The boat took around three and a half years to build and fit out,of which fitting out took most of the work,the hull and deck unit was around fouteen months work for one man.
The place is Hout Bay and the then larger boat park of the HBYC,we are ready to lift the boat on to the road cradle you can see in front of the boat,which weighed around twelve tons at this time.
My dad and mum watch on,as do Jeans own family members.
All pictures excepting this one were taken by my dad Robert Henry McBride (r.i.p) thanks dad.His camera was a Pentax SLR.I assume I took this one myself,with my Canon FT with a 1.4 lens .
As Jean handles the bow line,we are lifted towards the road trailer,I must comment on the skill of all crane drivers I have worked with over the years,its a special tallent they have.
If waterline length is important to speed,the Dix 43 must be a good boat for the cruising class of the Cape 2 Rio yacht race,why am I sitting here blogging then?
This is what a Dix 43 looks like,you can see why they sail so well and quite fast too.
The crane was supplied two days before by Ronnie,the first time it was to place the boat on the keel,the second lift being the actual launch.
This is quite a slippy design,easy to build too,the Dix Design Radius Chine method saw one man build this hull basically alone and in just six weeks.
Ian watches on as Jean passes a glass of bubbly to John standing on the deck,John was the guy responsable for propping up the hull for me after we had lifted the boat onto the keel,Jenny ,johns wife
and John Amm watch on too.
In the water,,thats John,myself and Nic onboard,the Perkins 4108 diesel engine is running for the first time in this boat,it was time to move to our HBYC marina berth.
Happy Birthday Flying Cloud!
Roy
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