Innehållsförteckning för December 2016 från Boating NZ

Like people all over the world, I thought the good folk in Canterbury had shown admirable and remarkable resilience in not only surviving but overcoming the devastation from the 2011 earthquake. After all the suffering, the region was finally beginning to see the light of day – homes being rebuilt, the return of infrastructure, a stronger heartbeat in the regional economy. In fact, if you’ll forgive me for being fanciful, I imagined the story in this issue about the restoration of a famous, 150-year old Christchurch telescope encapsulated that turnaround. A telescope that so nearly became part of the detritus of history after being crushed in the 2011 earthquake – but which is now being lovingly and painstakingly restored. It will, once again, allow viewers to peer into and ponder…

Just about everyone has a smartphone, and most of us take it everywhere. This simple device (and its bigger cousins, tablet devices such as Apple’s iPad) contains more computing and navigation power than any other device on your boat. It also has features that your other electronics do not, primarily the ability to connect to the internet along most of New Zealand’s coastline. So, what can your phone do for you? First, you need to understand the technology built into it, and the list is quite impressive: GPS receiver, compass, accelerometer (to measure movement), inclinometer (to measure tilt angles), clock, light, strobe, 4G radio receiver, speaker, WiFi and Bluetooth capability. Batteries generally last a full day or more, and most phones have a bright light that can serve as an…

When it comes to anchoring something has to give. The solidness of the anchor, the weight of the chain and the strength of the king post are all well and good, but it is the rope anchor rode or snubber that will allow the whole thing to flex. This is most important if you are intending on getting even a wink of sleep at anchor, or hoping to keep the king post in the boat. The Egyptians were the first people to develop special tools to make rope around 4000 BC. These early ropes were made from natural fibres such as date palms, flax, papyrus or camel hair. Leonardo da Vinci drew sketches of a concept for a rope making machine, and by the late 1700s several working machines had…

Under Full Sail By Rob Mundle Published by HarperCollins, $55.00 THE CLIPPER SHIPS – and the thousands of people they brought to Australia during the 19th century – is one of the world’s great marine migration stories. For those travelling before 1850, the voyage to Australia was long and arduous and could take as much as four months. With the arrival of the clipper ships the journey took half as long. The clipper ships were the jet airliners of their day, bringing keen and willing migrants ‘down under’ in record time, many hell-bent on making their fortunes in gold while others were looking to start a new life. This ripping story starts on the sea, aboard a clipper ship charging across the Southern Ocean, laden with passenger heading for Melbourne…

For more than a century the Townsend Telescope – a Cooke six-inch refractor model – was the central feature of the Observatory Tower at Christchurch’s Arts Centre. Open to the public on Friday nights, viewing sessions operated free of charge for the promotion of astronomy. Thousands of astronomy enthusiasts received the seeds of inspiration from gazing through the telescope. It was manufactured in 1864 by the highly-regarded Cooke and Sons of York and London and though the exact date of its arrival in New Zealand is unclear, it ended up in the possession of a Mr James Townsend. It was installed at his home in Christchurch’s Park Terrace, and he used it to observe the 1882 Transit of Venus. In 1891 Townsend – then in his seventies – donated the…

Whitebait is a treasured and well-known delicacy in New Zealand. Whitebait can be sourced by anyone of any age with a net from mid-August until end of February. There are fishing regulations for whitebait so make sure you check out Department of Conservation’s website before you go out to find these tasty suckers. Our haul for this shoot was brought to us with patience and practice from one of our tiny humans, who, when he first tried whitebait asked his dad to take the heads off and fillet them. We have been been lucky enough to grow up with our dose of whitebait fritters on the BBQ thrown on a piece of soft white bread. But, there are also many species of whitebait in NZ that are threatened, so check…

In the November issue of Boating New Zealand I described Harold Heather’s first two launches, de Dion Minor, the French 25-footer imported by his friend John Chambers, and then his first Rothesay, a 30-footer built as Mavis by Bailey & Lowe in 1909. Rothesay was a sweet-lined tuck stern launch, typical of Walter Bailey’s designs, still with the dee-front cabin top inherited from the mullet boat and keel yacht. Some of what follows is conjectural and anecdotal. It is extremely hard to follow the provenance of a launch when many owners feel obliged to change its name, often the same name repeated for different boats! In September 1912 Heather sold Rothesay (I) to an owner at Cape Kidnappers who changed her name to Waikura, and she soon disappeared. At the…

Yamaha gets Howick youngsters sailing YAMAHA NZ is partnering with Howick Sailing Club (HSC) to help get more youngsters sailing. Yamaha supports all levels of New Zealand sailing, from Emirates Team New Zealand to grassroots sailing clubs. Its help and support is essential to the ongoing success of the Howick club, which relies on the generosity of local businesses to provide learnto-sail courses to the local community. Says Matt Walton-Smith, Yamaha NZ National Manager for marine products: “Supporting grass-roots organisations, like Howick Sailing Club, that get the local community on the water in a safe and responsible way, is part of what we do at Yamaha. Our aim is to help as many people enjoy the water and we are delighted to be able to support Howick Sailing Club again.”…

Tamariki, the most successful Lipton Cupper of all-time with 13 victories between 1935 and 1968, is undergoing a complete restoration with a view to being on the startline for the 100th birthday. Designed by Chas Collings, Tamariki is now owned by boatbuilders Martin Robertson and Rob Warring. Graham Andrew, Rear Commodore of Ponsonby Cruising Club, says planning is about to be stepped up for celebrating the big occasion in 2022. He hopes that, with a number of refurbishments under way, 15 or 16 mulleties will compete for the trophy. Perhaps a surprise resurrection or two from some forgotten garage project could even take the number close to 20. “That would be fantastic.” The Lipton Cup looms large in the mullet boat’s transition from a working fishing vessel to a…

1. Who won the bronze medal in the Laser at the 2016 Rio Olympics? 2. What is the common name for this type of transmission? 3. What is “The Captain’s Daughter” another term for? 4. Two powered vessels approaching head on should? a. Both turn to port b. Both turn to starboard c. Carry on the same course d. The one leaving harbour should give way 5. Beaufort numbers 2 to 6 are classed as? a. Winds b. Breezes c. Gales d. Storms 6. In a 2015 survey, what was the estimated population of mature female Maui’s dolphins? a. 10 b. 50 c. 100 d. 150 7. True or false? On a recreational boat it doesn’t matter if you have adult or kids sized lifejackets, as long as you have…

“The most popular boat in the anchorage.” The new Lagoon 42 catamaran is a fun, spacious vessel designed for easy sail handling. She’s also chic and stylish – you may be tempted to wear tails rather than togs to dinner. Contrary to popular belief, the origin of the well-worn phrase ‘no-room-to-swing-a-cat’ doesn’t stem from some maniac’s struggles to twirl a moggie by the tail in a public toilet. The truth’s far more disturbing. The cat is the ‘cat o’ nine tails’ – a whip with nine individual braids, each fitted with a metal tip. It was a popular form of punishment for misbehaving sailors in the 18th and 19th centuries. If confined space prevented the whipper from working up a good sweat, he complained that there wasn’t enough room to…

More than a century after she was launched, the world’s first true polar research vessel lives on as a fullyrestored exhibit in Dundee, Scotland – only a few hundred metres from where she was built. If you want an insight into the lives of the men who ventured to Antarctica at the dawn of the 20th century, a rewarding visit is the magnificently-restored RRS Discovery – the pioneering ship that took those intrepid explorers to the ice. And she has more than a passing association with New Zealand. RRS (Royal Research Ship) Discovery was built in 1901 by the Dundee Shipbuilders Company and there’s a kind of ‘pleasing circularity’ that her home today is back in Dundee. She’s stationed in a purpose-built dry-dock – part of a fascinating, much larger…

Folding safety ladder OK, so you’re in the water but still attached to the boat by the lanyard and harness. Getting back on board is the next challenge, which is likely to be difficult without some assistance. Port and starboard sited folding ladders could be just what is needed. Undo the Velcro tie cloth and the ladder unfolds to provide the footholds you need. Twin mainsheet system This was devised and installed after I sustained a nasty head injury from the block of a single mainsheet system as it swung across the cockpit during an uncontrolled gybe. The dual system has several advantages over a single sheet for the shorthanded sailor in that it is more readily kept in a fixed position and is more forgiving if the boat sails…

I’m as bad as anyone when it comes to leaving things to the last moment. Every year as summer comes around, I realise I haven’t used my boat as often as I’d planned during winter, which means it badly needs some TLC. For the same reason, some of my fishing tackle also needs attention. THE BOAT While basic boat maintenance is easy enough for a DIYer (see checklist), even down to changing the lower unit gearcase and engine oil (where applicable), it pays to get your boat professionally serviced at the scheduled service intervals, or at least once a year. For new engines, servicing to schedule is mandatory to maintain the warranty. The best advice? Get your boat serviced early, before the mad pre-Christmas rush. Even if you don’t do…

Since 1956 Mick Orchard has sailed more than 140,000 nautical miles offshore and built more than 30 boats. And there’s no magic formula in this story – Orchard achieved his dreams by simply rolling up his sleeves and getting on with it. The only son of Whakatane marine engineer Ces (Cyril) and Doris Orchard, Mick was pushed into a P Class aged nine, which he paid for by mowing lawns and other odd jobs. Around 1951 he became friendly with John Spencer and got into Cherubs. “John was a real bright fella, I used to listen to him and learn as much as I could.” With Ces crewing, Orchard proved more than competitive racing Cherubs in flat water, for example beating Spencer to win the 1954 Easter Regatta on Lake…