Totally incongruous (for a change)
by John Curnow, Editor, Sail-WorldCruising.com 1 Aug 2018 21:50 UTC
AMEL 50 outdoor © JS Evrard
It might seem somewhat bizarre. I had started by looking at some pics and information about Amel's European Yacht of the Year in the luxury cruiser category. This is their very smart looking, and still new 50, which is the baby of the range. Amel's have already sold something like fifteen of them. That is made even more impressive when you realise that the yard only creates around 30 vessels a year!
So how then did I get onto the utterly brilliant A-10 Warthog (aka Thunderbolt)? I'm not entirely sure, but watching a video where Senator McCain gave the USAF staffers a drilling over the imminent retirement of the aircraft was quite entertaining and also informative. They wanted to use B1Bs, as well as the mighty F-16 Falcon, for close in-air support, which is a role the A-10 has made all its own over the years.
From there - and this is now where you'll see where I am going with all this - it came down to design ethos, and two of my favourite all time guidelines: fit for purpose, and form follows function. The B1B is huge and the unspoken motto for the F-16, which the USAF Thunderbirds used to use as their ride for their acrobatics, is 'One pass, haul a#@!', which pays homage to their inherent fragility.
And this is how I got to the Amel 50. It keeps all of the things that make an Amel, an Amel, but gave it a sexier form, that also performs really well. Commenting on how proud, honoured and grateful they were when they received the award, Emmanuel Poujeade, chief executive of the AMEL shipyards. "Above all, we are very happy for the whole team at the Amel Yard, because everybody has worked with a real commitment and much enthusiasm, and we hope that the success of the Amel 50 will keep on growing!"
Tacking. Helm down. In The Smörgåsbord last week we featured the Seabin. The images were taken during a demonstration at Gold Coast City Marina, where Luke McCaul is the GM of Customer Experience & Property Management. Luke can be seen on the left of the image below.
Luke commented to me afterwards, "The plastic epidemic in the ocean is well discussed and here is a very direct, simple and effective way businesses operating in a marine environment can take part to address the problem."
"GCCM are committed to best environmental practice and innovation, as is demonstrated through our leadership in various business environmental initiatives. The Seabin Project is the epitome of both of these attributes, not to mention Australian ingenuity. GCCM were proud to host the Queensland demonstration of the Seabin, and will continue to support the great initiative, and raising the awareness of this innovation to the marine business world."
That's wonderful stuff, and we do need to continue to take charge of this epidemic, as Luke calls it. The reason is simple. If you give up on knowing that every little bit counts, then all hope is lost. Sometimes it is daunting at best, but the results have to speak for themselves. Some very quickly go on to blame Asia and Africa, as the major polluters. Yet look at this way. Once upon a time when you travelled to some of these locales, you got your food in a banana leaf, and your drink was in a coconut shell or similar.
It was not long before the plastic tub took over, and your drink was in a plastic bag with a straw out of the top of it. It is stated that China, Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, and Thailand, are the worst offenders, and I can also quickly remember being at Port Klang outside of Kuala Lumpur and literally thinking you could walk across the fast flowing tide of junk, like stepping stones across a pond in park.
The world's most polluted river is in Indonesia. The Citarum receives no less than 20,000 tons of waste and 340,000 tons of wastewater, mostly from 2,000 textile factories, and all of this goes directly into the once clear and pristine waterways, and then of course, ultimately the world's oceans.
So it means the so-called First World is not the worst. Yet if you look at it more closely, you could say we gave them the issue, so now we should stand up and show them the way forward. Keeping it at the micro level and not using a straw will help a turtle. Not letting the six-pack carrier go over the side. We think it is cute in a movie where a penguin has it as permanent necklace, but the reality is far, far more disgusting. What about that whale that had tens and tens of kilos of plastic in its belly...
If you want to say not your problem fine, but you live here too, so every bit counts for all of us, and all of the other things around that call Earth home. Sermon over.
OK. Today you will find that we have information for you about the Sydney Boat Show and boats like the new J/112E, and Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 490, the slowing of the Gulf Stream current, sharks, reefs, a video review of the new Bavaria C45, hanging out in the Caribbean, wandering around the Med, World ARC, the Newport Show, Orcas, as well as much more.
So you see, there are stories, lessons, inspirations and history to regale yourself with. Please do savour... We're really enjoying bringing you the best stories from all over the globe. If you want to add to that, then please make contact with us via email.
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In the meantime, do you love being on the ocean? Well remember to love them back too. They need our help. Now more than ever! Until next time...
John Curnow, Editor, Sail-WorldCruising.com