Author: Eric

Le Chasse-Marée – Janvier-Février, n°343

… a real princess would always lie on her age and on her draught !

Many thanks to Gérard d’Aboville, Gwendal Jaffry and Maud Lénée-Corrèze

Greetings to the Court of Princess Sheila !

We are restoring the 120 years old Albert Strange yacht Sheila. She was launched on the Isle of Man in 1905 and as been sailing ever since, thanks to her many lovers.

The shipwrights team at Chantier de la Bascatic in Baden are recreating the stucture at the stern of the 1905 yawl, and in this episode we are focusing on the work by Yann and the whole team to restore the axial structure, very much the backbone of the boat.

This (already) episode 7, with more to come !

Cheers from France

Greetings to the Court of Princess Sheila !

We are restoring the oldest Albert Strange yacht in commission.

The shipwrights team at Chantier de la Bascatic are recreating the stucture at the stern of the 1905 yawl, and in this episode we are focusing on the work by Adriannna to restore the oak keel and the floor timber.

This is episode 6 and there are more to come !

Cheers from France

Greetings to the Court of Princess Sheila !

We are still restoring the oldest Albert Strange yacht in commission.

The shipwrights team at Chantier de la Bascatic are recreating the stucture at the stern of the 1905 yawl, and this will be the subject of the next episodes.

In the meantime we have been busy restoring the (original) ballast keel and the (original) main mast. There is also progress to be shared on the rest of the spars and the blocks.

This is part 5 of the project.

Cheers from France !

Season Greetings to the Court of Princess Sheila !

We are busy restoring the oldest Albert Strange yacht in commission.

The shipwrights team at Chantier de la Bascatic are recreating the stern, piece by piece. As Adrianna is restoring the keel, Rose is working on the stern post. My contribution, the fairing for the rudder tube, is more in line with my limited skills.

We want to avoid laminated wood as much as possible and we were missing some grown oak pieces. We found them at “Le Bois Idéal” in Mayenne. A big thank you to Mickael for making himself available and providing us with dry wood from trees that were planted under Colbert’s leadership, under Louis XIV, in the XVIIth century.

This is part 4 of the project.

Cheers from France !

Greetings to the Court of Princess Sheila !

The shipwrights team at Chantier de la Bascatic are carefully performing their clever art of transforming a relic into a performing yacht (but not too much.)

We are also busy trying to locate grown oak to avoid laminate as much as possible. In the meantime the deck is getting a big cleanup.

This is part 3 of the project.

Cheers from France !

Greetings to the Court of Princess Sheila !
We have removed the antifouling paint and the ballast keel and now we want to remove the part of the structure in need of repair, as a block.
We do not want Sheila’s hull to dry too much. So we have to manage everything in 4 months.
This is week 2 of the project.

Cheers from France !

Sheila is the oldest Albert Strange yacht in commission and to keep her credentials she needs attention over the winter.
We are worried that rot might have developed under the mizzen mast, at the stern of the boat, from rain water leakage. We are under the impression we will have to restore the stem post and the whole stern area. As much as possible we are obliged to do this keeping the structure and the planking which are original.
We will have to remove the ballast keel and this is an oportunity to sand blast this massive piece of metal.
And finally, we do not want Sheila’s hull to dry too much. So we have to manage everything in 4 months.

Cheers from France, this is week 1 of the project !

“Nous avons le plaisir de vous informer que votre bateau a reçu le label BIP (Bateau d’Intérêt Patrimonial) lors de la commission d’agrément du jeudi 17 octobre 2024. Votre navire a également été distingué par les experts de la commission 2024 qui lui ont décerné leur “coup de cœur 2024.”

”We are happy to inform you that your boat was awarded the BPI label (Boat of Patrimonial Importance) during the certification commission meeting of Thursday 17th October 2024. The experts of the 2024 commission distinguished the vessel with the award of their “coup de coeur 2024”.

Votre navire, les informations et les photos le concernant, figurent désormais au registre des BIP. Ce fichier fait référence pour les bateaux du patrimoine français. Il est accessible sur le site de Patrimoine Maritime et Fluvial , rubrique “Rechercher un BIP”.”

I am very happy that Sheila receives this label. There is no money or tax break attached, and it is only glory. The highest level for the French authorities would be “monument historique” – but the tax incentive comes with an export ban and many additional administrative constraints.

The “coup de cœur” means even more and I am very grateful to the experts committee and their President, Gerard d’Aboville. With this award our beloved Princess Sheila gets recognition in France. And the Albert Strange Association and the deserving professionals in her Court will benefit from her increased visibility.

Cheers from France !

On Sunday 13th of October, we had our last opportunity to sail Sheila in 2024.

It took us the whole day to round “Ile aux Moines” – some 20 NM in very light airs. Sheila was sailing the same course as the “catagolfe” with more than 120 small multihull dinghies. Quite a number of DNFs there.

We left at 11 in the morning when the wind was picking up, full of confidence in the weather forecast and our tide calculations, and at 4, we were rowing to round Pointe du Trec’h just as the tide was reversing. We entered Auray river again at 7 and dusk was approaching. We were lucky to “hitchhike” a tow ride for the last mile against the tide.

When we picked up our mooring and attempted lowering the main, we discovered the peak halyard block had given. After an attempt to climb the mast and some wiggling, the peak finally came down. It will stay down until the block is changed, so next year.

Sheila has been sailed 30 times or so, and although she started her season with many warnings to be easy on the boat considering her condition, she has delivered her season. Many thanks to the crew – at least 10 of you shared the experience.

Next step : get everything sorted out before she is out of the water early November.