All posts by Paul Blacknell

I caught the sailing bug in 2010 and have grabbed every opportunity to sail since then. Since then my family has trained as Competent Crew and we bareboat chartered in the Ionian in 2011 & Croatia in 2014 having an outstanding time. I’ve competed in all the Round the Island races since 2011 (skippering in 2014 & 2017) and vow to enter in each of my remaining years. I'm a commercially endorsed Yachtmaster Offshore.

Close quarters manoeuvring

This turns out to be very difficult indeed. The Southerly has twin rudders which means there is no prop wash over the rudders when moving astern or forwards. The only way to get steerage is have the whole boat moving forward first! I’ve got used to this in reverse on other boats but not being to steer forwards until you have some way on is unnerving. Continue reading Close quarters manoeuvring

Quick jaunt over to Yarmouth

We collected the yacht at around 4pm and as usual it took us ages to load up all the stuff we brought that we won’t need. We were met by Paul who gave us a handover on key systems such as lifting keel, bow thrusters etc.

The boat is, I have to say, in a different class to the Bavarias we’re used to. The raised saloon and long windows mean you can sit at the table and take in the view. The build quality is extremely impressive and Continue reading Quick jaunt over to Yarmouth