Date: Wed, 11 May 1994 02:56:45 +0000
To:Virtual Tars
From:peter@physics.otago.ac.nz (Peter Dowden)
Subject:Signalling to Mars 2
Cc:Donald

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   ++++                      M     M                    +++++++++++
   ++         SIGNALLING     M M M M  aaaa     rrr  sss          ++
   ++                   TO   M  M  M a    a  rr    s              +
   +                         M     M a    a  r      ss            +
   +       April 1994        M     M a   aa  r        s           +
   +        issue no 2       M     M  aaa a  r     sss            +
   +                                                              +
   +        an unofficial Electronic Newsletter for Members       +
   +                of The Arthur Ransome Society                 +
   +                                                              +
   +content is the personal opinion and the intellectual property +
   +of the contributors and does not reflect the opinion of TARS, +
   + any person or any group [well not too intellectual we hope]  +
   +                                                              +
   +             e-address: peter@physics.otago.ac.nz             +
   +             [more addresses at foot of message]              +
   +    NB: any mail received Will Be Publishable unless Marked   +
   +               Otherwise!! This includes senders'              +
   +             identities! [name and email address]             +

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             THIS NEWSLETTER please send Reply to that effect
_______________________________________________________________________

kiaora virtual tars,

Welcome to this second issue of Signalling to Mars. There are now about a dozen 
virtual tars getting this, up from 8 last time [the new ones got #1 too though, if 
not tell me & I'll send it]. Doug has a message of the buy/sell/ecxchange type, just 
the sort of thing for which this newsletter is ideal. The big one is Peter 
Williamson on how to achieve the "Achievable adventure" so dear to any tar. I'm glad 
he mentions the Optimist as I recently learned sailing in one, it took about three 
sessions just to work out how to fit in: like limbodancing in a shoebox. I sailed 
one of the new single-moulded plastic Opties the other day, I wanted to take it home 
to keep under my pillow... so cute.
Aaahhhh. My pulse rate is slowing by my merely thinking about sailing. Pity the 
weather's just closing in on us southerners.

Happy sailing, and to those less fortunate, just have a nice day.

Drool,
Peter


FIRSTLY, A MESSAGE FROM DOUG

From:faunt@netcom.com (Doug Faunt N6TQS 510-655-8604)

Please let eTARS know that I have an extra copy of -Down Channel- by
RT McMullen and of -Close Hauled- by Adlard Coles.  These are both
1980's reprints, in trade paper covers, in good shape.  I'll let
whoever wants them have them for the $10. US I paid for them plus
postage.

Francis just posted a review of -Down Channel- to r.a.b recently, I
think, and this has the Ransome intro.

-Close Hauled- is Racundra's second cruise, since Coles bought her
from Ransome in Latvia, and sailed her home.  Apparently, there was an
agreement that the name Racundra would not be used in publication
again, so Coles called her Annette II.  Also, I recall reading that
there was a disagreement in the agreed-upon price, and some rancour
over that.  -Close Hauled- was Coles' second book, of 18.

[snip]

TARS Forever, doug

FURTHER MESSAGE FROM DOUG

I've picked up 10 remaindered copies of the -Autobiography of AR- at
$10. so if they become hard to find, I have some for people.  

+++++


MAC'S SEA BEAR WAS TAMBS' TEDDY and it's official!


I recently read _The cruise of the Teddy_, a bloody marvelous yarn, one of those 
sea stories that were introduceded by AR. I hit upon a wee discovery when opening a 
copy of Great Northern: the Sea Bear picture's a dead ringer for Teddy. AR would 
have written the intro just a couple of years before he started GN; note also the 
teddy/bear link. Sea Bear has crosstrees though, did AR put these in for Peggy to 
watch Pterodactly from?
as Doug said:

It seems a pretty good shot that Teddy was the prototype for Sea Bear.
They certainly look the same, were both North Sea pilot boats, and
the layout roughly matches what's told about Sea Bear's interior.
I think you're on to something.  I've not seen this particular bit of
conjecture before, either. 

...well I have now, in Capt Flint's Trunk: Christina Hardyment confirms the 
connection between the boats in the chapter on GN, "A benefactor to humanity".


Peter 8^( [like Titty on finding "Ben Gunn" already there.]

++++++++

AND ANOTHER FROM DOUG:

Does everyone know that Rowan book #10 (one of a series of knitting
pattern books) is very AR and S&A oriented?  There are quotes from
Ransome, maps, and drawings from the books, and the pictures of the
models have at least a taste of the books in them (red caps, boats,
camping, bow and arrows, etc.).  They are UK based, but are
internationally distributed.  No indication in the book how it came
about, but I'm also told that none of the other books in the series
have any theme at all.

BTW, when do you expect to get the next Sig2Mars out?
73, and TARS forever, doug

[ED: '73' means 'EVERYTHING SCRUMPTIOUS' or something.
"Slang," said Peggy. "She won't like that"]

++++++


                 THIS MONTH'S SPECIAL BIG FEATURE


From: Peter Williamson <PWILLIAM@ADMIN.HumberC.ON.CA

Peter, I rattled off a short article for your 'journal', on the assumption
that many TARS people would like to get out of their armchairs and actually
sail, ie, without much experience. So my thoughts follow...


               LAUNCHING INTO THE ACHIEVABLE ADVENTURE

                   some suggestions from Peter W



TARS members seem to come from a wide range of backgrounds and age-groups,
encountering the Ransome books either as children or later. Sometimes they
see Swallows and Amazons as inspiring a healthy bond with their own children,
perhaps the basis for shared experience.

One thing we all seem to share is a good-humoured leaning towards the'achiev-
able' adventure, which comes as a welcome antidote to the ever-increasing
sensationalism of films and tv. But where the latter overloads and threatens to
 dull our sensitivity, Ransome's adventures are life-enhancing and delightfully
feasible. For TARSians, an important part of the adventure which is achievable
is small-boat sailing; the question for many is 'how does the beginner get
started?'

 Of course, there are builders, even today,of sturdy, clinker-built, gunter-
rigged dinghies, but handcrafted boats are always expensive--every one of those
neatly overlapping planks has to be shaped seperately, and fastened by scores
of copper nails requiring  two people to 'clench' them with roves, those little
copper washers. The finished product will look marvellously boaty, with the
light and shade on those gracefully-curved planks, and varnished thwarts and
centreboard casing. It will be roomy, too, its generous curves holding three
or four youngsters in comfort, and it will probably be a good sea-boat, as
dinghies go.

The problems, beside expense, will start when you want to transport the trad-
itional dinghy. Traditional materials and carrying capacity are almost always
heavy, and a good trailer is needed to move the craft around, as well as a
certain amount of muscle.

Thus, unless you're lucky enough to come across a beautifully-preserved older
boat at a good price, you have to make compromises. Most obvously, you can
look for an old, battered dinghy and restore it. That's wonderfully satisfying
if you have the skills and the patience, but if you want to get on with your
'achievable adventure', you'd better switch to Plan B(or is it 'C'?) I mean,
you might consider one of several cheaper, if less romantic, alternatives, from
the ranks of more recent craft.

++++++

Perhaps the most obvious modern equivalent to 'Swallow' or 'Amazon'
would seem to be a fibreglass replica, often moulded directly from a
traditional dinghy. These, while shocking the dyed-in-the-wool traditionalist,
could provide a lot of the fun of the wooden original at a fraction of the cost
. In fact, the overlapping plank effect is quite functional,giving strength and
deflecting spray. Built-in buoyancy makes the boat unsinkable, too,always a
comfort for the parent urging independence upon the young sailor. You could
even buy a bare hull and add varnished thwarts and trim to give an extra sense
of achievement. With a red-brown sail and tall gaff, such a craft would quicken
 the heart of any but a card-carrying curmudgeon. It would be lighter than a
wooden dinghy, but would still need a trailer for transportation.
(Examples range from the sturdy little Fareham Lugger(9ft) to the double-ended
Shetland skiff(16-17ft).)

    But let me suggest a third alternative for the newcomer to TARS and sail-
ing, namely, the redoubtable Mirror dinghy. This 11 ft. sturdy, snub-nosed
wooden craft is smaller than either Swallow or Amazon, but it holds two or even
three smallish youngsters(or two bigger ones) quite easily. It's safe, inexpen-
sive and, a point to consider, can be carried on a roofrack on your car. Perhap
s, being plywood, it might be thought to lack the traditional charm of its
clinker-built ancestor, but many thousands  of owners worldwide would testify
to its distinctive character. It's cheaper and also available seconhand, good
value for the money.(And if you have a sense of affinity with the Death or
Glory boys(CC & BS), you can even buy the Mirror in kitform. A few weekends of
your time(good parent-child bonding stuff) will allow you to stitch the hull
panels together(yes, with copper wire!) and cover the seams with fibreglass
tape.)

    If you'd like to introduce your child to sailing even more economically,
you could buy what is probably the simplest sailing dinghy, the Optimist.
This 8' flat-bottomed plywood (or sometimes fibreglass) craft has introduced
hundreds of thousands of children to the gentle art. It is even more easily car
topped, and its sprit-sailed rig(like a tiny Thames barge!) is handleable by
even quite small children. As little as five to six stone(say, 70-80 lbs),
gives a good ballast-ratio, as the child, or small adult, sits right down in
the bottom of the boat. The new sailor soon learns to tack smoothly, and
raise and lower the daggerboard adroitly, dodging confidently under the loose-
footed sail.

    There are many other small dinghies for the would-be sailor to start with;
the Sabot is one that comes to mind. It's another plywood craft, 8ft long, but
with a vee-bottom. Check in small boat magazines to learn about others; most
will be in grp(fibreglass), but some are plywood. Buy one new or secondhand,
or put one together from a kit.(Bell Woodworking still produce a range to
choose from.) Building one is easier than you might think, as long  as you have
a garage or shed. And it's one of life's great experiences!

    Clearly, this short article aims only to suggest possibilities, to urge
the armchair TARSian to actually get on the water. Remember that saying about
taking a chance and not regretting a might-have-been? Those of us who have been
messing about in boats all our lives know that fun afloat is often in inverse
proportion to the cost thereof : the smallest craft can take you
on voyages of discovery, of self as well as place. (I find myself grinning
nostalgically as I write this...) Think about that dinghy, those ponds and
rivers, the extra dimension to camping, the planning, your childrens'-and
your own- growing confidence and independence... make it so, as Picard says!

++++

[Hmmmm.
"Dogmudgeon's an awfully good word," said Nancy.
"I'll lend it you if you like," said Roger.
"Card-carrying curmudgeon's even better," said Peter W.
ED]

+++++++++++++++++++




PICTURES OF PEEL ISLAND AND AMAZON IN SECRET HARBOUR

Dave Thewlis [Dave Thewlis <71210.76@CompuServe.COM], a newly-connected virtual 
tar, has sent me a picture of Peel Island on Lake Windermere which now has one brown 
and one white lugsailed dinghies sailing around it [proving that the camera never 
lies but Adobe Photoshop can tell a few tall stories with a little encouragement]
Inspired by this creation I also have made a scan of John Berry's oil painting 
"AMAZON in the secret harbour, Wild Cat Island", with Mavis' original brown sail as 
in the picture tweaked to the current white shade as exhibited in the Steamboat 
Museum. 

Would the virtual tars like these in the next Signalling to Mars in that 
$#@%(*)_*)$#@%%$%^&%(&%&*^$#^%$Y7^8*4(OY%D&%#$^%#)(H^$#G+_)_**%^#@ format so common 
on the Net? I'd love to do this, but need a bit of advice. So let me know how this 
is done. I have something called JPEGview here I could use.

Says Dave:

I've never met Brigit Sanders, or indeed any of the active TARS people
except for Claire Kendall-Price, whom I met quite be accident the last
time I was in the U.K.  I'm very much looking forward to meeting some
of these folks at the AGM this summer.  And to sailing in Amazon.
 
Susan, my wife, is a very good photographer (indeed of professional
quality, although by profession she is an illustrator, graphics designer
and painter, rather thana photographer).  If we get any really good
photos of the AGM worth scanning, I'll do that.





                    AND SO ENDS ISSUE 2 OF S2M


The incoming contributions have been encouraging, especially Peter's achievable 
adventure. I'm sending this and issue 1 to the compiler of SIGNALS, the TARS 
regional newsletter collection.

Please see if you can all find some more virtual tars, especially those of you 
going to the agm. In 1200 or so members there must be a few more netted people.