Shrink in the drink update - one month in
by Andrew Hill-Smith 7 May 2023 10:49 BST
Andrew Hill-Smith's ILCA sail around the UK © Andrew Hill-Smith
I think I am getting better at getting back into the boat. The last time I fell out was on the way to Bridlington Yorkshire when I was practising some downwind wave surfing and managed to fall in to windward - a classic ILCA mishap.
When I was back in the boat, despite a full turtle and inspection of the scratched international orange paint on my replacement centre board, I was surprised to find that my top half was completely dry. Not only that, but none of my cockpit luggage had washed away. My valued blue coop 3 for 1 sponge was still under the lunch box and not so dry bag. To top it all off, the unplanned roll had given the cleats and pulleys a cunning rinse, washing away the inevitable blocking sand from my last beach landing, so all rigging was now running smoothly. Luckily no one was watching. I will still try not to repeat the manoeuvre.
Folks were watching when I set off on my first day on 10th April. "You don't have to go" they said as the rain was falling on Stokes Bay. The wind was blowing a healthy 18 mph gusting 28 though it didn't look so bad, so off I went. "It's only 9 miles to Hayling Island" I thought.
Maybe it was my lack of experience at sailing on the sea. Maybe I had not read the forecast properly. Maybe the met office weren't as accurate as I believed them to be. Either way the sharp increase to 24mph gusting 35mph (some said gusting 40) was definitely too much for me. I stopped to ask a windsurfer where I was. And then 5 capsizes later, I decided to call in to shore for a break, thinking I had further to go.
Mistake #2, or maybe mistake number 10, I dare not count, was to think that because the beach was "just there", I could ease out the main and casually land, like on a lake. A healthy sized shore dump whizzed the boat over meaning I found myself catapulted to windward (again) and in the process experienced a sharp bump on my backside. Whilst scrabbling about in the surf trying to unearth the top of my sail from the Hayling Island shingle, a nice young man was watching from the dry, plaintively asking if I needed a hand. Yes please.
Then James, who had kindly offered to put me up for the night, turned up. That was good news since it meant that I had pretty much reached my destination through good fortune rather than precise planning. Then my wife Liz turned up. Not so good because at this point I had worked out what had caused the impact on my rear. And by the size of the bruise that grew and spread round to my hip only fading by the time i had reached Norfolk, it was a sizeable impact. The centreboard had lost a significant chunk off the bottom corner. This was embarrassing. It was my first day and i had suffered a potentially show stopping accident. What would Liz say? I might have to go home for a day or two to source a new plate, and would it be safe to leave the boat on the shore, not to mention all the thoughts about this being a silly idea.
The plaintive young man was still hovering about looking helpful. He was wearing an Ineos top so could be sailing sensible, I thought. He said he sailed a laser so that was good. He said he had heard about my ridiculous challenge via the wonderful yachts and yachting publication of a few days previously. He said his name was Craig. I managed to wrestle the centre board out of the boat by pulling the broken corner off its reluctant reinforcement bars - its interesting to see the inner workings of ones craft, but this was really not the time to find out.
Craig then mentioned that he might have a spare centre board and would I like it? I was wet and a bit cold and slightly disorientated so all I could manage in response to this incredible offer, was "yes please". Craig duly disappeared and came back with a nice fresh looking and wholesome looking centre board, ready to go tomorrow. More than that Craig refused to take any money for it.
We all parted and I went to warm up and get changed. But I had to contact Craig and thank him again. My upside down state had meant that I lost some of his surname in our communication and he is not Craig Williams, but none other than Craig Williamson who is one of the national ILCA trainers at UKLA. I didn't dare to go back and ask for some training tips, because when you meet your guardian angel, it feels best to simple soak up the warm glow of reverence. But let me say it again anyway. Thank you so much Craig
The journey so far has involved a few learning points:
- Top tip to self #1 - don't venture out in an ILCA 7 when it is blowing force 6-7
- Top tip to self #2 - learn some things about landing in shore break
- Top tip to self # ???? - miraculously, things seem to keep working out
Having completed 20% of the journey, I am pleased to say, I am still having fun and I hope you are.
And thank you so much to all those who have helped along the way especially my long suffering wife. And thank you to all those who have donated to charity. For those who might like to contribute, the website www.laseraroundtheuk3.uk will take you to all things relevant, or you can go to just giving and look for Andrew Hill-Smith (dont forget the hyphen).
I am hoping to meet a few more wonderful folk like yourselves on my travels, and do keep having sailing fun.