Sheena's Choice

There's a bunch of things that make SL sailing different from RL sailing. No doubt about that. One of the fun things is the fact that it is possible to own loads of boats. Most people don't have that option in RL. A few days ago I met this girl, Sheena Chelmsford. She was looking for a cruiser.

Cruiser and a few racers

We talked a bit, and I ended up rezzing some of my favourite boats. Cruisers and racers all mixed up. While Sheena hopped from boat to boat, I tried to say a littlebit about each boat. We ended up almost having a boat show. Left to right there's the Cafe Del Mar, the Melges24, that J-boat, the VO65, the Fizz, the Cotton Blossom II, the Laser, the Bandit23 and the RM20. Funny how the VO65 looks small in this context.

Almost a boat show

There are many other nice boats that I didn't rez. For starters there's the Q2m and the Q2.4mR and the QSM40. There's also the Bandit50, the Bolero, the RM 12 and the RM8, and then there's the T-One and the Leetle Cat plus ofcourse the Ten, the 12mR, the Ktaba 20 plus a handfull of cats. Tri's even.  Add to that the Nemo, the Vikingships, the Babysloop, the Tetra, the Opti, the Moth, the Elliot 6 and the Dragon plus ofcourse the Tako. Phew... I am getting dizzy and we're not even there yet. I think this'll do. It's not easy being Sheena. Having all the above plus more to choose from.

Many of these boats, I've sailed and blogged, but not all of them. Not yet. Feel free to look them up using the search field in the right column.

Balduin Aabye Yacht Design gone?

So I finally made it inworld. Haven't been there much lately. Summer, sailing and other RL stuff taking my time. I checked my inventory, and I found a little gem, which I've never really tried... The paperboat from Balduin Aabyes Yacht Design. Here it is:

Balduins paper boat

I was just about to take her for a spin, when Ahab materialized at the pier. We talked a bit, and I learned that Balduin has closed his Yacht Design. Ahab was really on his way out, but I persuaded him to hop on board for a picture. Right after that I crashed, but the picture made it to my hardddrive.

Ahab and me in the paperboat

Sadly Sammie confirmed the bad news; Nevertheless I will be looking for Balduin for a while, and I will be enjoying his beautifull boats for longer. I'd better be back with a recap of his work; Even though I haven't covered it all.

Me looking for Balduin

It's really too bad that Balduin quit. Not only did he produce some beautiful boats; More importantly he was such a nice guy, and a true gentleman. From what I heard it will be some time before he reemerges, if at all.

Relaxing...

That recap of Balduins boats will have to wait a little though. Right now the RL racing season is still on; I have a few minutes for relaxing, and then off I go... I think I will leave myself hanging like this, thinking about all the good times with Balduin.

Gazing...

Balduin, - where are you?

PS: In case you wonder, what a virtual boat yard looks like, here it is... Balduin Aabye Yacht Design. Check the category boatyards for more details.

Wildwinds

Didn't make it in time to get pictures of all the Wildwinds as mentioned in this post. I guess it wasn't an official exhibition, and now it is gone. Here's just a shot of me returning to Tradewinds in my RM20. Lots of Wildwinds all over the place.

The beautifull RM20 

I wanted to get a shot of each an every boat, and maybe sometime I will, but for now, this next one - showing Tradewinds loaded with Wildwinds - is it. The boats aren't there anymore.

The Wildwinds

Clearly it is a major loss that the Wildwind boat yard packed up and left. They had everything and anything from 420s over cruising monohulls to mega-multihulls.

A new boat yard

We've been so lucky as to have both ReneMarine and Balduin Aabye's Yacht Design just around the corner from Tradewinds YC. Now, there's even more. While the Boatbuilders Show was on, the Mesh Shop landed to the NE of Tradewinds.

Looking south

Dutch from the Mesh Shop is building that VO70, and here's me onboard a VO70 in Dutch's boat yard, camera pointing south. You can just see the roof of the Tradewinds boatshed and the lighthouse in the back.

Different angle

Here we are again. Same boat, different angle. Boats are definately being built here. It all looks very modern and very marina-ish. Great fun to walk around just looking at stuff. Little details everywhere. I mean, - not just on the boats.

Travelift

There's even a travelift with a VO70. Not sure where it is going, but it looks great, and you get to study the details of the underwater hull. It's clearly not just a toy boat. Eventually this will sail.

Swing keel

There's just one tiny problem... Not many virtual boat builders have experience with swing keels. In fact I am not sure I ever saw a standard boat building kit swing keel support. I saw a virtual swing keeler once, but it is so long ago. Didn't take pictures, totally forgot the details...

Tradewinds in the game

Maybe it was from the now closed Wildwind boat yard. Hmm. I guess the important thing is that Dutch is very keen on making these monsters work; I wonder if there will be some kind of race, once Dutch is done building. Incidentally, here's a VO70 in Tradewinds colours. Hehe. I better go check if there is a poster, where Liv is looking for crew...

Here's more VO70 action. Here's even more shots...

Q-day

Right before Christmas I had a really fun day at Tradewinds. I met this guy, Tibbybob. He was very interested in sailing, and he asked me to show him some of my favourite boats. So I took him sailing in three of Qyv Inshans beautiful boats. Here's the first one. It's the QSM40 modeled after Pelle Pettersons SM40.

The QSM40

It's such a pretty boat. Comes with spinnaker too. However, the QSM40 is designed for one person, and currently can be sailed by one person only. Imagine the fun we could have with two, three or even four persons on board, - all of them involved in balance and trim. Yay! There's a challenge for the new year. A boatkit supporting four active sailors has existed for years, so it is definately possible.

The Q2m

The next one was a little smaller and a little simpler. It's the little sister, the Q2m. Again, a beautiful boat and a truly faithfull replica of a real boat. Takes two people and sails like a dream. No spin but the jib can be winged. It's one of my absolute favorites so far. The luffing sails are so nicely made. If less is more, then Qyv got the message. First the QSM40, then the Q2m and after that followed the Q-Scow.

The Q-Scow

A little smaller and a little simpler yet. Only one sail to mess with. It's an absolute blast for a beginner. Easy to sail plus there's room for an experienced sailor in the "passenger-seat". Like the others, it has full WWC support, so you have wind, waves and current plus local variantions. So what's next? If you look closely at the picture from the Tradewinds boatshow, you'll see a 2.4m R boat - aka a mini-12. I suppose that's about the smallest boat you can make for a single grown person. Be back with more details on that.

Qyvs boat yard in the back

Here's a view towards Qyvs boatyard. It's positioned just north of the North Sea. In the picture it's just across the strait, in the back to the left of the mast of my Bolero II. How can you build anything but pretty boats in an area like this, right. Oh, and don't think Qyv only makes small boats. Here's a close up...

All (most) all the Q-boats

It's an interesting lineup. Dingys, daysailors, matchracers, ACAs, VOs with swingkeels, multihulls... there's something for just about everybody, - in modern design. If you want classics, you're probably better off visiting Trudeau's boat yard. If you're into modern boats, this is it!! Qyv absolutely has a talent for building sexy, sleek, modern boats.

Qyv's lineup

It's the perfect place for a dedicated sailor to spend some time walking around looking. It's just like visiting a real boat yard, except these ones we can all afford. Oh, and there's one really neat thing about virtual boats: They can be in demo mode, - on display with the sails up;

More boats...

The 2.4m R isn't there yet; Like I said... can't wait to show you some pics of that little beauty. I'll post it in a few days. If you absolutely must have more on Qyv's boats, here's more on the QSM40, the Q2m and the Q-scow.

Some time ago I also visited Balduins Boatyard, maker of the Bolero and the Cottom Blossom and more.

Balduins Boat Design

I sometimes wonder how they make these boats. It is not that I don't understand the principles of building. It is the fact that SL is sooo geeky when building, and yet they produce one pretty boat after another. Some of these boats are really good at hiding the geeky complexities.

Balduins Boat Design

If you ever wonder about this, go see Balduins boat yard. It is right off the west side of Tradewinds. After seing it, I am sure it is more clear, how the process works. In SL you do not need to fiddle with wood, epoxy or paint. It is all about a state of mind;

The Bolero in the back

That dude has to have poetry inside his head. This place, whilst looking like a boat design studio, still has a certain ambiance. Walk around; Have a look at the Bolero, the Cotton Blossom and the other fun projects. Balduin isn't just making sail yachts.

The place makes my heart whisper, I wanna stay just a little longer. Just to  relax and to be assimilated by the ambiance. In fact, I spontaneously looked for a coke machine or a  cocktail pusher in the corner.

Let's get out there

When you are done feeling the ambiance, you can always rez a beautiful boat and sail away. Remember to look back. It is kinda like that favourite island you visited with your parents wayyy back... It says come back... come back... I know I will. It is always exciting to see, what Balduin is building. Check out the Tradewinds blog for details on his latest... link to the right.