NORSEBOAT TRAVELS 1400 MILES THROUGH THE ARCTIC

Two Royal Marines from the UK made a historic voyage through the arctic’s Northwest Passage in a production NorseBoat 17.5 sailing and rowing cruiser built spring 2009 at our shop in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia. The marines left Inuvik, a community in the Northwest Territories of Canada just north of the arctic circle, on July 24, 2009. On September 5, 2009 they safely reached Gjoa Haven, a small hamlet in the newly formed Canadian territory of Nunavut. They sailed, rowed and dragged their NorseBoat over 1400 miles on their journey, and encountered a wide range of conditions: curious whales and charging bears; the hospitality of the arctic people; beating to windward in the Beaufort Sea; rowing on glassy seas; getting caught in ice floes for days on end; sailing steadily at 6 knots with strong following winds.

Taken from one of their blogs: “We’ve been sailing throughout the night at about 6 knots. It’s been hard going. We’ve done 80 miles in 20 hours.”
Their final blog read: “Arctic Mariner has been our home for six weeks, and she has been superb.”

We are proud to have sponsored Kevin Oliver and Tony Lancashire on their successful Arctic Mariner expedition. For more photos: www.norseboat.com/Arctic_Mariner.html.
For more details of their voyage: www.arcticmariner.org

NORSEBOAT BUILT WHALE BOATS FOR THE REMAKE OF MOBY DICK

NorseBoat Limited built six traditional whale boats for the upcoming remake of the film Moby Dick. The boats were built of spruce strip planking and epoxy, with one layer of glass cloth on the outside of the hull and ash frames and a partial second layer of spruce planking (called the "ceiling") on the inside of the hull. Movie set designers completed the finish work of the boats to make them look like well worn whaling boats from the nineteenth century.

The whale boats are being shipped to the Mediterranean island of Malta where much of the filming of sea scenes will take place. Most of the land-based scenes are being filmed in Nova Scotia.

NorseBoat received the contract in July 2009 because of their ability to build high quality small boats with classic lines within tight budget and time constraints. The work was supervised by our lead boat builder, Scott Dagley. For more photos: www.norseboat.com/Moby_Dick_Movie.html.

NORSEBOATS RENDEZVOUS IN FRANCE!

Eight NorseBoats sailed together in Brittany, France during the “La Semaine du Golfe du Morbihan” sailing event May 20-24, 2009. The owners and crew of eight NorseBoats and nearly 1000 other small craft took part in four days of sailing, rowing and social activities in the waters and quaint villages of the Golfe du Morbihan. Kevin Jeffrey and Liza Wendt of NorseBoat travelled to France to join in the fun.

The Golfe du Morbihan is reputed to have the second strongest currents in the world and at times the sailing was challenging, but the event was well run with ample support vessels and staff. The weather was mostly fair, the scenery and Breton food superb, and the comraderie between NorseBoat owners and crew unforgettable. Next year’s annual NorseBoat rendezvous in France will be in the St. Malo area of Brittany.
For more photos: www.norseboat.com/Golfe_Morbihan.html.

NORSEBOAT 21.5 PROJECT UNDERWAY

Designer Mark Fitzgerald of Maine is hard at work on the drawings of the new NorseBoat 21.5 (click on the thumbnails for larger view). We envision a high performance, seaworthy craft in the 21.5 ft. range with distinctly NorseBoat lines and features, plus interior accommodations, a self-draining cockpit, a choice of either a high performance cutter rig or versatile split rig, and a choice of ballasted centerboard or removable/retractable keel. Like her sisterships the NorseBoat 21.5 would have some rowing capability, the option for shallow draft explorations, and the ability to be towed with a normal vehicle.

The target price for the NorseBoat 21.5 will be CN$29,995 plus options. The first four customers to put down a 25% deposit will have the opportunity to take an active role in the design and development of this exciting new craft, and receive their boat in time for the 2010 sailing season. Interested in being one of those customers? We have two spaces left! Contact us at info@norseboat.com.

NEW PRODUCTS BASED ON OUR NORSEBOAT 12.5 & 17.5 HULLS

We will soon be offering the following new products based on the NorseBoat 12.5 and 17.5 hulls:

1. The NorseBoat Electric Picnic Launch. This product features a standard NorseBoat 12.5 or 17.5 boat with varnished ash coaming, inboard electric motor and rechargable battery bank, large bimini, comfortable seating, ice-box and sound system. Full flotation, 1-6 person capacity.

2. NorseBoat Basic Motor/Row Boat. This is an affordable alternative for those who want a simple yet seaworthy motor and/or row boat for fishing or other recreational activities. This product features an open NorseBoat 12.5 or 17.5 (no deck). Two rowing stations, transom mount for short shaft outboard or electric motor, fore and aft seats plus rowing thwarts. Foam flotation, 1-6 person capacity.

3. NorseBoat Recreational Rowing Craft. This product features a low profile, lightweight NorseBoat 12.5 or 17.5 hull, a single or dual sliding seat rowing unit, fore and aft storage and buoyancy compartments. Good for single or double recreational rowing.

NORSEBOAT FALL SALE!

Order Now and Save up to $1000! Choose any of the following classic NorseBoat Sailing & Rowing Cruisers now and save $500 off the retail price, PLUS receive $500 in options absolutely free:

• NorseBoat 12.5 Sailing & Rowing Cruiser/Tender - Prebuilt or Kit
• NorseBoat 17.5 Sailing & Rowing Cruiser - Prebuilt or Kit
• NorseBoat 21.5 Cruiser - NEW high performance coastal cruiser with cabin accommodations

Or choose any of these NEW NorseBoat variations and save $250 off the retail price , PLUS receive $250 in options absolutely free:

NEW! NorseBoat 12.5 or 17.5 Motorized Picnic Launch
NEW! NorseBoat 12.5 or 17.5 Basic Row/Motor
NEW! NorseBoat 12.5 or 17.5 Recreational Rower

Don't wait! Be a part of the growing NorseBoat community. To order now and save, contact: info@norseboat.com.

NORSEBOAT TO ENTER ULTIMATE FLORIDA CHALLENGE 2010

It looks like a NorseBoat 17.5 will be entered in the upcoming Ultimate Florida Challenge expedition race March 6 to April 4, 2010. This 1200 mile circumnavigation of Florida is purported to be one of the toughest small boat challenges in the world.

Here is the description of the race from the WaterTribe website:
“This race circumnavigates Florida in five stages. The checkpoints are shown above. The first stage starts at Fort Desoto in Tampa Bay, Florida along withtheAnnual Everglades Challenge. At Key Largo you turn north and head for Sebastian Inlet. From there you go to the furthest NE corner of Florida at Fort Clinch. Then it's about 90 miles upstream on the St. Marys River to St. George. At St. George you begin the infamous 40-mile portage to the Suwannee River at Fargo. After about 220 miles down river you are back in the Gulf of Mexico - next stop Cedar Key. The final sprint from Cedar Key finishes back at Fort Desoto. It's hard to predict which stage will be the toughest since weather will be a factor, but watch out for the 40-mile portage between the St.Marys River and the Suwannee River - it's a heart breaker.”

For more information: http://www.watertribe.com.

We hope you find this newsletter interesting and informative. Please pass it on to other boaters you feel would be interested in receiving it. If you would like us to remove your name from our newsletter email list, please send this request to info@norseboat.com.

Fair winds,

Kevin Jeffrey, President

NorseBoat Limited
RR1, #241 Point Prim Rd.
Belfast, PEI COA1A0
Canada
tel: 902.659.2790
info@norseboat.com