The News, Culture and Practice of Sailing woodenboats
in Australia, New Zealand & The South Pacific.
Adrift
In May 2021 a boat from Mauritania full of dead men was found adrift off the coast of the Caribbean Island of Tobago. Forensic investigation by local police discovered that the boat came from Mauritania, a West African nation on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean. Who were these men and why have they been found so far from home?
ASTOR footage - Help needed
Which part of Warner’s custodianship these films cover is unclear. However the word ‘Aloha” hints that it might be about the Trans Pac Race? So what we are hoping to find is an SWS reader with the expertise and technology to transfer these reels into a digital format so that we can share them with our community!
SAVAGE WATERS
Regular readers may have noticed that here at SWS our interest in Wharram Catamarans has morphed into a minor obsession over the last year or so. Well how could we not sit up and notice this surfing adventure film released today in the UK.
Dispatches from The Outlaw Ocean
The oceans are typically and correctly viewed as a marine habitat. But they are much more than that. They are a workplace, a metaphor, an escape, a prison, a grocery store, a trash can, a cemetery, a bonanza, a tinderbox, an organ, a highway, a depot, a window, an emergency, and, above all, an opportunity
50 Years of Progress???
So where did things go wrong? The first race, held in an era of rudimentary safety, genuine Corinthian (amateur) values, and no rewards apart from a deep inner satisfaction, had 19 entries ranging from 80 to 32 feet
“Camel Finds Water”
Presented as if a charming blend of a 1960 American documentary and a contemporary Wes Anderson Film, “Camel Finds Water” reminds us that boat ownership should be about achievement, adventure and friendship rather than Yacht Club Memberships, 15 coats of varnish and “mine is older/longer/prettier/faster than yours”.
“Sentiment without action is the ruin of the soul”
In essence, we’re just a conceited, naked ape. In our minds we’re some sort of “divine legend” We can walk around the earth deciding who will live and who will die and what will be destroyed and what will be saved.
The AWBF 2023 Film
Just in case you are still dreaming of that weekend three weeks ago, the AWBF has put together a three minute video montage covering all the action from in an around the Hobart Waterside.
Ivy Tucker’s AGRICOLA 7101
‘In the midst of a global pandemic, a young boy is given an extraordinary gift. AGRICOLA 7101 is an uplifting documentary focusing on a group of kind-hearted individuals who come together to rescue a long-neglected and rare classic Australian sailing dinghy - fundamentally changing the life of a young boy along the way.’
A Boat for Bond…James Bond
While re-reading Ian Fleming’s oeuvre recently, I seem to remember that my wife remarked… ”This is misogynistic crap” …and she’s probably right.
The Winner That Wasn’t: WILD WAVE
Quick trivia question : Name three yachts that arrived off Battery Point, at the end of the Sydney-Hobart, believing they were line honours winners, only to be denied by the protest committee?
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