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Editor: Kris Steyn 082 619 5511 krissteyn@gmail.com Wishing all our Members, Associates, friends Health Wealth and Great Happiness for 2009.
Scuttlebutt
Barry hasn't updated me on the doings of Foam and I have been too busy with the "Silly Season" to receive subtle news of what's happening. However, I have been in contact with Jorick who is restoring an old Dow in Mozambique and who is leaving Cape Town next week for Ibo, the island where he lives in Mozambique. Quite a few of the TBA members have been helpful to him in his un-usual quest and he is putting on a slide exhibition this Saturday at 4pm ; he has extended a warm invitation to the TBA fraternity to attend and have a cup of coffee and a chat with him and his happy family.
"Shore Leave" January 2009 Meeting :- . . .
Due to the demise of the Atlantic Underwater Club, our future meetings will be held at the R.C.Y.C.
Lemire opens the film with a brief history of Antarctic exploration. He makes specific comparisons to the famous Shackleton mission which saw the British explorer's boat trapped and stranded in ice, near death, before a dramatic rescue. The mission of this expedition is not unlike Shackleton's. The crew of the Sedna IV is to sail south, anchor beside a reef and encase itself in ice, which will then become their home base for study for the rest of the year.
It's a seemingly simple plan, but nature and irony strikes back quickly. The winter freeze-over doesn't arrive when it's supposed to. This causes much havoc - with only limited freezer space, their food must be rotated between the melting ice floor of the ground and their refrigerator on ship.
For the first two-thirds of the film the crew is in problem-solving mode - troubleshooting one problem after the next, including a dramatic tussle with a late summer storm. But when winter eventually comes, we finally get to see the stunning visual beauty of the environment. Because of the skewed hours of day and night, for certain periods of the year, it's an almost perpetual dusk. Lemire visualize this anomaly with a fantastic timelapse sunset shot like I've never seen before. Instead going down from the sky to the earth, the sun actually moves across the horizon, creating a permanent magic hour, which goes on for hours and hours.
The crew has great fun with the wildlife. Penguin fun is a plenty and there's one remarkably dramatic scene with a baby seal left abandoned by her mother.
Lemire spends some quality time getting to know the crew as well, which is where some of the most emotional content comes from. Mental health caregiver Mariano Lopez's tearful phone call home to his young daughter is an emotional reminder of the sacrifice the environment asks of its crew.
The title refers to Antarctica as being the last continent on Earth yet to be exploited by man. Despite not having any inhabitants, Antarctica is the place most affected by man's environmental irresponsibilities. The icecaps have subsided and glaciers are melting and the population of its animal life are dwindling.
"The Last Continent" isn't as effective as say, "An Inconvenient Truth" in helping opens our eyes to environmental concerns. Science and proselytizing is kept to a minimum.
"The Last Continent" is about capturing the pristine beauty of a place, which is indirectly being spoiled and damaged by our malevolent behavior. Enjoy. December 2008 Meeting :- . . .
November 2008 Meeting :
"Fire Side Chat" MARINE DIESEL ENGINE SMOKE SIGNALS, by Rob Scanlan, U.S. Master Marine Surveyor:
The color and quantity of exhaust smoke tells a great deal about the condition of a marine diesel engine. All marine engines create smoke to some extent, but if the diesel engine is in good condition, the quantity will almost be invisible. Defects that affect the fuel, breathing or compression will prevent correct combustion and lead to excessive exhaust smoke. Black Smoke is caused by partially burned fuel. When the fuel/air mixture increases there is insufficient oxygen present in the cylinders to complete the combustion process. Large quantities of carbon are then produced which appear from the exhaust as minute black soot particles. Engines with turbochargers have additional sources of black smoke. Black Smoke Insufficient Air:
Black Smoke Excessive Fuel:
Black Smoke Engine Overload:
Blue Smoke:
Steam:
White exhaust smoke:
White Smoke Poor Atomization of Fuel:
White Smoke Poor Compression:
White Smoke Water in the fuel:
R.T. Scanlan, CMS/MMS/ACMS, Accredited & Certified Marine Surveyor,
Members contribution TRADITIONAL BOATS The River Thames is rich in nautical history. Many of you have been on that jaunt down the river. Join the ferry at Westminster Bridge. Downstream, on the right hand side, the replica of the "Golden Hind" appears in her dock. Further downstream, "HMS Belfast", a light cruiser of World War II era appears. Carry on and you pass St Katherine's Dock, home of the Thames Spritsail Barge. On the left we come to the Isle of Dogs where Brunel built his famous "Great Eastern" - the largest vessel for many years to come. And then we see a forest of masts on the right side. This is what we have come for. Arriving at Greenwich, we behold the "Cutty Sark" in her dock. Sadly a recent fire has damaged her and she is being repaired. My memories go back to the early days before this tragedy occurred. "Cutty Sark"! All you intrepid mariners know the vessel, but how many of you know who/what the name means? It goes back many years and to this day no-one knows exactly why Captain John Willis, the owner, called her this name. It comes from the famous poem by Rabbie Burns, "Tam O' Shanter" and briefly means 'Short Skirt'. The story starts with Market Day in the village. Tam never missed a market day as it was just another excuse for a drunk up.
At market-day thou was nae sober;
Came closing time and the 'siller' ran out, Tam mounted his steed, the gray mare Meg, and headed for home. En route he passed a group of witches. They were having a party to welcome a young witch called Nannie who had just joined them. Bur hornpipes, jigs, strathspeys, and reels,
Nannie was wearing her best dress, a cutty sark made by her Grannie. Her cutty sark, o' Paisley harn,
Tam watched for a while but then the witches became aware of his presence, they gave chase and set off in pursuit. Meg showed a clean pair of heels and if only she could hold them off until she crossed the brook Tam would be safe as the witches could not cross it. Nannie, being young and agile, outstripped the others and as they approached the brook she reached out and grabbed Meg's tail. Meg managed to get away,
But left behind her ain grey tail;
Rabbie ends with a warning to all drinkers.
Whene'er to drink you are inclin'd,
"From the Crow's Nest" Please join me in welcoming Josh Spencer to the committee as a "temporary" . His function hasn't been defined but he is willing to be on-board whilst in Cape Town. The committee was placed in the interesting position of receiving sponsorship and trying to match the clubs interests with those of the sponser. After much ado , we settled on the Dassen Island Annual Cruise. After meeting with the RCYC and specifically Mathys Lourens (SY Mafuta) , we drummed up interest and support for the up-coming event. At final count 15 yachts signed up - which was better than expected. Sponsership waned slightly and the extra goodies were "postponed indefinitely" but we had a magnificent cocktail party at the RCYC. Commemorative Tshirts were freely distributed. As all this coincided with the Xmas party, the committee (those of us available) felt that the cocktail party would be sufficient for the pre-xmas season. So we lost out on a party - and we need to remedy that - please give feed-back and suggestions. The Cape/Bahia race is underway - please join me in wishing all the participants a safe and exciting voyage. I was offered a berth and had to think long and hard before refusing a fantastic opportunity. SUBS : Please - on going through the payments - I have had several late payments but lots still outstanding.
And finally : I will be away for some of March, April and some of May : can anybody out there help out with my duties ?
"Classifieds " I cant believe more stuff isn't out there waiting for an extended life... com'on guys ! ACUSHLA is For Sale. Click here for pics or Contact Tony Watts 031-7056577 / 078-6345274. See you all at the next meeting ...............
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