RudderPosts

GINGER: A 50' Fast Daysailer

In WoodenBoat magazine No. 201, we published an article on the 50' fast daysailer GINGER. The boat, designed by Robert W. Stephens, while evocative of the Sonderboats of the turn of last century, is a thoroughly modern concept--above the water and below. In the magazine, we weren't able to show her underwater profile. Designer Stephens sent over a color rendering after publication, and offered it for the letters section of WB 202. Space constraints prevented its inclusion there at a reasonable size, but we promised you could find it here. Enjoy!

Tremolino

Lance Lee, founder of the Apprenticeshop (the peripatetic organization dedicated to the development of people through boatbuilding), has been busy in his retirement. We met for coffee this morning, and then visited the Nobleboro, Maine, boat shop where he and his crew are building a 1/3-scale balancelle--a lateen-rigged western-Mediterranean cargo vessel. This one is a replica of the boat at the center of Joseph Conrad's The Tremolino, and is called TREMOLINO. It will launch in May or June. Watch WoodenBoat's pages for more news of this in the Fall.

Meanwhile, here's a passage from The Tremolino:

"If the Mediterranean, the venerable (and sometimes atrociously ill- tempered) nurse of all navigators, was to rock my youth, the providing of the cradle necessary for that operation was entrusted by Fate to the most casual assemblage of irresponsible young men (all, however, older than myself) that, as if drunk with Provencal sunshine, frittered life away in joyous levity on the model of Balzac`s "Histoire des Treize" qualified by a dash of romance DE CAPE ET D`EPEE.

"She who was my cradle in those years had been built on the River of Savona by a famous builder of boats, was rigged in Corsica by another good man, and was described on her papers as a `tartane` of sixty tons. In reality, she was a true balancelle, with two short masts raking forward and two curved yards, each as long as her hull; a true child of the Latin lake, with a spread of two enormous sails resembling the pointed wings on a sea-bird`s slender body, and herself, like a bird indeed, skimming rather than sailing the seas.

"Her name was the Tremolino. How is this to be translated? The Quiverer? What a name to give the pluckiest little craft that ever dipped her sides in angry foam! I had felt her, it is true, trembling for nights and days together under my feet, but it was with the high-strung tenseness of her faithful courage. In her short, but brilliant, career she has taught me nothing, but she has given me everything. I owe to her the awakened love for the sea that, with the quivering of her swift little body and the humming of the wind under the foot of her lateen sails, stole into my heart with a sort of gentle violence, and brought my imagination under its despotic sway. The Tremolino! To this day I cannot utter or even write that name without a strange tightening of the breast and the gasp of mingled delight and dread of one`s first passionate experience."

It's Not wood, But...

Have you ever dreamed of an Atlantic crossing—perhaps a high-latitude Atlantic Crossing? If so, have a look at this web site, detailing one couple's experience. The question-and-answer page alone is worth the click.

Lifetime Achievement Award: Phil Bolger

Readers who saw the post below this one will note that Phil Bolger (photo, left) was honored, along with Bill Garden, at last year's WoodenBoat Show. This year, we'll honor a group of designers who pioneered multihull sailing yachts. Before the hoopla begins for that, a glance back is in order.
    Sam Devlin, the noted designer and builder of highly refined stitch-and-glue plywood boats, moderated a wonderful tribute to Bolger on the Saturday evening of last year's show. Several speakers presented heartfelt tributes—though the highlight of the night was WoodenBoat Designs Editor Mike O'Brien's witty and insightful gallery of favorite Bolger designs. (This was based, in part, on Mike's article "Classical Bolger," which appeared in WB No. 164.)
    Mike's article was titled "Classical Bolger" because, as any contemporary student of small craft design knows, Phil Bolger's signature style is anything but classical. Simplicity, rather than complexity, is the hallmark here. His boats are typically built of plywood, and are sometimes called "Bolger boxes"—a pejorative term in some circles, but a point of pride for Mr. Bolger and his many fans worldwide. Bolger boats are built in huge numbers, and they perform as advertised.
    But I digress. The article was called "Classical Bolger" because many newcomers to Phil Bolger's style assume that the box-type boats are all he knows. That's not true. Phil Bolger is, in fact, a prolific designer of wide ranging style. He worked as a draftsman for Lindsay Lord and John Hacker in the 1950s, and was mentored by none other than L. Francis Herreshoff. Since 1952, and the publication of his first design—a 32' sportfisherman—Bolger has designed nearly 700 boats. They range from the ubiquitous Light Dory (WoodenBoat Senior Editor Tom Jackson can be seen rowing his on the January page of Benjamin Mendlowitz's Calendar of Wooden Boats this year) to the famous HMS ROSE (now the HMS SURPRISE, which starred along with Russell Crowe in Master and Commander). Between these extremes are sharpies, outboard skiffs, camp cruisers, motor cruisers, dinghies, daysailers, and more. These boats appear in Bolger's numerous books, including the popular Boats with an Open Mind.
    Bolger lives and works in Gloucester, Massachusetts, with his wife Susanne Altenberger, doing business as Phil Bolger and Friends. Ever the innovator, Bolger's current efforts are centered on fuel-efficient recreational and fishing boats, as well as on a large military commission to develop a more effective landing craft.
    Our kudos to Phil Bolger for his remarkable achievements.

A Trip to Toad's Landing

In 2007, WoodenBoat publications recognized two iconic yacht designers with Lifetime Achievement Awards. One, Phil Bolger, received his award at the WoodenBoat Show at Mystic Seaport in July. The other, Bill Garden, was unable to travel to the show, as he lives comfortably ensconced among boats, shops, and a studio at a remote island home in British Columbia. “Time is precious to him,” said Ted Pike of the Wooden Boat Foundation in Port Townsend, Washington, “and he doesn’t like to leave the island.” So, an intrepid delegation composed of WoodenBoat president and general manager Jim Miller, yacht designer Sam Devlin, and Pike, set out on a journey to Bill's island home to deliver the award—a half-hull model of BULLFROG, a 30' Garden-designed cutter, carved by Ellsworth Rice.
    “The adventure,” said Ted Pike, “began with a ferry ride from Port Angeles, Washington, to Victoria, British Columbia. We then drove to Sidney, where we waited for Bill to arrive in his 20' tugboat.” Pike admits that the trio felt a bit uneasy as the boat approached the dock, “because we knew he cherishes his time and we didn’t know how much of it he'd have to give us. Bill landed the boat, demonstrating deft control a the helm. “We boarded,” said Pike, and “without fuss he repositioned the springline so he could reverse around the corner of the dock and off we went to Toad's Landing, as his home is called.” And there the group's tension eased.
    “Our tour began at his dock where a wonderful 30' runabout of his design was in a covered slip. He quietly showed us design features like the removable transom, special anti-sea-otter devices, and a very clever sliding sunroof. It was classic Garden styling with lots of beautiful curves. We then ascended the path to the house where we were met by Bill's longtime companion, Janie. Her gardens are exquisite; all the beds are bordered by stone that she has cut over the past 30 years. The gardens have a flowing balance to the beds where live-edge-planked seats and hand-hewn railings give you sweet places to sit and enjoy it all. There are stone and wood carved nymphs, angels, and nautical nuances purposefully scattered about. Window boxes explode with flowers as they rest on hand-carved knees. These are two very accomplished artists.
    “Janie shooed us off so she could get back to work and Bill led us to the first of two large waterfront boat sheds. Each shed has a railway running in to it, and each has an overhead block-and-tackle system to move the boats. Bill's new catboat, TOM CAT, was in the lower shed for winter finishing touches after a busy sailing season. He has various row-and sailboats all getting improvements and maintenance. Bill makes everything he can, from cleats to blocks to artistic trim; yet, with all the special touches, all his boats (sail, row, and motor) are to be used.
Bill also has a passion for antique engines (there was an Easthope engine on the floor). He rebuilds and then installs them in his antique launches and motorboats.
“On the railway in the upper shop was an old Ray Hunt-designed International 110, freshly painted, and next to it a fiberglass lapstrake whitehall to which Bill had added a plywood sheerstrake (she was “just wasn't right,” as built, said Bill). There were spars overhead and more boats in the loft—all organized. Against the wall was a model-building shelf with a half model of the 60' Garden-design sloop OCEANUS well underway. Bill pointed out how he has included the cabin, as it's part of the whole design.
    “Before we left the upper shop, we stopped at a small alcove where there were more full- and half-hull models, as well as old pictures of favorite boats and friends and good moments. As we wandered down to the house we stopped and admired Bill's fleet of antique boats in a covered set of slips. There were launches with well-oiled Easthope engines and a famous 30' motorboat, MERLIN, that graced Victoria for years. Bill is currently putting on one of his classic “eyebrows” on the front of the cabin, just to make it look a bit better.
    “We ascended a small hill to Bill's house and spent the next few hours going over plans and pictures and models. Bill has designed hundreds of boats—sail and power, pleasure and commercial. He has supplied not only the plans for so many dreams, but encouragement and support, as well. He is currently finishing the plans of a beautiful 25'-waterline knockabout sloop that will be a wonderful daysailer and coastal cruiser. He shared with us a very detailed model that he made when he was 13 that included hand carved crew—a hint of things to come! (“He obviously was born with the talent,” said Jim Miller)
Once at the house, were finally able to present Bill with BULL FROG's beautiful half model for lifetime of achievement. After hot tea, fresh fruit, and muffins, it was time to go, and we reluctantly went down to the dock and boarded the tug. Bill's smile and wit and winks had punctuated our day of learning of his passionate, creative, contented life. There is no question that he is young at 90, he will not be slowing down without a fight.
    “It was a magical day in a world where you have to try harder to find magic.”

A Ketch from John Alden

A Sloop From Martin Erismann

Martin Erismann was a Glasgow-trained naval architect who practiced on both the US East and West Coasts. He was sort fo a proto-Howard Chapelle, for he had a major interest in documenting disappearing working craft. Indeed, he built a copy of a Block Island Cowhorn, called ROARING BESSIE, that he sailed for pleasure on Massachusetts Bay. The copy was based on an original orkboat, LENA M, that he had purchased with the intent of restoring, but the boat was too far gone for that.
    The following pages from The Rudder emerged from the WoodenBoat desginer archives recently during a search of Erismann's file. This captivating little yawl, a 24-footer, would be the perfect vehicle for weekend explorations of Eggemoggin Reach.

 

Designer Archives

Here at WoodenBoat, we're lucky to have in our library nearly complete sets of The Rudder and Yachting magazines. These publications are treasure troves of boat history, and include beautiful cruising narratives, informative technical articles, and engrossing design reviews. Those design reviews are so engrossing, in fact, that we have many of them photocopied and filed by designer name. So, you can open a drawer and pull the file for, say, John G. Alden, and review the study plans and commentary for any of his boats ever published in those two magazines.
    We thought it would be nice to share some fo those with you, so we're going to begin an informal program here: a new category on this blog called "The Designer Archives." I've had B.B. Crowninshiled on my mind lately, as we'll be publishing an article in May about a new boat built to one of his designs. So, we lead off with B.B. Crowninshield:

From The Rudder, April 1916

Small Boats

Watch your local Newsstand in early December. WoodenBoat is publishing a new annual edition called Small Boats. It profiles, in words and photographs, twenty small boats. What's a small boat, you might ask (as lots of people have)? The answer is published in the new magazine, but here's the essence of it: It's a boat you can haul home yourself, and store in the garage or driveway. The publication is packed with all types of craft: powerboats, sailboats, rowboats, paddle boats. There are boats for camp cruising and exercise and daysailing and going fast (and going slow).

First week in December. Newsstand near you. Let us know what you think.

The Maritime Tour of the Netherlands

Peter Neill hosted our tour of the Netherlands last summer, and he'll be hosting next summer's to Denmark and Sweden. Here's Peter's  report from the tour of the Netherlands:

2006 Wooden Boat Maritime Heritage Tour:
The Netherlands
June 25-July 6, 2006

Continuing a travel program begun with visits to Norway in 2005/05, the Wooden Boat Maritime Heritage Tour tacked through the Netherlands this summer with twenty crew, all polyglot, colorful, and willing, Mary Barnes and I met the group in the Amsterdam airport and we moved to Lemmer by bus to board the 1907 sailing barge, SUCCES, and immediate departure on the Ijsselmeer, the Netherlands’ inland sea.

The vessel was spectacular: double cabins with private head and hot shower, full bar, and great food. Our Captain was Wietse van Lingen, assisted by his partner and mate, Evyline, and their new baby, Emma. SUCCES is steel, two-masted, flat-bottomed, and broad-beamed with leeboards for stability. Wietse handled her like a skiff, putting her through bridges with a foot of leeway on either side and routinely reaching at 7 knots under sail. He was a fine seaman and great host.

We began our journey inland by canal into the Frisian Lakes at Heeg, a lovely inland town, before moving on to Stavoren when we met and sailed in company with the fleet of Friesland Vaart, a maritime festival celebrating the revival of historic vessels in Holland. It was a wonderful event, with the usual shoreside exhibits, music, and food. As Mary and I walked the docks, we kept finding our WB crew in the cockpits of botters, invited aboard for stories, beer and Dutch gin. The following day we sailed again amidst these colorful vessels, until we headed north to Workum , another charming town and its small boatyard which had been in business for almost 150 years. The names of the owner/boatwrights were carved chronologically on a sign on the shop façade.

Our next passage took us to the eastern lock on the Ijsselmeer and entrance to  the Wadden Sea and the Frisian Islands, Erskine Childers’ water, and our first port of call, Den Helder, where we visited the Dorus Rijkers Life-Boat Museum and The Royal Dutch Naval Museum. Wind direction, weather and tide intervened and we could sail no further east, only to Texel, the first of the Frisians, home of colorful fishing fleet and its own funky maritime museum.  Wietse loved to sail his vessel, so this day and the next he took advantage of the fresh breeze and many of us got a work-out as crew.

Our destination was  Enkhuisen, home of one of the finest historical museums in Europe. It is an open-air place, with many types of buildings depicting all aspects of Dutch culture. The museum has a wonderful collection of small craft and fishing materials as well. That evening, after the museum was officially closed, we enjoyed a private tour, a feast of fresh and smoked herring, Dutch cheeses and sausages, and various wines, served in authentic these settings.

We left SUCCES in her home port, Enkhuisen, for Amsterdam and the National Maritime Museum, where we were welcomed by the Director and introduced to a spectacular collection of navigational instruments, maps and charts, and the greatest of the Dutch marine paintings. It was good to return to the Grand Hotel Krasnapolsky, a soft mattress, clean laundry, and the City’s vast selection of restaurants to choose for dinner.

Our next excursion took us to Rotterdam where we visited The National Maritime Museum and its exhibits on Europe’s largest industrial port and then to the extraordinary museum ship, Buffel, with its’ perfectly restored engines, staterooms, and associated materials. If that was not enough, we boarded at the Museum dock another perfectly restored historic vessel, HELENA, a traditional Dutch trader, on which we sailed to Kinderdijk, the largest concentration of antique windmills in Holland. We lost the wind to a very hot day, but nonetheless on the slow motor home were fed an astonishing meal by the on-board chef. The crew slept very well indeed on the return by bus to Amsterdam.

Our last day was free. We scattered alone or in groups to the many wonderful art and historical attractions of that remarkable city, so accessible by canal boat, public transportation, or foot, only to come together again for a final dinner at The Ship Chandler’s Warehouse,  aprivatley-owned building, meticulously restored and stacked within with goods as it might have been in the 17th century. We arrived there by canal boat to find a glorious candlelit room, a table set with flowers, pewter and glass, and yet another delicious menu of fresh fish and  vegetables, dessert, three wines, coffee and Dutch chocolate. There were toasts and anecdotes and commitments by many to visits at home. For several of us, it was our second WB trip. Strong friendships have been made and I will not be surprised at all to see them renewed as reservations come in for the 2006 Maritime Heritage Tour to Sweden and Denmark.  Join us!