daavina.blogg.se

She was the Open 60 of her day and Sir Francis was the pathfinder and pioneer. She was the first custom-designed yacht for fast solo sailing around the world – hoping to achieve a passage target of 100 days from Plymouth to Sydney, Australia. No expense was spared and there were no statutory regulations governing design, construction or equipment. When Gipsy Moth’s keel was laid in 1964 she was to be the ‘best yacht money could buy’. She warmed the hearts of the most hard-bitten modern racing sailors and grizzled old seadogs and she was, and is, a vital part of Britain’s maritime heritage. The fact is, Gipsy Moth is one of the world’s most famous small boats. But beneath the surface, her timbers were rotting away, thanks to deck leaks and rainwater. Spend the money on something worthwhile, like the Cutty Sark.’Ī few weeks later, some vandals did try to set fire to Gipsy Moth, but were thwarted – unlike the Cutty Sark incident, which followed in the summer of 2007.Įven in Greenwich dry dock, Gipsy Moth IV inspired people.

When Yachting Monthly launched the campaign to save Gipsy Moth in September 2003, one curmudgeonly correspondent wrote: ‘What Gipsy Moth IV needs is a gallon of paraffin and a box of matches!’ Another said: ‘Not worth preserving… she was built for a stunt with no intention of durability. She is cantankerous and difficult and needs a crew of three – a man to navigate, an elephant to move the tiller and a 3ft 6in chimpanzee with arms 8ft long to get about below and work the gear!’

It would be better if about a third were sawn off.

I only own the stern, while my cousin (Lord Dulverton) owns two thirds.

Now that I have finished, I don’t know what will become of her. Why save a boat rotting away in dry dock for 37 years that drove her skipper to despair and needs hundreds of thousands of pounds spending on restoration?’ many people have asked.Įven Sir Francis Chichester, the partowner of Gipsy Moth IV, who sailed her solo round the world to a triumphant homecoming, said: ‘She has no sentimental value to me at all.