Sad to see this classic gone

[cat man do]

The Classic timber yacht Koomooloo has sunk in the Sydney to Hobart.

She was a classic old girl that will be missed on a Wednesday afternoon WAGS race and a Friday night twilight race by all.

All that new her will feel sadness at her loss, and my sympathy goes out to her family.

Dave

Spirit of Koomooloo

[ssullivan]

Wow! She was a beauty.

[Connemara]

Accident? Pirates? Scuttled?

Enquiring minds want to know why she sank.

And how we can avoid the same fate.

Connemara

[mike d.]

she was holed so they seem to think in the Sydney to Hobart race. the crew radiod for help as she was taking on water and they said she ahd a hole on her side fwd i believe it said in the report on the caualties of the race

[Connemara]

That is too bad. She was gorgeous.

[hellosailor]

Nooze on the web refers to extensive flooding from a source they could no locate after falling off a wave, as if perhaps some planking or seams opened up under her.

A shame they had no air/sea rescue capabilities to drop a pump to her, that might have been all they needed to save the boat. (USCG units can often air drop or transfer a damage control pump in a 55-gallon drum, complete with fuel, so a vessel can remain dewatered.) Looks like a classic was lost.

[cat man do]

Unfortunately in Australia we have a Volunteer Coast Guard.

Australian Volunteer Coast Guard Association

While they do a fantastic job with the limited resources they have, mostly from donations, they can never compete with the USCG.

It is a shame that Australia has'nt a similar system to the U.S and infact they could have similar if we used the patrol boats from our Navy to serve a dual role as rescue , patrol and radio relay.

You guy's up North are pretty fortunate to have the system you have.

Dave

Truly a sad loss.

[Factor]

Originally Posted by Connemara

And how we can avoid the same fate.

Connemara

dont sail a boat designed to sink.

[cat man do]

Originally Posted by Factor

dont sail a boat designed to sink.

OUCH!!

For a writer you don't say much.

Dave

[Connemara]

Originally Posted by Factor

dont sail a boat designed to sink.

Also, don't drive a car designed to crash, fly a dirigible designed to leak, run a marathon in shoes without soles.... good advice all around.

My guess is this vessel was designed to float, unless they do things a lot differently in the South Seas. Hmmm.... concrete boats .... maybe they do.


Connemara

[tdw]

Koomooloo was a beauty. Sad to see her go. I had a special interest in her having contmeplated buying her some 20-25 years ago. She was unfortunately very much the racing boat and her interior was not practical to convert to a cruising boat. Damn she was a pretty one that is undeniable.

Interesting to note that in the past ten years two boats have sunk suring the Sydney to Hobart being Winston Churchill and Koomooloo. Both timber, both no longer in the realms of the spring chicken. Both boats that one would have thought would have outlasted the lightweight flyers but not so. I wonder whether or not it is such a good idea to subject boats of an advanced age to the rigours of racing. The potential to overstress an old hull seems high.

[hellosailor]

Isn't all that part of the reason most of us wouldn't think of taking an old wood boat offshore? Every plank, every seam, every fasterner, is a separate and discrete failure node waiting to happen. No problem if you've been diligent about inspect and maintaining them all...except even then, it's like the old saying about the Space Shuttle "You're flying in an aircraft built from a million parts, each one supplied by the lowest cost bidder."

Hmmmm....

I admire the beauty of old wood boats, but the thought of maintaining one, let alone *inspecting* one, even once...way beyond my budget or ambition. A shame they lost her, but at least they only lost the boat.

[tdw]

Done the timber boat thing a couple of times. Never again. Steel is bad enough to maintain but timber is a nightmare.
The report on Koomooloo is that she went over the top of a wave and fell into the trough. The crew could not find where the water was coming from, there was a report of damage to the bow but there is the possibility, presumably, that it was keel related.
Now given that the crew of K would have more blue water experience in their little fingers than I have in my entire body I am not really qualiied to comment, but one still wonders about the break through or break attitude that is inherent to the racing mentality.

[Steve Kidson]

The last time I saw her was at the CYCA marina just before Christmas; no doubt in preparation for the Hobart.

She had beautiful lines, and the timber work was finished superbly.

A great loss and our thoughts go to the skipper and crew.