VAGB NEWSLETTER 44
Dec 2007 Webpage www.albinvega.co.uk Letter from The Chairman.....
Hello Fellow Vega sailors and friends
2007 is nearly finished as far as my sailing programme goes, I can't pretend it's been a vintage year , at least not for 'Jenavive' and me.
It started well, we launched quite early and the Easter break saw us exploring the waters of the Swale, (the channel between Kent and the Isle of Sheppey for those unlucky souls who are not East Coast sailors). We had four days of sunny weather with light to moderate winds and another big plus for me was that my wife Veronica joined me on board for the first time for several years a most relaxing and enjoyable mini cruise. One more mini cruise that was OK and after that every time I went near the boat the wind would pick unto Force 6-7 or alternately die away completely and sailing became a very frustrating business.
To add to my woes 'Jenavive's' exhaust system started to rot away leaking into the bilge. I should really have replaced it when I fitted my Beta 7 years ago but at the time I thought I was economising by making do. A new water trap, several metres of exhaust hose and a handful of pipe clips later and I was once more underway. I was amazed how small the cockpit lockers had become since I last did the job. The boat must be shrinking.
Just when you think things can't get worse my fuel tank in the keel developed a leak, luckily Steve Birch had a replacement stainless steel tank which I have fitted in my Port Cockpit locker complete with fuel tank gauge The first time I've had a fuel gauge in the 24 years I've owned the boat, the original cork float device has given up before I bought the boat. One of the few disappointments I've had with the original design.
The VAGB's year has been a bit of a disappointment as well. The excellent venue where we held our Fitting Out Lunch and Laying Up Supper are no longer available to us due to change of policy. They served us well for many years and we are finding it extremely difficult to locate a suitable alternative at a reasonable price. Di Webb stepped heroically into the breach
Page 1 Vega Association of Great Britain Newsletter 44 by hosting us in her home in the Spring but we cannot continue to impose on her, so if any one has ideas on how to solve this problem please let me know.
In the Spring we set up a committee to organise the 2008 International Friendship Rally at the Royal Harwich YC, an excellent and very welcoming club on the River Orwell near the road bridge at Ipswich. Early indications are that we will have between 30 and 40 Vegas at the rally. We want to encourage as many owners as possible to support the event, VAGB only hosts the event every tenth year and the Rally is a chance for the more competitive to measure themselves against the rest of the fleet and for others simply to enjoy the company of fellow Vega sailors, swapping ideas and stories, meeting old friends and making new ones.
The organisation of the rally is making good progress but of course we need an indication of final numbers as early a possible to complete our planning and costing.
You will find a booking form in this newsletter or on our website, please return to Steve Birch who is doing his usual excellent job on the administration.
On the Sailing front Steve with the help and support of the Fareham Sailing Club organised a rally on the Solent at the end of August. Unfortunately I couldn't attend myself as I was wrestling with effects of foot and mouth on our local agricultural show, but that's another story. By all accounts the Vega Rally was a most enjoyable and popular weekend.
Just to round off a vaguely disappointing sailing year I tried to get my boat ashore for the winter the other week and at a time when all the press were talking with complete authority about tidal surges, we had whatever the opposite is and had to give up with 20cms less water than we needed. I'm going to try again at the end of the month.
Now to look forward to 2008, I have complete faith that 2008 will be the sort of sailing season we will remember for years, hot sunny days, gentle to moderate winds from abaft the beam, we will be needing more suntan oil than engine oil.
Well perhaps it won't be quite that good but I will settle for at least a couple of weeks of that sort of weather in the Harwich area in late June to early July, but whatever the Gods give us I am sure that we will have a tremendous rally at Harwich and I look forward to meeting as many of you as possible there.
On behalf of the officers and committee of the Vega Association of Great Britain I wish you and your families a Happy Christmas and good health and prosperity in the New Year.
Mike Freeman - Chairman VAGB
Page 2 Vega Association of Great Britain Newsletter 44 Mast Steps
I've got maststeps on my Vega (the previous owners put them on, so I can't say much about installation). They're fantastic and make climbing up the mast a lot easier and more comfortable if you have to work at the mast head for a long time.
We have folding steps up to the spreaders, and fixed steps from the spreaders up. There are advantages to both. The fixed steps feel more secure as your foot is encased and can't slide off sideways: great if it's at all swelly. But, they do tend to catch and hook halyards, which can be annoying. The folding steps solve this problem, but don't offer such secure foot holds and you have to unfold/fold them as you climb up and down the mast.
My one tip would be to put the topmost steps at the same height and in a position where the top of the mast reaches just below shoulder level. With the steps any higher and you feel very insecure, with nothing to wrap your arms around when at the top of the mast, but much lower means that it's difficult to get on top of the mast head to do any work.
I hope this helps! Isla Reynolds Vega Beowulf
VAGB Emails
I've been meaning to get in touch with you for a while to thank you for your assistance in selling my Vega. Having advertised it twice in PBO, once in Scotland's local Yachting Life mag and having entered it in the Inverkip 2nd hand boat sale - all to no avail, the VAGB web-site did its work and Lyra now has a proud new owner (I've given him your details). As I say - thanks!
My 20 years as a Vega owner were well spent and Lyra probably looked better at the end of the period than at the start. I'm now enjoying my Westerly Fulmar, which strikes me as a 'big Vega' in a lot of ways and which I hope will see me through the next 20 years. Good luck to VAGB and all Vega owners. Andy Scott. Vega “Lyra”
We've now finished working and are back in Wensleydale; currently house/farm-sitting for my younger brother whilst he takes his family to France skiing, whereafter we fly back to Greece, next Friday morning.
For the coming summer, rather than send lots of long rambling e-mails that perhaps not everyone is interested in reading; we’ve set up a blog site, which you can log onto and see what we’re getting up to. If you’re interested, log on to: - www sailblogs.com/member/ springfever
Page 3 Vega Association of Great Britain Newsletter 44 There’s not a lot on there yet, but if it works we hope to post a diary and photos as the summer cruise progresses; the biggest question at the moment is where/how far we actually go.
I managed to get a new mainsheet slug made up by a local engineering company who were doing some subcontract work for me on a project in Bradford; it looks very pretty but the test will come when I try to fit it into the track; I hope it’s ok as I know from experience that filing down stainless steel’s no fun at all
Have you seen that Jester Challenge website? Looks perfect for a Vega; I’ve no chance for 2008; put who knows, I might be back to the UK by 2010.
Bob & Lesley, Spring Fever.
Long Distance Single Handed Tips Your best friend for those long single-handed offshore passages (my longest was 12 days, 1300 miles) is a windvane. It is a must, and I dont think I could have made the 9 months without it...it almost became a survival gear!!!
Another big must is sun protection: I really under-estimated it when I left with my Vega and once in the tropic, I was terribly looking for shade...it is almost impossible to stay out in the cockpit during day if you don't have a good dodger or bimini or those removable tarp with battens.
I was on a limited budget so I did not have fridge nor any fancy equipment. The most expensive gears were my liferaft, the windvane and my EPIRB...some really basic and necessary equipment!
If your budget allows it and depending on the places/time you want to drop the anchor, I suggest to install a watermaker...it allows you to bring less water with you and be lighter therefore faster...and you have more freedom and can stay longer in those remote places. I had also 2 x 80w solar panel, which allowed me to never run the engine to recharge the batteries (2 starting in the bilge and 2 houses in the STBD lazarette.
One more thing, Vegas are really strong boats: I took two knock downs and hit 3 time corals head and came out of this without a glitch...else than some bottom paint left in 3 feet of water in DR, San Blas and Costa Rica...
Good luck with your trip....this cruising life is so great that I'm doing all I can to get back to it as quickly as posssible...
If you decide to go in El Salvador, there is a great place to stop (Bahia Del Sol)...and once you 've pass the sandbar, about 1/2 mile inside the estuary, you will see Vesper, my Vega, waiting for me to take her on new adventures (or for a buyer to take her...)
Patrick Garceau
Page 4 Vega Association of Great Britain Newsletter 44 Mr Vane – ew kid on the block…
This is a low cost alternative to the wind self-steering systems that are on the market today. With the demise of the Navik this may be the successor for the Vega.
For sailors that feel the need for a non electric way to keep their boat on course, a new self steering system has been developed: Mr. Vane. This windvane self-steering works on the servo pendulum principle as do most windvane systems such as the Aries, Monitor, Pacific and Navik (Double-Servo) .
The windvane and the pendulum rudder.
The windvane rotates around a horizontal axis, usually tilted by about 20 degrees. Mr Vane controls the rota- tion of the pendulum rudder around the vertical axis.
The pendulum rudder can rotate around two axis: 1. Vertical, along the boats mast. 2. horizontally so it can swing from side to side like a pendulum.
Any change in wind direction causes the windvane to swing, this causes the pendulum rudder to rotate and the water flowing past the pendulum rudder will cause it to swing sideways resulting in a lot of force and movement. This force and movement is transferred to the boats main rudder through steering control lines attached to the tiller via associated blocks.
The sideways movement of the pendulum rudder causes the steering control lines to ensure the main rudder steers the boat back to the desired course to wind. Remember a windvane self-steering system will only hold a “course to wind” and not an exact magnetic course.
Small yacht considerations when adding a windvane.
Adding weight to the back of a boat influences the boats behaviour whilst underway, therefore is best to keep the weight of a self-steering system to a minimum whilst still retaining strength and structural integrity. Due to the clever design and the use of modern plastics, Mr. Vane is by far the lightest system on the market today. Weighing in at less then
Page 5 Vega Association of Great Britain Newsletter 44 8 kgs (basic system) it is almost half the weight of the main competition!
Quite often smaller boats are fitted with an outboard engine. Until now it was only possible to combine windvane steering with an outboard engine if the engine was mounted off centre, as a servo pendulum system gives the best performance if it is mounted in the centre of the boat.
Mr. Vane has the option to mount its vane mast off centre and mount the system underneath the outboard bracket and in front of the engine.
Mr. Vane is the first commercial windvane system that has been fitted with a USD (Up Side Down) windvane. This type of windvane was developed by Jan Alkema who was awarded the John Hogg Prize of the Amateur Yacht Research Society for this achievement. The USD vane makes a significant contribution to the reduction of oversteering on running courses which has always been a problem with self-steering systems.
Owners of small yachts usually have smaller budgets. This is why Mr. Vane has been designed for self assembly. This is limited to a bit of painting, drilling and bolting parts together. There is no welding or bonding required. Self assembly makes for a very affordable system at just under £650.00 ster- ling, VAT included.
Page 6 Vega Association of Great Britain Newsletter 44 Why the Vega ?
A few years back...probably three now, I saw the video "Berserk" on our local RSN network (Resort Sports Network) most of you are familiar with the film, but I remember the beginning as they spoke about taking a fiberglass, 27' sloop to the Antarctic! My first thought was..."you poor fools, you are going to die"! After the program ended, I was intrigued by the little "bombproof" vessel, featured in the film, that had taken these three sailors around Cape Horn...to the Arctic and then back to South America; so I researched the Vega, and was throughly impressed by her design, handling and safety factors.
With three children...a limited amount of cash, but a huge desire to do day sails, overnights and extended cruises in the future, we needed a boat that was structurally sound, spacious enough to sleep four, could be upgraded easily, and it needed to be a somewhat forgiving craft as I am the only experienced sailor on board. The Vega kept coming up on our criteria list!
Though she lacks the traditional lines that we have leaned towards in the past, we couldn't be happier with how she has handled herself in 18-20 knots winds, and she moves rather nicely in 10-12. Her motion is very comfortable for a smaller boat, and the high combings are great with young children (always nice keeping the kids "in" the boat!),
I still have a lot to learn about the Vegas, and there are some changes that I suppose we will make in the future, but for now, she seems to fit the bill nicely. Though she may not be the prettiest boat in the bay, the bottom line with this craft is that we feel very safe aboard her, and know that in a blow, she will do fine and so will her crew, and to us...that is worth all the money in the world.
Chris Graham
Paul and I were land-locked sailors in St. Louis, Missouri, doing most of our sailing on the Mississippi and on a small lake in central Illinois. We trailered our Venture 17 to the North Channel of Lake Huron, cruising in it for a week in pristine waters. Subsequently, we were bored with sailing around in a circle and then back to the dock slip. We sold our St. Louis home and moved to Maine with the idea of buying a vessel capable of going to sea. Frankly, we had our hearts set on a traditional, wood craft. The wooden boat broker in Camden, Maine, after hearing how much we had to spend and what our intentions were, recommended the Vega. We looked at several before buying Double Fantasy (we renamed her) in Mattapoisset, MA. She had already been from Maine to the Bahamas and back (all the chart kits came with the boat!), and so it seemed fitting for us to make that trip as well. Now that we have owned her for 23 years, I think she is holding up better than we are! Melanie and Paul HalvachsV1826 Double Fantasy
I went on a 2 year search to find an affordable seaworthy craft for possible cruising. I first read about the vega in John Vigors book "20 small sailboats to take you anywhere". When "freya"
Page 7 Vega Association of Great Britain Newsletter 44 came up for sale in the local craigslist, we went and looked, liked what we saw, and bought her for $5000.Then we took her out for a repower, bottom paint, and many upgrades, including rudder total rebuild, rebuilt yanmar, and mast support beam. Put her in the water 5 weeks ago. She sails nicely. Does not point too well in light air, but when the wind gets up over 15 knots, she is one tough little boat. Took her out under the Golden Gate Saturday, and she just wanted to keep on going, but we had to turn around and get back to the real world. We had her up over 7 knots later that afternoon crossing behind Alcatraz. Renamed her "Kemanalea". Mixture of Indonesian and Tahitian. Anyone up for a San Francisco Bay Vega get together????? Larry Bissel V1493
The number of reasons people give for buying a Vega are almost as numerous as the number of Vega owners. My reason is probably quite a common one though rarely admitted. Basically my wife liked the look of her and felt that the accommodation was better laid out than the other similar sized boats we looked at. After a long boatless period, in late 1982, we came to the conclusion that we could afford to buy a boat. We were both working and in addition I was getting an annual bonus which would sort out the mooring fees. Like most of my plans this one soon fell apart after I purchased the boat, as the annual bonus dried up, but by that time we had 'Jenavive' Before buying 'Jenavive' we had spent time wandering through boatyards from Brightlingsea to Poole. All the boats were ashore and we had no idea of their relative merits as sailing cruisers. After several weekends of this haphazard procedure we arrived at a yard on the Hamble where 'Jenavive' was ashore for the winter. We were actually there to see another boat of similar length. This boat squeezed 6 berths into the same length as a Vega by an ingenious system of folding surfaces, trotter boxes etc. my wife took one look at this ingenious three dimensional jig saw puzzle and said this may be OK for a caravan but it will never work at sea. On the way out we noticed another boat for sale, on enquiry the broker said it was an Albin Vega. I'd never heard of them but my wife seemed keen to explore further so we clambered aboard. One look at the sensible interior layout, good size berths, grabrails, reasonable headroom, galley by the companion way, (these were the days before the 'Age of Enlighten- ment' and my wife did virtually all the cooking) convinced my wife that this was the boat for us. I didn't know anything about a Vega's sailing qualities but she somehow looked right, strong and sensible. My wife as always destroyed any bargaining power I might have had by being extremely enthusiastic about the boat while the broker was still on board. A short desultory haggle took place with the owner and our offer was accepted subject to Survey. I wish I could say that the survey was worth the expense, several minor problems were highlighted but because the boat was out of the water with no batteries on board so many things were uncheckable, like sails and rigging, engine and electrical systems , VHF, Echo Sounder, Autohelm etc. I had also forgotten to check what mooring ropes and fenders came with the boat After acquisition I discovered that the sails and, rigging and engine were OK but the VHF and Autohelm never worked again and the Echo Sounder was an indifferent performer. The mooring lines were minimal and the fenders zero as the ex-owner was taking them to his new boat. Also we had no crockery pans etc. We had neither sought nor been offered a full inventory. Another lesson learnt.
Page 8 Vega Association of Great Britain Newsletter 44 By the time we fully realised the extent of our failure to check things through we were in love 'Jenavive' irrespective of her faults and virtues. We were lucky, by sheer beginners luck we had bought a good strong sea boat with many fellow Vega owners able and willing to give advice and help on putting things shipshape. She has carried us many many hundreds even thousands of miles over the last twenty four years and I don't think I have ever regretted our purchase. She has taken us from the west of coast of Sweden to Brittany and the Channel Islands plus extensive exploration of the UK home waters. I have always been impressed with the standard of the basic fittings on the boat which have stood up remarkably well to fairly hard use.
If only I could keep her a little smarter but the Medway mud gets everywhere. At least that's my excuse. Mike Freeman Vega “Jenavive” V1768
I worked as a paid hand on boats and I raced a Soling and sailed lots of small cruising boats, big and small. Some boats are tough and hard to break. Lots of boats are flimsy and easy to break, in the hull and rig and in the accommodation (grab rails, etc.) I like Journeyman because she is a tough little boat, hard to break.
As a close second reason, Vegas are so carefully designed, in the hull and rig, sure, but also in all the little details of the accommodation. Finally, the boats have a turn of speed, by which I don't mean they are quick little things, but that given careful sailing they can make a good days run.
icholas Walsh Vega “Journeyman”
I bought my Vega (#257) in 1977. In the meantime I put over 40,000 miles under her keel. I often had the opportunity to buy a (larger) boat, but my Vega suits me just fine. I sail about 95% single handed. I went through a few set of sails (main + Jib), I strengthened the standing rigging, I put a new bottom pain on ever year or year and a half, I painted the hull twice, changed all through hulls, have a new engine (Yanmar 10 hp diesel), and she has kept me young and happy!
Wilhelm, V 257
The Vega is a great choice for a first boat. The Vega is my third boat and I continue to be surprised by every aspect of this boat. As you will soon hear from others in this list, she is an extremely sea kindly vessel, her construction is bulletproof and is typical of the high quality that is synonymous with Scandinavian sailboats. The Vega is an extremely well behaved and forgiving vessel and can handle some of the most severe conditions that mother nature can dish out. These boats have sailed around the world, and crossed every ocean. With the Vega, you can't go wrong really. That being said, there are a few things you need to know about the Vega, and I understand your hesitation to hoist the sails right away, but the most impressive aspects of this little craft
Page 9 Vega Association of Great Britain Newsletter 44 are best realized with the canvas up. I would encourage you to try motor sailing a few times, even with a reef in the main, just to get a feel for what she can do. Try heading for a little open water on a calm day and just try the sails up and feel what the boat can do...
The Vega handles remarkably well in tight spaces for a full keeled boat (something that I was concerned about after owning two fin keelers!). She can be a bit stubborn in reverse however (as the prop is located behind the rudder), and it takes some time to get a feel for the speed needed to generate steerage (I am still getting used to it I must admit). A little practice will have you zipping in and out of your space in no time I am sure.
There are so many people on this site that are far more experienced and knowledgeable about this boat than I and I am sure you will hear from several of them. Also, the input that you will receive from this Vega group, should you ever have any questions about the boat, can usually be answered ( I have yet to stump this list and lord knows I have tried!). You will find a great deal of help and support from Vega owners as we seem to be a pretty passionate group!
Last point is that there were over 3500 of these boats produced which means there are parts to be found, upgrades specific to the Vega, written materials, etc... that you simply will never find with those models that only saw a small production run. Even more impressing is that most of these boats are still sailing strong throughout Europe and North America. We have been enchanted by this little boat and we look forward to the years ahead as we continue to upgrade and learn more about what this sturdy and dependable craft can do.
Chris & Kerin Graham Vega "Ready About" V1865
You won't do much better than a Vega for your first or your fifth boat. I tend to agree with Steve that you're better off with an inboard versus an outboard but if the Vega you're looking at has the appendage off the transom, so be it. She'll treat you kindly (with or without the motorchugging away) and not get you into any trouble. As well, if you enjoyputtering about on boats, you can take the interior apart with ascrewdriver and a 8 to 10mm wrench for purposes ofupgrading/refurbishing/etc -they're bulletproof, well designed and, toquote my less than enthusiastic sailor wife, 'a real boat'.
If by chance the one you're looking at is the Jim Allen, Vela listing in Oak Bay, all I can say is trust him and tell him what you want to use the boat for. He'll treat you well and steer you in the right direction - even if it's not one of his boats or a Vega. Jim helped me buy my V2947 in Seattle, captained her with me when sailing home to Powell River (in November's 25+ knot winds) and it wasn't his listing. He knows Vega's, has owned and renovated several, and has sold the venerable Vega circumnavigator, Lorna Doone, at least twice over the years.
Good luck, give a call if you want to talk about Vega's or Vela, I'm in the P. River phone book.
Geoff Warren
Page 10 Vega Association of Great Britain Newsletter 44 2007 Round the Island Race
It was a beautiful morning providing you did not object to getting up at 3.00am. From the Hythe Sailing Club on Southampton water I looked out across the water as we loaded our personal gear aboard Blue Bar. By 4.00am there was a steady procession of yachts making their way from the marinas upriver from the Test and the Itchen towards Cowes. Dull shapes with navigation lights glinting across the water.
4.30am let go the shore lines and joined the stream going south. We had decided to start at the Northern end of the line close to the west bramble buoy. A melee of yachts tacked back and forth, no sign as yet of Sea Star, our sole rival for Vega line honours.
6.20am the fleet ahead of us get the gun and surge forward. We ease the sheets and make for the line. It is bedlam we try and maintain a course on starboard tack. Slowly the minutes tick by, in vain we try and see the onshore marks, we do not want to be swept over and incur a penalty. In the distance a rumble of a gun and the yachts surge forward. Harden the sheets and we are off. Tack inshore for clear water then about to take advantage of the stronger mid stream tide.
On the second tack we see a Vega slip by astern, Sea Star and that is the last we saw of her, later we learn that she had retired. 3 hours to the Needles we do not flirt with the short cut by the wreck, two yachts have already hit it today. To our right a dismasted catamaran is under tow to Lymington.
Spinnaker up, a good set but the wind has fallen very light, no more than 4 to 5 knots. We ease inshore as there is still tide against; quite a few boats follow us in although there is a large pod heading out across Freshwater bay. The wind freshened, now 12 to 15 knots, Blue Bar is on a roll and she is moving easily past yachts that had the drop on us while beating down to the Needles. 8.9 knots is the best recorded on the run past St Catherine’s down towards Bembridge. We are looking as though we are going to set a really good time. The Folk boats around us are having a terrific race, several thrashing along together. Ahead of us is Grimalkin, the yacht that eventually survived the horrendous weather of the1979 Fastnet race with my friend Nick Ward on board who was left for dead by the rest of the crew. ‘See his book, Left For Dead’ which was published this year.
We drop the spinnaker after an untimely gybe and Grimalkin slowly disappears in the rising wind. Even without the spinny we were still touching 8 knots goose winged though with the wind rising to 22 knots I reckon that if we had held on with the spinny Blue Bar would have been surfing along.
At Bembridge we turned the corner and back on the wind. Still making excellent progress to Ryde. Here the tide was now running strongly against us and we had 18 knots of headwind. We tacked inshore but so many yachts were trying the same tactic that every time you were on port you were constantly having to give water to other yachts. And several times you had to avoid yachts on port tack that refused to yield. Eventually our starboard pulley block shattered
Page 11 Vega Association of Great Britain Newsletter 44 under the constant strain which made our windward progress even more irksome. We put in longer tacks even though this put us out in a stronger tidal stream. It was very frustrating to keep tacking like that and find you were barely creeping forward.In fact it took 2.5 hours to cover the last 5 miles to the line. At the time I was not best pleased with our time of 10 hrs 41mins 57 secs. But upon reflection put up against other Vega winners it compares quite well. I suppose we have all flown along the back of the island And then had the problem of carrying the time gained home. But why oh why did the wind veer to a westerly. Sailing can be a bitch sometimes.So with sunburnt faces and sore bottoms we joined the 150 boats at the declaration barge to take delivery of the goodie bag. In there along with a rather smart tool kit was a tube of sun block.
Till next year, and a few more Vega’s please The Trim family Vega Blue Bar A YACHTI G ADVE TURE I HOLLA D (Part I)
One day early in the year 2005 my son Roger Eduardo announced his intention to buy a sailing boat, in other words a yacht, with mast, boom, sheets and sails, the lot! How was he to find the time to visit the marinas and inspect potential candidates when his job was quite time-consuming to say the least? Well, after all, we are in the computer age and what better way to find a suitable candidate yacht than the Internet, sitting at one’s working desk, during Company time! Abracadabra, the deed was done and in less time than it takes to tack across the Solent my son had selected a yacht, contracted an inspection, received the Inspector’s report and paid for the merchandise. Where was this spectacular purchase located? Not on the Hampshire coast, mecca of the yachting fraternity, not in Devon, favourite haunt of those seeking a more peaceful anchorage, nor even in East Anglia, whose shallow waters attract many would-be sailors. It turned out that the object of my son’s desire was anchored in the harbour of the small town of Medemblik in north Holland, some distance across the North Sea. Of course, the vessel had to be sailed to blighty and what better person to help in this activity than my son’s land-lubber father! By mid May a crew of four had been formed. My son, with sailing courses in the Thames basin and estuary was to be captain, Jasmeet, his fiancée was first mate, Paul, a seasoned yachtsman, was second mate (and indubitably general consultant) and I, with barely one week’s yachting experience was to be the jack-of-all-trades.
We had arranged to travel from London to Amsterdam overnight by National Express coach at the beginning of June, but had an inauspicious start to our enterprise, as the four of us turned up at Victoria Coach Station with twelve pieces of luggage, including an inflatable dingy, two anchors, twenty metres of chain, four sets of all-weather clothing, an emergency kit, four five gallon jerry-cans for fuel plus all the other necessities for a green crew to spend possibly several days in an unfamiliar vessel on the high seas. After some argument at Check-In about the amount of baggage, we were finally allowed to lug all the gear to the coach which finally left about two hours late. Dover ferry-port is Europe’s busiest for Channel crossing and operated with its usual efficiency. An electronic billboard at the terminal showed the previous day’s throughput to be 42,011 passengers, 7,679 cars, 357 buses and 7,123 lorries! We were aboard and sailed just before 1am. More time was lost in changing buses in Ghent (accompanied by a long, complicated and unnecessary explanation of the need for our original bus to be driven to south Germany!). We finally arrived at the Eurolines Amstel
Page 12 Vega Association of Great Britain Newsletter 44 Station bus terminal in Amsterdam at 8am, some two and a half hours behind schedule. A taxi took us and luggage (barely!) across town to the main railway station from where we entrained for Hoorn. By this time we were tiring of lugging, hoisting and dragging our baggage across streets, up stairs, along platforms, and onto double-deck railway carriages and on arrival finally collapsed for breakfast in the very clean and inviting railway platform cafeteria on Hoorn station. Afterwards, with our spirits revived and energy levels back to normal, we transferred our baggage to the nearby bus-station ready for the twenty minute journey. to Medemblik. During the half-hour wait for the bus, Roger Eduardo and Jasmeet shopped for food and found a kiosk selling raw herring, a great delicacy in northern Europe, returning to the bus-station quite contented just as the bus arrived. The short trip to Medemblik was enlivened when all our baggage, piled on a platform in the centre of the bus, scattered across the floor, as the driver took a right-angle bend in the road in a somewhat formula one style. The bus dropped us off about half a kilometre from the anchorage. Jasmeet and I stayed with the baggage piled at the road-side, whilst Roger Eduardo and Paul walked to the harbour in an effort to find transport for our unwieldy load. A vehicle was finally found and just before noon we were at last in the office of the broker through whom the yacht had been purchased.
The vessel, a Swedish-made 7 metre ASTRA, around thirty years old, was tied up alongside several other yachts at the broker’s marina in Medemblik’s upper harbour. It was a smart- looking boat, painted in dark blue and cream and christened “GRACE”. After inspection it was obvious that the recommendations made on the Inspector’s report had not been satisfac- torily carried out and the vessel was therefore not ready to sail. The two main jobs to be done were to ensure that the depth-finder was operable and to reliably seal the forward hatch cover and the engine cover under the duck board in the cockpit. After some discussion on Roger Eduardo’s part the broker agreed to carry out these jobs while the four of us walked around the small very attractive town of Medemblik and ate a succulent lunch at the broker’s expense.
The “Grace” was finally ready at just after five in the afternoon. Two constraints forced us to leave immediately. The first was that the lock and the bridge connecting the upper harbour to the main harbour closed at 6pm and the second, more important, was that the tide was about to turn and we had to reach Den Helder on the North Sea coast before low tide. We left the small harbour under power from the two-cylinder in-board marine engine, cleared the lock and the raised bridge before pulling in to the fuel station in the main harbour. It was closed, even though it was not yet 6pm. What had happened to the Dutch punctuality? The only recourse was to walk to the town’s only petrol station and fill up the jerry cans we had so fortuitously taken along with us. It was almost in the evening by the time we finally cleared the outer harbour and raised the sails for the first time. What a wonderful feeling! The weather was ideal, blue skies and a warm force four breeze. I was invited to steer my son’s yacht while he and Jasmeet trimmed the sails and Paul worked on the tide tables. We were sailing across the north-west corner of the IJSSELMEER ( the old Zuiderzee), the huge inland sea reclaimed by the Dutch from the North Sea. Navigation was easy – all we had to do was follow the coast on the port side of the vessel until reaching the main lock at Den Oever. Roger Eduardo’s yacht was steered not by a wheel but by a wooden rudder which was designed by some idiot in such a way that to steer to the left the rudder had to be pulled over to the right and
Page 13 Vega Association of Great Britain Newsletter 44 vice-versa. That was fine as long as one was concentrating on the job in hand or had already fifty years of experience so that it had become second nature! Well, we were sailing along about six knots and I was enjoying the ride and the scenery when a gust of wind pushed us over to the right and I reacted automatically as any driver would by turning the rudder to the right! Imagine my surprise (and the shouts of my sailing companions) when the boat keeled over violently to the right, the sails started flapping (it’s called “luffing”, I’m told !) and we began to sail in circles. I believe that we actually sailed about three complete circles before I managed to learn how to correct the situation. After that, as they say, it was plain sailing. We arrived at Den Oever around dusk at 10 pm the red lights of the lock, visible for about an hour beforehand, serving as an excellent signal for our landfall. There was a very important task to perform before entering the lock. We had discovered that Roger Eduardo’s boat had no cooking utensils aboard and so we sailed into the small marina at Den Oever in an attempt to beg, borrow, buy or steal at least a pot or pan in which we could brew coffee or tea during the journey. After some time ashore Roger E. returned, having somehow managed to procure a small metal saucepan. In the event, this item became one of the boat’s most important possessions!
Around 11pm we were ready to move into the lock and were so thrilled that we motored in before waiting for the lights to turn green, receiving a reprimand from the lock keeper. We were the only vessel in this rather large lock and the currents within started to turn the boat around. Roger Eduardo’s simultaneous efforts at the tiller and the engine control to try and keep the vessel pointing towards the lock exit resulted in a series of circular movements within the lock, which the lock-keeper must have looked down on with amazement! It was as though the small boat was waltzing through the lock, which was about twice as wide as the yacht’s length and hence at no time were we in dire danger of hitting the side or the lock gate. Finally the vessel straightened up, the lock gates opened and we motored out into the Amsteldiep, on the southern end of the Waddenzee. By this time it was quite dark but the experts Roger E. and Paul had plotted our course, which zigzagged across the Amsteldiep, a large area of sand.banks. The course was indicated by a series of red and green buoys which at night looked like a set of fairy lights. It was a very confusing situation complicated by the fact that the tide was rapidly receding, our compass had no illumination and the depth-finder did not work. It was virtually impossible to avoid the sand-banks and sure enough around 11.30 pm our boat ran aground some thirty metres from the nearest green buoy. We were well and truly stuck in the mud! As the tide went out the vessel began to keel over until it stabilized at around 30° from the vertical. The four of us spent a very uncomfortable night trying to sleep in the confines of the small cabin either on the floor or on the sofa.
Thank God for the north European tides and the short summer nights! By 5am it was light and we were back on an even keel, motoring back to the lock through which we had passed only six hours earlier. We didn’t catch the thoughts of the lock-keeper but they must have been interesting! In view of the faulty depth-finder and the probable lack of sufficient fuel in an emergency it was decided to return to Medemblik leaving the boat there for the offensive item to be properly repaired and to pick up the vessel at a later date. The trip back across the inland sea was uneventful, sailing conditions being almost ideal, although quite cloudy. We arrived at the outer harbour at 8am, too early for the lock and bridge to be operating and spent an hour walking round the Sunday-morning deserted town. An hour later we cleared the lock and the
Page 14 Vega Association of Great Britain Newsletter 44 bridge, tied up at the jetty we had left less than twenty four hours previously and tidied up the boat, locking it up and leaving a note to explain the reason for the return.As will happen with most expeditions, there was a Plan B! This consisted in having bought return tickets Amsterdam to London valid for the Sunday night. We returned to the Dutch capital early Sunday afternoon, left our luggage in the train station lockers and spent some three hours wandering round the old town centre, drinking beers in the “Grasshopper” pub and in the “Bulldog” bar, looked at the ladies selling their wares in the windows and visited the very interesting and impacting Press Photo 2005 exhibition, after which we travelled on trams to the bus terminal. The Eurolines bus left on time to catch the 1.30am ferry from Calais. On the cross-channel ferry I enjoyed a hearty English breakfast at 2.30 am, swilled down with a pint of Guinness. I believe that I deserved it! There was one final event to this somewhat eventful weekend. On our arrival at Dover on a very wet morning the whole bus-load of passengers and luggage were subjected to very thorough inspections and interviews before being allowed to continue about an hour later. We never discovered the reason for the exhaustive checks nor whether the customs and excise people found whatever they were looking for.
At the end of this interesting weekend we finally arrived at Victoria Coach Station at around 5am and had to wait an hour or so until the commuter train services began. It had been a very useful and entertaining experience, some of which would be repeated two weeks later.
Roger Eduardo’s Father Vega “Ocean Sunrise”
Hi Steve,
Almost 10.00am, I left Newtown creek about 15mins ago. Excellent meal in the pub last night. Wind a gentle 6 knots and I am heading east. The auto helm is on, the mackerel board is trailing astern and the sun is trying to peep through. Great sailing. I shall pop into Warsash club for lunch. Then a bit of bass fishing before I head home tonight.
'Had to stop for a moment', first mackerel of the day has just come aboard. Must sign off as I have a bit of filleting to do.
All the best, John.Trim Vega “Bluebar” V1210 Vega velocity part 2 When Steve asked me to produce an article on tuning a Vega to get the best performance I told him I really could no better than refer to the excellent article by Roger Evill ‘Vega velocity’ which appeared in the December 1987 VAGB newsletter. This was produced after his win in the ‘Round the Island race’ in 1987. And so 20 years on ‘Blue Bar’ has won her class in the same race and is also very successful in club racing around the buoys. A well set up ‘Vega’ is a pleasure to sail even if you never enter a race. If you do take to racing you will find that the ‘Vega’ is often more than a match for many modern boats. Now I am no technical expert, most of my knowledge has been gained by watching, listening and learning. Keep a clean hull and set the rigging up correctly and you will enjoy sailing your ‘Vega’ even more.
Page 15 Vega Association of Great Britain Newsletter 44 The major points to consider with reference to boat speed are: 1. A clean fair hull.
2. Boat weight and position of movable weight.
3. A well cut suit of sails produced by a reputable sail maker.
4. The rig correctly setup and tensioned.
5. Sailing expertise.
A clean fair hull. Remove all old anti foul paint back to the gel coat. Fill any dings or scratches. Rub back with wet and dry to a smooth finish. Use a good quality self eroding anti foul paint. This is applied the day before launching. This year we used Micron 66. Not only has it stopped weed growth but it is also a barrier against sludge build up while the yacht is on the mooring. So far it doe’s everything it say’s on the tin.
Boat weight and position of movable weight. The object is to make the boat as light as possible within the legal racing limits. All loose essential heavy items, ‘beer’, should be placed in the main saloon between the berths. In ‘Blue Bar’ we have fitted a Beta engine. This represents a considerable weight saving when compared to the old Albin petrol engine and the Volvo diesel. To balance the boat we never fill the forward water tank. The main anchor and all the heavy chain remain ashore whilst racing. Don’t forget to tape up the hawse pipe entrance with rubber weld to prevent any ingress of water. As our Vega is a series 1 the fuel tank is in the less than ideal position up under the starboard side deck. When racing we carry only enough fuel for emergencies but the ideal would be to place the tank under the cockpit sole. In fact all unnecessary weight is removed, it is amazing how heavy half a dozen mooring lines can weigh. With the boat on the water check that she is floating level and not high on her marks. There is a dimple on the bow and the transom; these should not be above the water line.
Sails. This is easy; my advice is to buy the best you can afford from a reputable sail maker. If possible select a local company, easier if you need repairs.
Setting and tensioning the rig. For a lot of people this is a dark art. It must be the case because during the spring months prior to launch day I must set up two dozen boats for club members. Almost every yacht rig I have worked on for a member has been too slack. Mind you some of the rigging was so stretched that I have run out of adjustment on the bottle screws before the rig was any where near the correct tension. ‘Time to make a start I think’.
Tuning the Rigging. Start with all the shrouds and stays slack. Remove the boom. Hand tighten the cap shroud bottle screws. By hand tight I mean the tightest you can get a well oiled bottle screw with your bare hands. Hoist a wire to the masthead with the mainsail halliard. Measure from the bow to a point opposite the mast on each side of the boat. This should be somewhere close to the cap shroud chain plate. Make a mark. If you used the chain plate fitting, it could be out of line with the other side.
Page 16 Vega Association of Great Britain Newsletter 44 Take the wire to the mark on the side coming and mark where it touches. Now swing the wire across the boat and check if the mark on the wire corresponds with the mark on the coming on the other side. If you are really lucky it may. More often than not it will mean taking a turn off one side and taking a turn down on the other until you attain status quo. What we are trying to achieve is the mast plumb athwartships. Do not tighten the cap shrouds at this point.
ext job, the mast rake. Remove the wire from the mainsheet halliard and attach a heavy weight, ‘at least 10lbs,’ this must swing free, just clear of the deck. Adjust the forestay and backstay until the weight hangs clear aft of the gooseneck on the mast by 4”. Now that the mast is properly straight athwartships and properly raked, it’s time to start the controlled bends. First of all we tension the forward lowers. You will now need your pliers and metal spike. We are going to put some pre bend in the mast. Once again we shall use the mainsail halliard as a guide. Tie the halliard to a point aft of the mast with the halliard as close to the sail track as possible. Now a turn at a time we tension both the forward lowers until the mast is flexing forwards at the crosstrees about 4” or the width of the mast. You can now judge the gap by standing to one side of the yacht and noting the distance from the halliard to the rear of the mast at the crosstrees.
Now you can tighten the aft lowers but not so much that it takes out the pre bend in the mast. The aft lowers are never as tight as the forward lowers. The forestay and backstay can now be tensioned using equal turns on each. These should be very tight. Last of all the cap shrouds are tensioned, once again equal turns until they are very tight. A rig tensioner is a very useful bit of kit to get the tension just right? Once you are happy tighten the lock nuts and your boat should perform much better. To further aid windward performance fit a backstay tensioner. This helps flatten the mainsail and prevents the genoa falling off to windward.
Once afloat set all plain sail and check for weather/lee helm. This is best done with around 15 knots of wind. In these conditions ‘Blue Bar’ sails with just a touch of weather helm. If you experience excessive weather or lee helm you must adjust the mast rake. Let it go forward to reduce weather helm or take it aft to reduce lee helm. Always do these adjustments in increments until you are satisfied you have attained the right balance.
Sailing expertise. Books have been written on this subject but I feel if you are serious about racing you should sail with an accomplished yachtsman who knows their stuff. How to manage a spinnaker, where to set the jib pulley blocks, why does the skipper yell when the crew upset the trim of the boat in light winds and then what do those tell-tails do. The best place to learn all this is beginning with a racing dinghy. Failing that a good book, then listen and learn.
All the best.
John Trim Vega “Blue Bar V1210 (Hythe Southampton)
Page 17 Vega Association of Great Britain Newsletter 44 Rudder Experiences
Sorry to hear about your mishap as I've been there and done that. Ran aground one night with a fellow nicknamed Bear as crew and on the tiller. "Don't worry Walt, I'll get us off." as he quickly worked the tiller back and forth with the rudder firmly planted in the muddy clay we had run into.
I hauled out to fix the problem but it could be done in the water with help from a diver. You have to remove the rudder assembly to do so. Steps are as follows::-
Remove the tiller with a couple of wrenchs.
Remove the tiller bracket with an allen wrench. You will also need a punch and a hammer to drive out the tapered pin that is also in the bracket. Sorry, I can't remember which way the taper goes.If it doesn't come out from one direction try the other.
After you have the bracket off you can drop the rudder by removing the bronze shoe from the rear of the keel. Two bolts hold it on and if I recall it takes a 14mm socket.
Once you have the rudder off you have to split it. The blade is made from two halves that are glassed together. Lyric is a Series 1 so what I have to say may not be true for later Vegas.I was able to split mine by cutting the forward edge along the shaft. Then you can pry it apart. I found mine to have a couple of surprisingly small tabs welded to the rudder. When these fracutured the blade had nothing to bear on. On Lyric the shaft went about half way down the blade. There was another short piece of stainless shaft at the foot for the shoe to attach to. I think it's about 25mm.
The blade was filled filled with a resin and sand mix. I had to dig this out in order to put the blade back together after the shaft had been re-welded with larger tabs.
Putting it back together wasn't difficult. I used epoxy thickened with cabosil to make a paste and put the two halves around the shaft. I drilled a dozen or so holes through the blade and through bolted it with 1/4 inch machine screw. After the epoxy had cured I removed the screws and filled the holes with more epoxy.I put several layers of fibreglas tape over the seam in front of the rudder. No problems since then and the repair was in the early 90s.
As an aside, I also drilled a 1/2" hole about 2/3 rds of the way down an inch or so in from the trailing edge. If the tab should ever break again I can go over the side and put a 3/8" piece of line through the hole and with overhand knots snugged up to the blade, steer it with the line.
Good luck with the repair. Walt S/V Lyric #120
Page 18 Vega Association of Great Britain Newsletter 44 Kenneth Graham Clare Coutts Derek Reynolds V1758 Diamentia V3011 Dumbea V3265 Folie a Deux Glasgow Exeter Portsmouth Scotland South Coast The Solent
Graham Waite Alan Haynes Noel Moore V1404 Wild Oats V1731 Zora V**** Torvega Hull Milford Haven Millport Humberside South Wales Scotland
Paul Evans David Wisdish Isla Reynolds V1038 Sheba Wren V3283 Ponteneur V2977 Beowulf Walton on Naze Holy Loch Wareham East Coast Scotland South Coast
Peter Squires Stan Snape V621 Langtan .V1362 Moon Bow Emsworth Chichester The Solent The Solent
ew Members since March 2007
IFR 2008
R.H.Y.C River Orwell
The IFR 2008 will be held at The Royal Harwich Yacht Club on the River Orwell adjacent to Woolverstone Marina. This is an ideal location for both UK and our European cousins! We have already made a few visits to the club and found the hospitality and keeness very refreshing
A Preliminary Form has been sent to all members who have shown an interest. If you have not received your’s then please contact me asap or download the form from the Association Website www.albinvega.co.uk/ifr2008.html
Support your Association, if you are local to the East Coast and can help in any way then please let us know. [email protected] or [email protected]
Page 19 Vega Association of Great Britain Newsletter 44 IFR 2008 Preliminary Booking Form
I wish to attend the 2008 International Friendship Rally at The Royal Harwich Yacht Club.
I will attend with my Vega Name: ______Number: ______
My Name ______Address Line 1 ______Address Line 2 ______Address Line 3 ______Address Line 4 ______Post/Zip Code ______Country ______
Telephone Number ______Email Address ______
Number of adults attending ______Number of Children attending ______I wish to race in the Racing class ______I wish to race in the cruising or non-standard class ______I wish to race on another Vega ______I will attend without my Vega ______I would like details of accommodation ashore ______I would like to camp/park a camper van/caravan ______
Other comments
Please return to Mr Steve Birch 8 Cockshot Road Malvern Worcs WR14 2TT U.K Email: [email protected]
Page 20 Vega Association of Great Britain Newsletter 44 Happy Christmas and a Happy ew Year
to all Vega Owners across the Globe December 2007
Printed Matter
IFR2008 - HARWICH - UK Stamp
VAGB ewsletter 44
Page 21 Vega Association of Great Britain Newsletter 44