturday 23th - Sunday 31st January

Dusseldorf Boat Show, Germany

TWO WINS FOR SOUTHERLY ! Round the Island Race 2008

The world's largest and most famous yachting race - the annual 'Round the Island Race' is one of the most popular fixtures on the Solent racing calendar. Competitors come from Europe and the USA, as well as from all over the UK, to follow the 50 mile course round the Isle of Wight. Over 1700 boats entered the race including eight Southerlys - the Southerly team were onboard the Southerly 42RST. Sadly, one crew member, Owen Parker- Tactician could not compete in the race but kept in communication via telephone.

The Race ... by Skipper: Ben Davies ''Sailing around in one of the two designated waiting areas the Southerly 42RST and crew were powered up and ready to take on the conditions the day had presented us with - 26kts from the South West, perfect for the 42 to sail round the Island !

07:30 and there was our gun, but a small boat not even in our start , was on the line forcing us over, a quick call to bear away back over the line from our bowman and we were back on the wind in an instant and powering away on starboard tack towards Gurnard. The decision to go for a pin end start had worked well, as the Southerly 42RST built speed and sailed to windward as close as 30 deg apparent in clear area and good tide. It was time for the deep draft keel to start working its magic. As we tacked up the Solent we followed the island shore keeping in deep water to take full advantage of the ebbing tide, once we reachedYarmouth the decision was made to continue with a long beat across to the mainland shore to catch more tide as it developed off Lymington. Owen Parker's sound bit of advice paid off and before long the 42 was working her way out of the Solent and easing sails to bear away round the Needles.

S42RST - Southerly Team

As we looked further up the course towards a number of the IRC boats that had started earlier we saw the conditions worsening as a line of squalls tracked across the Isle of Wight and filled the Solent with gusts up to 30kts. With this in mind we made a late call to put the first reef in. This paid off to no end, allowing us to keep the large mainsail working for us as we dug the bow in to a building swell and happily beat up towards the Needles channel.

As soon as the boat had settled down we had the big Gennekar on deck controlled by a single line furler making it simple and easy to deploy. Much to our bowman's displeasure who was left with relatively little to do. As the Gennekar filled and the crew concentrated hard on trimming and keeping the mainsail powered the boat surfed off the back of a now building swell reaching speeds up to 11.5 kts. All was going perfectly, but not for long ! An ever building following sea and breeze meant that it was becoming harder to sail with the Gennekar and finally a short break of concentration and an untimely gust meant that the boat lost her way and turned up in to the wind. A broach was all we needed and too much for the Gennekar, before long the head

came loose and the sail drifted away from the masthead. We had lost the halyard as the snap shackle had given way. With the wind still continuing to build past St Catherine's we carried on under white sails still sailing at a comfortable 8 kts. The final beat demanded a last bit of effort from all to take the boat in and out of the shallows to stay out of a now flooding tide. The self tackling jib was fantastic as we tacked effortlessly and smoothly. The boat kept up speed through the tack as the jib almost sailed the boat through the wind. By this point the Southerly 42 was racing with boat in classes that had started much earlier than us and it became clear that we had a chance of doing well. Spurred on by our progress we continued to duck and dive between Starboard tackers as we took it as far out in to the tide as we felt we could and then as close to Ryde sand as we dare.

S110 Summertime

A great result for the day and one that proves the Southerly 42 truly is a beautiful sailing boat. With an elapsed time of 7:46:14. We placed a respectable first in class, second in group and twelfth overall out of a record 1750 boats.

S42RST - Southerly Team

S42RST - Two Tribes

From left to right: Ben Davies - Skipper/helm, Brenden McCallum - crew, Ben Collett - Main sail trimmer, Lester Abbott - crew, Peter Dove - Tactician, John Dove - Bowman/Downwind trimmer

Congratulations to Southerly 110 Summertime who also won in her class. The round the island race is a great event and hopefully next year we will see more Southerly's entered. See you there!" S46RS Gneiss Fantasy

RESULTS: 1st in CLASS: 1st in CLASS: 4th in CLASS:

12th OVERALL: Southerly 42RST - (Southerly Team) Southerly 110 - Summertime (Geoff Gray) Southerly 110 - Two Tribes (Dominic McKay & Trevor Didcock) 6th in CLASS: Southerly 115 - Showtime (John Ballinger) 15th in CLASS: Southerly 46RS - Gneiss Fantasy (Malcolm King) 18th in CLASS: Southerly 46RS - Augusta (Toby Smith) 24th in CLASS: Southerly 110 - Aurora (Andrew Scott-Brown) 32nd in CLASS: Southerly 100 - Gernee (Mike Flint)

’’This was our first RTI Race in the new boat’’ Southerly 110, Two Tribes - by Dominic McKay

This was our first RTI Race in the new boat, though we have raced for many years in our old Jaguar 25 between 1995 and 2001. After a late Friday night introducing the crew to each other and discussing tactics in the Jolly Sailor we set off soon after dawn from the Hamble on the Saturday to a fresh wind to get an early eyeball on the start line. At 7.30 we were off, dayglo green flag streaming from the backstay. We were 5 for the day -Trev and myself, two ‘experienced’ friends, Chris and Richard, and one novice, Gus. We made a good start on starboard tack in the deep water close to Cowes to get the best of the tide. Rapid progress saw us round Hurst Point an hour and a half later with a furious tangle of boats ahead, behind and abreast - a stunning sight in the sunny conditions. Half way down the Needles Channel whilst on starboard tack, one bowspritted 50 footer misjudged her passage on port and corrected at the very last moment missing our transom with less than a foot to spare - very alarming life flashing before your eyes stuff and we considered a protest but didn’t pursue it.

starboard!’ until as he was about to T-bone us he swerved dramatically to try and pass behind our stern - alas too late to avoid the inevitable collision and a loud splintering crack was heard as he bounced off and past us. (Later to our relief we found no damage or even scuff mark on our hull). After finally releasing the jammed sheet we popped over the finishing line not a hundred yards away after 8 1/2 hours and headed off to raft up in Cowes to celebrate and check all the results. At the ISC we were delighted to find we had come 4th in our immediate class of 62 boats and 60th overall out of the 900 or so in the ISC handicap. It was also great to see another Southerly in first place. We have already worked out how we can shave off 30 minutes time difference between us and hopefully next year avoid any collisions!

The wind strengthened on the downwind leg to St Catherine’s and combined with the swell that had been building over the previous 5 days made for hair-raising conditions - we flew the gennaker for a good 3 hours until near the Point when too close to broaching we finally relented and took it down. We felt this was one of our better legs and hit 12 knots on one surf down a big wave. We made steady progress to Bembridge and managed to avoid a nasty set of collisions at the bottle-neck around the fort before taking the inshore route on the final beat up to the finishing line. The lifting keel came in very handy as we skirted Ryde Sands and made the most of the weaker adverse tide compared with the main channel. With the finishing line a few hundred yards away in failing winds we needed to make one last tack when disaster struck a genoa sheet jammed as we tacked from port to starboard and left us in stays, dead in the water, with a Sigma 38 bearing down on us less than 50 yards away. We waved frantically miming ‘no steerage/cannot move etc’ whilst he was shouting ‘starboard!

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BLOCKADED IN FRANCE ! SOUTHERLY 46RS, GNEISS FANTASY BY MALCOLM KING

As the new owner of a Southerly 46RS my wife and I were keen to join the rendezvous as an opportunity to meet other Southerly owners and get some miles in with our new yacht – Gneiss Fantasy. We sailed with 2 friends to Cherbourg on Sunday 25th only to find we could get into the marina there but would not be let out. However, with a force 8 forecast for Sunday night we decided to enter the marina and see what happened.

us amused and we went on a couple of walks over the hills – the scenery is very similar to the South Downs as it is also Chalk hills. By Thursday I was getting worried that we might have to leave the boat in Fécamp as there appeared to be no sign of the dispute being solved and I had to fly to Houston USA on Monday. We had an enjoyable diner with Northshore on Thursday evening only tempered by the news that there was almost no chance of leaving on Friday.

We were met with many tails of yachts trying to escape, unsuccessfully, and that people of all nationalities had been imprisoned for a week. On Monday afternoon 2 Swedish yachts did make a run for it by cutting the wire and 1 got away. Early Monday evening the harbourmaster arranged a meeting with the mayor of Cherbourg. He explained his distress at our predicament and we all have free berths there next time – we didn’t pay any mooring fees for our stay. Suddenly at 18.00 hours it was announced that the wire would be dropped for 1 hour and so about 50 boats left, including the Fisher 25 also heading for Fécamp, and we anchored in the Petit Rade.

We were awoken on Friday morning at about 7.00am by a shout on the pontoon that the barrier had been lifted to let a freighter in and if we were quick we could get out. By 7:45 I think everybody had left, a very lucky escape, and we were moored up in Itchenor, Chichester Harbour, by 5:45 that evening. We had to motor all the way as the wind was only 3 or 4 knots occasionally rising to 6. At least the Southerly 46RS is a fast boat under motor as we were averaging 8 knots through the water.

We left early Tuesday morning and motored/sailed to Fécamp only to find again we were allowed in but our departure was not guaranteed. Northshore organised various activities to keep

I would like to thank all the delicate negotiations of the Northshore staff with the Fécamp fishermen as it was their diplomatic approach which probably resulted in the fisherman turning a blind eye to let us out. In the end it was an enjoyable few days with many stories to tell!

WORLD RECORD !

Dee Caffari first woman to sail solo, non-stop both ways around the world Dee Caffari onboard her yacht Aviva completed a double world first at 13:12 (GMT) on 16 February 2009 by crossing the official finish line of the round the world Vendee Globe yacht race. British yachtswoman Dee Caffari, 36, has succeed in the face of adversity to achieve her ultimate goal of becoming the first woman to sail solo, non-stop both ways around the world. The former PE teacher from Hertfordshire crossed the finish line in 6th place with a heavily damaged mainsail having spent 99 days at sea. The British skipper, supported by Aviva, the world’s fifth largest insurance group, burst into the record books in May 2006 and became the first woman to sail solo, non-stop the ‘wrong’ way around the world (against the prevailing winds and currents). That solo circumnavigation took her 178 days in a 72 foot steel yacht battling into the wind. Now less than three year’s later Caffari, who only started solo sailing in 2005, has taken less than 100 days to complete her solo circumnavigation the ‘right’ way around the world. Caffari was surrounded by a flotilla of supporter boats as she crossed the line, holding bright white flares above her head. The solo sailor said: “This is just incredible! To see all these people here to watch me cross the line and make history is just awesome. The support and recognition has been unbelievable. I’m quite exhausted but I’ll be buzzing for the next few days. My goal was to set the double world first and Aviva and I have done it. It’s an amazing feeling to become the first woman to sail solo, non-stop both ways around the world. You just can’t buy an experience like this, it’s awesome!” However, the race was not without incident as Caffari was forced to use all her tenacity and determination to battle her way to the finish line with her severely damaged mainsail looking like a shredded ‘string vest’. The mainsail is a solo skipper’s key sail that provides the majority of the power to the 60 foot carbon fibre racing machine but since the Southern Ocean Caffari has had continuous problems caused by the sail falling apart.

In an effort to keep the sail in one piece Caffari even resorted to using the skin staples from her medial kit and had to cut up one of her additional sails (the code 5) to patch the most badly affected areas. However, three months of ocean racing with hurricane force winds and enormous waves have left the sail in tatters. Nonetheless, the British skipper kept her eyes on the ultimate prize, to set a double world first and make history. Caffari added: “The mainsail constantly caused me concern. You just have to look at it to see what a dreadful state it’s in but I managed to struggle on. I never let it get the better of me, I had an opportunity here to make history so a disintegrating mainsail wasn’t going to get in my way. It’s been frustrating and tiring but Aviva and I are here now and I’m on cloud nine!” The Vendée Globe has been littered with drama and excitement, with nineteen yachts retired from thirty starters making the race a war of attrition. It has been a battle that Caffari has bravely fought to reach her ultimate goal. The solo skipper added: “The Vendée Globe has a reputation as the Everest of the Seas and this edition has certainly lived up to its name.There was disaster and drama at every turn with dismastings, Yann Elies’s broken leg and Jean Le Cam’s capsize. It was hard not to get distracted but I just had to keep going. My focus was getting Aviva and I home safe and sound and with the support of my team I’ve managed that so I’m over the moon.” Sarah Loughran, Head of Corporate Sponsorship at Aviva commented: “Dee’s performance has been inspirational. She set her sights on the double world first and we’ve backed her all the way. Aviva and all of our 57,000 employees are very proud of her today. This race has been a testament to her determination, resolve and tenacity, it’s been quite incredible. We are proud to be recognised as part of the team behind her great individual performance”

DEE CAFFARI calls on girl power for another WORLD RECORD attempt In June, Dee Caffari, the British yachtswoman who made history by becoming the first woman to sail solo, non stop both ways around the world, will attempt to break the record for sailing around Britain and Ireland. Caffari will be joined onboard her yacht Aviva by an all female crew, including fellow British yachtswoman and Vendée Globe race rival Samantha Davies, for the record attempt. Starting and finishing in Portsmouth, the route is almost 2500 nautical miles around the British coastline featuring some of the world’s most technical waters with ever-changing weather conditions, tidal flows and adverse land effects. Extra vigilance will be needed throughout the record attempt for shipping and other obstructions such as oil rigs in the North Sea. Dee Caffari commented: “It’s been over two months since the end of the Vendée Globe, so I am really looking forward to being reunited with Aviva and getting back out on the water. Although I haven’t sailed with a crew for a while, I think it will be great to have some company for this record attempt” The current outright record to sail around Britain and Ireland in a monohull yacht stands at 7 days 4 hours and was set in May 2004 onboard Solune. The record for an all female crew stands at 10 days and 16 hours, which was set by Samantha Davies and her crew onboard Roxy in June 2007. With the potential to break two records, Caffari and the crew of Aviva will be waiting for ideal weather conditions before setting off. Samantha Davies added: “I can’t wait to get on the water and start chasing down the two records – I already hold the female crew title but I’m more than happy to break that with this team, and hopefully we can claim the outright record in the process. Dee and I became good friends during the Vendée Globe and with four other girls onboard Aviva as well I’m sure we won’t be short of conversation.” Joining Caffari and Davies will be fellow Brits, offshore sailor Miranda Merron and boat captain Alex Sizer, German Figaro sailor Isabelle Joschke and freelance journalist Johanna Payton. The all female crew will be setting out in June but are waiting for the best weather window before deciding on an exact start date.

The Way South Caribbean & The Bahamas

SOUTHERLY 42RST

DISTANT SHORES by Paul & Sheryl Shard ... Visit us at www.distantshores.ca The past year had been filled with adventures â&#x20AC;&#x201C; our new Southerly 42 built in England, the transatlantic passage bringing her across the pond for a winter in the Caribbean, spring in the Out Islands of the Bahamas, and a fast trip home to Lake Ontario via New York and the Erie Canal. After 19 years of sailing our old Classic 37 sailboat, Two-Step, we had to show friends and family back home our new Southerly 42 sailboat, Distant Shores. With her unique variable-draft swing-keel she draws 2 feet 10 inches with the keel up and 9 feet with the keel fully down. Suddenly so many new places were open for us to explore so adventure called once again and after a great summer at home in Canada we headed back south for another winter in the Bahamas and Caribbean. Heading back down the Erie Canal to New York and then offshore to Cape May we arrived in the Chesapeake Bay in time for the United States Sailboat Show in Annapolis, Maryland, the largest in-water boat show in the world which always fall on the weekend of Canadian Thanksgiving in mid-October. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a wonderful stop on a voyage south since there are so many great deals to be had when preparing your boat for a long-term cruise. Too many in fact - ur credit cards were smoking and the boat loaded with new gizmos and gear when we finally tore ourselves away to set sail down the Bay!

We love the trip south down the Intracoastal Waterway from Norfolk, Virginia, down to Florida, and have done it several times now. We had planned a slow meandering trip “down the ditch” to visit all the little coastal towns and historic cities along the way but this year the temperatures stayed at freezing for far too long and as we scraped off the frost in Beaufort NC in early November, we said, “The heck with this! Let’s just get south!”. From Beaufort, we made several offshore jumps down the coast stopping at McClellanville SC, Charleston SC, Fernandina Beach FL, and then prepared for our crossing of the Gulf Stream to reach the Bahamas at Riviera Beach Marina FL near the Lake Worth inlet.

The Way South continued ...

The strategy is this: You wait for a cold front to approach. You would expect the wind to clock around from the prevailing easterlies to the south and southwest and get stronger as the front approaches. We used these southerly winds to head more or less directly east. When the front caught up with us, the wind shifted to the northwest, then the north, and then the northeast. Northeast is on the nose but at this point we had made a couple of hundred offshore miles to the east and could now lay off on a close-hauled tack and head south for the Caribbean. The problem with this strategy is that you don’t know how strong the front will be. In our case we saw winds of 30 knots with and after the passage of the front. On the bright side, we were never forced to tack. By reefing heavily we could stay closehauled and make our course directly to Antigua although it was a very bumpy ride. We watched the weather and finally made the jump from Marsh Harbour on December 11 putting the keel down the full 9 feet for best upwind performance at sea. We faced all points of sail on the first 2 days from strong south winds clocking around to west and northwest behind us as they built in strength. But throughout the pounding conditions, Distant Shores did a great job. She really is an excellent upwind sea boat. Matt was certainly the most cheerful, tough and optimistic crew anyone could hope to have on a difficult passage like this. He quickly got into the routine on Distant Shores and could always be counted on to jump in and help when anything needed doing. This, despite such a rough

ride the first few days that no one on board felt much like eating the great provisions Sheryl had laid on. We were fairly close-hauled for Days 35 making miles to the Caribbean. Only on the last 2 days did we see easier conditions as the wind lightened and we enjoyed romping along, passing the Virgin Islands, St Martin, St. Kitts and finally reaching Antigua on December 18. It took us 7 days to go 1100 miles. Wow! What a passage! We made landfall at Nelson’s Dockyard Marina in English Harbour, Antigua, where we cleared-in to customs. Since Matt would be flying home from here in another week we were instructed to come back to the office to have him officially removed from the crew list within 24 hours of his departure. We could go to any of the 3 official Ports of Call – English Harbour, Jolly Harbour or St. John’s (the capital city) – to do this but the officer strongly recommended not going to St. John’s since the officers are very busy there with cruise ship and ferry passengers. A good tip for all cruising sailors clearing in or out of Antigua. Picturesque Nelson’s Dockyard is one of our favourite harbours in Antigua. It is the only restored Georgian period dockyard still in active use in the world and is named after the famous English Admiral Horatio Nelson who served as a young Captain in the Caribbean Leeward Islands fleet from 1784 until 1787. During Nelson’s period in Antigua the naval yard was greatly expanded. Nelson was the 26 year old Captain of HMS Boreas at the time.

Before Matt flew home we spent a few days relaxing here and partying atop Shirley Heights where a fabulous BBQ is held everyThursday and Sunday night. Sunday is the biggest event and we danced to the music of the steel drums overlooking both English and Falmouth Harbours, the best view in Antigua. We then finished the week cruising around the south coast of this lovely island before Matt flew home. Our first stop was at Indian Creek to the east, where singer Eric Clapton has a magnificent mansion on the headland at the entrance. But we hadn’t come to stargaze. We’d heard Indian Creek was a good hurricane hole and wanted to check it out. The creek snakes its way deep into the mangroves offering good protection from the sea and surge we were delighted to see. It gets quite shallow at the head which wasn’t a problem for us since it would give us more space if the anchorage got crowded in a storm.

The Way South continued ...

Matt Heron, an Australian ex-pat working in Dubai, who has been interested in owning a Southerly 42 like ours, flew in to join us as guest crew for the next leg of our voyage to the Bahamas as well as our upcoming offshore passage to Antigua where we would begin our winter cruise. Matt is planning to do a lot of passage-making with his own boat in the future so he wanted to see how the boat performed offshore and to get some experience with sailors who have done 60,000 miles.

Conditions were fine but perky for the crossing but throughout the night the winds rose and by the time we made landfall near West End the winds were near 30 knots with rising seas from the SW so we decided not to try to enter the harbour since the crashing waves made the narrow cut at Memory Rock too dangerous to enter. (Later we learned that another yacht behind us had attempted this and had gone to grief on the reef. All the crew were rescued and injuries were minor but there was extensive damage to the boat.) Instead we headed north in the lee of the Abacos and made for Walker Cay. The winds continued to increase and by the afternoon we were seeing 40 knots with gusts of 50! We had the main sail double reefed and were sailing over 6 knots upwind even after we furled the self-tacking jib away altogether! We were very proud of Distant Shores in these heavy weather conditions - and of Matt too. The stronger the winds blew, the happier he seemed to be! The wind was still blowing a solid 40 knots as we swung up the keel to slip onto the banks behind Walkers Cay and dropped the hook in smooth seas in the protection of the islands.

We had planned a few days in Florida, where weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d been preparing the boat at Riviera Beach Marina near the Lake Worth Inlet, for Matt to get over his jet-lag and get accustomed to the boat before crossing the Gulf Stream to do some cruising in the Bahamas. But we had a weather window with the desired southerly winds on the day that he arrived so, with his blessing, we cast off for a night sail across the Gulf Stream within hours of his arrival. This was so we could avoid a big front coming down the coast that would keep us in Florida for another week. We all wanted to spend more time cruising in the Bahamas so decided to make a run for it.

Once the wind subsided we had very pleasant conditions for the rest of the Abaco cruise as we island-hopped eastwards across shallow banks to Marsh Harbour over the next week. Matt is a kite surfer and has brought his gear so we had fun swinging up the keel and poking into shallow coves that had the perfect sandy beaches where Matt could launch his kite and play around the boat. Although Distant Shores is a monohull, she is designed to be beachable with the keel up so we had great fun demonstrating this ability as we creek-crawled in the mangroves or dried out on gorgeous remote sandbars. We have now travelled over 13,000 nautical miles aboard our Southerly 42 but the next offshore leg was one of the toughest we have had to date. We had planned an “uphill” passage of 1100 miles from the Bahamas to get us directly to Antigua. It was early December by this time and possibly past the best time to do this (if there is a best time since the prevailing east to northeast winds are always on the nose) but if you play the winds right it’s a fast way to get south to the wonderful islands of the Caribbean.

The Way South continued ...

Another advantage of our boatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s shallow-draft swing keel is that we have more choices of safe harbours to run to where we can hide from storms since many are too shallow for most other cruising boats. We can also avoid the dangers of crowding since we can often go in a little closer to shore to get more space even if it is crowded. Continuing east we rounded up to Nonsuch Bay and the anchorage at Green Island where once again Matt could kite surf across the protected yet expansive waters while Sheryl and I snorkelled on the surrounding reefs. It was time for a some downwind sailing so we headed back west along the coast stopping at Falmouth Harbour, home of mega-yachts in Antigua. There is a huge anchorage here as well as several marinas complete with chandleries, grocery stores and restaurants. A sailorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s paradise! While we were there, the magnificent Maltese Falcon arrived! The Maltese Falcon is a clipper sailing luxury yacht owned by American venture capitalist Tom Perkins. It is one of the largest privately-owned sailing yachts in the world at 88 m (290 ft). The ship has fifteen square sails, five per mast, stored inside the mast; they can fully unfurl into tracks along the yards in six minutes. The three carbon fiber masts are free-standing and able to rotate.

Matt still had a few more days until his departure so from Falmouth we continued on west to Carlisle Bay, then 5 Island Bay and finally concluded our cruise of Antigua at the large resort and marina at Jolly Harbour. There is a convenient dock right in front of the Customs and Immigration Office where we tied up the boat while officially signing Matt off our crew list. We said our farewells but a new friendship had been bonded. You can’t sail 1100 miles together helping one another through tricky seas to reach a beautiful tropical island like Antigua and just say goodbye. As we say to our cruising friends one and all, “Catch you later. We’ll see you Out There!”

NEW SOUTHERLY 49

After another winter of sailing in the Caribbean the Shards have decided to move up to the new Southerly 49. You can follow their New Boat Blog on www.distantshores.ca The new “Distant Shores” will be on display at London Excel in January 2010. The Shards welcome you aboard! They will be there to answer your questions about cruising aboard Southerly yachts and conducting seminars about longterm voyaging. Paul and Sheryl are the authors of “Sail Away! A Guide to Outfitting and Provisioning for Cruising” which they are updating to a 3rd edition. They are also the presenters of the sailing adventure TV series, Distant Shores, which airs on Sky’s Travel Channel, see www.travelchannel.co.uk for details.

Owen Parker: Edward Heath’s sailing master Owen Parker, best known as Sir Edward Heath’s sailing master, was one of the best-known yachtsmen of his generation and managed all of Heath’s Morning Cloud yachts and their crews. In 1969, this partnership became the first foreign entry to win the famous Sydney-Hobart Classic. They went on to represent Britain in the winning Admiral’s Cup team with Morning Cloud II in 1971, won Burnham Week with Morning Cloud III in 1972, represented Britain with Morning Cloud IV in the 1973 Admiral’s Cup and again in 1979 with Morning Cloud V. The team continued racing right through to that year’s infamous Fastnet Race when 15 lives were lost. Morning Cloud V finished the race, but Heath took such a buffeting during the 605-mile race to the Fastnet Rock and back to Plymouth that he never raced again.

1932-2008

Attending the recent relaunch of Morning Cloud II, now named Opposition, at the Clare Lallow yard in Cowes that had built the yacht, Parker recounted how Heath had woken him during the Sydney-Hobart yacht race saying that the boat was surrounded by killer whales. “What should I do?” he asked. Parker answered “Pray, sir, pray”, then rolled over and went back to sleep. Parker wrote about his experiences sailing with Heath in his book Tack Now Skipper (1979). Ronald Cecil Maurice Victor Parker was born in 1932 in Butlocks Heath, Southampton. His father, Owen Parker, was a fisherman, shipwright and professional sailor who crewed on Sir Thomas Sopwith’s J Class America’s Cup challenge yacht Endeavour. Ronald left school at 14 to follow in his father’s footsteps, picked up the name “Young Owen”, and when his father died playing football at the age of 42, the name “Owen” stuck with him. Owen got his first paid hand post in 1946 aboard the 96ft luxury yacht Leander, then jumped ship to Clover the following season “for better pay”, earning the princely sum of £1 a week. His first racing experience came under the command of Mrs Drayfus in her 6m yacht Thistle, competing in the Solent and Cowes Week.

During the 1950s, he became the paid hand aboard a yacht owned by John Millar, the aircraft component manufacturer, and spent time in America where he became an expert at varnishing. In the late Fifties, Millar became involved in a yacht fittings company on the South Coast and employed Parker. He went to work for the winch manufacturer Lewmar in 1960 and then moved to the Southampton-based chandlery Montague-Smith, where he graduated to managing director. Parker continued racing, acting as the paid hand aboard Guy Bowles’ Camper & Nicholson yacht Gay Gauntlet. Bowles later commissioned a series of highly successful race yachts all named Sunmaid, which Parker oversaw and campaigned. In 1964, Owen Aisher, the Marley tile magnate, persuaded Parker to join his crew on the 12m Kurrewa, a British contender for the America’s Cup. Shortly after, the skipper Stan Bishop died, and Parker took over the captaincy. They were beaten in the British trials by Sovereign. Parker rejoined Guy Bowles and commissioned Sunmaid V for the 1965 season, which proved the boat to beat for the next four seasons. At the tail end of the 1969 racing season, Parker was invited to join the crew of East Coast sailors that Ted Heath had pulled together to race his first Morning Cloud at Burnham Week. The yacht did well and Heath decided to have it shipped to Australia to take part in that year’s Sydney-Hobart race, starting on Boxing Day. Parker remained as Heath’s right-hand sailing man for the next 12 years, taking responsibility for his five Morning Cloud yachts and crews. When Heath became Prime Minister, Parker was given the task of liaising with the Security Services to work out a way of repatriating Heath should a government emergency arise. When a helicopter airlift was discussed, Parker asked: “What the hell are we supposed to do when all this is going on?” When told that the crew would be required to take down the sails and heave-to, he answered: “What? And lose precious seconds? Not bloody likely! If you want the skipper, we’ll push him off in a dinghy and you can pick him up from there while we continue racing.” In 1985, Owen started his own business ‘Owen Parker Marine Marketing’ primarily to look after Lewmar’s boat building customers. Following his retirement, Owen then became an ambassador for Lewmar - a role that he kept for the rest of his life. Ronald Cecil Maurice Victor Parker (Owen Parker), yachtsman: born Butlocks Heath, Hampshire 19 May 1932; married 1984 Christine (two sons, three daughters); died Southampton 9 July 2008, aged 76. by Barry Pickthall

Pete Goss & Owen Parker

Owen Parker, Lester Abbott & Dee Caffari

Eddie Warden Owen, Christine & Owen Parker

Memorial trophy

Owen was a great friend and admirer of Northshore, and he welcomed the efforts being made to support the marine industry. He was often seen at Southerly events and social functions, with his wife Christine. Even through his long illness, his passion and enthusiasm for racing never wavered. Owen had organised and planned every last detail of the Southerly 42RST entry in Round the Island Race 2008. From appointing his crew, to discussing tactics and timing of the most important ‘tea and bacon rolls’ at the start of the race - this was to be his 50th Round the Island Race ! Sadly, he was taken ill just before the race, but via his mobile phone, from his hospital bed and despite his critical condition, Owen continued to discuss current wind and tide conditions to gain the best advantage. Using his many years of experience, he talked his crew round the course. He was overjoyed to hear that we had won our class. That was his last race ... A memorial trophy has been arranged for Round the Island Race, IRC group ,1 in memory of this much loved sailor.

Working Lives David Milles A portrait by Barry Pickthall Southerly 42 RST owner David Milles knows a thing or two about emissions. One of his companies, Eminox, is Europe’s leading manufacturer of ‘green’ exhaust systems for buses, trucks and non-road vehicles. High profile customers include Volvo, Scania, Iris Bus and Caterpillar, and systems are retrofitted on major bus and truck fleets across Europe and beyond. Highly-visible Eminox ‘vertical stack’ exhaust systems are a favourite among the trucking community, and can even be seen on London’s famous ‘Duck Tours’ amphibious vehicles. David is no stranger to the equally clean sailing environment, having cut his teenage teeth in a dinghy sailing out of Lymington. ‘Once you are 100 yards offshore, you are untouchable. As a 14 year-old, I would sail over to the Isle of Wight and back. The freedom of it all was wonderful – just like riding off on a bike.’ A natural engineer, David served an apprenticeship with Rolls Royce before going on to Cambridge University. He then joined the Army and resumed his love of sailing – this time aboard the 30sq m yachts commandeered from the Germans after the Second World War. ‘We sailed out of Kiel and cruised all round the Baltic. That was no mean feat, because these yachts did not

David Milles

have engines, so when it came to leaving or entering harbour there were no brakes or accelerator. I still remember some very hairy experiences that certainly concentrated the mind.’ Having served a short commission, David joined IBM as a trainee programmer. ‘In those days, computers filled large air-conditioned rooms, did not have screens or keyboards and were programmed using cards’, he recalls. From there, it was a simple step into a City stock broking firm with a new IBM mainframe that needed someone to run it. He moved his young family to Sussex and became a commuter, catching the train to Canon Street and back each day. ‘One day, I was sitting in the carriage looking at a colleague 20 years older than me, and asked myself ‘Do I really want to do this for the rest of my life?’ ‘The simple answer was No.’ David took a year-long sabbatical and moved to rural Lincolnshire with a plan to develop a human-powered plane to capture the £50,000 Kremer Prize for the first to complete a figure-of-eight flight. Sadly, the blueprints

were still wet when amateur cyclist and hangglider pilot, Bryan Allen stole his thunder by successfully flying his Gossamer Condor 2 on a 2,172m course around Minter Field in Shafter, California. ‘That rather took the wind out of my sails’ David reflects. ‘The challenge had been set back in 1959, and no one was expected to break it that easily!’ Not wanting to return to computing, David took a fortuitous step in 1978 renting a 2,000sq ft factory in Lincoln to produce exhaust systems for the Leyland buses operated by Lincolnshire Roadcar. This is where the Milles success story begins, though he is the first to admit that his chequered career to-date had by chance provided a perfect grounding for starting a business. ‘In those early days, there were just three of us, but the bus company was so pleased with our improvements that we won our first large order for 30 systems. The aim then, and still is today, to produce an exhaust system that will last the life of the vehicle, and soon we were winning more orders from other bus companies.’

Working Lives David Milles A year later, Eminox’s principal rival went into receivership and David and his colleagues took a collective deep breath and bought the business from the receiver. This tripled their workforce from 5 to 15 in one stroke, and began a programme of expansion that now sees Eminox employing more than 220 in its main UK factory and customer service centres in the UK, Sweden and France. Much of the company’s growth resulted from a commercial tie-up with Johnson Matthey, back in 1991, which led to the first successful near-zero emission diesel exhaust system. Their patented Continuously RegeneratingTrap system (CRT®) was first trialled on a London bus where the exhaust could be switched instantaneously between this and the original ‘dirty’ system. The absence of smoke and diesel smell was immediately apparent. To prove it Carol Vorderman performed the ‘white hanky’ test, over the tail pipe of a bus exhaust exhaust system for the TV cameras of the influential BBC programme ‘Tomorrow’s World’. A independent Swedish study showed the financial cost of fitting CRT systems to be substantially less that the cost of dealing with the pollution created by untreated exhausts. The system also proved cleaner, cheaper and more straightforward than using alternative fuels like CNG and LPG, and soon became the market-leader. Eminox’s success allowed them to acquire two suppliers in financial difficulties, and create a sister company, Teconnex. Establishment of Hexadex, the holding company, quickly followed. Some time later, the opportunity arose to acquire a struggling Swedish company which was a major supplier of line-fit exhaust systems to Scania and Volvo. In 2001, the newlyrenamed Swenox became part of the Group. David believes that he has been extremely fortunate in business. ‘There was never a master plan; if someone had said to me back in 1978 that one day we would have a turnover of more than £100 million, I would have scoffed at them. Our success has been based on opportunism. I firmly believe that opportunities are constantly flowing by - sometimes you don’t see them until they have already passed, but others you see and grab with both hands.’

(continued)

David Milles, now 66, is looking towards retirement, and the fresh challenge of sailing his Southerly 42 RST appropriately named Hexadex around Britain. â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;It is something I have always wanted to do, and also spend time in the Scottish Islands. The Baltic has its attractions too, but one of my sons has moved to Melbourne, so a voyage round the world via Australia is something we are also contemplating.â&#x20AC;&#x2122;

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Called to the bar... MAIDEN VOYAGE Southerly 38, Snow Goose BY MARK FELDMAN

Our new Southerly 38 - Snow Goose was launched after the Excel show in January. Unlike the bird of the same name whose gestation is a mere 19-24 days our boat took a little longer to hatch. Like all proud parents before us we are convinced that our offspring is the most beautiful on the river. After a weeks sea trials on the Solent we prepared to sail her back to our home port of Woolverstone. We are fairly new to sailing having come to it a mere 4 years ago, so enlisted the help of one of my oldest friends -Brett an experienced sailor, to ensure that we would arrive in one piece. We slipped from Northshore’s Itchenor moorings a couple of hours after low tide so that the Chichester shallows would be no problem - and with a fair wind the Looe channel was soon behind us. A pleasant beam reach allowed us to make good progress - but as the day unfolded it became apparent that even with a little judicious motoring we would not reach our destination of Eastbourne in full light. As we rounded Beachy Head we saw a yacht in the twilight steer away from Eastbourne and go back on itself towards Newhaven , this should have sounded alarm bells. Reference to the pilot book suggested 2m of water minimum and with our wonderful lifting keel we felt that we had a lot of leeway. As we approached Eastbourne entrance carefully checking the harbour lights and rechecking the chart plotter the water began to shallow. We called ahead to the harbour master who assured us ‘ at least 1m over the bar at all tides ‘ so with false confidence we eased ourself into the white sector and nudged forward. 1.9, 1,7, 1,5, 1,3 - up came the keel, 1,2, 1,1, 1.0 - keel fully up - pulse increasing, 0.9, 0.8 0.7 - we were now firmly stuck at the entrance - a little reverse thrust - a flick to the R with the bow thruster - and we floated again - but soon once more found ourselves stuck fast. Luckily the night was calm and although the rudders were well and truly in mud there was no real jarring but it did take over an hour for the incoming tide to free us to the point where we could get into the channel proper and make for the harbour gates. The award for the best shower block must go to Eastbourne Marina and they also do a good line in restaurants. An excellent Thai meal and an emergency gin and tonic settled the nerves wonderfully. The next day was another 60 mile hop to Ramsgate ( Pizza Express - highly recommended) and then we were off to the Swale. The river was empty of all other craft when we picked up a buoy opposite Harty ferry and took our new tender ashore. Monday showed the real advantage of the lifting keel - navigating the Swale at times only 90 cm deep we made our way up to Kingsferry Bridge. This really is great fun - they stop all the traffic for you - the bridge rises and you make your stately progress

through the span. The hardest part is resisting the temptation to turn around and do the whole thing again and again. Once into the Medway we turned hard to port and sailed down to Chatham - overnighting for free at our sister marina. Leaving about 4 pm we tacked up the river towards Queensborogh. The self-tacker really came into its own here and our friend Brett admitted that he would have given up after a few tacks in his Oceanis and motored. We had the tide but despite the wind on the nose sailed all the way in some fog to the head of the river. They say that the Dutch paid a traitor to show them the Medway navigation when they attacked in 1667, and its easy to see how lost you could be without Satellite Navigation. A word here about AIS this is very reassuring when there is reduced viability and large shapes are looming from the mist around you . Another buoy at Queensborough and a motor ashore to the Flying Dutchman for some pub grub and most importantly a token to get back through the turnstile which gives access to the jetty where our dinghy was tied up. The next day saw us over the Thames estuary in very light winds, (our 2nd headsail with its large genoa meant we could keep sailing at at 4knots in about 8 knots wind) We touched the sand bars which had moved from their charted positions no problem Snow Goose just lifted her keel a few inches and on we went to Brightlingsea and our home territory. Here is one of the finest Indian restaurants in the country ‘Kovolam’ which would justify this port of call on its own. Our final day was a beat up the coast in 12 knots true (we saw 7.2 on the log, ) into Levington marina for Snow Goose’s first service at 50 engine hours. The last morning was a quiet sail up the Orwell to Woolverstone and home to our very own berth, our first journey was over. Time to reflect on our wonderful boat and realize that much of our route would not have been possible in a conventional fixed keel yacht.

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Working Lives Adrian & Pennie Heyworth A portrait by Barry Pickthall Ben Southall, the lucky Brit who beat 34,000 other applicants in May, to win the ‘Best Job in the World’ as caretaker of the sun bleached coral island of Hamilton on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, may now be wondering if he has missed out. As the 34 yearold bachelor from Petersfield lies on the beach writing his blogs for the 12 hours a week stipulated in his £11,670 a month contract, he may well ponder on whether the real opportunity to live in paradise was 10,000 miles closer to home.

Adrian Heyworth

While Southall was battling it out on realityTV to win this lazy posting Down-under, the island of Herm, a ¾ square mile unspoilt gem, 3 miles off the coast of Guernsey, quietly changed hands for an undisclosed sum. Without bicycles, cars or crowds to spoil its beauty, the island is rightly titled as one of the world’s greatest getaways. Adrian and Pennie Heyworth have spent the past 29 years stewarding this island retreat, after taking over the task from Pennie’s parents, Major Peter and Jenny Wood, back in 1980. The Major, who had the foresight to take up a long lease when the German occupation forces left what was then a derelict and barren island in 1949, built the White House Hotel and began the process of turning Herm into an idyllic tourist attraction. The country house hotel must be the only hostelry within the Western World still without phones, televisions or clocks. Somehow, such 21st Century decadence is out of place in such a relaxing escape.

Herm

The Heyworths continued the Major’s good husbandry, developing a camp site, self-catering accommodation, a harbour for visiting yachts, family run restaurant, gift shops, and planted the trees and exotic plants that have made the island such a renowned paradise for walkers. They finally retired last September, selling on the lease to John and Julia Singer, and took delivery of their Southerly 42 RST Maid Honor to pursue their second love – cruising. Although the remains of Neolithic chamber tombs found on the island date to prehistoric times, the first records of habitation on Herm date back to the 6th century, when monks turned the island into a monastic retreat. The name ‘Herm’ is said to have been derived from the hermits who settled there, though an alternative interpretation links the name to the Norse term ‘erm’ referring to the arm-like appearance of the island. The monks however, were not immune to Godly actions. In 709AD, an Atlantic storm washed away the strip of land connecting Herm to what is now the small island of Jethou, and with it, went the will to live in such isolation. In 933, the Channel Islands were annexed to the Duchy of Normandy and have remained a British Crown Dependency since 1204 when the region was divided once again. Between 1570 and 1737, the governors of Guernsey used the retreat primarily as a hunting ground. Industry finally reached Herm in the 19th century with the noisy arrival of chain gangs breaking up granite to serve the large-scale military fortifications being constructed on Guernsey and surrounding islands. By now, Herm had become a tenancy let out by the Crown, and remained offlimits to visitors. Prince Blücher who owned the tenancy just prior to the First World War, introduced a colony of wallabies but none now survive – wiped out no doubt by successive shooting parties! Another noted tenant was Compton Mackenzie, the writer and founder of the Scottish National Party who lorded over the Island for three years during the 1920s. Among his bestknown works are the books The Monarch of the Glen and Whisky Galore. On 25 July 1940, a few weeks after the German invasion of the Channel Islands, nine German soldiers commandeered a motorboat and shot a propaganda war film on Herm. The Island’s sandy beaches were then used to practice landings in preparation for the invasion of England, but otherwise Herm saw little of the German occupation beyond officers making occasional trips to shoot rabbits. British commandos made a night-time raid on Herm in February 1943 and were surprised to find no sign of life on the Island, which was spared the huge concrete blockhouses, anti-tank walls and observation towers that continue to disfigure the larger islands to this day.

Working Lives

(continued)

Adrian & Pennie Heyworth After the War, the States of Guernsey bought Herm from the Crown to open up this 1.5-mile long piece of paradise for the enjoyment of all. The residing tenant is charged with maintaining the island’s beauty for the benefit of its visitors. Adrian Heyworth laughs at the idea that any island could be run, simply by writing blogs. ‘We worked our socks off 7 days a week for 28 years, and wouldn’t have had it any other way.’ He reflects now. Like Pennie, the Heyworth’s three daughters were brought up on the Island and between them all, worked to make Herm the welcoming family-run holiday retreat that the Singers are intent on continuing. During their 3-decade term, the Heyworths extended the hotel, built 20 self-catering units, a tavern, snack bar, gift shop and campsite, as well as develop the harbour. ‘We were responsible for everything from the high waterline upwards. We cleaned the beaches, kept the power and sewage plants working, wormed the cattle, and (after washing his hands no-doubt) took the Sunday Service. As a Special Constable, I was also responsible for dealing with occasional drunk and disorderly behaviour, as well as running the first-aid team.’ Another of Adrian’s great passions is flora and fauna. A policy of continued tree planting has transformed what was a rather barren landscape into a wind tolerant island with the microclimate to sustain all manner of exotic plants. His efforts resulted in them winning RHS ‘Britain in Bloom’ gold medals in 2002 and 2008. The judges’ commendation reads: ‘The success Herm achieved in 2008 was mostly because of Herm´s gardeners and community, who were looking after their island so well.’ The Island has 50 full-time working residents and their families, a number that swells to 150 during the season. ‘Jobs on Herm always attract a huge number of applicants, and it was always quite a task to weed the list down to a manageable number. We looked for compatibility with island life, and focused on families with children of school age.’ Says Adrian. The island has its own small primary school, and older children have the fun of catching the ferry to attend secondary school in St Peter Port as weekly boarders.. ‘In the past, we have had some real ‘townie’ children arrive in black patent shoes, and it is wonderful to watch them quickly shed their trappings as they take to climbing trees and the care-free outdoor upbringing that the Island provides.’ He adds. For Adrian and his family, life on Herm was a wonderful hands-on existence. Their working day would commence at 7:45am with a tour of the island in the company car – a Honda quad bike. ‘Being surrounded by water, keeping on top of maintenance was a major priority.

The Manor, Herm

The Heyworth family

At 9:00am, he would be on the harbour wall to meet the first boat carrying fresh supplies, which then had to be manhandled into trailers for transportation to the hotel, café, shop and campsite. The rest of the morning was then taken up meeting each profit-sharing manager and sorting out any issues that arose. After lunch, Adrian would take out Herm’s cargo vessel, a landing craft capable of transporting a tractor or JCB, or carrying guests on an eco trip to watch the abundant puffins and other wildlife. ‘Sailing and managing an island do not run in harmony. We are life-long sailors, so taking out the Island’s landing craft or work boat was the nearest we got. Pennie and I would escape in the Island work boat to France whenever we could, usually for 2-3 days each month, but there were times during the height of the season when even short breaks away were impossible to take. ‘I really enjoyed conducting the eco trips too’ added Adrian. ‘It gave me the opportunity to talk to our guests and show them the many wonders that Herm has to offer.’ Their evenings were taken up during the season, catering for as many as 250 dinner guests as well as conference groups. ‘Life on an island really is non-stop. I’m not sure that I would have ever had the time to write a blog!’ he says. Only in the winter could the family make their escape, usually for a well-earned 2-3 week charter yacht experience in the Caribbean, and Thailand. Had they ever been to Australia’s Whitsunday Islands or Hamilton in particular? ‘No. We had not even heard of Hamilton until all this publicity began’ admits Pennie. Now that they have retired, Adrian and Pennie intend to enjoy some extended cruising aboard their Southerly 42 Maid Honor. ‘One of our prime ambitions is to make an Atlantic crossing in her. We are certainly going to be using the boat a lot.’ He enthuses. Somehow, I sense that Ben Southall’s blogging from Hamilton Island won’t even make it on their radar.

Incompetent Crew ... Southerly 110

BY BABS WYTHERS

... poised on the foredeck ready to slip the ropes. I complied with his orders and gently released the lines. ‘’Don’t let go yet!’’ he shouted. Too late. With the help of a small gust of untimely wind the boat’s bow drifted loose. ‘’You said it was OK to let go!’’ yelled the angry second-mate. ‘’No. I asked if you were OK’’, flew back the reply, as an eager onlooker hurried on to the pontoon to help ease the predicament. ‘’ It was a statement, not a question’’, came the retort. ‘’Your message was quite clear - you said it was OK to let go’’. There was a grim silence as we glared at each other. Three weeks at sea together was destined to be fun for my husband and I. Sailing calmly down Southampton Water was a welcome relief from the stressful departure but this was not due to last too long.‘’While it’s quiet, I’ll remind you how to tie a bowline’’, my husband enthusiastically suggested, anxious to resume a conversation. ‘’OK, if you must’’, I reluctantly agreed, instantly regretting using those two letters again, but acknowledging how useless I was at tying any sort of knot. It had been a long while since Brownie days. So for the umpteenth time, the Rabbit and the Tree story began in earnest. I must remember to tell my grand daughter Sophie this fascinating anecdote sometime - a two year old would undoubtedly understand it better than me! ‘’Make the loop, watch the rabbit come out of the hole. He runs round the back of the tree and down to his warren again’’. Sadly my bunny never remembers what he has to do. He is so dizzy running round the tree trying to get it right that he collapses in a heap and completely loses sight of his underground home. Sailing towards the setting sun and glimpsing the enchanting church steeple of Yarmouth on our portside was a tranquil end to ‘INCOMPETENT CREW’ Four couples and four carefully prepared boats - ours a brand

new Southerly 110 on its first long voyage, had meticulously planned a trip to the West Country. Perfect weather had been ordered, and brilliant sunshine, gentle breezes and a balmy warmth welcomed departure hour. Peaceful marina waters, from where the small flotilla was due to sail, glistened and gently rippled in the mid-afternoon light. Five minutes to countdown. The air was suddenly rent apart with a piercing scream from one of the female crew. ‘’ My God be careful, you’ll drop that in a mo——’’. The warning came too late. The recipient of this furious outburst looked on in horror as the black vanity case he had been holding slithered from his hand and disappeared into the watery depths. A few seconds of silence and then Round Two. ‘’You bloody idiot! I can t trust you to do anything these days. You great oaf! You——’’! The poor husband looked on in disbelief that he could have committed such a mortal sin and wisely decided to say nothing. His expression said it all.

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Y O U

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INCOMPETENT CREW (continued) ‘’ How can I possibly go away now without any make-up? I’m not likely to be able to replace any of that on the Isle of Wight am I? You’re so stupid and careless sometimes, I don’t know how I put up with you!’’ The neighbouring boat crews and nearby residents looked on in amazement, in anticipation of a Third Round. A vision of several oily mullet from the bed of the marina, liberally donned in waterproof mascara and eyeliner, brought a smile to the lips of the owner of the Southerly Solent Spirit moored alongside Moonshadow, from whence came the entertainment. A perfect time to depart he thought - domestic bliss would surely return before the first port of call. He called out ‘’OK!’’ to his wife a fraught beginning. Situated on the estuary of the western Yar, the harbour is both quaint and picturesque and berthing normally easy. But on this particular day the stepladder that usually enabled a gentle descent from boat to pontoon, suddenly decided to menacingly tilt to the left and die with an ominous creak. No serious injuries - just choice swear words and intensive care failed to restore the ladder to normal health. A wobbly fender step acted as a replacement and provided much more fun. I rose to the challenge of balancing dangerously on this bouncy ledge ready to leap into the unknown. In spite of the luxurious accommodation on board our new vessel, sleeping was a nightmare for me. On dry land I have insomniac tendencies. At sea it is so much worse. I’d remembered to pack a torch for possible nocturnal excursions about the saloon in an attempt to induce sleep. But in the dark witching hours, (or was it the result of mild alcoholic haze) the object had somehow turned into a hairbrush which did not possess an on/off switch. After little sleep, the experienced crew were up with the lark, or should it be the seagull? Shipping forecast at 5.30am and all ears, except mine, alerted to glean vital information which would bear no resemblance to the actual conditions we would experience. As expected the trampling overhead was the next diversion. A well-known fairy story sprang to mind - The Three Billy Goats Gruff. ‘’ Who’s that trip-trapping over my bunk?’’ I was tempted to shout, as an endless train of heavy footsteps resound overhead, as thoughtless folk made their way to use the conveniences or to disconnect numerous lines, shouting out hearty greetings and instructions. But I bit my tongue, as my own likeness to a big ugly troll at that ungodly hour, was probably very close. To be honest I knew I would be doing my own share of clomping about soon - or rather tripping over anything and everything in sight and ensuring intensive bruising for days to come.

basil and marjoram would never be a priority for me when camping a la mer! Before my first venture to sea I had purchased some brown trendy deck-shoes - milk chocolate coloured with green and red flashes port and starboard. In those days of blissful ignorance of most navigational matters I had commented, ‘’Yes, these are great thank you - very comfortable, just what I need. Can you find me a pair with the same coloured flags though? I prefer the red to the green if you have them’’. A withering look from the shop assistant and a huge sigh from my companion made me realise what a gaffe I’d made. But it was an introduction to navigation for me. Each time I now see a marker buoy I think of my feet! I enjoyed being on the helm during our three weeks away and assuming some responsibility. It gave me something to do in rough weather, to take my mind off impending danger and morbid thoughts of a watery grave. I combined this job with a role of chief lobster-pot watch. However Poole Harbour soon put a damper on my confidence and I had another item to add to my list of why I was so incompetent at sea. Was I now suffering from colour blindness a confusion of reds and greens? I must admit in my defence I pleaded dazzling sun-light and shimmering water. But too late! The depth alarm rang piercingly and the sound of severe grating under the boat brought the Skipper running up on deck. I was mortified. But my always-good-in-an-emergency husband gave a wry grin, ‘’That sure gave the barnacles a bit of a headache. Save cleaning them off the bottom next winter. Don’t look so worried. It could have been a lot, lot worse! We wouldn’t have been so lucky in the old boat! Soon be back in the main channel‘’ he added seizing the wheel. It was great to return home to a haven of normality, and to celebrate our daughter’s birthday. Surprisingly my husband had bought her a present - beautifully wrapped. She tore off the shiny red foil paper and matching ribbon to reveal a book. I curiously peered at the glossy cover displaying a photo of a stream-lined yacht calmly sailing under sapphire blue skies. The title? COMPETENT CREW. ‘’It’s just what you need to get you going! ‘’ he explained. I am still wondering whether my daughter and I are meant to be sharing the book, or whether she is being trained up as my replacement!

I had a love/hate relationship with this holiday at sea. As each day dawned I was determined it would be better than the last. Some days were good but I only remember the bad ones; when the wind blew too strongly and a visit to the loo became perilous; when we rafted up alongside numerous others which meant clambering like an ungainly gorilla over unknown boats; when my fingers went numb in the cold and knees refused to obey orders from the brain when stepping onto slippery pontoons or into wobbling dinghies; or when trying to serve a meal in restless seas. How annoying to arrive at Weymouth and berth alongside a boat boasting a herb garden. Garnishes of

Pure Therapy... around Britain

FROM PLYMOUTH TO PLYMOUTH

Southerly 110

BY TIM BANKS September 1st - the last month of my sabbatical has now commenced and I find myself stuck in Grimsby in poor weather, with strong wind forecasts and pouring rain. This has continued as the forecasts have continued to predict SW force 6 or 7 occasionally 8. Not the sort of weather most of us would choose to set forth in, especially if it involves a trip across the Wash. Wednesday 3rd still in Grimsby with force 8 gusts being recorded in the marina. At 0900 on the 4th having seen a disappointing forecast the previous day I was delighted to see a window of opportunity with winds of SW 3 to 4 occasionally 5 or 6 reducing to 2-3 later between various lows and associated fronts that seems to be forming a disorderly queue out in the Atlantic. A discussion followed with my neighbour a Dutchman on Dashing Lady a Tradewind 35 and we jointly agreed to head off to Lowestoft. I eventually got away about half an hour after him at 1030, by the time I had exited the lock and hoisted Pure Therapy’s sail Dashing Lady was a speck on the horizon. There followed a fantastic sail with one reef in the main and 2 in the Genoa from the Humber to about 20 miles south of the Wash with winds in the 15 to 25 knot range. For in excess of 20miles the boat speed didn’t drop below 7knots and at best reached 8.5knots, we were flying, thoroughly enjoying it and were able to negotiate all the various Wash sandbanks and shoals easily. From Winterton Ness (North East corner of Norfolk) which was reached at approx 2300 the course became virtually due south, the channels between sand banks became narrower and the wind was 20 to 25knots on the nose so there was no choice, the engine had to go on, unfortunately there was now a wind against tide situation and the seas which had previously been a nasty North Sea chop became worse and all in the dark. I knew my bow lights were on, the red and green of the Port and Starboard lights was being reflected off the waves as Pure Therapy swept through them with the odd one being taken green over the deck. I arrived at the entrance to Lowestoft at 0230 having had a very exhilarating sail and covered 110 miles in 16hours. I moored in the Royal Norfolk & Suffolk YC Marina and eventually fell into bed at 0330, exhausted. Oh; the Dutchman was overtaken well before my engine went on; he did admit later that he had used his intermittently. In situations like this I’m reminded of the adage “two boats on the water is a race three or more a regatta”. Nick Bell a work colleague joined me late in the evening having left his car at Ipswich, fortunately the 7th September promised to be a good day so we headed off for the River Deben and ended up high up the Deben at Woodbridge having had a great close hauled sail in what ended up as 15 to 25 knots of wind. The morning of 8th we had to clear the Woodbridge cill by 0630 and even though we lifted most of our keel we still manage to scrape the keel over the cill but headed off picked up a buoy and had breakfast, we then picked up another buoy near Felixstowe

Ferry to enjoy a glorious and leisurely lunch in the sun so that we could cross the Deben bar after 1245 on a rising tide. There followed a great sail to the Suffolk Yacht Harbour Marina at Levington on the River Orwell negotiating our way in past the huge commercial docks at Harwich and Felixstowe and their traffic. 10th September promises to be a South or South Westerly 4 or 5 increasing 6 at times with a slight or moderate sea and apart from the fact that some of the day the wind will be on the nose a good day to head South to Ramsgate. For those who have not crossed the Thames estuary there are a significant number of sandbanks which project very much like the fingers of a hand out from the wrist somewhere in the area of Chatham and Southend and all of these need to be crossed at some stage. Having studied both the charts, the pilots and had discussions with various people I came to the conclusion that after exiting Harwich I was as well to head south down the Medusa Channel then head East crossing most of the nasty sand fingers until the top of the most Northeasterly is reached at a North Cardinal buoy called Long Sand Head then head virtually south to North Foreland via Kentish Knock. The sail from Harwich to Long Sand Head was fantastic, unfortunately from there until North Foreland the wind was directly on the nose and blowing circa 25knots, the iron genoa took a real pasting for this 25 miles as there were no alternatives. To seaward there was a very busy shipping channel and the sand banks left no room to sail. Compounding this there was a serious wind over tide scenario which resulted in another very nasty sea. I was very pleased to round North Foreland as not only was I now in the English Channel and had turned the metaphoric corner with Plymouth as the finishing line but having done so the big seas moderated a bit. Ramsgate was fantastic to revisit and I only wish I had allowed myself time to explore. A good weather forecast for the 11th was too good to squander, so it was time to refill the diesel tank and head off for Dover. The route from Ramsgate to Dover means you have to negotiate the treacherous Goodwin Sands and the numerous wrecks on the charts bear testament to the ships and poor souls that must have paid dearly for being caught out in this inhospitable area of our lovely land. For me it was to be a fantastic sail in mostly benign conditions with the wind in the range 15 to 25 knots and with the wind off the Kent shore I was treated to the smells of land, the gardeners bonfire and at one stage off Pevensey Bay a very strong smell of celery. This was a great sail until I reached South Foreland and with Dover in view unfortunately from here the wind was on the nose again and with wind against tide the seas became huge, consequently the Iron Genoa was again working overtime. Dover is probably one of the busiest ports in the UK and to enter I needed permission from Port Control, as I wanted to enter via the Eastern entrance to sort myself out in the outer harbour prior to

PURE THERAPY (continued) entering the Marina it was therefore necessary to loiter for about ten minutes whilst a P&O ferry exited then quickly enter the outer harbour drop the sails and enter the tranquillity of Granville Dock and relax. At one stage there were five ferries entering or exiting Dover so it felt a bit like the M25 on a busy morning. Steve my son in law was to join me for the trip to Eastbourne which was to prove to be the first sunny days sailing since I had left Inverness at the beginning of August, we still needed waterproofs for the odd wave and it was cool. We arrived at Eastbourne having had a wonderful sail initially broad reaching later a dead run in winds in the 15 to 25knots with seas more Moderate than the Slight forecast we were both a little sun burnt and had enjoyed a fantastic sail. We were met at Eastbourne, mooring lines taken and secured by willing hands, such luxury. Eastbourne is another very comfortable marina and I again wish I could have explored a little but as the forecast for the 15th was also good it was necessary to head off west. On locking out of Eastbourne it had been intended to head for Shoreham however having never been to Brighton, the attraction proved too great and the temptation of the flesh pots of Brighton prevailed. The 16th promised an East or North East 3 or 4 what I actually got was an East or South East 3 or 4 which was also good and very much enjoyed, it would have been nice to have seen the sun but at least it remained dry for the run down the coast and around the Owers (a very nasty set of reefs just before Chichester Harbour entrance). Not being familiar with the inner passage I took the safe option and went around the outside. The sight of the constantly broken water, with big standing waves highlighted why this reef has such a reputation. During the passage I begged a berth on the Northshore Pontoon at Itchenor and it was fantastic to return to Itchenor where Pure Therapy was built six years ago, this was a real coming home. It was also a very good excuse to enjoy the hospitality at the Ship Inn at Itchenor which is a lovely pub and previously has served us some excellent food and some quality beers. I was not disappointed. The morning of 17th September dawned bright but cold and after a few discussions with Northshore it was time to head off with the tide. Initially this was to have been Cowes Marina but with a good wind and a favourable tide. It became apparent during this trip to Yarmouth that this was the first day since exiting the Caledonionan Canal at the beginning of August that I had sailed without having to wear “wet weather gear” either because of the rain or day time conditions, it was fantastic. 19th August also promised NE 3 or 4 occasionally 5 in the East so it was time to head off to Weymouth. It was unfortunate that there was to be very little wind and that which did blow was anywhere except from the forecast direction. I started with long trousers a fleece etc before I had cleared Hurst Castle the fleece had been removed and shortly afterwards the shorts were found. Wow I had not sailed in shorts since being in the Caledonian Canal it’s just a shame we’ve had to wait this long for this joy, pity there was no wind and the Iron Genoa had another hard flog but the scenery was stunning. Anvil Head followed by Saint Albans Head with the whole Jurassic Coast was brilliant it’s not difficult to see why this area has been created a World Heritage Site. One of these days I will have to walk it as well. Off St Albans head the wind (what there was) against tide created some nasty standing waves and overfalls, nothing that Pure Therapy could not cope with and we were quickly through this to view the rest of this stunning coastline including Lulworth Cove and Durdle Door. Weymouth called and we tied up at 1730 very relieved to turn the engine off. 20th September dawned another glorious day with a forecast of E or NE winds Force 3 or 4 occasionally 5 with seas slight or Moderate. What more could anyone want to cross Lyme Bay? The only minor downside was that the recommended time to round Portland Bill (described by Libby Purves as the Yachtsman’s Cape Horn) is 4 hours after high water Portland (1424 on 20th) when the tidal race

should be at its most benign. To then cross Lyme Bay in daylight is a therefore physical impossibility in a sailing yacht smaller than a 12metre. Thank goodness I had a discussion with my insurers at renewal time about a policy extension to cover the occasional single handed sailing during the hours of darkness. I left Weymouth at 1230 in 20knots of wind with one reef in the main and a tiny genoa with a view to pushing the rounding window a bit but fully prepared in full wet weather gear and hatches battened for a few green ones over the bow. We took a few green ones but as normal, follow the guidelines and the inside passage saves time and gives you a really good boost out into Lyme Bay. As soon as I was clear of Portland Bill the shorts were found again and we settled into a dead run with 15 to 20knots of wind, the genoa goose-winged and the gybe preventer fitted. The sea which had started as a very gentle rolling sea developed into an uncomfortable following sea with big waves (some well over 2 meters) this did however improve the enjoyment factor as we were now surfing down the face of some big waves and speeds of over 9knots through the water were being regularly recorded, more normally 7 to 8knots. This resulted in a nice quick passage to Dartmouth and we arrived off Dartmouth Castle at 2100 having undertaken the 42 miles on a dead run and the total trip to Dartmouth Town Quay of 53 miles in 9hours which I was well pleased with. The forecast for the morning of 22nd September promised a north easterly force 4 or 5 occasionally 6 later so with this in mind I headed off to Salcombe with a view of resting Pure Therapy on the sand within the harbour checking the sacrificial anodes on the prop, fridge, and main system anode. The trip out of Dartmouth to Start Point was particularly slow with the tide against me. It therefore took an awful long time to reach Start Point which with wind against tide was also made fairly uncomfortable, added to this there were some nasty standing waves which washed the decks yet again. By now I had missed the appropriate slot to get into Salcombe to dry out on the beach, seeing no reason to visit Salcombe just for the sake of it which seemed pointless I decided to continue on to Plymouth where at the Western Breakwater I crossed my outbound track at 1710 and completed my circumnavigation exactly 4 months to the day after I had left. After a very good night’s sleep an opportunity presented itself to have Pure Therapy lifted for an hour to pressure jet the bottom and inspect the hull for any damage. She was remarkably clean and apart from a few gouges through the anti fouling and a missing corner on the starboard rudder damaged in the Caledonian Canal which was given a temporary repair with epoxy putty all appeared well and Pure Therapy was returned to the water. She has looked after me exceptionally well and is a credit to both the designers and Northshore her builders. I would like to thank all those who have helped me, sailed with me and the fantastic people I have met along the way, most of all very special thanks go to Helen and my family for the support and encouragement they have given me. Thank you everyone for making Summer 2008 so special.

Total Distance covered; 2012Nmiles Total Days at Sea; 60 Nights at Anchor or on Free Buoys; 20 Nights in Marinas; 103 Nights away from Plymouth; 123 Nights not on Board; 7nights Engine Hours; 189 hours Fuel Used; 493 litres

New Owners take delivery of their yachts

Mr. & Mrs Gini with their family Southerly 42RST

Mr. Bremmer Southerly 135RS

Mr & Mrs Vogel Southerly 110

Mr & Mrs Wiggett Southerly 110

Mr & Mrs Prior Southerly 38

Mr & Mrs Simon Payne Southerly 110

New Owners take delivery of their yachts

Mr & Mrs Palmer Southerly 32

Mr Nick Lloyd Southerly 32

Mr & Mrs Tim Wright Southerly 38

Mr & Mrs Jackson Southerly 32

Mr & Mrs Bill Hopkins Southerly 38

Mr & Mrs Carter Southerly 110

NEW SOUTHERLY 49

W O R L D L E A D I N G VA R I A B L E D R A F T C R U I S I N G YAC H T S

57RS

46RS

42RST

35RS 110