Talk Morgan Forums Community The Malvern Arms sad times

Sold my sailing yacht and received the money this weekend. Had her for 11 years but advancing years and creaky joints meant difficulty handling her. Not to mention some balance issues, not the best thing to have at sea. So as the expression goes, I have swallowed the anchor.

But to say that I will miss sailing her is an understatement - the toy car and motorbike dont amount to a string of beans in comparison to sailing in a stiff breeze with spray and the occasional wave over the deck.

Yes I know that there are far more serious problems affecting people in this time of illness and virus, but I am still fed up.

A sad day indeed, you have my sympathies. An appropriate song to mark the occasion: 'Old Admirals' by Al Stewart

Friends of ours have a Halberg Rassy and asked us to join them on a trip to the Fortunate Islands but quite frankly I’d rather go to the dentists.

Now an early evening run over Dartmoor with the V8 burbling away is the business, it’s good that we all have different tastes.

Were I to be told I could no longer do aerobatics in a Tiger Moth I would get maudlin, that 3rd dimension in an open cockpit is very special indeed to me.

Howard you have my sympathy, though I am sure that you will have friends or associates that can take you for a sail if you are feeling the desperate need. Rich a Halberg Rassy is a nice piece of kit -the Fortunate Islands are a new one on me?

It’s the Old Scillonian name for the Islands Murray based on the fact that the Isles attracted so many shipwrecks to plunder in different times.

Learn something new every day Rich - wasn't aware of the old name!
Great track Tim
How about a canoe or rowing boat on your local lake Howard? Not quite the same, but good exercise.

I've recently taken up Paddle Boarding, that's a great core workout and uses a completely different set of muscles from my normal gardening/walking/cycling. A lot harder than it looks though, I'm still at the 'quite often falls in when trying to stand up' stage - but at first it was 'couldn't stand up without falling in' so I'm making progress!

I think you need to buy some better toys. Get something old and lary that tries to kill you everytime you drive/ride it.

So many jokes too reply to that, all in bad taste and not for a public forum.

Howard, really sorry to read that nature and good sense have caused you to sell your boat.

I sold my Moody circa 20 years ago, for very different reasons in that I was ever hands-on in terms of maintenance, and having spent a Summer of wonderful weather up to my neck in building works with even more years of works ahead, it was obvious I would not be doing much sailing for quite some time to come, and of course the benefit of the cash from the sale, and not having to pay marina dues, and the time freed up from maintenance duties, all proved beneficial but were swallowed up in jig time.

I have no doubt as waikiore suggests you will have sailing friends who will be more than happy to have you aboard their vessel. Though not something I make a habit of I have spent occasional long weekends afloat on a friends Nicholson Ketch, and until Covid I would occasionally help him with maintenance tasks, to keep my hand in so to speak.

From that which you typed I suspect you were more of a sailor than I Howard, though I did sail solo semi regularly, and have an acquaintance in his 80`s who with a similarly aged friend found themselves "rescued" by the RLNI in a bit of weather as the result of gear failure and fatigue trying to overcome the situation... Not the best way for him to end many years of sailing as a former professional mariner..!!!

I miss sailing and m/cycling and in colder weather my Morgan seems not to be the fun it once was, but I`m not complaining as I seem to be firing on enough cylinders to enjoy many other aspects of life... Chin up chum.