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For a few years now, my brother Rob and other members of the Mana Cruising Club have been working to remove predators from Pickersgill Island in the sounds. Here is a video of some of their latest work. Its a 110mb file... 77207262_Pickersgill(1).mp4

General recalls should be avoided where possible. They are a tool us Race Officers will only use when we cant clearly identify all boats that are over. I have personally done an individual recall where all boats were over except one. He got a nice start as soon as the rest of the fleet peeled off and came back to the start line to undo their wrongs... We were able to clearly identify all 14 other boats that were over the line prior to the gun. I will say though even a slight deviation to the transit on the line makes a big difference. If you are sighting the line on the committee boat e

This is the story of our purchase and ownership of Stepping Out. It may take some time, will have twists and turns, could move beyond a PG rating from time to time, and will no doubt have real sailors and hardened people of the sea laughing at the incompetence and naivety of beginners. The story is only a year and a bit old at this stage. Who knows how long it will run for. Time will tell. It will be episodic - drop in for a giggle when you need to feel better about something that has gone wrong, because my story will be either dumber or more expensive than yours. At the top lets

Solo Delivery Waikawa - Lyttelton - Ross 30 Ballistic Got up 3.00am Friday morning and drove to Picton from Christchurch , arriving at 8.30am, quick stop at Picton supermarket for delivery trip food. Caught Cougar water taxi service from Picton to Resolution Bay, Queen Charlotte where boat was moored. Grabbed some tote tanks etc and dinghy. Inflated dinghy and loaded dinghy to get out to mooring. 15 metres offshore and flipped said dinghy....gurgle ... and who was the idiot who didn't close their 110 litre gear bag properly.... now a 2hp motor drowned... wet gear, wet sleeping bag and a

So, 2 years and a few months after starting this little project, she's finished. I'm gonna name her BLOO. After the colour and also because I made so many bloo's making her that I swear she has more construction errors than any other dinghy ever made. I made her with the intention of fitting her on the foredeck of my Whiting 29. Which I sold 6 months ago. So I no longer need the dinghy. Plus, she doesn't fit in my vehicle so I can't get her to the water to do the maiden voyage. Still, she looks good sitting in a corner of my garden shed No idea why these loaded upside do

I am just finishing a 5 day trip from Russell back to whangaparaoa ( about 5 mies north of tiri as i type) just had my 3rd visit from dolphins. Each time I became aware of their presence when one popped up alongside the cockpit. Dropping all my sails takes 10 to 15 minutes singlehanded. The first 2 occasions they only stayed,a few minutes. . Yesterday i was gybing downwind in 20 to 25 kn.and disinclined to stop. Today I'm only doing about 4. But they stayed Maybe 2 mins then left. About 5 mins later they returned. Then went to eat as I saw then hitting a school of kahawai about

Provincial Cowboy is a well known Ross 40 design yacht based in Auckland, New Zealand. The 'Mk 1' Ross 40 is a design that's part of the folklore of the NZ sailing scene of the 80's and 90's. We have lost count of the number of people who stopped by to reminisce about racing they did on PC or her sisterships. The hull and decks were built by Nautec Yachts for first owner Geoff Bagge and the two other initial owners. Her decks were the first from the mould (taken from Not Guilty) and Geoff had to wait some time after receiving the hull. Geoff fitted a typical kiwi cruiser/racer lay

Navigation Marks, GPS and the Wisdom of Wives The Wairoa River is a narrow muddy creek filled with cow piss and estuary water. It meanders its way from the bottom of the Hunua Hills, past Clevedon and onward to the sea picking up mud, cowshit, and a not entirely savoury smell as it goes. The river squeezes out, like molten toothpaste in the words of Neil Finn, pushing through a typical inner harbour mud and sand bar before finally relaxing and fanning out into the Waitemata. It would be SO's home at Brooklands Boating Club about 1.5km from the river mouth. Hell of a change for a y

Started off as a sistership to sportboat Animal Biscuits and was unsold until a chap from Queenstown had a modified Elliott7 trashed in the trailer compound. He asked Craig Partridge and Rob Shaw if they could modify the design to be trailer yacht legal using the rig from the E7 which he sold with it's old rig. This was done and in 2011 he took her straight from the yard in Kerikeri to Queenstown. Unfortunately the locals didn't like the concept and wouldn't let him play so in 2013 he parked it in his shed until early last year when he decided to sell it I found out about it in the f

It's a great boat and in pretty good condition. Was no expense spared when it was launched and it was campaigned very well. I know there is nothing major wrong with it but its basically padlocked to the hard stand until the bills are cleared. I dont think its very fair to be asking for the owner's situation and reason for sale right now on trade me. Maybe it's a touchy subject. Let's be honest if you were a serious buyer for this boat you would probably not be asking your questions on trade me..... Bryce had told people to contact him for more information and that's what they shou

^ "and that, folks, closes today's Diesel 101 session. There will be a test tomorrow - please make sure you bring two pens, a 27/64" ring open-end spanner, and eye protection."

SSANZ Northern Triangle Race Report Shimmer II The prequel was always going to be a hard one for us on Shimmer our 5 tonne Kauri log camper doesn't really excel in light airs. We did ok on the beat and stayed in touch with the fast div 3 boats to the top of Motutapu but as it turned into more of a reaching course we watched them all slowly walk away. Managed to get a 6th which wasn't as bad as it could have been but we were really hoping for some good breeze in race 2 to even out race 1. Not to be. Again a very light start to the main event, we managed a good st

Update: was at Maimai Bay, Rotoroa last week and again saw a boat unloading two huge dogs onto the beach. This time I phoned the island and within 3 minutes a ranger arrived! They’re very appreciative of people letting them know. The number to call is 09 283 0849.

Level 4 projects. Carbon prop struts for Bad Kitty.

120 years old today

Not looking likely to get race 3 but we are definitely looking at running a third race if at all possible, would be a standalone if we can’t run on the same weekend as originally planned I personally believe we will see many more cases before this outbreak started to improve

Has anyone ever heard of pilotage? You know, when you look out the window, look at the colour of the water, the depth, location of the land and understand your geographical position with it? You don't need a chart for any of that. Not in an emergency. Name a passage in the Huaraki Gulf or Norhtland Coast you couldn't complete without a chart? We don't have tidal rips, there are no currents setting east or west like the English Channel. We don't have tides like Brittany. The one tidal gate in NZ is at D'Urville Island, long way from the Gulf. Any passage the in the gulf can

Actually its pretty simple; an invasive species has been found in a few bays on GB there is a moratorium on anchoring etc until a long term response is developed. Bit of an inconvenience but we will survive.

I just fill the bilge with diesel and swear a whole lot, but each to their own...

So I chopped and channeled the old bus with a bit of help from my friends, lockdown therapy. What started out as a relatively simple remove the back coaming job to make it easier to get in the dinghy got hijacked by "friends" who happened to turn up as I was setting up to finish the job and said Dont stop there, the transom is only 200 away! Me with grinder in hand, them on dock watching, result big hole in boat! Totally unprepared for the major but with some tips from people much cleverer than me and entertaining the whole pier who also offered plenty of free advice about 30 t

Covid Project.

Yes of course - it’s French - everything is done the opposite way around. When it rains it rinses the dust off the companionway steps.

I am changing the genoa sheet leads to low friction rings. These will have 3mm dyneema line as the control line in a double purchase set-up running back to a conventional block that uses 6mm yachting braid for handling, again in double purchase. So I had to learn how to eye splice 3mm double braid dyneema. It's a fun learning experience once you get your head around the minute scale of what is happening. A big doll maker's needle makes a fid of sorts and the tweezers help pull the loose ends through the core. Test method is a bit dodgy- will it hold an 85kg person suspende

What a pitty I didn't still live up your way. I would have been more than happy to come give a hand...... ......by directing you to areas you missed, point out how hard such a job is and make bad attempts at humor. Bascially show that "Crew" mates would never leave you in the lurch like that.

Hi all. Out of respect for family and friends of those lost, and to avoid conjecture, this thread is locked.

I support a total ban on scallops until their numbers are back up. Something has to be done. I like the idea of research into why they have decreased so much. I would love it if this research investigated the efficacy of a total ban on dredging too. I've said for a long time that we need scallops to be freedive only, like paua. Then the deep scallops seed the shallower ones and the beds can't get decimated like they do now. I know this is unlikely to happen unfortunately. If anyone (commercial or customary) can take a particular seafood, then every nz resident had a right to ta

If class has collapsed no one told any of the 100 Owners Association members or the owners of the 70 odd boats that show up on recent events on RaceTrack Jokes aside the class has been going strong for over 40 years driven by an active committee that started with the first boats. The association does its best to maintain the integrity of the rules and keep the class boats compliant. Kiwi "ingenuity" sometimes makes this a challenge and sometimes "feathers are ruffled". The strong Westhaven and Bucklands Beach fleets are more than matched by the recent growth of the class in Ly

Once upon a time the results of Saturdays racing would be published on Monday morning in the Herald, now the yachting mags I see seem devoted to selling ridiculously expensive new production boats with accompanying editorial about how Sarah and Michael wanted real stone benchtops, 3 showers instead of 2 and how challenged the design team were but saved the day with carbon and 300k. (insert pictures of modern apartment with mast on top and vases with elegant floral displays)

Sailed out to the chicks, GB looked pretty tempting, perfect day for it. Anchored up working out what to do with this

The trailer works!! September 11, 2021. Bundle the whole family into the car, hook the boat on the back, and head south. An hour and a tiny bit later, we arrived at our destination, Lake Ngaroto in Te Awamutu. Boat and trailer towed absolutely perfectly, not a wobble, no clunks or bangs, infact at one point I forgot it was there, and cut a corner very, very fine. Unfortunately, the racing wasn't quite as good, because bundling a bunch of kids into a car just after sunrise isn't quick. We Arrived in time to see the end of the first race, and after rigging, finally got on the

If in doubt leave the trailer lashed on.

new carbon/foam steering plank and new carbon removable prod . my mate Scott worked his butt off designing and building the rudder . The internal structure is very much like an aircraft wing with spars and ribs . It was CNC cut from a thin carbon/foam/carbon plate . When it was assembled and glued Scott put each end on blocks and stood in the middle and it only deflected a wee bit so it’s damn strong . The core is expanding foam and the skin is carbon . It’s not super light but it has positive buoyancy and it’s feckin stiff . the prod is a repurposed carbon spin pole we found ch

Oh good. If we are still in lockdown, there will be some good (slow moving) drama to follow in the news, other than covid. I do love the Americas cup for providing good, ongoing entertainment. Fulling the gossip columns and generally keeping the media busy. People may lament this is not yachting, but is is 100% first class Americas Cup

Finally made it back to the Fête des Canots in Rolle after a 6 year absence. Family Watson about to dock at Île de Harpes. Managed to pass all these guys - turns out the primary key to speed is light weight and massive sail area. This guy's first time on the tiller, took it very seriously and did pretty well. This guy spent his time practicing his knots.

But these are only some of the minor and most recent failings of our great leader. When he first got the job he apparently hadn't heard of NZ's great success in Olympic Boardsailing. And when it was briefly dropped from the Olympic program he blindly complied. It was quickly reinstated, but that didn't stop our great leader from failing to send the two boardsailers who had qualified to the Rio games. He likewise failed to send the Laser Radial sailors who had won NZ a slots at both Rio and Tokyo. Does he not know that young athletes need role models and expectations of a pathway to the O

In years gone by politicians, both local government and parliament, were usually well respected successful people from the business community. Nowadays we have professional politicians that have never run a business, nor often even worked for one, so out of touch with the realities for making it. They therefore see the world in a "how am I going to win the next election" perspective. To make up for the complete lack of useful skills they employ bureaucrats in their droves, again not so much in the past as they weren't needed. but spreading geometrically now, these people soon realise they

I like this idea. I would be tempted to tell them I have appointed a lawyer to handle this. Including compensation for a failure of service ie in return for paying berthing fees you reasonably expect your boat to be provided with a safe & secure berth environment. But they have failed because instead, the poor quality marine environment they are providing has exposed you to a double-peril: 1. Your boat has caught fanworm from their marina not the other way around. This is evidenced by the fact you regularly clean your hull but after a few weeks back on the visibly infected berth it’s

Kick an Elliott 1050? Top photo arriving back in NZ in 2018 after leaving for Aus in 2002. She left NZ as a very well maintained boat and returned in a very poor state. The list of what I haven't done would be alot shorter than what has been done to get her back upto the condition she originally was before leaving NZ. Bottom photo is of her being re launched earlier this week after her most recent top side repaint to match her deck repaint carried out 18 months ago. Background: Launched 1994 by Ian Harvey owner of Eagle Yachts who built majority of the 1050's. Ian

Received negative PCR test. Drove 1240km in 12h15 Washed squab covers, pillows and duvets Water blasted 10 months of algae off deck Broomed rudders back to orange Experienced 3 gales in 4 days Didn't lift boat for wash as marina crew quite leery about lifting in that kinda weather Got in 3.5h of sailing Installed inverter Installed 12v DC/DC converter to charge 80Ah LiFePO4 for dinghy Installed gas detector (finally) Toured Pogo factory (again) Spent €300 on wine Drove 1240km Didn't scratch boat.

Ouch! Crumbs was my old boat. She has a good strong hull, did they get her off OK? Meanwhile in a relatively sheltered bit of Kerikeri river opposite us a very big heavy timber launch on a pile mooring first broke both her bow lines before the storm even got started (they were more properly described as rotten strings) and was swinging around one pile bumping it so I went over in a small boat and put a bow line on her and attached an extra stern line from the other pile. Next morning after the storm that new bow line was holding fine but the pile at the other end had broken off completely

Don't let a triple bypass stop you, I had a triple bypass 20 years ago and it was the purchase of my current yacht 2 years later that got me back on track and physically into better health. In those 18 or so years I have covered most of the East coast of the North Island and down to Whangape and the Kaipara on the west coast ( at least 50% of my sailing solo) as well as several back and forwards to the Islands. I'm sure that medical techniques now are far more sophisticated than they were 20 years ago. I've had 20 with hopefully more still to come, maybe you'll get 30, Don't give up!

Two down thousands to go…… unfortunately.

Fitted the prod last night and tried it out today in first spring series race today . It has transformed the boat downwind and we have gone from a 40 something masthead m2 spinnaker to a 100m2 gennaker . boat felt great , heaps more power and speed and so nice to be apparent wind sailing again after 6 months of spinnakers only .

So this wasn't exactly a weekend achievement but here's a rundown of our return trip from Brest to Jersey. Brest-Jersey Arriving late Sat night on the train into Brest, me and 2ic headed down to the Marina where the other crew member had already arrived a few hours earlier and opened up boat, fired up all the systems and loaded food and beer aboard that had been delivered to the Marina office a few hours earlier. He diligently loaded the fridge with as much beer as possible and cranked it up to max. A few hours of getting to know each other, the 3rd crew was a old acquaintance

As someone who bought a cheap boat, I can confirm that it was in fact expensive.

pawls are pesky little spring loaded components that love to make a leap for freedom into the tide when you lift the drum off the shaft

I've watched the (long) videos on the protestors facebook page. They started it, physically attacked a worker from behind who was taking photos, the protestors dragged at least one worker into the water. They were initiating the violence big time. Fully agree with the above comments. These so called protestors have no mana. They just want to be famous and be on the TV, and are looking for a fight. There has been legitimate resistance to the marina. All legal avenues have been exhausted, and good people have done their bit. These current protestors are just looking for a fight, and startin

Relatively minor sugery. Poor fitting of the spray dodger frame some 15 odd years ago led to a small soft patch in the cabin top. After thinking it through a bit, I decided a hole saw was the appropriate response. 4 layers of 6mm ply fills the holes, all now epoxied into place. Yes, the segments were alternated for seal and strength. The dry images are of the dry fit - once fit test was done, they were coated both sides with epoxy as the went in. Each ply insert is 64mm diameter, so not a big area. Tomorrow is boatcloth and more epoxy on both sides, paint next weekend,