Where do the years go ? Two Guys who lived their lives .
this rare bit of footage always hits me in the heart.
Select to expand quoteMAGNESIUM said..
Where do the years go ? Two Guys who lived their lives .
this rare bit of footage always hits me in the heart.
Great thanks for posting. Yes these blokes have got to be right up there on the very top shelf
berrimilla2.blogspot.com/
I'm trying to work out the rigging and headsails ...
It looks like a small furling headsail on the forestay, a larger furling headsail on a Solent stay and then 2 inner stays like a cutter rig that meet the mast halfway between the spreaders. No sign of running backstays to carry the load of the inner forestays as done on Jolie Brise (the Magpie 34 for sale).
If anyone has more information, I'd be very grateful.
Cheers,
Kinora
Alex is an absolute legend; have had the privilege of sailing and racing against him many times. Last time I spoke to him he was sailing something like a NS14, having sold his various Berrimillas. . Top bloke.
See cdn.revolutionise.com.au/cups/ransasail/files/mpirayektyyavg94.pdf and en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alex_Whitworth for some background.
Select to expand quoteKinora said..
I'm trying to work out the rigging and headsails ...
It looks like a small furling headsail on the forestay, a larger furling headsail on a Solent stay and then 2 inner stays like a cutter rig that meet the mast halfway between the spreaders. No sign of running backstays to carry the load of the inner forestays as done on Jolie Brise (the Magpie 34 for sale).
If anyone has more information, I'd be very grateful.
Cheers,
Kinora
Can't think of a boat that I would feel safer in to do that sort of trip. Perhaps the only alteration to the rig to prevent it going AWOL in a rollover might be to consider doubling up on the lowers so that there were fore and aft lowers. That is assuming it was not a tunable mast which would advantageously bend with a bit of back stay.
I got to know Alex as part of the Lord Howe Rally. I had met Alex and Peter earlier when I was part of the crowd at the CYCA to welcome them home from their epic voyage, which I had followed daily online. 2005 I think.
Alex wanted to crew with me for the 2016 Lord Howe Rally but, as much as I wanted to learn from him, we had a major difference of opinion on drinking while at sea.
He is a marvellous sailor, it might have been an opportunity missed but that is the way it was.
Caught up with Alex today. This was his answer:
===
That red jib was an experiment - It was intended to be poled out for a downwind twin pole arrangement. I set it on a furler temporarily tacked to the stem fitting ahead of the forestay and it was easy to set and furl using a spinnaker halyard. I tried various other sails the same way. Brolgas originally had an inner forestay tacked to the forward end of the coachroof only about 2ft from the mast, mostly just adding downward pressure on the mast and not otherwise very effective. I removed it and installed a big throughbolted fitting inside the forepeak at the forward waterline to anchor a s/s cable connected to the underside of a throughbolted deck pad with a becket about half way along the foredeck. These became the ends of an inner forestay with a highfield lever that worked a lot better and allowed me to set a storm jib on it if needed. I did make a set of running backstays from the upper crosstrees using skinny wire with a multipart dyneema tackle at the lower end, attached to the mooring cleats on each quarter when in use. They were a bit of a handful but they did the job.
===
Select to expand quotesydchris said..
Caught up with Alex today. This was his answer:
===
That red jib was an experiment - It was intended to be poled out for a downwind twin pole arrangement. I set it on a furler temporarily tacked to the stem fitting ahead of the forestay and it was easy to set and furl using a spinnaker halyard. I tried various other sails the same way. Brolgas originally had an inner forestay tacked to the forward end of the coachroof only about 2ft from the mast, mostly just adding downward pressure on the mast and not otherwise very effective. I removed it and installed a big throughbolted fitting inside the forepeak at the forward waterline to anchor a s/s cable connected to the underside of a throughbolted deck pad with a becket about half way along the foredeck. These became the ends of an inner forestay with a highfield lever that worked a lot better and allowed me to set a storm jib on it if needed. I did make a set of running backstays from the upper crosstrees using skinny wire with a multipart dyneema tackle at the lower end, attached to the mooring cleats on each quarter when in use. They were a bit of a handful but they did the job.
===
Many thanks, sydchris, that is very useful. Please thank Alex for taking the time. Experience coupled with courtesy is an increasingly rare combination.
I'm considering the same arrangement for an inner forestay. Alex's comment about the running backstays is particularly helpful as I was unsure if the arrangement needed them. But if it worked on Berrimilla II ...
Cheers,
Kinora
Select to expand quoteKinora said..sydchris said..
Caught up with Alex today. This was his answer:
===
That red jib was an experiment - It was intended to be poled out for a downwind twin pole arrangement. I set it on a furler temporarily tacked to the stem fitting ahead of the forestay and it was easy to set and furl using a spinnaker halyard. I tried various other sails the same way. Brolgas originally had an inner forestay tacked to the forward end of the coachroof only about 2ft from the mast, mostly just adding downward pressure on the mast and not otherwise very effective. I removed it and installed a big throughbolted fitting inside the forepeak at the forward waterline to anchor a s/s cable connected to the underside of a throughbolted deck pad with a becket about half way along the foredeck. These became the ends of an inner forestay with a highfield lever that worked a lot better and allowed me to set a storm jib on it if needed. I did make a set of running backstays from the upper crosstrees using skinny wire with a multipart dyneema tackle at the lower end, attached to the mooring cleats on each quarter when in use. They were a bit of a handful but they did the job.
===
Many thanks, sydchris, that is very useful. Please thank Alex for taking the time. Experience coupled with courtesy is an increasingly rare combination.
I'm considering the same arrangement for an inner forestay. Alex's comment about the running backstays is particularly helpful as I was unsure if the arrangement needed them. But if it worked on Berrimilla II ...
Cheers,
Kinora
I put an inner forestay on my S&S34. Provided the stay is attached to the mast within 10% of the top stays you don't need running stays to support the mast. That is the advice of a few riggers, Joe Walsh did mine.
it worked brilliantly on three Lord Howe trips.
Select to expand quoteMorningBird said..Kinora said..sydchris said..
Caught up with Alex today. This was his answer:
===
That red jib was an experiment - It was intended to be poled out for a downwind twin pole arrangement. I set it on a furler temporarily tacked to the stem fitting ahead of the forestay and it was easy to set and furl using a spinnaker halyard. I tried various other sails the same way. Brolgas originally had an inner forestay tacked to the forward end of the coachroof only about 2ft from the mast, mostly just adding downward pressure on the mast and not otherwise very effective. I removed it and installed a big throughbolted fitting inside the forepeak at the forward waterline to anchor a s/s cable connected to the underside of a throughbolted deck pad with a becket about half way along the foredeck. These became the ends of an inner forestay with a highfield lever that worked a lot better and allowed me to set a storm jib on it if needed. I did make a set of running backstays from the upper crosstrees using skinny wire with a multipart dyneema tackle at the lower end, attached to the mooring cleats on each quarter when in use. They were a bit of a handful but they did the job.
===
Many thanks, sydchris, that is very useful. Please thank Alex for taking the time. Experience coupled with courtesy is an increasingly rare combination.
I'm considering the same arrangement for an inner forestay. Alex's comment about the running backstays is particularly helpful as I was unsure if the arrangement needed them. But if it worked on Berrimilla II ...
Cheers,
Kinora
I put an inner forestay on my S&S34. Provided the stay is attached to the mast within 10% of the top stays you don't need running stays to support the mast. That is the advice of a few riggers, Joe Walsh did mine.
it worked brilliantly on three Lord Howe trips.
Thats basically a Solent stay, isnt it?
Select to expand quoteYara said..MorningBird said..Kinora said..sydchris said..
Caught up with Alex today. This was his answer:
===
That red jib was an experiment - It was intended to be poled out for a downwind twin pole arrangement. I set it on a furler temporarily tacked to the stem fitting ahead of the forestay and it was easy to set and furl using a spinnaker halyard. I tried various other sails the same way. Brolgas originally had an inner forestay tacked to the forward end of the coachroof only about 2ft from the mast, mostly just adding downward pressure on the mast and not otherwise very effective. I removed it and installed a big throughbolted fitting inside the forepeak at the forward waterline to anchor a s/s cable connected to the underside of a throughbolted deck pad with a becket about half way along the foredeck. These became the ends of an inner forestay with a highfield lever that worked a lot better and allowed me to set a storm jib on it if needed. I did make a set of running backstays from the upper crosstrees using skinny wire with a multipart dyneema tackle at the lower end, attached to the mooring cleats on each quarter when in use. They were a bit of a handful but they did the job.
===
Many thanks, sydchris, that is very useful. Please thank Alex for taking the time. Experience coupled with courtesy is an increasingly rare combination.
I'm considering the same arrangement for an inner forestay. Alex's comment about the running backstays is particularly helpful as I was unsure if the arrangement needed them. But if it worked on Berrimilla II ...
Cheers,
Kinora
I put an inner forestay on my S&S34. Provided the stay is attached to the mast within 10% of the top stays you don't need running stays to support the mast. That is the advice of a few riggers, Joe Walsh did mine.
it worked brilliantly on three Lord Howe trips.
Thats basically a Solent stay, isn't it?
Yes I believe they are called that. I preferred to describe it as a cutter rig as everybody knows that rig style.
