Review of South Atlantic Capsize Book

The first review of my book "South Atlantic Capsize - Lessons Taught by a Big Ocean Wave", has appeared. This review was written by Richard Crockett, editor of Sailing for Southern Africa magazine. I will leave the review to speak for itself.

Front cover of the book.

More Really Good Books
 
One of the perks of my job is that I do get to read some really good books. Two I have recently read got into that ‘must read’ category.

The first is entitled ‘South Atlantic Capsize’ – Lessons Taught by a Big Ocean Wave.
 
It is written by Dudley Dix and tells the story of ‘Black Cat’, the crew, the 2014 Cape to Rio Race and the storm that struck the fleet in the opening days of that race. It’s a personal account of what happened on the boat when it was capsized, what damage was done, what the men onboard did to safeguard vessel and crew, what they did to get themselves back to port – as well as what else was going on around them.

It’s rivetting reading as it is not just well written, but written by a man with a serious understanding of the sea, yacht design, yacht construction – and ultimately what happened to them out there.

I like the fact that it gives some history of the Cape to Rio Race, a pretty detailed account of the boat’s design and construction and his careful selection of crew. To many crew selection is simply a case of asking mates, but for Dix it’s far more than that.

So, for anyone contemplating competing in the 2017 Cape to Rio race, this book should be read, not for the scarey stuff, but for the practical preparation tips, and advice on handling bad weather. For those simply making passages at sea, there is lots to learn too.

Thank you Richard Crockett for the review.

To buy the book or to view our boat designs, go to http://dixdesign.com/.

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Mid Atlantic Small Craft Festival and Maritime Model Expo

The Mid-Atlantic Small Craft Festival takes place every year at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum in St Michaels, Maryland. It happens next weekend Saturday 3rd and Sunday 4th October. This is the 33rd running of the very popular event and this year it has been joined by the Maritime Model Expo.

Hundreds of amateur and professional boatbuilders bring their boats to this event, to participate in on-the-water events and to show their boats. This festival has a full program of boatbuilding demonstrations and other educational opportunities, in addition to the many permanent and temporary displays of the Museum. The model displays and exhibitions will take place on and around the model pond. There are also opportunities for scenic boat rides all weekend and a race to watch on Saturday afternoon, as well as live music and plenty of food to keep you going.

The floating fleet of the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum. CBMM photo

I will be there for the weekend, with my Paper Jet skiff. When not on the water sailing, my boat will be somewhere on the waterfront and I will be somewhere nearby. If you want to chat about our designs or my books, ask questions about boatbuilding, sailing or ocean-crossings, or just to talk boats, come looking for me, I wont be far away.

I will also be at the Festival Dinner on Saturday evening and will be the speaker for the evening. My subject will be my boat designs, concentrating mostly on those under 20ft long. This will include the open boat circumnavigation of Anthony Steward on one of my 19ft designs.

Anthony Steward leaving Cape Town at the start of his circumnavigation.

If you are looking for something to do next weekend and are within driving distance of St Michaels MD, come to the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum for a memorable boating experience. I look forward to meeting you there.

To see our boat designs, small or large, go to http://dixdesign.com or http://dixdesign.com/mobile.

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South Atlantic Capsize

Most of you will have read here or elsewhere about our adventure in the 2014 Cape to Rio Race on the Didi 38 "Black Cat". I have published a book about it, which can now be ordered from our website. For those who dont know what happened, here is a synopsis of the book, which is titled "South Atlantic Capsize - Lessons Taught by a Big Ocean Wave".

At dusk on 5th January 2014, the Didi 38 "Black Cat" was struck by a massive wave on the second day of the 2014 Cape to Rio Race across the South Atlantic Ocean. The wave capsized her in an instant, flinging crew, equipment and food around the interior and destroying most of the electronics with water that entered through the companion hatch. "Black Cat" recovered very quickly but the electrical damage was done. This is the story about the race, the boat, the crew and what happened on that day.

Front cover of the new book

It also explains the principles of stability that control the safety of monohull sailboats, mostly those characteristics that affect the behaviour of boats in large beam seas that might capsize them and the features needed to quickly return them to upright. It does this in words and terms that can be easily understood by non-technical people.

Back cover.

You will also read the story of the capsize of the 64ft "Sayula II" in the Southern Ocean when sailing between Cape Town and Sydney in the 1973 Whitbread Round the World Race, written by yacht designer Butch Dalrymple-Smith, who was one of the crew. Also what one boat owner has added to his own boat to prepare it and himself in case they are caught by conditions that place them at risk of capsize.

I managed to coerce two of the crew to also put pen to paper, to each write a short piece about his experience. I felt this to be important because we all observe events from our particular points of observation and positions in life. My view from the inverted cabin roof of Sean Collins hanging on for his life in the cockpit and of Adrian Pearson flying like a rag doll around the cabin is very different from that of Sean looking down the steep slope of a monster wave and seeing the masthead spearing into the ocean below, knowing that the boat will follow deck-first.  I would have liked to have had stories from the other two crew as well but they did not feel capable of effectively putting their stories into words.

You can buy the book at http://dixdesign.com/articles.htm. We can ship to you wherever you are, at our normal shipping rates.

To view our range of boat designs, please visit http://dixdesign.com/

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