End of TIKI46 GRAND PHA building

[Bertrand FERCOT]

Hello

Fourteen years after to have purchase the plan of the Tiki46 N°2 the boat is ready for lauch.

After to have dismantle she, all the parts are put out of the hangar. The more difficult job was to put out the hulls because the ground is not very smooth outside :

Sorry to don't have yet actualise the blog of her building. I'll complete the blog in a few weeks after the launch.

Initially I plan to transport her a few days ago, but the transporter has been unable to do the job before his holidays, so GRAND PHA will join the marina of Brest to be reassemble the 27 August and will be launched a week later.....

To know more about the last parts of her building, have a look at the website of my wife :

Web site of Grand PHA

Bertrand

[WaveDancer & Bella]

She looks great! Congratulations Bertrand!

[Bertrand FERCOT]

Hello all friends

Thank you very much for your very nice compliments and appreciations.

These last weeks have been very busy in working very long time each day to be ready and the fact to wait 3 weeks more to transport GRAND PHA allows to have a rest, to make the last finishes, to well prepare the transport and to clean the hangar and house before to leave our home and land which will be in the hands of 3 of our sons.

This building has been a great school of patience, very often I got the good idea or a help at the good moment. I have always a global view of what I want but usually the how to proceed exactly is coming only at the last moment at the good time.

I thank very much all the friends who have helped us or given ideas and advices and I thank all the builders who gave me ideas and motivation to go until the end of the building. I thank Ann and Nev to have given us the wish to build a Tiki46  and so James, Hanneke and Ruth without them I'll never build a such boat.

Now my life of boat builder is ending, I'm very impatient to discover our new sailing life in joining  the Sea People and we

will be very happy to share ideas and help when meeting other Wharram sailors and builders in sailing around the world.....

Amitiés, Bertrand

[Rob and Beth Boase]

Congratulations on your beautiful boat Bertrand. Hopefully you will post some photos when assembled and ofcourse some of the launch !
Regards,
Rob and Beth

[Bertrand FERCOT]

Thank you Rob and Beth

Sure I'll post some pictures when assembled and the launch.

In waiting you can always follow the progression on the the Website of my wife Marie-Helene

Regards,

Bertrand

[jean philippe desfarges]

bravo et félicitations pour le courage et la ténacité . quand à la qualité du travail , c est fantastique , j espère que nous serons amené à nous rencontrer sur l eau. bien à vous jphi

[Dave Mellor]

HATS OFF TO YOU BERTRAND AND MARIE ...FANTASIC WORK ...NOW ENJOY HER, BEST DAVE

[Marc LaFrance]

What a beautiful job on what seems to me to be an incredibly large project for a couple to complete.

Congratulations!

Thank you for being a source of learning for me,

Marc Lafrance

[Bertrand FERCOT]

Thank you for your kind comments.

These last weeks were very busy and today our catamaran GRAND PHA is not yet launched because I met a lot of difficulties during these last months.
In the beginning of July, one of our son who works as organic producer on our land since 2 years was ill and has to go in the hospital. Happily some friends and family come at home to do the job until he becomes better.
After we've had problems with our transporter who said the day before to do the job that he was unable to transport our cat because his trailers are not able to hold the hulls in respect of the road rules!!!
So  we have searched for one another transporter with a correct trailer and we found one who will transport our cata with 3 trucks : 2 big ones for the hulls and a little one for the pod. But the job will be made only the Monday 10th September.
We expect a launching at the end of the week : the 14th or 15th September. In waiting I make the maximum of finishes  in order to be ready to sail more quickly after the launch.

Bertrand

 

[Ann and Neville Clement]

Launching aboat is almost like getting married.  The boat marries the water and there is much arranging to be done first.  Keep calm and try to enjoy.  It is a worry when others take charge of the project that consumed so much of your time, energy, and fortune, but the transport people are experts and it should go well.  Don't rush and ask questions, and get photos so all os us can cheer when it is done.  Much love and admiration to all of your friends and family and especially to you, Bertran.  Ann and Nev

[Bertrand FERCOT]

Ann and Nev, for me it's easier to get married than to prepare the launch of a such boat, especially to prepare the transport and to re assemble all the parts (there are so many parts!).

If all is OK after to have put the rig and have a few sailing tests, we'll sail to the isle of Wight to finalise the hybrid propulsion with tests with different propellers. After  a visit in Devoran, we'll sail back in Brittany  at Morgat to see the family until to have a good weather forecast to sail toward  the south of the Portugal near Faro where we'll have a stop to wait the visit of one of our son in the beginning of December and after we'll cross the Atlantic to the Caribean and next to the Bahamas to meet you at the end of January. Love from Bertrand and Marie-Helene

[Ann and Neville Clement]

Oh Bertran,

      I hate to disappoint you, but this one year, we have had a death in the family.  Our good friend (my ex husband) had terminal cancer and we came to Providence to care for him at home as he wished.  He passed away six weeks ago and left us his house.  Now we are clearing and cleaning the house and will stay here for the winter while Nev recovers from his first knee replacement and likely gets his second knee replacement maybe in January.  So we will not sail to Bahamas this winter.  We will have to endure snow and ice here in New England.  In the spring, we will again move onto the boat and resume cruising and other family members will live in the house and we will reserve three rooms for ourselves when we are in Rhode Island. 

     When we launched Peace in 2002, we discovered that Peace was only barely ready for sea and we wish that we had not crossed the Atlantic that first year.  We wish we had stayed in the south of Europe that first winter where it is warm and we wish we had found a protected harbor near a hardware store where we could make small adjustments to the boat.  Then we would have had an easier Atlantic crissing the next year after many sea trials and adjustments.  Peace did make a good voyage and we did fine, but it was a steep learning curve for us and my dislocated shoulder when we were only two days out from Canaries made that trip even harder. 

     After such a leisurely build, I hope you will not rush into an ocean crossing before you and the boat are ready.  This boat will sail differently than the little one.  This boat has had so many alterations from the plan, she will sail like no other boat ever built.  She is beautiful and you have been brave and wonderful to build your dream just exactly the way you wanted to.  Now go careful so the dream comes entirely true.  Take your time.

      All our love,  Ann and Nev

[luis]

Hi Marie Helene and Bertrand,

All our  moral support from Uruguay! Hope it helps to transport and launch!

Keep forward and receive our best wishes for yours dreams to be achieved.

All the best

Claudia and Luis