Transatlantic

New Sails

colin bastable Leave a comment

I bought this new fully-battened mainsail last year. These pics are from the local UK Sails guy, Doug Weakly, in Corpus.

Doug ran the mainsail up the newly-installed tracking, installed by Matt Sebring at Coastal Bend, who also arranged the sail making. UK Sails’ loft in in Houston.

UK Sails – https://www.uksailmakers.com/lofts/texas/

Coastal Bend Yacht Services: Matthew Sebring cbyscc@gmail.com 361-461-4067

The sail is strengthened to give protection against high winds. The full battens will provide extra stiffness. Hopefully I’ll get out to sea next spring, to try them out!

Stern View
View from Starboard

1800 Miles from Tortola

colin bastable Leave a comment

I have several hours of video from my solo Atlantic crossing, and have been too busy to create a video of this 2nd leg of my sail from Gosport to Corpus Christi, Texas.

Four years and three months ago I was heading to Tortola, BVI. I came across a short video clip, and turned it into this short message relating the solo sailor to starting up a business: there are many talented sailors, but only a few are “the willing”. Likewise in business.

It is not really a “Frank-Just Frank” video, but without Frank I would not have been there. BTW, I never did get to Tortola, heading instead to St Croix, where I immigrated to the USA and parked Frank for a few months at St Croix Marine

 

Frank’s Flown The Coop!

colin bastable Leave a comment

The world’s most famous (and least attractive)  marine chicken coop has been decommissioned.

I shall recycle the 1″ marine ply, and re-fashion or replace the steel chassis.

The new Crystal Palace, as I have dubbed it, will be a steel and Lexan affair.

Some pics:

Note the Chippendale craftsmanship, as Arthur Negas used to say on “Going for a Song” – the forerunner of Antiques Roadshow. And check out the yellowed acrylic glazing!

Frank, looking less like a fishing trawler every day!

The new sailcover and lazyjacks will arrive in a week or so.