Kirton Ranger 7 - Wheezy 0



5.30am coming back from Aberdeen. Another boat on the road.

I had been trying to get my hands on a mid-range stability K1 boat for a long time. A wobble factor 1 or 2 boat I could have bought 20 times over but something that would be stable enough for me to cope with and yet be a little bit more racey was proving as rare as rocking horse poo. Frustration and ebay are a lethal combination and before I knew it I had purchased a boat at a really good price; but it was in Aberdeen. Actually, it wasn't in Aberdeen, it was in Aberdeenshire, in Peterhead, another 50 odd miles north of Aberdeen.  :-0 Let this be a lesson to anyone else who's geographical knowledge is as poor as mine. Mrs Wheezy just rolled her eyes at my stupidity while friends openly mocked. You've bought a what? Where? How much is that going to be in petrol? The answer; as much as the boat was to cost me. Hey ho. The boat in question is a Kirton Ranger. A quick search revealed that with a wobble factor of 4 it was probably a bit on the tippy side of stable but I like a challenge. I wouldn't know until I gave it a go.

So last weekend after a really long day at our local street party I set out at 5am to do the 10 hour drive. It was awful weather up until Kendal and then it was beautiful sunshine for the rest of the trip which was a bonus. As I went through Aberdeen and hit the coast road for the final part of the journey I saw a fleet of approximately 20 enormous fishing vessels heading out into the North Sea; it was a fantastic sight.

Although the boat was old it had not been used for the last 15 years. The gel coat's still got its turquoise colour having been stored inside and while it's got the usual scrapes here and there, the boat is in great nick. I was really pleased with it. An early night and a quick sleep in the travelodge at Aberdeen airport which was a new, all-time low in hotel accomodation and then it was up at 3am to be on the road by 3.30 for the drive back.



Just after sunrise.

After brekkie at Penrith I didn't get out of 5th gear until 10 miles from home and was back for lunch  on monday. A 1100 mile round trip. Mrs Wheezy has now given me a new ebay rule; only buy stuff which is in the same country, especially when it's 'buyer collect only.'





Names on a postcard please.



So tonight was my first go in the Ranger. If I'm honest, it didn't go well. At the Royal there's a small cut that separates the island clubhouse from the mainland and I thought that I would use this to paddle on rather than going out into the river. Almost before I had sat in it I found myself upside down in the water. Eventually I got going and I was able to get a bit of stability by remembering to keep my  head up and looking ahead, however the slightest catch of the paddle and I was swimming. I was also not able to rotate my hips at all as this had me swimming as well. In all, in the space of 40 minutes, I capsizes 7 times and I was able to paddle 20 metres. Calling it paddling would be an exaggeration. It was more like the canoeing version of Tourettes Syndrome; a stuttering, smacking the water kind of paddling as I beat the water into submission in a vain attempt to keep upright.  Most of the time I was practising my boat emptying skills.

A couple of things are evident. It's going to be quite a while before I venture out into the open river in it, there's going to be a lot more swimming going on and I will not be racing in this boat for a long time.

Onwards.