Michel Desjoyeaux Wins Vendee Globe

Michel Desjoyeaux won the Vendee Globe around the world race. It took 84 days 3 hours 9 minutes and 6 seconds to sail the 28303 nautical miles. After having to return to Les Sables d'Olonne early in the race to fix electrical problems, FONCIA blasted through the pack to take the lead south of Cape Leeuwin, Australia. Armel Le Cleac'h in BRIT AIR, and Samantha Davies in ROXY expected to finish next. Eleven of the original thirty were still sailing. Several demastings, structural failures, a broken leg, and a capsize with a dramatic rescue have whittled down the fleet. For more information go to the Vendee Globe website. www.vendeeglobe.org/en/

ALGOWEST- PETER R. CRESSWELL

On a beautiful October day, after riding the Algoma Central Railway's Agawa Canyon Train into the wilds of Canada, Elaine and I stopped at the locks in Sault Ste. Marie to do a little boat watching. While we were there we watched the large grain carrier ALGOWEST lumber up the St. Marys River into the McArthur Lock. Standing on the viewing platforms, we watched the waters lift the ship up to the level of Lake Superior. Through the crystal clear water, her single propeller could be seen pushing her out of the lock. It was quite a sight.

ALGOWEST Entering the McArthur Lock

ALGOWEST as with much of the Algoma fleet uses the Algo prefix. West is for western Canada where her cargos of grain originate. She was built in Collingwood ON. and launched in 1982 for Algoma Central Railway-Marine Division. She is powered by 2 Krupp MaK 6M552AK 6 cylinder 4-stroke diesel engines developing 4730 H.P., geared through a single variable pitch propeller.

Going Up

She had one notable serious accident. On June 15,1988 in a dense fog, she collided with the small freighter COUDRES DE L'LLE . The COUDRES DE L'LLE sank with the loss of one life.

In 1997 she was converted to a self un-loader. After the 20 million dollar conversion, she was re-dedicated at the Port Weller Dry Dock. Her new cargoes would be bulk salt, stone, coal, and iron. Two skippers of the ALGOWEST were awarded the traditional "Top Hat" for being the first vessel upbound through the Welland Canal in 1985 and 1999.

On October 14 2001 the vessel was re-christened PETER R. CRESSWELL in honor of the retiring former President and Executive Officer of Algoma Central Corp.

LOA- 730'

Beam 70'10"

Depth 42'

Capacity 31,700 tons

The "SHOWBOAT BRANSON BELLE"

For years I've seen advertisements for the BRANSON BELLE showboat. I thought, another fake steamboat with dummy paddle wheels and a diesel powered prop. The kind that is a dance boat, but with folding tables is a dinner boat that serves rubber chicken. The BRANSON BELLE is anything but fake.

Billed as "Americas Largest Ship Built On A Land-locked Lake." Its grandeur is reminiscent of the by-gone days of traveling showboats. This stern wheeler is impressive. Built and launched on site, she is equipped with the latest in marine technology. Her 24 foot paddle wheels are powered by two electric motors developing 400 horsepower each. Each paddle wheel can work independently of the other at different speeds or even have one in reverse and one in forward. Maneuverability is further enhanced by the 350 horsepower fore and aft bow thrusters. Port and starboard wing stations make docking easy on either side. Three diesel powered generators provide 480 volt 60Hz three phase electricity for the propulsion and the ships electrical systems including the galley and the theater.

 

The 10 foot, solid maple captains wheel is from the C.C. SLIDER, a stern wheeler that worked the Ohio River between 1928 and 1952. The motor and thruster controls are housed in a brass control unit similar to an old ships telegraph.
Launched April 13, 1995, her nine second slide into Table Rock Lake reached 14 M.P.H., faster than she would ever travel on water. The skids were lubricated with bananas, a non-polluting, biodegradable alternative to the standard grease.

She is a Showboat, with a huge 700 seat multi-tiered theater and galley serving gourmet meals. (Up to 2800 meals each day.) The SHOWBOAT BRANSON BELLE is operated by Silver Dollar City Entertainment. For information on lunch or dinner cruises visit http://www.showboatbransonbelle.com/
I am happy to say I was impressed. If you want rubber chicken you'll have to find it elsewere
L.O.A. 278',

Beam 78',

Draft 7.5',

Height 112'3" to top of stacks ,

Top speed 11 m.p.h.,

Weight 2,500,000 pounds

S.S. ADMIRAL

" The largest and finest inland passenger steamer ever built in America"

Anyone who grew up in St. Louis, Missouri after 1940 knows the S.S. Admiral. Many of us remember hot summer days on the top deck looking at the St. Louis skyline drifting by, listening to the steam calliope reverberating off the downtown buildings, or dancing our Saturday night away to Bob Kuban's Brass band. For many years the Admiral was as much a part of St. Louis as the Gateway Arch or the Cardinals. Now a casino, her beautiful art deco lines are being hidden by a large gaudy flashing facade and stripped of her engines, she has become a floating barge. However, I have many great memories of walking along the cobblestone levee and looking up at her stainless steel topsides gleaming in the sun. Even a half brain-dead teenager such as myself was awed by the large art deco ballroom.

The S.S. ADMIRAL began life as the S.S. ALBATROSS a railroad car ferry in Vicksburg, Mississippi. Built in 1907, she was 308 ft. long and 58 ft. wide, and carried 16 railroad cars. In 1920-21 she was lengthened to 365 ft. making her an "engineering marvel of her time."

 

When Captain Joe Streckfuss decided to build a new flagship to replace the palatial J.S. DELUXE he hired Mazie Krebs to design the ADMIRAL. Ms. Krebs previously designed the PRESIDENT. Captain Joe said to spare no expense. The ALBATROSS was brought to St. Louis and stripped down to the hull and engines. Construction took five years and cost more than $1,000,000. Mirrors and crystal were imported from Europe. The walls were tufted leather filled with steel wool for fire proofing. Artists were brought in to paint the constellations on the ballroom ceiling and musical notes in the women's lounge. The Sonja Henie womens lounge had white snow flakes painted on the dark blue leatherette walls and the floor was a white glazed tile to simulate ice. And they installed something no other riverboat had, air conditioning.
The original steam engines nicknamed Popeye and Wimpy were replaced in 1974 with three diesel engines, one in each paddle box and a one in the stern generating 2700 H.P. The ADMIRAL cruised from 1940 until the late 70's when it was decertified for passenger cruising. It was moored in New Orleans awaiting an uncertain future when it was vandalized. She was brought back to St. Louis and turned into a floating entertainment center. When gambling was legalized it became a casino. Her future is uncertain, her owners would like a new boat and replacing her 100 year old hull is economically unfeasible.


To me, she will always be the grandest lady on the river.


L.O.A. 365


Passenger capacity 4400

Taraibune; The Tub Boats of Sado Island, Japan

Being a fan of traditional wooden boats, I was excited when I read that Douglas Brooks was going to be at the Woodenboat show in Mystic, Connecticut. When I met him he was standing at the end of a dock at the Mystic Seaport museum. One of his tub boats was sitting in the water. I told him in anticipation of coming to the Woodenboat show I re-read the article he had written in Woodenboat magazine and I found the boats to be fascinating. He laughed and told me I needed to update my reading list since the article was written ten years ago.

Mr Brooks apprenticed under Koichi Fugi, the last remaining tub boat building master on the Japanese island of Sado. His article and subsequent book on his studies have made him the foremost leader on the construction and use of this unique craft. One of his goals is to teach the boat building techniques to young Japanese students so they can use and enjoy the tub boats for generations to come.

Taraibune

Sado Island lies off the western coast of Japan in the Sea of Japan. The tub boats are used by local fisherman to harvest wakame, a seaweed, and sasae, an expensive shellfish. It's shallow draft is perfect for spearfishing for sasae along the rocky shallows in protected waters along the coast. The cedar (sugi) is from trees that grow on the island and the bamboo for the braided hoops is also harvested locally. Mr. Fuji would write a blessing on a plank edge such as " Good Fishing" or "Safety at sea" before fitting it on the boat to be hidden forever. Douglas Brooks' book on the tub boats of Sado Island and other beautifully built Japanese boats can be found at his website: http://www.douglasbrooksboatbuilding.com/.

LOA approx. 5.5 ft.
Beam approx. 4 ft.