I bought a Laser (19.10.2016)

Laser 1985

I first sailed a Laser in Miri in 1985. That was my 7th sailing dinghy and my favourite boat. I used it a lot. At the same time I also had three 470's, an Optimist, Sunfish and a Yamaha Seahoper.

Laser 2016

Today I have come full circle, sailing a Laser again after 35 years on the water. This second Laser is my 11th boat. This time I had to wear a wet suit because the water is cold at 12*C or even lower in winter.

A new yachtie!

Gabriel on my Nanook

Gabriel Phang contacted me while I was on holidays in Kuantan. He was a Singaporean, migrated to Auckland more than 20 years ago. He had sailed a catamaran and owns a 10 ft. dinghy. He was thinking of upgrading to a trailer yacht and while researching for a suitable yacht to buy, he googled Noelex 22 and found my blog!

I invited him to come to Hamilton to test drive my Nanook. He quickly accepted and we fixed a date. The conditions on Lake Ngaroto were just perfect, with winds of 12 knots from the NW. He said that he will wait until next year before buying. He needs to complete the NZ boating courses for boat masters before venturing out into the Huraki Gulf. My advice was for him to get a 25 footer, a  6.7M Joker or an Elliot 7.4 because they are bigger and safer for him in the open sea. Basically he has 4 choices depending on his available budget:

Kestrel

19 ft. Kestrel, a good robust and stable trailer yacht suitable for a small family. It is in fact a floating caravan but cost much less. Mobile homes are getting really too expensive to own.

Noelex 22

Noelex 22, which looks fast and sleek, is only slightly faster than a Kestrel. Both these boats are suitable for a single hander, either for racing or for cruising the freshwater lakes of NZ. Erecting a boom tent, (after dropping anchor), will convert the large cockpit area into more useful space for family cruising.

This 6.7M Joker sails much flatter than most trailer yachts because it has built-in ballast tanks. The hull is made of wood, glassed over to save weight. It is therefore faster than most yachts of this class. All Jokers were made from kit sets by its first owner. It is not found on Trademe for sale, as often as other factory produced boats.

The Elliot 7.4M is the largest size of the trail-able yachts. It has a winged keel controlled by a hydraulic jack.  It is a very powerful boat. Ideally you need a 3 men crew for rigging up, launching and raising the spinnaker. You may also need a more powerful towing vehicle than the family car. Beyond this size, you exceed the maximum width, permitted  for NZ highways. It is time to consider a yacht with a permanent fixed keel. These keelers are normally stored at a marina. So, size is no longer a limiting factor.

60 footer

Just look at this luxury yacht berthed at the Cup Village in Auckland. It is every man's dream boat. You can actually sell your house and live on board (if your wife agrees!) Imagine, no more phones ringing, no utility bills to pay, no lawns to mow or trees to prune. To change the scenery, simply cast off, raise the main and sail into the unknown for a month or two.

happy sailors

I recruited two more sailors today. It was a glorious day for sailing with a gentle breeze at about 5 knots. Ron owned a Noelex 25 for many years. He has volunteered to be our sailing coach for the day.














David Jin and Ron

Ngaroto yacht club open day

An admirer of my Noelex?!

 


There is plenty of space inside a Joker 820. The head (toilet) even has a door. What luxury, compared to my Noelex 22.

stormy weather

Although the weather today was terrible for golf, it was excellent for sailing. Orrin and I put on life jackets and continued in the 20 knots wind. Just look at that sky!

new crew

Yesterday Dean was my crew for race 3 of the Paterangi series. Frances and her two children joined us for part of race 4! Many of my golf partners have been on my boat as guests during the summer months.

Taupo

This photo was taken on Lake Taupo at Boat Harbour near Kinloch. Note the crystal clear water. My boat is on the right. The other yacht is a 30 footer. It would be more comfortable inside. However it is too large to tow this on the road because of its width. Larger yachts like this are tied to moorings or parked at a marina which has easy access to the sea.

The largest size trailer yacht that can be towed easily on the highway is around 25 foot. If the trailer width is greater than 2 metres, a special pilot vehicle with flashing amber lights must go in front of the towing vehicle to warn on-coming traffic of the "wide load" following. This becomes too inconvenient to arrange for frequent movements.

trailer yacht

A trailer yacht is usually kept on the front lawn at home. The keel is not fixed and it can be retracted by a winch. The mast can be easily lowered for the boat to be placed on a trailer for towing. The furthest place to which I have towed my boat was the Bay of Islands. A distance of 370 km. 

Usually I sail on Lake Ngaroto near Te Awamutu, about 20 minutes from my home in Hamilton. I have also visited Lake Taupo, Tarawera, Rotoiti and Rotorua. My dream is to sail Lake Wanaka and Milford Sounds in the South Island.

The big advantage of having a yacht on a trailer is the savings in mooring charges and the convenience of working on the boat at any time. 

Many owners spend a great deal of time, especially during the winter months, adding small improvements and modifying the layout inside the cabin to suit their individual needs. In fact some of them spend more time working on the boat than sailing it! It is a DIY dream come true for many. If you run out of ideas, just polish the hull or some thing! For safety reasons, when I explored Lake Taupo two years ago I installed a marine VHF radio. Of course a radio would not work without a power source. Immediately I was looking for a 12 volt marine battery.

After I have the battery I might as well install a car stereo inside to enjoy some soft music and also add a cabin light. Perhaps I would like to do some night time sailing. Then I will need a compass, navigational lights and charts including perhaps a depth sounder, GPS and EPIRB. Be very careful there; the expenditure will quickly snowball out of control. Now I understand why some one once wrote the definition of a yacht as a hole in the ocean into which you throw all your spare cash. Smile!

Lake Tarawera

Under the boom tent which is erected over the cockpit area, is my galley (kitchen). I have a small portable gas stove used for boiling water and cooking simple meals like bacon and eggs. Do you see the aerial for the VHF radio? I have dropped anchor, furled the jib and main, raised the rudder and got ready for the night. 

Playing the flute at dead of night on the lake gives me a deep sense of solitude and a feeling of true peace of mind. It has become my trademark icon on the internet.

give me 60 !

My sister, Cecilia is on the winch raising and lowering the centre board (keel). One year all my relatives decided to come to New Zealand to pay me a visit. They came from Brunei, Miri, Kuching, Kuantan, Amsterdam and Melbourne. I entertained all my guests by taking them sailing on my trailer yacht, Nanook at Lake Ngaroto.

Bay of Islands

I spent two nights on my boat, Nanook at the Bay of Islands last September with a friend, Tsun Kong from Sabah. On the second night we checked into a back packer for our hot showers!

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a floating caravan

The Noelex 22 is a trailer yacht with a retractable keel. It can be used as a floating caravan for a small family. Inside the cabin is a double berth and two other single berths. If necessary a boom tent can be erected over the cockpit for two teen agers sleeping under the stars in summer. I use my boat mostly for exploring the many lakes in NZ. 

The largest is Taupo, the size of Singapore. This lake was a huge volcano crater filled with underground spring water. I dropped anchor one time and it did not reach the bottom! I had 100 metres anchor rope plus 20 metres chain. The rainbow trouts are huge and yummy. There are many free public boat ramps available for launching a boat.

My lucky T-shirt

In the summer months I spend a lot of time sailing and exploring the lakes in NZ.