Well that’s that and thank God it’s over once more. I’m talking about the America’s Cup of course. On the downside of close sailing, from what I have heard, the behaviour of a percentage of supporters from both sides in Valencia for their booing, their blowing of raspberries, some threats and, wait for it… the upped two fingers shown to the Swiss team as they went out for one of their encounters when New Zealand was one up! Is that really something to be proud of in this `business’ (and it is now a business!) of money, politics and the commercial requirement of what was once looked upon as a sport?

Anyway, as time marches onwards to the next assembly of the rich and greedy again in Valencia in 2009, the Champions and the great pretenders and the wannabees will race in bigger and faster (and more costly) boats. I would say that the America’s Cup as it was intended to be is changing to a point beyond recognition. My own purely personal view is that New Zealand should extricate itself from this `boop de doop’ event and leave it to the sillier, richer nations and their wealthy `patrons’. Our (NZ) Government could then sink that money they always say they haven’t got but seem to find for funding of this sort, into improving our health system and reducing our crime.

Taiwan company Thunder Tiger who produce the excellent little `Victoria’s’ have come up with an Emirates Team New Zealand liveried one metre, (seen above) which had New Zealand won the America’s Cup could well have sold a few more of these boats here in New Zealand than they are now likely to do. It stands 1.7m tall, has the latest squared off top mainsail, is 993mm long, overall weight 3.5kg and comes with the full set of Emirates Team New Zealand sponsorship decals. It is a quick way to the water for beginners but I would suggest that it is light weather boat!

Left is Romp Above is Desdemona

I sail (er, windle!) every week with some wonderful guys of the Ancient Mariners, many of them ex fullsize boat yachtsmen, many with good tales to tell, all pretty modest about their sailing past. Modesty is indeed their key word, they have done their dash, raced in various boats and cruised the waters off New Zealand, ventured to far-flung Pacific islands in their earlier years. Unlike me who barely knew the difference between a transom and a ransom, they know their boating terms and their memories are sharp enough to remember their wonderful years of big boat sailing when they were younger

One of the most likeable is Des Pittams who sails his Starlet Moonlight, and does well with his Footy Imp in the `Beyond to the pond annual races. He also has a very nice and tidy 18” model Magic. Getting information out of Des is akin to pulling teeth largely because of his modesty. I call him the `Senior Statesman and Yachting Legend.’ Absolutely passionate about his model sailboating, Des is quiet in character but he is not averse to chipping in and dishing it out at all of us, always with his slow style of speech, a huge smile and in good humour.

In his younger days (“What do you mean younger days? I am still young“! he is likely to say) I managed to drag out of him the fact that he sailed and raced a variety of fullsize boats several of which he built in New Zealand and a couple in the Fiji Islands when he was stationed there at Laucala Bay with the New Zealand Air Force. They included the fourteen footer Romp and an eighteen foot, raised-deck mullet boat, Desdemona both shown above.

Phil Brown (above left) who lives in Brisbane, Australia has built this schooner without plans and guided largely by a keen eye and from photographs. Lochlarnie at 55” from bowsprit to stern is a replica of the 44’ schooner Redpath designed by Michael Karsten. Upon completion of the glass-hulled model, Phil discovered it was too large to fit into the car so had to get a towbar fitted and obtain a box trailer. He had built model aeroplanes and about 30 years ago sailed skiffs but this was his first attempt at model boatbuilding. The deck is of ply and all other timber used was either ply or spruce, the bowsprit an old pool cue. All fittings are brass.

“I’LL SHOW YOU HOW A PUKKA DOG SAILS !” (Photograph by Peter Tait)

In Auckland, New Zealand our Ancient Mariners fleet of Vic Smeed designed Starlets has often been mentioned. Because of the amount of these boats and their continuing popularity they are almost legendary here, where they could well be the largest fleet of Starlets anywhere in the world.. Now Vic Smeed has thrown another card into the pack with a six inch shorter boat seemingly identical to the Starlet and known as the Star Baby. English modeller, Vic Driscoll built the prototype shown above.

With a free plan released last year by Marine Modelling International, the new boat may well have the desired effect of spawning interests in the UK, but for New Zealand, well I just don’t know. I would hazard a guess that it is too close in size to the old 34” Starlet, and with little if any appearance difference. Then again, with the plan now both free and available, some even in Auckland may scale it up to same size proportions, or even `downsize’ it to say twenty-two inches, whereupon true starry-eyed `babies’ might well start appearing and might given time even spawn an additional class of their own. (Hey, I am not a soothsayer and what would I know anyway? I am but a humble `imagineer’, a `thunker’ and peasant scribbler with an ear cocked to the wind!)

My friend Hans Staal lives in the Netherlands and is an absolutely brilliant photographer of model sailing boats whose photos I continually feature in this column where they almost always draw good comment. Hans is also an excellent shipmodeller whose models have appeared in my now no-longer-published model yachting magazine Windling World. A few of these are shown in the cluster above. His photographs speak for themselves

Model sailboating of the windling kind,
generates relaxation, fosters patience,
provides time for true appreciation of the
model, and develops good friendships
with the like-minded

In Australia, at Lilydale Radio Yacht Club set in a reserve in the state of Victoria they won’t turn down any class or type of boat and as a result have an impressive fleet as seen in the first photograph. The 60” long schooner The Beguine seen in the second photograph above was built and is owned by Keith Ellisdon. Built to a 1912 `Prospero’ design by Bill Daniels, the schooner weighs 20 lbs, has a 12” beam and draws 12”. The excellent photograph was taken by the club Webmaster, Bill Furey.

Tony Searle, a friend of mine in Poole, Dorset in Britain is building an RC model of the 4-masted barque Archibald Russell (broken up in 1946) meantime he has been having a few periods of enjoyable windling of his Bristol Pilot Cutter, April built many years ago. In the second photograph, a group also sailing Bristol Pilot Cutters always commands attention. I will have to ask you to join me in a guessing game of `Who, where and when’ for I’m afraid I can’t remember the details. of The third photograph? This was taken in the 1930’s at East Cowes also in Britain.

In the year 2000 in Christchurch in the South Island of New Zealand Paul Cousins built this wonderful looking narrow beamed schooner, Southern Lights shown in the first picture above. Paul is now well into a build of a square rigger. Meanwhile on the South American continent, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Luiz Boms has built and is enjoying his Tippecanoe T37 which he is seen sailing from his waterfront home. He says he loves the boat and sails it regularly.

I call it ‘the trophy that growed and growed’ (though `grew and grew’ would be better English!) Presented in 1998 by the Great Schooner Model Society of Maryland, USA to the Auckland, Ancient Mariners it has been awarded every year since to a selected member for a model schooner (or ketch) considered worthy of honours who has then held it for one year. It started off solely as the little pewter cup, a plinths was added and additional plinths have followed in order to accommodate the engraved plates showing the ten winners to date, two of whom have won it twice. The current winner is Derek Nicholson for his South Seas schooner, Tiare Taporo shown in this column a few months back (WTWB June and November 2007). The man and the boat are seen above in the second photograph.

I wish some of the British model manufacturers and model boat clubs would improve on their websites and Webmaster`answering email capabilities’ – I have decided to award a Certificate of Nada Interest and Response to …. Wait for it ….Oh you needn’t know – you’ll only get frustrated and give up anyway! Best Webmaster I have dealt with is …..NO NO NO, I won’t go there either!