N2905 Subversion

[National 12 Webmaster]

The life of N2905 Subversion. Design: Subversion, designed by: Jo Richards in 1976
Previous boat names: Subversion, Isle-B-X, Sundance, Jet Plane, prior to reverting to original boat name Subversion.

[chopper]

Subversion has found a new home with me. Another one to play with.  She seems to have stood the sands of time quite well The famous daggerboard case needs a bit of repairing nothing that a bit of wests heat and luck wont fix. loads more could be done but plan to finish off winter series at Ardleigh Sc with her see how she goes then modernise a lot more.

Amazed how modern looking the inside of boat looks open plan.

[smilie]

Subversion is now found a new home at Ely SC with me Jonathan (Smilie) Garfitt. First outing is going to be sunday afternoon after a moring of boat bimbling )

[smilie]

With a few of sails in Subversion under our belts and Kez and mine sailing season is at an end, with Subversion going into the workshop to make her look all shiny again. There’s also small matter of fixing a couple of split joints. I think it’s about time I wrote a bit about what it’s like to own and sail Joe Richards’ forth go at National 12 design (PTO 1962, Anticipation 1974, IOU 1975 and Subversion in 1976 followed by the Bouncer in 1977).  For starters from what I have heard I get the impression the boat itself has been a bit of a marmite design. I can see why:  Subversion’s very slender bow sections would make a Pipedream look like it’s got plenty of volume up front. Subversion is also very ‘round’ with most of rocker aft which all adds up to make her very sensitive to fore and aft trim. 

Weirdly as with fine bowed skiff type boats once the bow digs in you don’t get the rapid slowing leading to a ‘green’ foredeck, which is nice.  All our sailing so far has been on flat water and probably will remain so but I think in any waves or chop sailing her will be a very different ball game. 

So what do we think about sailing her then? We really enjoy it, she cruses about Ely Sailing club happily, reacts when we ask her and picks up nicely on the breeze.  A couple of strange things is maybe because the lack of any real flat section and the rocker is when she planes she doesn’t ‘lift’ or maybe we need go out  when there is some more breeze.  And then there’s the fore and aft trim. To get Subversion rocking along nicely I find myself shuffling backwards and forwards lots, more than I can remember from sailing 12’s in the past. It’s all good though

Subversion is also a bit different for the crew. First of all there’s no thwart which isn’t too much to worry about as at Ely the crew doesn’t get much chance to stay in one place (!). The other thing is (you should look away now if daggerboards and National 12’s offends you) crewing a daggerboard 12 is fine, it doesn’t get in the way; this might be because we find to get the best trim you don't need to be that far forward. Also since Ely is pretty much the same depth all over we haven’t got catching the board to worry about.  If we did run aground possibly Subversions strangest feature is  the daggerboard case is designed to allow the board to rake which would hopefully get us out of trouble. 

So with all sorts of plans floating round my head for Subversion’s winter re-fit and refurbish we probably won’t be out sailing again in till Easter at the earliest or if my crew gets her way, till it’s warm enough to go sailing in shorts again. 

More to follow as we peel the paint off and her ready for 2014

[smilie]

Here’s a few photos taken for the before/after contrast thing taken on a rainy Sunday afternoon before Subversion went into the workshop.

[smilie]

soz Gazz pics are probably a bit big I will do better in the future;)
Here's the last few photoies of the business side of Subversion (Jet is becoming her pet name)

[smilie]

Chapter 2 The Myths and legends of Subversion
Hello just wondering if the collective intelligence of the 12 class can help me sort out weather a couple of stories which surround Subversion are true.
When I was at the inlands I asked both class aficionados Kevan Bloor and Michal Brookman if they could shed any light on weather myths around Subversion are just that. Neither of them is really sure what fact or fiction is. Mostly because the stories have been kicking about for so long is hard to separate fact from fiction.
The first Subversion legend is;
Is Jo started building Subversion in the cricket practice nets at college. I guess because he was planning an autumn/winter build  and it was a good indoor spot to being used because it was outside the cricket season.  All was good until he got discovered so with nowhere else to go Jo finished building Subversion in his college digs. Which resulted in him getting thrown out college. “Now that’s commitment to 12 building”
The Second is;
During the Burton Cup race Jo lead all the way till he stopped for a ‘pit stop’ halfway up the last beat which lost him the lead. Which bad luck I ‘spose but good luck the Burton Brick didn’t exist as that’s an almost guaranteed winner.  As someone has recently won it for the use of the same ‘alternative’ propulsion pit stop.
 
So are they true? Or just another part of N12 folk law?

[biggles]

I think the boat built on the "cricket net" was 2820 Anticipation. I have posted what I know of her on her own thread.
Alan Henson

[John Sears]

I was with Jo Richards at Nottingham University. N2820 Anticipation was built outdoors after exams on a slab of concrete halfway up the hill in front of Hugh Stewart hall. No one knows why it is there but it is conveniently level and the right size to set up frames. Subversion was built after Jo & I left university. Contrary to popular belief, Jo did get his degree (Joint honours in Geography and Biology I believe) but I am certain he never made use of it apart from reading a map to find out where he was sailing next. Jo did build a Moth in his room and was taken to task by the housekeeper who objected to the woodshavings and sawdust she had to clean up.
Jo built a boat for me (N2939 Paws) in the summer of 1976 in my parents garage. While we were building her we put Subversion round the back, out of sight. Jo worked tremendously hard & fast so we completed the hull & decks in 8 days. Our postman had been monitoring progress each morning and was extremely impressed. On the last day Jo was going to a regatta so we shut the garage and brought Subversion round to the front. Of course the postman thought it was the same boat and was astounded that we had managed to paint, varnish and rig it in one day! We hadn't the heart to disabuse him!
Jo sailed Subversion at Falmoth Burton week that year, crewed by Bill Short, a Moth sailor. Bill was a practical boater and he found the side decks rather uncomfortable. One morning Jo arrived to find that Bill had stapled an old wetsuit over the side decks, doing wonders for the boat's aesthetics. Bill was ill on Burton cup day so Viv Whitehead stepped in to crew Jo. They had an epic battle with John Royce & Steve Culliford. As far as I recall Jo didn't intentionally stop up the last beat. As an impecunious recent student, he did fit his boats out on a budget so gear failures were common. In reality Subversion was not a fast downwind boat and the seas at Falmouth were quite steep that day. I suspect Subversion's fine bow would have driven under quite a few waves on that last beat. It would be good to hear Jo's memories of that day.
If you compare the front half of Subversion with a Pipedream you may be struck by the similarity. Rob Peebles certainly had a copy of Subversion's plans and the designs exhibit similar charecteristics. Subversion's stern is much more waisted however. Ironically this anticipates Dead Cat Bounce. Have you tried a foiled rudder, Jonathen? Jo also designed a boat called IOU for his cousin, Mike Wigmore. This had a very pronounced bustle in the stern and V sections. Unlike Mike Jackson's later Final Chapter the concept rarely worked. Many of us enjoyed a free ride on the enormous stern wave Mike produced in any breeze. Mike and Guy Curly went on to finish 2nd at the Tynemouth Burton week in 1979 sailing a Steet Legal.
I am pleased you appreciate Subversion because, like many of Jo's designs, she was quite radical in her day. I remember crewing Jo in her, racing on the river on a Thursday evening. Sitting so close to the water and watching her fine bow carving through flat water impressed me greatly. I still enjoy watching Punkawallah doing the same.

[smilie]

Hello John
On we haven’t even though when I should ‘Mr Exocet’ Kevin Ellway Subversion just after I bought, he thought she would go well foiled rudder. Given I’m very much in the fine bow camp of boat design plus her narrow water line I think still would go very well as well. If did want to go down that route I would have to go for the Dare Barry method of rudder adjustment. Because I want leave her as original as possible which means leave the back tank in.
 
I also know what you mean John about watching her fine bow cutting the water.

[smilie]

Below shows how fine subversion's entry really is and how much her transom is pinned in.