Practical Boat Owner September 2020

with the editor To receive the editor’s monthly email newsletter, go to our website: www.pbo.co.uk Plumbing or rigging? Don’t be shy when it comes to engine repairs,’ writes Tim Davies in Learning From Experience (page 74-78). ‘They are only lumps of metal full of oil, fed with cooling water and fuel…’ He goes on to explain that in his experience most engine problems are mere plumbing issues. ‘This is not rocket science,’ he declares. If only it were so simple. Keeping water, fuel, coolant, exhaust etc separate and contained on your boat is certainly of great importance, but it’s worth reminding ourselves that without his boat’s rig, Tim might still be stuck on a remote Greek island trying to fix his prop shaft! So looking after your rig (if you have one) has to be…

SEND US YOUR STORIES Email news editor Katy Stickland at pbo@futurenet.com, tel: 01252 555213 The Southampton Boat Show has been postponed until 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, although the show’s organiser, British Marine, will attempt to hold a smaller, outdoor event in its place this September. As PBO went to press British Marine said it was ‘continuing to explore the options’ for an ‘alternative, smaller scale outdoor event’. This year’s Southampton Boat Show had been due to run on 11-20 September. The event regularly attracts more than 100,000 visitors and over 430 exhibitors. Churchouse Boats, which builds Drascombes, is a regular exhibitor. Managing director Sharon Geary-Harwood said given the current pandemic crisis, “it was the best decision British Marine could have made”. She said she was “hopeful” a smaller show would happen to…

UK Vendée Globe entrant Pip Hare has relaunched her IMOCA 60 following a six month refit. The solo skipper has also secured a new title sponsor, Medallia, and, during a ceremony in Poole, renamed her yacht after the customer experience management company. Hare announced her Vendée Globe campaign in October 2018 after buying the IMOCA 60, then named Superbigou, which has already completed four world circumnavigations. “My entire 28-year career has been focused on breaking down barriers to get to this point. More men have walked on the moon than women have completed the Vendée Globe, which is all the inspiration I need to succeed,” said Hare. “It’s been a lonely path to get this far, so I am absolutely thrilled that such a visionary company as Medallia has stepped in to make my…

A consultation has been launched by the UK Government following the announcement in April’s Budget that the subsidy on red diesel is to be scrapped. The move will see the entitlement to use red diesel removed, except for agricultural, rail and non-commercial heating purposes by April 2022. Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has confirmed that boaters will still be able to use subsidised diesel to heat their vessels – but not power them. Currently, UK marinas sell red diesel on a 60/40 split of full and lower tax rates for propulsion and heating or power generation. The government is considering introducing a new tax relief scheme, and is asking if a boat’s typical fuel use is still a split of 60% for propulsion and 40% for non-propulsion. It wants to…

Creel pots in Scottish waters now have to be clearly marked, with the use of plastic milk cartons and netted footballs banned. The Marking of Creels (Scotland) Order 2020 came into effect on 20 June, and applies to creels deployed within 12 miles of the Scottish baseline. The move has been welcomed by the Cruising Association (CA) which, along with the RYA, is campaigning for the clearer marking of static fishing gear in UK waters. Under the new law, licensed fishermen must mark their creels with one or more marker buoys that clearly display the fishing boat’s port letter and number (PLN), a code used to identify vessels. Only marker buoys specifically designed for the marking of equipment in the water can be used. Fleets of ten or more creels must…

Tributes have been paid to the founder of Hamble Craft, Tom Nighy, who died on 30 June at the age of 83. A former director of technical services for the British Marine Industries Federation (BMIF), Tom helped draft the European Recreational Craft Directive (RCD) and advised on policy for the BMIF. He was also a regular exhibitor at the Southampton and London Boat Shows until his retirement in 2005. Having been schooled as a merchant seaman on HMS Conway on the Menai Straits, his initial career was at sea, culminating as a Senior Deck Officer with Union Castle, operating between the UK and South Africa. Tom went into the marine industry in 1965 when he became a yacht broker for Cresta Marina in Newhaven, one of the first marina developments in the UK. In…