Inflatable sailing canoe

I had barely packed away all my boats from the impromptu boat show, before my collection was upped by one. It's from the Rotaru Bootshaus; They just released the Ten and now this. Who knows how many "oldies but goodies" they have in pipeline? This one is a little different though. It's inflatable.

The inflatable boat

It was very easy to unpack. Click and drag. To my disappointment it did not come deflated. It just popped right up, and before I could say "voila", I was ready to take off. It's a littlebit exciting, cause I never ever sailed anything remotely like this before. RL or SL. It's not my first canoe, but it sure is my first inflatable canoe with a sail and two daggerboards of sorts. A rather strange vehicle if you ask me, but I get the idea. It can be deflated and put in the trunk. Not that I drive around SL in a car.

Cuddly sailing

So what's it for then? I studied the notecard, while I sailed south. It said "meant for cuddly sailing" or something like that. Ok? As long as it isn't crammed with weirdo sex toys and stuff. I clicked everywhere to make sure it was safe. Then I rang Dutch. To my surprise, he was all for cuddly sailing. He hopped on right before we reached Pslande.

Blue water, not Bluewater

Dutch quickly agreed it was a nice little boat. It sure doesn't look like a racer. It's not superadvanced with currents and waves, code zero and jib, but it is kinda soft and cozy to sit in. It's simply a tiny sailboat for a cozy afternoon at sea with that special someone. Or anyone not afraid ow water. The simplicity means it is probably less likely to crash, so for cruising and exploring, this could be a good choice.

Heading north

Inside the thing sits an elderly BWind sail-engine. It's the one from the first Babysloop. I wanted to test that stability a bit. After a few minutes in the Blake Sea, we headed north into the inshore waters behind NYC. Right. Yes. North. Unbelievable. There will be no pictures of the Fastnet Rock in this post. Guaranteed.

Lobsters for sale

The inshore sailing went very well. Loads of stuff rezzing. Trees, birds, boats, houses, lighthouses, piers and what nuts... A restaurant even...Or was it just a fishy shop? Dunno. We didn't stop to check, but I will have to check it out sometime. The scenery was actually so nice, I felt like mentioning it. Dutch response was a dry "I know the area. My ex used to live here."

Seeking the ocean again

Ok. Got that! So we looked for a way out. This looked like a way out, but in fact it was the perfect test. At the end of the narrow channel we turned starboard and sailed down a very narrow "piece of water", and that's where the boat went strange. It wouldn't say it crashed, because it kept running, but the boat got stuck, and when I tried to turn back, it sorta went into a vertical position. I really don't think I can blame the boat for that.

We got away

In any case, Dutch's problem was solved as we had to TP out of there. Found a rez spot and here we are again. Super relaxed and cozy. Open sea ahead. So, what's the verdict? I think it's a nice lil fun thing for leisure sailing and exploring. Not very advanced. Supereasy to sail and very stable. Perfect for exploring uncharted waters. I just don't get how it can be inflatable while not being deflatable.

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.

That J-boat

About that J-boat I spotted a few weeks ago... Last time I only looked. This time I sailed it around the Blake Sea, and it was a some sailboat-trip. This huge boat actually sails. Here it is again. The virtual J-boat moored at Tradewinds:

Moored at Tradewinds

Old (virtual) salts will be able to tell from this picture, that this is going to be something special. It's obviously high precision, high quality work. Loads of details are in place. Loads of details are still missing. For instance that block there on the side, it seems to be missing the other half of the rope going back up. That's only a tiny detail.

It's tall

Here's one big detail. Not only is the boat huge, - it is tall. Taller than most things actually. Check that view up the mast. Three sets of spreaders. Backstays, checkstays, babystays and what not. This is one of the tallest bermuda-rigs I've seen in this virtual world. Rene's Hanuman is the other one. If there is a windex somewhere up there, I sure can't see it without binoculars.

In fact it is very tall

Here's another shot to give you an indication of the size of this thing. The Tradewinds lighthouse barely measures half the height of this mast. Make no mistake. This is not a static object. This baby sails by the wind. It will carry just over 7500 square feet of sail. The Laser has a measly 76. Let's get going.

Under sail

Heading south with a sunset coming up. The woodwork is spectacular. Here's a view from the cockpit. Look at that wooden flushdeck. Huh! Don't you just need to go feel it? I am telling you: It is as smooth as silk. Let's have another view at it from higher up.

Top view

Here's the classic photo taken from the top spreader. Note the sheets and all the other lines going up and about. Also, note the height... You definately don't wanna fall off from here, and if you do, you wanna make damn sure the boat is heeled over, so you hit the water. Even then, you are in for a hard hit.

Inshore cruising

I sailed down south to get a couple of good pictures. I had this idea about a certain lighthouse being shorter than this mast. This being a Beta version, I wasn't sure I'd make it, but yes... All the way to Blake, round that lighthouse and back to Tradewinds. No crash, no simcross problems, just sailing.

So who's taller?

Ofcourse I am talking about the Fastnet Rock. It is huge. It is spectacular. I often go there while testing boats. Maybe I should surprice myself and take another route. Next time. Bear with me this time. Turns out the Fastnet Rock isn't that big after all, hehe.

Beauty and...

When sailing a J-class it seems everything else is tiny. On my way out of the Blake Sea I ran into this itty bitty Loonetta cabin-cruiser. Talk about different designgoals. Speed versus comfort. Classic versus modern. Long and sleek versus short and fat. Not that the Loonetta is bad. It is just one of those modern boats with less-than-classic lines.

Sunset

I cruised around for a couple of minutes more. Enjoyed the sunset. Then I turned north to get back to Tradewinds. What a sailboat. Phew. I mean, the Ten is pretty. This J-boat here, it is totally amazing. I wonder if anyone can see just which real J-boat this is supposed to look like.

What is this?

Quiz time... There are so many beautiful virtual boats available. Modern, classic, monohull, cats, big, small, one seaters and crewed... Manuls Ten is not alone, and the barre seems to be raised by the month.

A pretty thirty-something 

Yesterday I was at Tradewinds where this baby was docked. It's very pretty, don't you agree? It just sat there. No one around. Not even the owner. Regretfully I didn't get to sail it. However, I did sneak on board and get a good look.

Quite a lot of details

So here's the questions: What is it. Does it have a real life replica, and if so, has anyone sailed a real one. I know I've never seen on in real life, but I do hope there is a real one.

Fizz Cup 2013

The Fizz Cup 2013 is coming up. It's been announced for a while on the Official Fizz Cup site, and those superimportant dates are November 22-24 for qualifications and December 7 for the finals.

UPDATE: The NOR just came on. Go to the Fizz site, click "Documents", click "Notice of race".

This is the hardcore sailors sailing the most advanced sailboat available in SL. If you are into sailing, you absolutely want to register either as a participant or a spectator.

What is the Flying Fizz? Check here and here.
What is the Flying  Fizz Cup? Check here, here and here...

Waiting to start

A few days back I finally found time to race again; Feeling kinda rusty or the virtual racing, now that the Fizz Cup 2013 is coming up. Nevertheless, we had two lovely Laser heats right south of Tradewinds Yacht Club. Nine people showed up at the startline, so the pulse was up. The heat was definately on. Here we are waiting for the countdown to start.

Pulse up

The racing was pretty intense and it was obvious that the Laser is perhaps easy to sail but not that easy to sail fast. I had the misfortune of crashing at least once per race. Quite puzzling. The Laser never ever did that before. However, it caused a bit of a problem. The thing is, once the RD has left the starting area, the racewind is no longer available for a new boat to acquire. I probably need to read the manuals.

Count down

Incidentally I sailed a new version of the Laser with working telltails. Woohoooo. More on that in a future post, but it was nice. Very nice. The Laser itself is a pleasure to sail with or without telltails anyway. Thanx to Iteke for hosting and thanx to the RD; His name has escaped my memory. Great fun on the water.

PS: There's no pics from the races themselves. I was so busy handling my boat, so no time for that. If you want closeups of the boat, then click "laser" right under here, or try this link.

Manuls Ten is out

Virtual sailing just got better. The Ten is out. Yes, it's Manuls beautiful Ten, an almost legendary boat that so many people have seen and dreamt of but never sailed. Manul never really took it to market, but his partner, Tawnielee - somehow - managed to persuade Manul to release it. An updated version is now available for a bargain price. Not only that. There's two boats for the price of one. I sailed it one morning not too long ago.

Two Tens for the price of one

Here's me after receiving the package with the two Tens. There's the original wooden boat, and there's also a plastic remake. I must admit I tend to favour the wooden one, but both are - ofcourse - completely true to the original and unique design by Manul Rotaru. That's right. The Ten is 100% Manuls brain child. It is a virtual sailboat that exists only in SL, and it is the first and only time so far, I wanted to move a boat from SL to RL !!

Early morning sail

While I sat there debating with myself which one to sail, Dutch suddenly appeared. He was kinda curious about the boat, so sails up and off we went. I've said it before: There is nothing like an early morning sail. I guess it's the combination of fresh air, the quietness, the long shadows, the different colours. All mixes up and your heart magically becomes lighter. This time was no exception.

Heading south

We sailed south for a while. Noone said a word. We just sat there and took it all in: The breeze, the sounds and the sunrise. I noticed the Ten had been updated to the latest BWind sail engine. The first time I sailed the Ten it was running on an elderly version. This one is much more responsive, has better  sounds and it comes with flapping sails. You can also toggle the hud off and sail by feel only.

We were not alone

After a while, Dutch had things to do, so he hopped off. Not sure if he paged that helicopter or what. Probably not. Anyway, it was just me and the boat. So what's there to notice? It sails like a dream. Really. It is very easy to handle, pretty stable and it turns heads. What's there not to like, hehe.

Add birds to the soundscape

Honestly? There are a few parts of the Ten that are not completely up to date. It's not easy to see on these pics, but the sails are flat, and there are no sheets. While I'd usually object to this, I will make an exception here. This is such a pretty boat and it sails so nicely I am willing to forget those two things. In fact I already forgot. Besides, you never know if there will - one day - be an update...

Heading north again

Anyway. I sailed her around the Blake for some thirty minutes before I set a northerly course up the east coast of Pslande. Passed the Schiffsratten clubhouse and soon I found myself in the open waters of Rivadulla; Look what I met there...

Meeting a Baby Sloop

Out of the morning haze came roaring... a Baby Sloop! The original Becky Baby Sloop that was used to develop and test the BWind 2 engine of the Ten. It was close hauled and quite heeled over, so I tried to catch up. Turns out the Baby Sloop is faster than she looks. I gained but I didn't manage to catch her before I was back at Tradewinds.

Catching a Baby Sloop

Perhaps I was too busy enjoying the view and taking pictures. I thought I trimmed quite a bit, but then again I had switched the HUD off. Dunno. It's not important anyway. It was an amazing morning with a fantastic sail in a beautiful boat. Besides, I can always tweak the Ten to go like a rocket, hehe.

Back at Tradewinds

So here we are... Back at Tradewinds. The Baby Sloop already moored. Conclusions? This is an absolute must have boat. It's super pretty, it sails super deliciously and it is dead easy to handle. There's no complicated sails, but if you must sail wind in back, you can wing the jib. It is the perfect match for a beginner looking for a day cruiser; And it will turn the head of any experienced sailor.

Where can you get it? Ask TawnieLee Rotaru or check the Rotaru Bootshaus.

PS: More about the Ten at Orcas World.