Lyme Bay pilot gigs

Steve Sagrott visited Lyme Bay recently and spotted Rebel and Black Ven of the Lyme Regis Gig Club out training. He writes:

"Lyme Bay looks like a lovely place to row nice behind the cob and challenging once outside.
Thought you might like a few pictures I took.... they were taking out four new members of their club (check out positions 1 & 2 in the latter photos)."

Black Ven is only a year old, having been launched in August 2009. Built by the only woman pilot gig builder, she was a star exhibit at the Beale Park show this year when she narrowly missed being totally beaten in an ad hoc race on the Thames by a St Ayles Skiff crewed by a crack team of Home Built Boat members.

More Smuggery

Paul Zink, creator of the Clovelly Scull, has put the North Devon coast up for the title of Loveliest Rowing Waters on the Planet.
As with previous entrants, he makes a point.

Hi Chris,
I guess we've all been enjoying this summer's exceptionally good weather. The photos above were taken while out rowing my Clovelly Scull in idyllic conditions along the North Devon coast between Clovelly and Hartland Point. I think I must challenge Brian Pearson's claim that the waters out of Keyhaven are the loveliest on the planet. It takes a lot to beat the north coast of Devon and Cornwall, that is if you like rowing on the open sea with spectacular cliffs on one side and the sea horizon on the other with only the occasional porpoise, dolphin or seal for company as well as the likes of razorbills and shearwaters demonstrating their flying skills. In contrast there are days when rowing is very definitely out of the question. The photo on the right was taken just around the corner at Hartland Quay during a winter storm. Maybe Brian could have been out rowing from Keyhaven on that same day!
I do have to agree with Brian that Keyhaven is a great place for rowing. It is certainly my favourite out of the various places in the Solent area I have visited. While providing sheltered water in the various creeks and behind the spit it is also a good launch point for rowing over to the Isle of Wight or just going to have a bit of fun with the overfalls in the Hurst Channel during the flood tide.
Trust all is well with you,
Paul

Another major delight of Paul's home waters is the row to Lundy, also known as Puffin Island, a distance of 14 miles. The huge tides in the Bristol Channel makes this a row to be timed with care.
Last weekend Clovelly Pilot Gig Club held their annual Lundy Row. Nine pilot gigs rowed to Lundy on the Saturday morning, spent the afternoon walking the island and the evening in the Marisco Tavern. They rowed back next day, arriving in Clovelly just in time for the Red Lion to open, so a typically rowing time was had by all. There is a full report here.

St Ayles skiff rows the Thames

The prototype Scottish Coastal Rowing boat Chris O'Kanaird was a star performer at the Beale Park Thames Boat show yesterday, appearing on the Water Craft stand with the new Cornish pilot gig Black Ven.
The UK Home Built Boat Rally was also at the show in force, so it made sense to put together a crew. Alec Jordan, founder of the UK-HBBR and devisor of the Scottish Coastal Rowing project, coxed and a fellow Scot whose name I am ashamed to say I have forgotten went stroke. Richard Rooth and Tim O'Connor were 3 and 2 respectively, and that's me in the bow.
It is a tribute to the kindly qualities of the boat that we managed to get a good beat up right from the start. The close spacing of the thwarts (lengthened in production boats) imposes a short, choppy rowing style but we soon got the hang of it and the hull slips quickly along. In fact, we got filled with enough hubris to line up against Black Ven and her experienced Lyme Regis crew.
This was absurd on all fronts, of course. They were twice as long and half as old as us, and many of them had visible waists. But the light boat meant we had a slight advantage of power-to-weight ratio and we started well. It took Black Ven all of 10 or 15 seconds to overhaul us and disappear downriver.
Anyway it was huge fun and that is what rowing a St Ayles skiff is all about. She is at the show again today and apparently many people have travelled to Pangbourne specifically to see her.
Thanks to Chris Perkins for the picture - more from him here.