When recently we were pondering how to get our family of four boys and a mildly neurotic collie dog out on the water for some sailing adventures my father-in-law, boat builder Jeremy Rogers announced he had a spare Contessa 32 deck "in the yard which needs using up". So, after a collective emptying of piggy banks, the work of building our very own sailing boat has begun. My husband Kit is a teacher and will work alongside his father in the school holidays and on weekends, so that hopefully by late summer "Calypso" will be ready. The plan is to make her as green as we possibly can. Although there's not a lot going for fibreglass in the green department, Contessa 32s are at least built to last. The first 32s were rolled out of the factory in Lymington 40 years ago and there's every reason to believe they will last another 40 and 40 after that, which is more than can be said of their cheaper counterparts. Fibreglass hull aside, we'll be looking at other ways we can reduce the environmental impact of the boat, not only during the build, but also so that when sailing it is easier to make the right environmental choices.
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Well done, Jessie, and the hull mould's coming into the yard tomorrow (10th February 2010). Completed deck moved out on 'shopping trolley' today to make space! Fiona
ReplyDeleteWhy not get some green resin and make the fibreglass moulds yourself
ReplyDeleteHi there, good question - one that we have thought about a lot. The moulds are already made actually, so that part is done - but the green resin is a tricky one. There is also hemp as an alternative to fibreglass - but in both of these cases we just didn't feel that the products were quite there yet - and although this is an experimental boat to some degree, we didn't feel comfortable risking the integrity of the hull. Maybe by the time Calypso mark II comes along things will have moved on sufficiently in this field? Your views on this are welcome though if you have further insight?
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