Joined: Aug 2017 Posts: 3,391 Threads: 106
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Location: Darkest Bedfordshire
Ha ha well that sank like a pebble to the sea bed! Shame to think of a vintage A7 sitting there waiting for someone to claim her as salvage.
Joined: Aug 2017 Posts: 1,642 Threads: 23
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Location: The village of Evenley
Car type: 1934 Austin Seven RP Deluxe
Well I read it Chris!
Sadly I think very little of the Austin will remain after all these years, but wouldn’t it be great to send an RV down there to have a look?
It looks like RMS Tahiti was destined to sink following its disastrous career.
Joined: Aug 2017 Posts: 3,391 Threads: 106
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Location: Darkest Bedfordshire
Yay! Well done Ivor.
By all accounts Emily (I) was fairly well strapped down and there was no catastrophic crash, so it's reasonable to suppose she sank 3 miles to the bottom in one piece. As you say though, after 90 years on the bed of the Pacific she's probably dwindling in the restorability stakes. Mind you, wouldn't be the first vintage car that's been 'restored' from a brass wheel nut!
I can only guess McQuarrie didn't know the history of this vessel before he bought the tickets - or were people made of sterner stuff in those days?
Joined: Aug 2017 Posts: 967 Threads: 117
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Location: Melton Mowbray.
At the risk of offending you Chris, I find Round the World... poorly written and frankly boring. His other Seven book, Little Wheels, published in the UK but previously titled in Australia We and the Baby, a far better and more interesting read. The Australian edition has more photographs so is the better one.
Joined: Aug 2017 Posts: 172 Threads: 1
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Location: Richmond, Texas, USA
Many years ago I sailed with Elder Dempster lines, the original owners of the vessel when she was Port Kingston. I dug out my fleet history and looked her up, there wasn't much more than the Wikipedia article. However, her history wasn't all that unusual. A number of the ships that I sailed on had accidents, and several came to a watery end.
Joined: Aug 2017 Posts: 3,391 Threads: 106
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Location: Darkest Bedfordshire
Now you mention it Roger, I sailed on the 'Herald of Free Enterprise" a number of times!
Joined: Aug 2017 Posts: 2,748 Threads: 31
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Location: Auckland, NZ
The account of the sinking is interesting. Until the weather improved they were at very great peril. As a boy my grandparents had photo centrepages from a local weekly. The photos of crew manipulating a giant baling bucket etc were impressive. (The propshaft broke and the prop probably gashed the hull as well and the ship very slowly filled and eventually sank) . The other bloke was the mechanical one and main driver. The book has very little about the actual car; could all fit on two pages. And road features etc which would be remarkable today then were not. However the book is an interesting reflection on ways and attitudes of the time. The pair were effectively upper class Poms; modern commentators would be bemused and horrified. Comments about personalities would get you sued today. I reviewed it some long time ago
