Vinny

I met Vinny outside of the boat shop when I was trying to solve my communications problem.  He was sitting on the ground with a crutch on either side and his scruffy terrier beside him.

Vinny is French, was an architect/engineer in a former life until he started sailing in the year 2000.
To date he has crossed the Atlantic 7 times and has found is way to Cape Town in extraordinary circumstances.

His boat struck something off the Namibia coast - he thinks probably a container - and he was forced to take to his life raft with a broken leg.  He was rescued though he was forced to abandon his 50 ft aluminum boat.  I told him that abandoning your boat must be the most painful experience that a seaman can endure.  He shrugged his shoulders and indicated that he simply had to move on.  He had earlier mentioned the great Montessier and I pointed out that he had lost his boat at Cabo San Lucas Mexico and went on to further adventures.

Vinny had purchased a 10 meter boat here at RCYC.  He told me that in 2 weeks he had stripped out all essentials: The electrics, galley sink, Jabsco marine toilet, navigation table, and many other things were eliminated.  And he wasn't kidding.  The boat was on the hard stand where workmen were fiberglassing the 3 thru-hull holes of the head and galley sink and Vinnie invited me to have a look.

Vinny's 10 Meter Boat

Sailing companion

Two Toilet Outlets Filled In

Vinny in His Cabin.  Note Candle.  No Boat Electric Lights.

 Inside the boat looked a shambles.  The fiberglass man asked me if I was the previous owner and I replied No, because if I were I'd be crying like a baby.  He laughed and told me that it had been a nice boat 2 weeks earlier.

But latter I saw Vinny on board and he explained the logic of all of his harsh changes snf it all started to make sense through his eyes.  Once I threw overboard ideas of aesthetics and comfort and focused solely on functionality, every change that he had made was sensible and commendable.  Thus he got rid of the nav station in order to store things and he would use the saloon table for his navigation work.  He cut a big hole to access the engine so that he could start it with a screw driver to the solenoid because he had removed all of the electrics.  He removed the galley sink so that he could site the batteries near the engine.  He removed the big sliding doors at the galley because they would be a pain to move back and forth and now has easier access to the setup that he wants.  He removed the Jabsco toilet because he preferred the reliability of a bucket (which is what I had to use on the passage from Brazil).  Etc etc etc.

I told him that the tiller looked a bit short and he agreed, and plans to lengthen it.  I then said that he anchor looked a bit light and he pointed to a heavier one in the area that had been the navigation station.  I then asked him about the sails, their condition and whether there were spares.  This was a weak area and I hope that he does something about it.

Unfortunately he was forced to leave the marina, partly because of the concern over his healing broken leg over the uneven wooden jetties, largely because his dog is not allowed, and technically because having purchased the boat at RCYC he cannot live aboard unless he is a member.  He was given until noon today to clear out and was headed for the V&A marina.  Arnold and I thought it was a good idea that I offer to help him move the boat to V&A but when I asked him about it he told me that there was no need because he already had a friend lined up to help him

Vinny expects to be at VandA for about 2 months so I hope to see him again and see if he still wants my surplus water and diesel containers.  From SA he will push on into the Indian Ocean.  I asked him whether he would visit Australia but he said No because the dog would be a problem with both Australia and NZ.  (Australia would require a 6 month quarantine of the dog, according to my last information on the matter.)  He would visit Indonesia, Thailand, etc. 

I think that the best way to describe Vinny's tragedy is to quote an email that he sent to me.  Unfortunately he left before I could get his permission to publish is email but I don't think that he is the kind of man to worry about that.

The interesting thing is that I remember receiving a Securite from SAMMNet warning of containers of Namibia.

Note the magnificent behavior of the captain of the rescue ship.

"Hi my Friends
Tragic destiny, Yumapi sunk on 22 December at 8.am, bumping against probably a container in half immersion, in 2 hours. Pos 27.19 S 7.34 E 400.nm offshore Namibia coast. By my sattelite beacon, I was safe the day after at 2.am, a very long time to wait in the life raft. The crude oil carrier Maria from Euronav Cpy 270.m save my life in terrible and difficult condition, at first try to wait the life raft drift along the carrier,  but finally make course on me at 1.5 kn. Imagine the bow of the tanker coming on my life raft, the coming alongside was like Indiana Jones movie. But the most difficult was to come on board after hitch the life raft.
A wall high 6 to 10 m because the swell and I have to seize a ladder at the good moment with my broken leg, impossible.
Finally they drop down a boarding step,  but that was very dangerous because the swell, risk to be crush by the heavy boarding step, sometimes in water and sometimes in around 2 m over me.
But I was lucky and the guy on the boarding steps seize me at the good moment. The Maria Crew and Captain was wonderful with me, gave me cabin, clothes... The crew was mainly from Greece and Central America. Maria destination was Houston, but finally changed course to let me in Bay of Cape Town on 25 December. Maria engine consumption is around 70.t per day, Maria weight is 23 000.t, so you imagine the cost of the decision to let me in Cape Town, and they payed the Hotel Southern Sun in Downtown. In bay of Cape Town, the sea rescue launch grabbed me and let me in Waterfront. Problem with the custom, I was considered like a boat people rescue and Maria Captain had to book a flight for Paris on 26 December to got the authorization to let me in Bay of Cape Town !!!!! Finally I got a visa for 3 months and canceled the flight. Today I am still on hotel Southern Sun, because my left knee is really bad, difficult to forget Yumapi, Yumapi is every where, at first I decided to change my e mail....., most important is to recover a good leg, anyway hard 2012, hard days...... Hope see you
All is to build again, build a new home, a little one, to still to be a sea vagabond's world

Vinny"