Malanka

Boris’s op is now taking the kidney not being removed for the boat. Tell you what I need a job lol…

My day: Got up took bobo (Boris the Airedale) to the vets for the third week in a row. He has crucial ligament damage to his rear right knee and will require surgery. Left him there for an x ray to rule out anything else. Just the start I needed with two interviews for different posts scheduled this afternoon. One to France and one to New York. Joy of joys …. Surgery will take place when we are on Silver Jubilee 1 so Fiona may stay behind which is not ideal. Internet in work pod in garden isn’t functioning so back in the house upstairs back bedroom hoping the dogs stay quiet.

Yes there’s lots of planks just imagine having new hardwood hull will be an amazing Christmas perhaps.. 7F20BBCE-175B-48CC-A11B-190284D7EDD5.MOV

More good news: 351BD49A-1FDF-4B85-8F13-4D1784F90A06.MOV

Ok folks I left it a bit as constantly posting depressing we’ve found more rot videos is far too tedious. So some good news: planks are going in made from Utile New ribs are going in Oak New cross beams going in Iroko transom will be Utile and varnished over a laminated for strength oak frame. We are afloat on Silver Jubille 1 from Saturday 4th for a week. If you see us honk and wave like a mad beasty Some remediation videos now: And relax 850478F0-25DC-44AB-8E34-9A9C44D0D269.MOV

If anyone remembers my first post on this topic😂you’ll remember I used the phrase, the whole in the water into which we pour money that is Malanka. Well we have some very sad news to convey to the forum. Malanka is more sick than anyone had an inkling about. Consequently she will not be making a hole in any water anytime soon. Charlie at Sutton has identified several “bodges” on her starboard side which have resulted in a rotten chine which now needs replacement, all of it the full length. Some idiot, I know not whom, put pine in her hull under the water next to the chine, all rotten which have transferred this rot to mahogany planks. With tears in my eyes we seriously had to consider whether we wished to continue, we have decided we will and Charlie at Sutton will be keeping her in good order. The scale of the work is such that it will take several years to complete, this year is the hull, further work will continue in years after that. What this means is that Malanka is unlikely to be floating again in 2022. We won’t be having a holiday aboard or making the Beccles event. We will be afloat thanks to The Martham boat company for the first full week in June. The last time we were about this craft was in 1995. Thank the Lord for Martham boats. I will keep everyone updated on Malankas progress as things get remediated.. Best wishes to all M&F

Hydrogen powered vehicles are a far better option.

I know which world I live in: it’s the one where the energy in vs energy out calculation for an ICE is under 15 years, the calculation for an EV is well into the twenties and that’s with a single battery. Estimates vary for battery life up to approx 11 years so that calculation just gets moved further to the right. Also an ICE doesn’t depend on little boys and girls in the DMRC digging up rare earth metals for peanuts.

New Transom will be varnished mahogany too

Luckily we set up a fund 3 years ago. So good to go so far M

There you go lots of pictures of what happens in a boatyard. Plan is to be floating for June but the list of items is growing. Martin

Hi folks it’s that time again for us ton ost some boat surgery porn😇. Malanka is currently under the TLC of Robert and his boys at Sutton Staithe. Chris has been having “fun” poking holes in our lovely old Lady. she’s in for an extended period, Chris has some work to do so to set us off some Photos to set the scene. Me messing with malankas bottom C5593F6E-5E2B-4437-A23C-71C90B6EF98E.MOV 172161DB-201B-4FFB-8269-A32A9956C7E5.MOV

This is what tight squeeze looks like, especially whilst being towed. Well done to Robert from Sutton Staithe Boatyard for towing us all the way to the wet shed. 79655643-CDFE-4732-9C6E-1A5544DB98ED.MOV

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Rot be it wet or dry doesn’t care about economic conditions or the fuel price driven inflation we are currently experiencing. If anyone remembers 1973 then you’ll know where I am coming from. Malanka suffered terribly from SARS Cov2. We weren’t able to visit or do anything, consequently she was in a state at the beginning of last summer. She is now being treated for her ills and I personally can’t wait to get her back into the water. We have zero intention of selling her so I couldn’t care less about “inflated prices” or anything else. That’s the beginning and end of it, she costs what she costs and so long as we can afford her we shall do so. If you can’t face potentially extensive maintenance costs when the wee hyphae go nuts every 2/5 years then don’t buy a woodie. As Doug says, when we bought Malanka 11 years ago we had to replace the electrics, water tanks, add a toilet etc. Message is the price isn’t always the price.

But guys guys guys, we all KNOW, the speed limits are to protect against bank erosion and sub surface disruptions from quickly passing craft in shallow water. In which case these boards are fine as they don’t create wash or sub surface disruptions……We know that’s what the speed limits are based on right of course they are, no nobody put a finger somewhere and came up with numbers, no that did not happen stop saying that… He he isn’t facetious wonderful

The issue with this legislation or change or whatever this silliness is called is fairly obviously related to PRIORITY, doesn’t matter how stupid the cyclist or pedestrian is when they decide to step off in front of a 1000kg vehicle, even a self driving one. The driver is automatically wrong. I imagine this will be subtlety changed in some way after some Darwin winners are flattened bent or otherwise mangled. Anyone who has driven in either Oxford or Cambridge over the past thirty years has actually seen this already. Fiona was interviewed for an aggressively prolonged period after a cyclist slammed into the passenger door while she ( Fiona) was stationary in a queue of traffic. No questions were asked of the award winning cyclist. Maybe due to plod recruitment practices or just a bad day who knows. Now however it’s in the Highway Code. Let’s see what legal precedents are set in the coming months and years and see how many broken legs it takes to change it.

Thing to remember is wooden means either skill like that possessed by Doug or a chunk of available short term wonga, as all wooden boats are a long term project irrespective of the condition it’s in when you buy it. It may be that the 6 grand dooer upper is a actually better value than the 90k plus wooden beauty as someone has already paid and then added a profit margin. Just my two pennies.

Chris Packham suffers from the same condition as the XR protestors I saw in London last weekend. It’s a well known thing that has caused well known and respected people to lie cheat and vilify others, shut down debate, rely on a consensus, and generally close their ears. It’s called Noble Cause Corruption. Remember the emails from UEA, “why should I send you my data so you can veryfy it? All you want to do is find something wrong with it!” Well yes that’s the meaning of verify. Dumb as a box of rocks……

Just the once was it ? Always go long with a new model 😜. M

Don’t forget the RA are on record as stating rivers are for the wildlife ( animals) but not us humans. Such stilted unscientific, keyhole thinking is what introduced Cats to Australia. As the UK has had managed “wild” areas for well over a thousand years, I am merely minded to enquire in a simplistic fashion, what level of wild do we want, which of the vistas of the past 1000 years are we going back to. As if we do that Somerset levels, gone, Broads, gone, Yorkshire Dales, gone, Cumbria, gone. These folks have no clue… M

I’m afraid that’s far too proletarian darling, we of course will be using the most glorious carriage driven by our man, we will become known as the trotters….

In the late 1940s Rochdale, my father rode his horse to the dance hall, danced all night got drunk, flopped on the horse to take him home. He hunted, shot, and fished. His father was nothing special and he was a toolmaker. The Toff label comes from darn saaarf mate. My step grandfather was a Yorkshire hill farmer. My Dad would never have been invited up to the “big house” as he was redder than Ken his entire life, member of the international brigade and fully paid up communist party member throughout the 1930’s. He understood the countryside as we know it is 100% managed. Chris Packham is an opportunist who has drunk the cool aid handed out by Natural England. Nothing he says I want to hear. OM rant over. Hopefully I’ve made my dad proud, he couldn’t afford boating holidays, now we go whenever we want.

Quick question, how attached to your home comforts are you and your crew? Almost all of the centre steer cruisers will navigate most bridges ( even Beccles old Bridge ) even though they tell you it won’t. IT WILL. The fly bridge monstrosities ( sorry bias showing) don’t. End of. Try looking at Martham Boats. Their jubilee class et all All navigate ALL BRIDGES. That means you can go wherever you wish. There are hundreds of well appointed centre steer cruisers so have a look. The view from the one level ones are not quite so nice Martin

Andrew, ‘‘twas me not Charlie boy”. We have also reversed across the front of Ranworth dyke, and all the way round and stern on down the side in a single manoeuvre. All the while being watched by just about everyone. After I stepped off the back I overheard an old guy saying, “I helped build that boat as an apprentice” I stopped and talked with him for quite a while after that. I can do that because after 11 years I know what she can and can’t do. Both my sons can now do the same as well. I don’t need a thruster to turn Malanka in her own length, just a big old torquey engine and a big prop. If I needed one I would get one or get a boat with one. M