Wordless Wednesday ~ 15: Spiralling

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Dinner and wine on the boat tonight

Must say that we are very lucky for having the opportunity to be owners of two homes. One in the middle of the city. The other on the sea - with a chance to set off whenever we want to. The possibility to leave the "normal" world every once in a while. And to be able to live close to the water - is all that a stressful city mind needs sometimes.

Planned route

So this is what it looks like at the moment. Naturally there will be plenty of smaller adjustments and changes along the way, but this is the guide line.

At the moment we're cruising around in the Mediterranean, waiting for the perfect time to move further West and approach the Atlantic crossing in November this year, 2010.

The Atlantic passage will be done straight after the hurricane season, which is normally around June - October. Hoping to be able to use the trade winds to be pushed over to South America and be safely over in the Caribbean for Christmas 2010. New Year is due to be celebrated in Antigua.

Planning on doing some island hopping in the Caribbean for some months and thereafter transit the Panama canal, out on the Pacific side of the world. Galapagos is definitely one of the first ones on the must-visit-list, after that... who knows where the winds will bring us next?

All we know is that we're about to enjoy ourselves to the fullest. Explore the sea and ocean life, get away from the materialistic/superficial world to reach new insights, step away from the normal world to gain something new - and to share these beautiful things with the person we love the most.

S/V Caos - Hallberg Rassy 352

Running for Autism

One of the greatest benefits of running this blog has been the opportunity to meet all sorts of people I might not have encountered otherwise.  A short while ago, I received a couple of comments from a friendly blogger called “Revivor” and when I popped over to his blog, I saw that he was organising a four day run from Clapham to Brighton to raise money for the charity CASPA (Children on the Autistic Spectrum Parents’ Association). 

Naturally I was intrigued and so I contacted him straight away and we decided to meet up and chat about his noble adventure.

Ivor Reveley (check out the “Gotta Run” t-shirt)

On whether he has done such a thing before…

Two years ago, on his fiftieth birthday, Ivor and a team of runners ran from Romford to Orpington.  They ran 50kms over 50 hours to raise money for 50 young people with autism.  Ivor broke that down for me and explained that it is not as impossible as it sounds (bearing in mind that I walk a 5km fun run once a year): you run for two to three hours a day over three days and cover about 20 kilometres a day.  It is not easy but it is possible!

They raised £8,500 on that occasion which meant that their charity CASPA was able to obtain viability and get the real start that it required.  This is so important, as Ivor explains, because it meant that the charity could remain a stable entity in the lives of the children and families it serves.

On why he was raising money for CASPA?

Ivor's sixteen-year-old son has autism.  After being a charity trustee for fifteen to twenty years, Ivor realised that he had the skill necessary to make a difference in the lives of other children with autism and he decided to get involved with CASPA.

On what CASPA is and what they do...

Ivor is the chair and trustee of the charity.  They started off as an informal parents’ association in 2002 and formally registered the charity in 2005.  As a charity, they run events and workshops for young people with autism such as:

• Brighton Beach kid’s days out
• Youth Club on a Friday night
• A residential week long summer camp
• Independent Living Workshops (which are sponsored by the LDA)

They have received brilliant feedback from the children who say it is a safe environment for them to have fun, free from bullying or other such concerns.

On making the runs interesting…

After completing A-levels in Economics, Geography and Maths, Ivor went on to study Economics at university. An avid map lover, Ivor is now using his Geography and Maths skills again as he plans the most historical and geographically interesting routes through cathedrals and up high streets.  The idea is for the runners to enjoy these events and to see and learn about the places they run through.

On this year’s event…

Date: 30 April – 3 May 2010.
Route: Clapham Common to Brighton Beach (route details)

Ivor hopes to do events like this every even year and this year they will be doing a four day run from Clapham to Brighton.  Ivor is keeping a log of all of the training and organising of the event in his blog Four Days Running.

A half marathon is 21km and these runners will be doing more than that each day as they will run from about 2.30pm to 5pm every day for four days.

Friends, family and supporters will be able to meet up with the runners every evening as pub nights are being organised on Facebook and the hotels that the group is staying in is published on the site (stay on route).

This is not a public run but anyone interested in joining the run can contact Ivor at the site to get involved.  They have a photographer taking part this year so expect great photos!

On how YOU can help…

You can donate money using the button above.  That will take you to the Just Giving site where the money will go straight to the charity and won’t touch anyone’s hands.

But don’t worry, there are lots of other ways to help too:

• Follow the Four Days Running blog
• Follow Ivor’s Twitter account: @revivor. 
• Join the fun and do the four day run: Run With Us
• Stay on the route and be a supporter

Speedboats and Helicam aerial photography

Happy Birthday to me! Last Thursday (4th March) was the big day. I tend not to celebrate the passing years, but this year enjoyed a great day out on the water playing with speedboats, cameras and a helicopter.... Background: I am manager at Sunrise Divers, based at Karon Beach in Phuket. The owner bought a very nice speedboat last year and we're going to offer the boat for private charters - not diving, but cruising, sightseeing, getting out to offshore islands, off the beaten track a bit. The boat is called Sky Water, it's a Sea Ray 26 foot sports boat, top class, very nice.. not your average Thai speedboat. It's available for charter for up to 4 people.. can squeeze in a couple more, but it's not a huge boat. The waters around Phuket are dotted with small islands. Some are very popular like Phi Phi or Koh Khai. Other islands are less well known. The Sky Water can take you wherever you want. Damn, I want one too!

Update February 2011 - Sky Water (this boat on this page) is for sale, 1.8 million Baht - interested? Contact me!

On Thursday, we had arranged a day at Koh Rang Yai, a small and very nice island just off the east coast of Phuket. The Sky Water is based at the Ao Po Marina in the northeast of Phuket.. the photo below shows Gilbert (owner) and Sky Water at the marina...



It was just 15 minutes cruise to reach Koh Rang Yai. The day was all about photos. We met the guys from Helicam at Ao Po. Helicam specialises in taking aerial photos amd videos. They do boats, hotels, private houses and much more and get some amazing photos - their website is www.helicam.asia. It happens that I know Phil, one of the owners, as our kids go to the same school. On Thursday Phil was joined by Khun Moo - Phil is the helicopter pilot (remote control) and Moo the photographer.

Enough talk!.. I'm waiting for some of the finished Helicam photos - will be added soon, but I took some pics on the day from the shore and from the boat. Firstly - Koh Rang Yai is a gorgeous little island...



We cruised in to the beach and unloaded the Helicam gear... helicopter, remote controls, batteries, and other fancy electronic gear that was beyond my ken. Phil got the copter ready on the beach. It can take off and land pretty much anywhere. Phil preferred to use the beach, but later we managed it from the back of the speedboat :)



The helicopter can't stay up for too long, about 15 minutes is the limit on a set of batteries. We planned 2 runs - the first getting aerial shots of the boat and the second with wakeboarding. I stayed on shore for the first run, as we didn't want too many people cluttering the boat. I have a 300mm zoom on the camera so got a few good pictures of Sky Water and the chase helicopter...





You might notice the hills and shoreline behind the boat... the East coast of Phuket is very different to the developed beaches on the West coast. You can get to Koh Rang Yai easily by longtail boat from Laem Hin.. or by chartering the Sky Water :) After the first run, Phil landed the helicopter at the beach - the hat in the foreground is Phil...



For the second photo session, Gilbert wanted to try something new... photos of him wakeboarding taken from the helicopter. This was new for the Helicam team too! I'll post some of the final photos that they got in a couple of days... I was on the boat, Gilbert in the water and Phil somewhat apprehensively launching the helicopter from the back of the speedboat - not much room to manoeuvre...





The boat captain upped the revs, Phil piloted the helicopter behind Gilbert on his wakeboard and we flew past the beach a couple of times. Now, Gilbert's not a wakeboard champ, but enjoys a bit of a go - anyone chartering the Sky Water can also do some watersports - there's plenty of quiet water on the East coast of Phuket, ideal for a quick wakeboarding session. I took some photos from the boat... waiting for some pics from Helicam.. and (I have seen some previews) they are good. Great company they are, Helicam - if you want aerial photos, check their website: www.helicam.asia.





After the photo session we threw the anchor, swam ashore and had a couple (ahem, I had more than a couple) of beers and some food at the restaurant at Koh Rang Yai - food is tasty, also not cheap at all! Well, occasionally Paradise is worth it - you can stay at Koh Rang Yai in simple bungalows for 1000 Baht per night. After the drinks we carried the Helicam gear back to the boat and sped back to Ao Po in the afternoon sun. In this weather, a day on the water is always a pleasure. And yes I got a bit too much sun, but since I work in the office 6 days a week, too much sun is a luxury!

• Sky Water - Speedboat Charters
• Helicam - Aerial Photos and Video

Added 19th March - a few of the shots from the Helicam helicopter - you can see more at the Skywater Boat Charter Gallery.

Spring is back at least.

Hmm... Time to repair the sail?!

And that is not the only thing we need to repair.

We need to get the refrigerator working again, the wind generator needs to get installed, the blige pump needs some reparation, then the refinishing of the teak (!).

And now we just figured out that the sails are in need of some good old stitching.

I'm happy that Alex has more patience than I do.. :o /T