Practical Boat Owner - 'Which dinghy rowed the best? Our favourite is the Seahopper'
Boat Magazine - 'The Seahopper was our choice as a versatile fun boat for holidays - should prove a good sail trainer
Alice Driscoll, World Ladies' Enterprise Champion - 'I'm stunned, this boat is great! If Seahopper want a good sailing boat then they've got it'
| Article From The Daily Mail - 31st December 1997
It's a bracing morning and the call of the sea sings in your blood. With the wind set fair, what could be better than bobbing across the briny in your own yacht? But there's a heart-sinking snag that could scupper your plans. Unless the yacht is conveniently moored nearby, to sail off into the sunrise you must first of all transport your vessel to the water by cumbersome boat trailer. Given todays oceans of traffic, you will doubtless arrive tired, tetchy and a far-from-jaunty Jack Tar. Well, no longer. Thanks to dinghy builder Steve Rea, there is now a fold-away yacht you can wrap up and tuck under your arm. Mr Rea hopes to cause a sensation at next month's Earls Court boat show with what is thought to be the world's first collapsible racing vessel. He has designed the revolutionary Kontender craft so that it folds into a parcel just 6in deep, 22in wide and 10ft long. The plastic-lined sides and base fold flat and the ends and centre board slot into place when the 10ft masted vessel is in use. There's even a wheel on the back, so the craft can be picked up at the front and pulled along the ground. It weighs a mere 36kilogrammes (80lb) and can be carried on a car roof, train or bus yet is able to tackle winds gusting at more than force 6. Mr Rea's company already makes two other collapsible sailing boats 6ft and 7ft 10in long but these are primarily for use as training craft and tenders for yachts. The Kontender, he says, is a different proposition altogether. 'It's a unique product,' said Mr Rea, from Wellington in Somerset. 'There's nothing else like it in the world. There are other collapsible wooden boats, but nothing as substantial as ours. 'We have been testing it for two years and she's superb. We took her out in a force five to six and she handled very well. 'She's for the more serious sailor who wants a bit of racing and is also ideal as a trainer for families as well.' |
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Cold and exhausted after 15 hours adrift in the English Channel, a couple are helped ashore by lifeboatmen at Guernsey.
Mr Andre Lajoie and his wife Sylvie, who are in their fifties, were forced to abandon their cabin cruiser when it capsized during high winds in the channel on Sunday.
Lifeboats and helicopters from England, France and the Channel Islands joined the search before their dinghy was spotted by French lifeboatmen.
The couple, who come from Guernsey, were treated for exposure at the island's Princess Elizabeth hospital yesterday. Mr Tony Pattimore, Guernsey's Deputy Harbourmaster, said "They were surprisingly fit"
15 Hours Adrift In The Channel
Article from the Daily Mail - Wednesday, December 31, 1997 |