NBYCo2124

I have only one NBYC badge left. We had loads in the NBYC office in Wroxham for the hirers They were made by W Reeves and Co, Birmingham, which according to an internet search no longer exist. I remember the Windboat enamel penants, as my mother worked for Trevor James after we sold NBYC, and I think we had one, but that was years ago, and many moves.

There is an advert on Apolloduck for a Windboat saying it was owned by George Formby as a Lady Beryl: https://www.apolloduck.co.uk/boat/motor-boats-classic-for-sale/648306 Barry, rather sadly I noticed Lady Christine is for sale too: https://www.apolloduck.co.uk/boat/windboats-fairwind-for-sale/655608

Love the picture of Sally. This is while she was in the NBYC hire fleet before my father added the bowsprit and extended the stern. She was a pretty boat in original form, and sailed well. popular with hirers. I haven't seen this picture before. Thank you

Dear Griff Thank you so much. I had better get my skates on, as a lot of work to produce a bow emblem. I saw a houseboat for sale either on Apolloduck or ebay, and she was advertised as a former Broads boat. She had a Bourne hull, either 35 or 40 ft, I can't remember which, and can't find the advert now. I think she was moored on the Thames. Looking carefully at the pictures she had a bow emblem that had been painted over in white. The emblem looked as if the boat was either a Jack Powles or an Ernest Collins cruiser originally. I have attached a picture of President around 1974/75 showing the bow emblem, which was painted on. Regards Robert

Griff, I see that you have sourced and fitted a Powles Bow Emblem for Broad Ambition. If new where did you get it made? President had a painted emblem on her stem originally, and I would like to replicate this but in alloy. My Internet searches have proved unsuccessful so far? I don't know whether useful to others, but we had a peculiar engine cooling issue with President which was initially diagnosed as weed fouling the filter, as the french canal she was on was full of weed, but it turned out the exhaust hose has delaminated inside, and acted as a block inside the exhaust pipe. The delamination became worse during the 200km trip to her new base in St Jean de Losne, culminating in no water emanating from the exhaust on the stern. Initially the water was fine from the exhaust. The whole system was checked from seacock, pipes, impeller to the aft of the heat exchanger. Engine is a Beta 43. We believe that when the engine was changed to the Beta around 5 years ago, that the exhaust pipe may not have been changed. I read your article on here about changing the prop and what a difference this made to Broad Ambition, so will source a 4 bladed prop, as our boat hulls are very similar (President is a Bourne 40 hull) , although will do the calcs to get the right prop. Currently she has her original 3 bladed prop, but also with the engine change the old Borg Warner Velvet Drive was junked with the Thornycroft 2.5!!! (2 owners ago) and a twin disc gearbox was fitted, but with a different ratio, so the boat currently wouldn't pull the skin off a rice pudding. Upon arrival at the boat, there was curious damage to her starboard side at the rear flank, the side that was moored to the quay: The mooring cleat had been ripped off the deck, and the stanchions were bent/contorted. It turns out the canal was frozen and a large commercial boat was making passage through the ice (20mm thick apparently). President was pushed by the ice and water forward, but as she was moored securely, she heeled over to starboard, bent the stanchions from hitting the quay, and the mooring cleat was ripped out of the deck. I am pretty sure the stern gear has been affected too, as the steering on the passage apparently was less than good. Anyway, a huge thank you from me to all those who post invaluable information on this incredible resource; Norfolk Broads Network. Regards Robert

Another excellent insightful post. Thank you Vaughan. On the topic of President, Thank you for suggesting H2O, they have been excellent, and I will be taking President to them when I can. Regards Robert

I have just been watching their promotional video, and the interior layout reminds me of the Beaver Fleet boat, which I can't remember the name of. Must have been the late 70's and some found their way to the French Canals, I think. An azimuth drive in hirers hands, as you say Interesting. Wouldn't be my choice for a hire boat. The old design rule: KISS - Keep it simple stupid!!!! seems to have been forgotten.

I am a fan of good design, as it always pays off in the end. Andy has designed some great boats that work really well for their intended use. Of course implementing the design into reality is also key to the vessels success. Do the hire operators still run these boats? They certainly tick the boxes I would want in a hire boat, and look good too, no "interesting windows" that some of the hire boats seem to have!!!! How do they compare to the new boxy Le Boat offerings, which seem to be well designed inside and the superstructure, but the hulls resemble a barge? I can't image they are hydro-dynamically efficient?

Really interesting, thank you all for these insightful comments. Regards Robert

Aquafibre 42 Mk1 Did the Richardsons AF 42s Mk1's have a 6 cylinder diesel originally? If so does anybody know why, were they any good, and what make were they? I think they were fitted to the larger vessels in the fleet too, but I remember the AF 42s At the time they made a very distinctive exhaust note.

Dear Liz, Thanks for your post. I didn't realise the NBYC fleet moved from Wroxham to Horning. I do remember the interesting red lines painted on the hulls which we thought made them look like they were sponsored by cigarette companies. I wasn't a fan of this branding. We had a holiday on Ambassador (around 1971) just before we completed on the purchase of the yard, which I can still remember especially the flexible door between forward cabin and main cabin. On Envoy, my funniest memory was getting my lifejacket twine caught in the steering wheel while I was balancing on a stool helming. My father was doing something else on the boat, and I went straight into the muddy bank on a bend. The funny thing was my father pushing the boat off the bank, as she was quite wedged; the bank was quite low; a bourne 35 hull is pretty high at the bow; him giving instructions to put the boat into reverse, and finally he just made it hauling himself onboard. I think he helmed the rest of the trip! Happy memories. Regards Robert

Wow, so much making sense now. I was travelling with Pat Larner's son Chris? You were a saviour offering us a bed and supper. I think by this point we were down to the last of our cash and heading back to Norfolk! Reg Parsons had that twin engined Freeman 30, and there was another boat that was used to move Madie between venues before the Freeman? Regards Robert

Dear Liz, Thank you for the link to Richard's Cancer donation page. Its the first time I have seen this. In fact I saw President for sale on Apolloduck in the summer 2018, and immediately rang the contact number as I knew it was President, despite her name change. However, the vendor had just sold President to Richard. I missed her by a matter of hours. The vendor passed my contact details to Richard and we had many conversations about President, and his voyage. I was very fortunate that I was offered President to buy from Richard's Estate. I am sorry, after my parents sold NBYC, my involvement with the yard became much less, despite them both staying on for a while after the purchase. Therefore my knowledge and interest waned, and I moved from Norfolk in the Summer of 1983. My interest in the Broads remains with me, and I am thrilled to own President now. Regards Robert

Hi Neil, Thank you, she is looking rather sad. I have attached a photo of another AF42 in the colour I mentioned that I took in 2017 whilst cruising down the Thames. This was at East Molesey. Regards Robert

Wow, good detective work. I remember the Faircraft 30ft boats as pretty scruffy, but that would have been when they were being sold. There are lots of Broom design details, like the central helm position and the windows. I was probably comparing them to a Viceroy at the time, which were really well looked after. The extra Viceroys, I don't know, but agree it is very strange. Will see whether my mother can remember. Robert

Dear Vaughan, Thank you so much for your really comprehensive reply, and I echo David's post, we are so fortunate. The AF 42's for the Beaver Fleet: I may have a couple of photos of them being built, as they have blue topsides, and the ones we built for our hire fleet were either mustard or a really interesting brownish colour. I can't remember the yard building AF 42's for anyone else. Two of the Consuls are being built next to them, so it must have been around 1977? The other clue is the unusual rubbing bands fitted. They also have the blue gel coat under the water and as its boot top. Regarding the boatyard: Thank you again for this information. Wow, I wasn't expecting that. I had no idea the boats were built elsewhere. I knew about the Porter and Haylett operation, as in about 1981 I went looking for work in France, without any success, and we stayed a night with a nice chap who was working or running one of their Connoisseur businesses. He used to crew on Madie and was was really hospitable. I will contact the businesses you suggest. My original intention was to bring President back to The Broads to be restored, but it was a struggle to get a quote to transport her back, and then the cost was, I thought, too much and this was without craning her out onto the truck. The nearest waterside Crane is 2 days sailing away! Hence trying to get some of the work completed in France. Thank you again, I am very grateful for your guidance. Regards Robert 554A2068-01FB-4711-812A-8B1FBED3B42A.heic

Thank you Vaughan, you have also answered one of my questions, as I can see clearly that is Viceroy 2 is in fact H914. Interestingly the chap driving was our foreman and fabulous master boatbuilder Russell Smith. Sadly I can't remember the other fellow, but he was another very good boatbuilder. Did you see my request about a boatyard in France to work on President? Regards Robert

Dear Floyd, No I did not get an answer! The pictures taken by me of Denham Owl on The Thames were on the 6th September 2017, and at Dorney. She was badly moored to the mud bank, practically opposite a Marina entrance on the other bank, and appeared to have been towed out and abandoned, but I was more interested in the boat than the marina. Regards Robert

Dear Mike, You are correct, she is definately a Viceroy, but I am confused by Craig's excellent database. Except the sliding wheelhouse roof, she has all the design quirks I remember. The faircraft boats had a very different aft well, basically steps down to a door, and the cabin sides came much further back, more like Broom's bosun, but no where near as pretty. The faircraft 30ft boats seemed older too, or weren't in a good state. It is a shame I cant find a photo to illustrate. I am pretty sure Viceroy 1 was built by herself and probably H913, but 2 of them were built side by side. I thought it was 3 and 4, and I remember the numbers J625 and J626, but Craig has other registration numbers listed M140, M141 and M142, which seem familiar. So I think H914 must have been Viceroy 2. The sequence of boats NBYC built our wooden superstructure cruisers was: Congressman, President 1, Senator, Viceroy 1, Viceroy 2, Viceroy 3, and Viceroy 4 (together). President 2 was after the last Viceroy, and I thought it was built as one of my father's private boat clients wanted his own President! I will try and find some photos, with clear registration numbers! I have a few out of focus photos, which i must have taken with my "Kodak instamatic" a simply awful piece of kit, as you had to push the shutter button so hard you moved the camera whilst taking the shot, or i was a terrible photographer (more likely)!!! The best I have is attached. Regards Robert

Dear Vaughan, Great posts and really interesting. My father's company Trianglian Yachts built AF 42's for the Beaver Fleet in France, as I remember him going down following the first boat, as he loved going to France so any excuse! I have a favour to ask? Are you still in France? I have bought President G783, and she is stuck on the French Canals 2 days sailing south of Vitry Le Francois. I have been told of a yard in Vitry le Francois, but dont know anything about them. Specifically what their wood work is like. I have a recent survey for President. I am looking for a recommendation for a boatyard that can carry out some repairs. In time I would like to bring her back to the Broads, but while she is in France it would be daft not to take advantage of this wonderful cruising ground! But she needs some fettling, and I dont have any contacts in the boating world in France. recent pictures attached. The chimney in the photos is going! Regards Robert

Dear Barry I hope you are able to pick this up? Some pictures that you might like form my father's photo album from the early 70's when he had bought NBYC. Norvic was modernised by Ernie Good, but my father sold her to make room for his new boats that he designed: Congressman, President, Senator and the Viceroys. Interestingly we never took Norvic out for a holiday, so I don't think he was a fan. Regards Robert

Dear Mike Chameleon could very well be Viceroy 3. Check the under the drawers, as these all used to come out when the boats were winterised, so were marked accordingly. I think they were stored onboard, but would have been revarnished periodically. It was quite a sight to see the whole fleet inside the boatsheds, and they were crammed in. The soft furnishings and berths were marked too, but these are more than likely to have been changed over the years. Each boat had wooden crates with their names on, and the boats were emptied of soft furnishings, crockery, cutlery etc which was all put away in another shed for the winter. The engines and batteries were all removed too, and I remember the Engineers shop with all these engines lined up ready to be worked on over the winter. There was a battery shop too, where all the batteries were stored on wooden racks, and had some kind of trickle charging. Also what is her registration number, as I seem to remember the numbers were sequential/Alphabetic The NBYC boats did become part of the Faircraft fleet, those that weren't sold, as I remember seeing the AF42's, Viceroys and the former Consuls with the faircraft red stripes on their hulls. I think most of the wooden boats were sold off pretty quickly, but the Viceroys were very popular hire boats when we had them, hence why we built 4 of them. I am not sure if Robert Wilson sold the business or just the boats. Faircraft would have done the canopy conversion, and as i mentioned in my last post, the original faircraft 30ft boats all had sliding roofs, as you could get another berth(s) in the wheelhouse, so they could be advertised as a 6 berth, rather than Viceroy's 4 berths. The Faircraft 30ft boats were 6 berths with a double in the wheelhouse, converting the table into the berth. My mother still worked for the business after the sale, so she may know more. My late father had lots of photos, mostly stored as slides, but my mother can't find them. I have a few at home in a photo album, which if i can upload i am happy to do so. Regards Robert

Dear Floyd, Back to Denham Owl. I was trying to find the sites that I came across when researching whether she was originally Gypsy 3, but can't find them I suspect you have already seen the pictures of her when she was bought and transported to Scotland: https://boats-from.co.uk/not-specified/project-boat-48521/48522 However, I had found some when she was in tip top condition, and up for sale with a tender on those davits, but now can't find them. I will continue looking Robert

Dear Mike, Viceroy Interesting reading through the posts and they brought back many memories. I used to have copies of all the Blakes and Hoseasons Brochures for every year throughout the 1970s, but after several moves they sadly have gone, so I can't reference them. However, I was looking through the excellent Broads boat database for some answers, not all found. The Norfolk Broads Yachting Company built 4 Viceroys in the 1970's all with folding canopies over the centre wheelhouse. Faircraft had built similar vessels on the same hull, but all with sliding canopies. However, I can't find any reference to these Faircraft boats. Faircraft at this time was a small boatyard with only a handful of cruisers. It was sold mid to late 70s, and I remember going to collect one of their largest boats a 30ft on the same Ocean/Aquafibre 30 hull with varnished topsides, and a sliding wheelhouse roof. They were hired out under the Hoseasons banner. They also had at least one boat based on the Classic 27 hull. My father sold The Norfolk Broads Yachting Company to Robert Wilson at the end of the 1970s, and possibly Robert Wilson sold it to Len Funnell? He was planning to start a smaller operation (Sovereign Cruisers) with around 4 Aquafibre 42 mk1, kitted out to tap the top end of the Broads boat hire market. He bought a site on the West side of The Rhond in Wroxham next door to E R English's yard. The boats earmarked were the Marquis of Perth, Marquis of York, and the Marquis of Granby (a 39ft Windboat he bought from Woods). The latter named after a favourite pub! He planned another 2 Aquafibre 42s, but he then sold all and left the boatyard world, whilst still having the odd Broads boat, including a Moorhen and a Freeman 24, both he renamed "Scamp" One contributor correctly identified that the Viceroys had a striking resemblance to the Ernest Collins Boats, which my father admired, but also one of his favourite Broads cruisers was Star Premiere (1960's version). So while all the Viceroys are on the same R M Martins designed Bourne 30 hull, one of the strongest influences was Collins' Coral Emblem. One difference is the aft well, which the Star Premiere's had. Other Viceroy facts: One of them went to the London Boat Show at Earls Court exhibited on the Blakes Stand that year. This was the second time my father had one of his boats at the Boat Show, as President 1 was there in January 1974 Viceroy 1 and 2 had completely white hulls, whereas Viceroy's 3 and 4 had blue gelcoat to mimic the painted underhull antifouling and boot top. The Consuls also had the blue gelcoat under the water. Viceroy 1 was the only one of the 4 to have an exhaust pipe exiting the hull at around midships on the port side. I have been trying to find some original photos of the viceroys. Will post if I can find any. I do have the pictures of Congressman the day she was launched, and some others of the hire boats then, but maybe that is for another post topic!

I seem to remember we decided on a dress code for fun, having seen some of the Cowes Crews looking so smart in matching gear: white shirts, jeans and a hat. The bow man seems to have extra supplies, but Sally's trim is pretty good, so there must have been a few beers in the forepeak to balance the full cockpit!