Brad Van Liew Arriving Charleston Today, Winning Fourth Leg of Velux Five Oceans

Posted on by April 19, 2011

Photo: Dustin K. Ryan

Brad Van Liew sailing  Le Pingouin is expected to cross the finish line in Charleston, SC, his adopted home town, some time today, continuing to dominate the Velux Five Oceans singlehanded around the world race.  Thus far, he has won all four legs of the around the world race thus far.   Following Van Liew are  Derek Hatfield, sailing Active House, and Chris Stanmore-Major sailing Spartan.  Zbigniew ‘Gutek’ Gutkowski sailing Operon Racing was forced to put into Forteleza after his boat’s forestay broke. ‘Gutek’ was also suffering from a broken rib.

Race-weary Van Liew nears finish, victory

Extreme Sailing – A Video for a Monday Morning

Posted on by April 18, 2011

Day 3 of the Extreme Sailing Series in Qingdao, China provided more than a few thrills and spills among the eleven “eXtreme 40” catamarans engaged in what has been described as “close combat racing.”

DAY 3: EXTREME! A major collision, 4 capsizes, 1 broken mast

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Update: Le Papillon and the Sands of Fire Island

Posted on by April 18, 2011

Photo: Will van Dorp

Not quite three weeks ago the 50′ steel pinky schooner Le Papillon came ashore on Fire Island, a barrier island off Long Island, northeast of the entrance to New York harbor.  Will van Dorp at the Tugster blog has taken some amazing photographs of the schooner, first being battered by waves and now being swallowed up by the sand, like a scene from a slow motion horror movie.  (Go to Will’s blog for more and larger photographs.)  Le Papillon may yet be salvaged but it will be a race against time and the shifting sands of Fire Island.

As we posted earlier in the month, the 300 foot long tanker Gluckauf ran aground on Fire Island in 1893 about  twenty miles up the beach from where Le Papillon now lies. The Gluckauf was never salvaged and was also swallowed by the shifting sand.

Sloop Providence Sails Again

Posted on by April 18, 2011

Great news. The Sloop Providence, replica of the American Revolutionary sloop of the same name is sailing again after being laid up for 3 1/2 years.   She was purchased last year from the City of Providence by boat builder and captain Thorpe Leeson.   The current Sloop Providence dates back to 1976 and has been used in two of the ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ movies. Over the weekends she was sailed from Providence to Newport, Rhode Island and was open for tours on Sunday at Bowen’s Wharf.   The new owners plan to employ the sloop on charters and educational missions.

Historic replica ship visits Newport
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Internet mistake reveals UK nuclear submarine secrets

Posted on by April 17, 2011

Oopps. In what is being described as a “school-boy error” the British Ministry of Defence posted a report on-line which revealed secret information about the UK’s nuclear powered submarines. The sensitive material was “redacted” by turning the background black, so that the text was not readable.  The text was not removed, however, so that anyone who cut and pasted the text to another document could read, copy or distribute the “secret” information.   The MOD was unaware of the breach until it was pointed out by a journalist.

Internet mistake reveals UK nuclear submarine secrets
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Hard Times at Two Seaport Museums – South Street and Independence

Posted on by April 18, 2011

New York and Philadelphia are major ports and centers of art and culture.  By all rights both should be home for major and successful seaport museums. Sadly that is not the case. Last month we posted about the Independence Seaport Museum in Philadelphia putting the Cruiser Olympia up for sale.  After years of neglect, museum mismanagement and corruption (a former museum president is now serving hard time in Federal prison for fraud and tax evasion), the museum lacks the money to repair the historic ship or even to scrap her.   Now,  the financially troubled South Street Seaport in New York is looking to get rid of its historic vessels on a temporary or permanent basis.

Seaport Museum Seeks Berths for Vessels
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Loss of HMS Affray – Sixty Years Ago Today

Posted on by April 16, 2011

Sixty years ago today, the  Royal Navy submarine HMS Affray sailed on a simulated war mission called “Exercise Spring Train” and never returned.   Despite an extensive search by 24 ships from four nations, the sunken submarine was not found until June 14, 1951.  The cause of the sinking has never been determined.   Relatives of the 75 men lost on the submarine are planning to pay their respects on the 60th anniversary of the disaster.

HMS Affray submarine disaster to be marked off Alderney
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A Wind In Her Sails – Interview with Maho Noborisaka on the Soren Larsen

Posted on by April 16, 2011

On a cold and rainy April day here on the banks of the Hudson River, it is nice to consider sunnier climes.   An interview with the Maho Noborisaka, Second Mate on the Tall Ship Soren Larsen.

A Wind In Her Sails

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Owner’s Manual for a Sunken Ship – RMS Titanic Manual: 1909-1912 Olympic Class

Posted on by April 15, 2011

Haynes Manuals are well known as practical guides aimed at automobile enthusiastic and mechanics.  They have also branched out into manuals for domestic appliances, personal computers, digital photography, model railways, men,  babies, sex, and women. Reportedly the last four categories are tongue in cheek but have been popular sellers, nevertheless.  A new Haynes Manual has just been released  for the RMS Titanic, being perhaps the first manual ever published for a sunken ship.

100 years too late: Somerset firm’s guide to the Titanic
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The Titanic – from Maritime Tragedy to Pop Culture Icon

Posted on by April 15, 2011

Ninety nine years ago today, the RMS Titanic sank after striking an iceberg in the North Atlantic with the loss of 1,517 passengers and crew.  The sinking of the Titanic had a major impact on  ship  operations.     The first International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) was adopted in 1914 as a  direct response to the sinking. The International  Ice  Patrol and AMVER also trace their beginnings to the Titanic disaster.

In the almost 100 years since the sinking, however, the Titanic has moved from being a maritime tragedy to becoming a cultural icon.  The subject of hundreds of books and over twenty movies, the Titanic is also the basis of “Museum/Attractions” in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee in the Great Smokey Mountains and in Branson, Missouri.    In some respects, the actual sinking seems a backdrop to the movies and books.   “Earlier this month a sketch of Kate Winslet, used in the Hollywood blockbuster Titanic, was auctioned off for more than $16,000 in the US.”    In the next year’s run-up to the centennial of the sinking,  the number of Titanic memorial events will only increase,  including a memorial cruise on the MS Balmoral.

‘Titanic 100’ events mark launch of liner
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The Toilet that Sank the Submarine

Posted on by April 14, 2011

On April 14, 1945, the German submarine U-1206, on its first war patrol,  had its mission go down the toilet.   U-1206 “was one of the late war boats fitted with the new deepwater high-pressure toilets which allowed them to be used while running at depth. Flushing these toilets was extremely complicated and special technicians were trained to operate them.”   When Captain Karl-Adolf Schlitt used the toilet, he had problems making it work. He called an engineer who turned the wrong valve, causing flooding which reached the battery compartment, releasing chlorine gas, forcing the sub to surface. Only ten miles off the coast of Scotland they were spotted by British planes, which killed crew on deck and damaged the submarine. Captain Schlitt set scuttling charges and sank the submarine.

April 14, 1945: Tweaky Toilet Costs Skipper His Sub

Thanks to Phil Leon for passing on this wonderful bit of history.

Hunt the Rats on the USS Massachusetts

Posted on by April 14, 2011

Rodents have always been a problem on ships, but things seem to be getting out of control.   Last week we posted (somewhat  facetiously) of a rodent problem on the Tall Ship Elissa after a rather large mouse named Minnie stopped by for a visit.  Now we hear of rats aboard the USS Massachusetts in Battleship Cove.  (The rats are far fluffier and cuter than the wharf rats in these parts.)

Next week, April 16-24, during spring break for many school kids, Battleship Cove is hosting  “Hunt the Rats” on USS MASSACHUSETTS.  From their website:   Ten adorable fluffy rats, disguised as members of the ship’s crew, have snuck on board and hidden themselves around the ship so it’ll take all your rat-hunting skills to find them all. Discover where the mischievous rodents have escaped to and be entered into a prize drawing. Great fun for the entire family! A video of the press conference announcing the hunt:

Battleship Cove The Rats Have Escaped

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Seaport Museum Founders Offer New Plan to Keep Institution Afloat

Posted on by April 13, 2011

Peter Stanford, a founder of the Seaport Museum. (National Maritime Historical Society)

Peter Stanford and Robert Ferraro, two of the founders of the financially troubled South Street Seaport Museum in New York City, spoke to museum volunteers on Saturday. They presented their vision of how the museum could be saved and revived.

Seaport Museum Founders Offer New Plan to Keep Institution Afloat
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The Plastic Puffins of Ramsey Island

Posted on by April 13, 2011

I can imagine a couple of bird watchers who become excited when they sight puffins on Pembrokeshire’s Ramsey Island.   There haven’t been puffins on the island since the 1890s when they were killed off by rats.  The rats are gone now, but the only puffins on the island are plastic decoys, installed on the cliffs  in hopes of luring real puffins back to their former home.   Apparently the use of plastic decoys has been successful on other islands, so the folks on Ramsey are hoping that  their plastic puffins will do as well.

200 puffin decoys to lure birds back to Ramsey Island

Update: HMAS Adelaide Finally Scuttled

Posted on by April 13, 2011

In March of last year we posted about the attempts to scuttle HMAS Adelaide as an artificial reef off New South Wales.  (See HMAS Adelaide – A Hard Ship to Sink )  “She was scheduled to be scuttled … but an environmental action group has managed to stop the scuttling over concerns regarding possible PCBs in her electrical wiring and lead paint on the ship. This is notwithstanding that there was never any reported lead paint used on the ship and that tests performed on behalf of the Australian government showed no evidence of PCBs.”   After transiting the courts,  HMAS Adelaide was finally sunk.   It is hoped that the wreck will become an artificial reef that will generate millions of dollars in revenue for New South Wales.   The scuttling was delayed for one final time by a pod of dolphins who were coaxed out of the area before the scuttling charges were set off.

HMAS Adelaide Scuttling / Sinking

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Thanks to Alaric Bond for passing the news along.