Letters LETTER OF THE MONTH SUPPORTED BY OLD PULTENEY WHISKY
Remembering Overlord You may be interested in a few notes relating to my experiences
this manner. This treatment over a number of years had
with Overlord (Tom Cunliffe, last month) during National Service
reduced the deck thickness allowing salt water to penetrate
1955-57. After my initial training at the RASC Water Transport
below the caulking seam exposing the secret fastenings.
establishment based at Fort Victoria, Yarmouth, IoW, an officer somehow discovered I had considerable knowledge of the
During the 1960 season, while Overlord was under the command of Capt Venables, the forestay parted while in mid
maintenance and handling of small craft. My
English Channel. The crew managed to
call-up at the age of 24 was deferred
place a strop under the forefoot, braced
because my employer, the Berthon Boat
back to the main shroud chainplates
Company, was building Inshore Minesweepers
port and starboard. The jib halyard was
for the Admiralty. At the time I was a young
attached to the strop and sweated up
naval architect and much in contact with the
by the winch on the mast. The boat
shop floor. Following the revelation of my
then limped back to its home port, quite
background, I was placed in charge of the
a feat of seamanship. Although the
maintenance of recreational Small Craft,
mast was saved, it must have received
dinghies and a 30Sqm Windfall yacht called
damage, for an aluminium alloy mast
Sachse. One of my duties was to helm the
was then stepped.
Windfall yacht Overlord while it was towed
In 1961 all Windfall Yachts came up
from its winter quarters at Gunwharf Quay
for disposal. Capt Tony Venables had
(HMS Vernon) Portsmouth, to Yarmouth to its
obviously developed an affinity to
summer berth. Under way, it was normal practice to scrub the deck.
Overlord as he purchased the yacht reputedly for the value of
While helming I watched a Lt Colonel, a Brigadier and two Majors
the lead keel with a view to doing some cosmetic work to sell
beavering away pushing holly stones fore and aft with beads of
on at a profit. Instead he had second thoughts and formed a
sweat on their foreheads. Upon arrival in Yarmouth, one of the
syndicate, which was named The Offshore Sailing Club. It is
officers remarked he had noticed a slight brown stain in several
pleasing to know that both boat and club are in good health.
areas, he was informed by me you should never scrub a fir deck in
Jim Hazel, Locksheath
What is this boat? I have a fairly competent watercolour (pictured below) about 38cm x 28cm entitled Dione painted in 1972. The signature looks like it could be ‘D Reid’. Can any reader tell me about the class, or anything else to flesh-out the background of the craft? It’s a bit out of my league, having originally owned a GP14 as a youngster and currently a delightful 12ft marine ply clinker built Mallard. Any light on the subject would be greatly appreciated. Graham Hayes, grahamhayes47@hotmail.co.uk
Grab handles Your article, Inside Job (CB November), is a welcome comment on yacht interiors. While the photos are very attractive they show the ubiquitous lack of grab handles. From practical experience, few or no grab handles indicate, to me, a yacht which has not experienced bad weather. The lack of grab handles in the main photo for example, however attractive the interior design and joinery, must make moving around at sea potentially precarious. Even the galley cooker in the photo of the relatively new sloop Cass does not have a crash bar, and nothing at the forward bulkhead doorway. I have often sailed a recently built 46ft gaff yawl with a wonderful, spacious interior typical of the modern yacht, which did indeed have grab handles – but on the deck head so that I found myself swinging like a monkey from the roof when she heeled. Even my own 1939 built, 25ft Vertue had no grab handles when I acquired her, either on deck or below. I have added a grab handle on the coaming either side in the cabin, either side of the entrance companionway, and on the fore hatch on an otherwise exposed fore deck, all of which have made the yacht much safer for the crew. And how many yachts have adequate, secure and usefully placed grab handles on deck? Perhaps your readers have some experience to contribute to the subject. Peter Gregson, Wooden Ships, Dartmouth
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CLASSIC BOAT DECEMBER 2022
