Liverpool to Menai Straits
© 2008 - Miss Moneypenny J and K All rights reserved.
To: Menai Straits
Date: 16 Aug 2005
Wind: 7/12 knots
Sea state: slight
Weather: hazy at first, becoming clear and sunny
Distance: 55 nms
Average speed: 4.5kts
Fastest SOG: 7kts
As it was, Kat failed at the first hurdle. She couldn't get out of work and so left poor Jay to go from Liverpool and through the infamous Menai Straits all by himself. That's one brave man- or slightly loopy, as the coastguard called him! (In fairness to Kat, it was the middle of the week!)
Mission Statement
Right then, men, here is your task. Liverpool to Southampton in the quickest time possible. You can only sail Friday evening to Sunday afternoon, due to work constraints, and you have 3 weeks to do the whole journey or you have nowhere to live. Illness, bad weather or prior commitments are not good excuses. Ready? Here we go..... smile, this is supposed to be fun!
He managed to get Money out of the marina berth- a very tight marina berth no less- and into the lock. Once in the lock, the alternator belt decided to pack up (you won't be hearing the last of that!), so he had to stay in the lock and fix it, all by himself, much to dear Ronnie the marina manager's displeasure! It was a busy day and Moneypenny was taking up one side of the lock all by herself-oops! Although it was hardly our fault! It took 3 hours, but he fixed the belt eventually and then he was well and truly on his way, with the last of the tide to help sweep him out of the Mersey.
Although it makes for a boring blog, the rest of the journey was relatively uneventful and he entered the straits in the early evening, only to moor alongside one of the training ships, again all by himself, while hundreds of eyes watched him critically. What a way to learn to solo sail a concrete brick!