Falanda Sailing

After 6 days at Brest, all the classic boats motored out of the harbour into the channel, accompanied by a flotilla of modern day-sailers, yachts, ribs, speed boats, naval ships and helicopters.  Unfortunately there was no wind at all so after a short but hectic drift, everyone either started their engines or took out their oars. Nora had towed me and Falanda out of the harbour and once it was decided that we were to motor, we kept Falanda under tow and I jumped aboard Nora. It felt embarrassing enough, however I was also glad not to be left completely useless with the high speed ribs and the 80’ sailings trawlers. It was hectic until we reached the bay of Douarnenez, at which point the wind picked up, everyone separed slightly, Nora let us go and we enjoyed a lovely sail across the bay.  Falanda was berthed in the inner, fishing boat harbour, which was otherwise filled with racing boats meaning that there was no one ever really there. Nora was rafted up inside the southern br...

After a night at Brixham in early July, Falanda and I prepared for a Channel crossing alongside my dad on Nora, this was the last weather window before Brest festival began. There was forecasted to be little to no wind for the first few hours and then picking up gently until sunset, when it would stay at around 18 kts until the following afternoon. We completed all the departure and entry forms and started the engines ready to cast off - there wasn’t a breath of wind and it was a hot, sunny day.  Unfortunately, Falanda's engine immodestly let out a series of the most unpleasant sounds followed by a loud bang as I tried to turn it off.  The previous night on arrival at Brixham the stop lever had ripped itself out, an annoyance as it was now harder to stop the engine, however nothing too catastrophic.  Now, on inspecting the damage, the arm that had connected the stop lever to the engine casing had dropped down and smashed out the governor weights and the engine casing. I’m...

 The solenoid on Radiance’s engine had fried itself to bits on arrival at Brixham, so we decided to stop in at Topsham after the Regatta in order to have a look at it.  It was a fast sail across the bay with all three boats in company, and I was only mildly upset to watch Radiance and Nora slip past us. Although I may blame it on the extra reef and following wind there was definitely some distance between us as they arrived at the fairway buoy.  Sailing up the Exe without the reassurance of an engine is always slightly terrifying, and as it was Jake’s first time going up the river, and only his second sail on Radiance, he received a tow from Nora.  After a week on my dad’s mooring at Turf, we both sailed Radiance back down the river with a reconditioned starter motor, heading for Falmouth. Initially the wind was pushing us along at just under 6kts, however by the early afternoon it had disappeared completely. We bobbed around for a couple of hrs in Torbay before star...

 Earlier this year me and Falanda moved from our winter berth in Penryn to Sailors Creek in Flushing where my friend Jake Whyte was restoring his new boat ‘Radiance’. She is a 37’ gaff cutter, larch on oak frames built in 1936. Radiance was built in a Smack yard in Boston, Linkinshire as a yacht, so is massively overbuilt with 1.5inch planking and 4” frames, she is 13 tonnes.  Radiance had been sitting against a wall in Gweek for 10 years before Jake bought her in March, so after a quick scape off at Tremaine quay, up the helford, he put the sail back on and attached all those bits of rope that assesorise the gaffers. She looked lovely sailing back, touching 7kts with the wind behind us, however on return to Flushing Jake proceeded to make the most worrying holes in the hull as he dug out all the rot.  More holes were made in the deck, and we had fun learning how to scarf in new bits of wood before the whole deck and coachroof was sanded and repainted. Having left the boa...