Beached on a sandbank,
Langstone Harbour 1973
My
first boat, I bought the Avon brand new in 1973, with a Yamaha 5hp aircooled
outboard.
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She could
take up to a 15 hp outboard, but I didn't know anything about
'planing' or 'displacement' speeds then, so I bought the 5hp Yamaha,
which could only get up to about 6mph. (No GPS in those days !)
She had the
integral wooden transom, inflatable thwart, and bow dodger.
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The
outboard would have been more suited to a heavy rigid dinghy, or
small sailing cruiser. Being air-cooled, it was as noisy as a Seagull,
but very well made, with clutch & reverse gearbox. |
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By
lucky coincidence, when inverted, it fitted perfectly on the roof
of my Escort Elba Motor Caravan. (Not enough room inside, the deflated
size was about as big as a 50 gallon oil drum.) |
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Here she is,
all ready to be launched, in the car park of the Ferry Boat Inn
by the entrance of Langstone Harbour, Hampshire.
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The
clamp on launching wheels were basically a good idea, but were not
beefy enough for rough surfaces. When the wheels dragged in soft
sand, the tremendous leverage on the clamps opened them up, (bending
the tubes), and they then fell off. |
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