That time of year again!

I sold ‘Teal’ last September and bought a Hartley TS16, which I have named ‘Talisker’. The summer has been a succession of calms and blows, and, as a result, I have only sailed about 10 times. Enclosed is a photo taken in one of the calms.

She is double chine plywood, steel plate, 150 lbs cast iron ballast, nav lights, 27 MK2 radio, 2 bunks, 2 jibs, spinnaker, main with 1 slab reef, s/d cockpit and a rotten 7 hp Suzuki o/b, which won’t idle and now gets left in the shed! Displacement is approx. 1200 lbs and she is surprisingly easy to rig and launch single handed from a good trailer.

There are 4 TS16s in the club and it looks like regular racing will occur next season, along with cruising.

I have just read a report of two Americans who sailed a TS16 across the Atlantic to England. However, the modifications were extensive, including a fixed ballasted keel, and all up displacement must have been around 3000 lbs (70 gallons of water for a start = 700 lbs).

So far this bicentennial year we have had part of the Tall Ships fleet in Adelaide just after Christmas, and this week the first fleet re-enactment ships left after arriving on Good Friday. Spent one day going on board all the ships — great, that’s what I would call sailing! Oh well, back to 16’ 5”…

Yours sincerely Ray Ellard

11 Protea Street, Morphett Vale, Australia 5162