Hello all, from chilly and damp Oxford, UK (early spring)
In and out of sailing since my late 20s (gosh that seems like a long time ago!) and looking to start another stint. A brief history, which is a mix of owner, co-owner and crewing, keelers, cats and hobies:
1988ish-1993 - Harbour and bay sailing Port Moresby, PNG
1993-4 - Refitting & cruising, Australia, Solmon Is
1994-5 - Cruising & racing, Australia, PNG, Indonesia
2004 - Delivery, South Africa to UK
2004-7 - Chartering, West Scotland
2008 - Patagonia (for caving expedition)
2009 - Cruising, Bahamas, Florida
Now looking at a rather unusual (and cheap!) proposition - a 31' west system cold mo(u)lded mahogany fin keeler built by C H Fox & Sons, early 70s we think. Few produced and little known means basically it's a wysiwyg. However I have found a local handicap rating for her which rated them similar to better known yachts such as Contest 31, Contessa 32 etc. This surprised me a little as she looks slipperier than that, but if it's true I would be reassured.
A confession - this post is also a thinly disguised attempt to bring my tally up to 5 so that I can pm someone about an Autohelm 4000 ram which according to the seller of this Fox 31 has been, er, 'lost' Okay... I believe you, thousand wouldn't!
The online digital sailing resources have grown enormously since I was last sailing regularly and I am looking forward to taking advantage.
Anyway, the next couple of years hopefully will include a spot of bird research and local cruising around Pembrokshire, South West Wales, then a round Britain exped in 2012 - a long held ambition.
Bit of a rambling post, sorry.
Cheers everyone.
Simon H
In and out of sailing since my late 20s (gosh that seems like a long time ago!) and looking to start another stint. A brief history, which is a mix of owner, co-owner and crewing, keelers, cats and hobies:
1988ish-1993 - Harbour and bay sailing Port Moresby, PNG
1993-4 - Refitting & cruising, Australia, Solmon Is
1994-5 - Cruising & racing, Australia, PNG, Indonesia
2004 - Delivery, South Africa to UK
2004-7 - Chartering, West Scotland
2008 - Patagonia (for caving expedition)
2009 - Cruising, Bahamas, Florida
Now looking at a rather unusual (and cheap!) proposition - a 31' west system cold mo(u)lded mahogany fin keeler built by C H Fox & Sons, early 70s we think. Few produced and little known means basically it's a wysiwyg. However I have found a local handicap rating for her which rated them similar to better known yachts such as Contest 31, Contessa 32 etc. This surprised me a little as she looks slipperier than that, but if it's true I would be reassured.
A confession - this post is also a thinly disguised attempt to bring my tally up to 5 so that I can pm someone about an Autohelm 4000 ram which according to the seller of this Fox 31 has been, er, 'lost' Okay... I believe you, thousand wouldn't!
The online digital sailing resources have grown enormously since I was last sailing regularly and I am looking forward to taking advantage.
Anyway, the next couple of years hopefully will include a spot of bird research and local cruising around Pembrokshire, South West Wales, then a round Britain exped in 2012 - a long held ambition.
Bit of a rambling post, sorry.
Cheers everyone.
Simon H