AMAZONAS DO MAR - SAILING ALGARVE - Antics, Advice and the Odd Anecdote...: April 2012


The famous Needles chalk stacks


Bembridge Lifeboat Station as it was

The Isle of Wight holds both dear and dire memories for me. The dear ones are the nostalgic kind, propelling you back in time when the recalls are mere snippets but you know somehow, they were sweet.

I was a tender two year old on my first visit. I remember Bembridge Lifeboat Station and the brightly painted beach huts overlooking the stony beach where my brother and I spent most of our time; according to my folks, who were more often than not sat a fair distance away in the tea shop, no doubt sampling the tea and scones. (Ah now those were the days!). My parent’s recall of that holiday is how I knocked myself clean out after running into an eye level stainless steel bar in a supermarket, minutes after arrival. Each time we visit or are a stone's throw from Bembridge, I get to hear the story all over again.

The dire was in 2007, when a call arrived, informing me my childhood friend and a person deeply installed in my heart, Judith, had passed away.

In the 1980’s I sailed with Judith and her eccentric, monocle wearing father, who had a penchant for funky waistcoats and wore a moustache that Dali would have been proud of. He held a captive presence wherever he went and was the man responsible for providing the yacht for Clare Francis in 1976 to complete The Royal Western/Observer Transatlantic Yacht Race, setting a new women’s world record.

Robertson's Golly

It was that same yacht, Robertson's Golly, an Olson 38’, named after the company that provided the sponsorship, that we sailed together on the Solent. As the Island visit loomed before me, I began to wonder what had happened to the yacht, so naturally a search ensued. Coinciding with the dates of our stay was also the anniversary of Judith's death, obviously bringing forth an emotionally charged time of the year. So forthwith I began my search, using one of the numerous family I-Pads, the quest was set in motion. In no time at all I had discovered that the sloop had eventually become part of a syndicate, with a group of sailors co skippering the vessel.

http://www.aroundandaround.org/pages/aboutg.htm

Now many of you are probably cringing at the name, which is, to say the least, offensive and derogatory. But I do have to add, the original name wasn't much better. It was named 'Battle Royal of Chichester'. As far as I know there was no such Battle of Chichester, be it Royal or not. Neither was there a battle between the other town Battle on England's south coast and Chichester. So I'm somewhat I mean baffled as to how the name became.

The man responsible was none other than Mr Ronald Green, who was apparently a prominent member of the Chichester Yacht Club, which, it seems, gave him carte blanche to choose the original title. ( I wonder if he followed protocol and performed the necessary ceremony before changing the name, of which there appears to be several. Due to numerous maritime superstitions, it is extremely bad luck to change the name. As it is a whole topic of huge importance, I shall return to it in detail in another post.)

The Golly's got to go!

What was promptly removed years later, was the emblem that the Marmalade company Robertson's used in their range of jams, lemon curd and mincemeat, the most famous being the Golden Shred Marmalade. I must have scoffed my way through 100's of jars as a kid, with the Gollyw$g being stamped on every label. With the infamous golly now gone, Robertson's now cover their labels with big juicy strawberry's and perfectly formed oranges and I guess still as delicious as it ever was. Eventually the name was shortened still to just Robertson's G, so, thankfully, all racial connotations have been erased for good.

Further on into my research I stumbled upon a website, explaining what had happened to the yacht after the demise of Mr Green. Unfortunately after a trip to Yarmouth, where she had been laying some years before, I failed to discover her current location, although something tells me, she is laying in Portsmouth harbour.

Robertson's Golly

When I found out what had eventually become of her, I was relieved and pleasantly surprised to learn that she is providing an amazing service for under privileged kids, to give them an opportunity to sail, race and learn the seafaring ways. A diverse sport that very often, unfortunately, is only for the privileged. I know Judith would have been proud to know that her yacht has gone on to help these children and hasn't been relegated to some remote corner of a boatyard, going to rack and ruin. It added a touch of solace and further closure to what was an extremely difficult period in my life. Diverse memories of the island will always remain, for this was also to mark the last visit to be made together with my family.

The Isle of Wight