[Date Prev][Date Next]
[Chronological]
[Thread]
[Top]
RE: [PSUBS-MAILIST] fascinating stories
Nice story Carsten -
I need more time to drink beer...
Greg
-----Original Message-----
From: owner-personal_submersibles@psubs.org
[mailto:owner-personal_submersibles@psubs.org] On Behalf Of Carsten
Standfuss
Sent: Wednesday, November 05, 2003 4:59 PM
To: personal_submersibles@psubs.org
Subject: Re: [PSUBS-MAILIST] fascinating stories
SeaLordOne@aol.com schrieb:
>
> Carsten,
> Spurdog story #1 please.
> Doug Farrow
Its short before midnight here.. I am just back from the yard - no joke-
our storekeeper keep out some tons of galvanize steel bolts and nuts to
the scrappplace. All unused in the original boxes. Because we use on
ships in 2003 and since years only stainless steel.. so I ask the my
boss - and now I have bolts and nuts to outfit about 20 submarine
newbuildings - Trident class size..
Its a good time to tell a small submarine tale..
It was an on a small planet far away from my homeport here in Germany -
the planet was called "The Netherlands". The only other private
submarine builder I know during this long forgotten period million years
before the Internet - say about 1990..
A small harbour - called Massluis not far away from a big port called
Rotterdam. There was a small submarine pen basis for german midget
submarine during Worldwar II - long unused - only cows and pigs there
since decades.
But then a small group of 2-3 motorbikers saw during the mid 80ies
the film "Das Boot" - and the were so facinate that the decide to build
there own.. The worked many hours in a tomato farm to make money for the
steel.. Than the build there first sub - a very small and simple two
seater with a 60 hp car petrol engine just to learn - run then sub 2-3
times - and scrapped it. Just to build the real thing. The unit was 20 m
long, 2,4 meter diameter and look like a little like a german war
submarine of WWII.
( http://www.psubs.org/pic/spurdog.html )
After about 3 years - many girlfriends and wifes and about 70000 USD
later the 60 ts monster was ready to launch. During this time I build
the Sgt.Peppers here in Germany. We get in contact - wrote some letters
- and later on during the habour festial - my girfriend and I visit our
new friends. It was a nice harbour festival and on the next day the both
girls decide to go shooping or to do what ever girls do.. when here mens
decide to drive the submarine just out the harbout for a beer or two..
Robert and I put the nessesary equipment in the boat - mostly a 24 x
0,33 liter box of beer. We drunk a beer or two during the time he make a
saftey instruction ("Start button here - Stop button there.) and than we
free the boat from the ropes. We run the boat in the direction to the
sea - what means change the direction all 2 Minutes because the town was
small - but the habour was big..
After 20 Minutes and one or two beers later we saw the open sea !
We leave the harbour and.. c-r-u-n-c-h the boat goes from 7 knots to
zero and the bow raised a little - and Robert shouted : "Dammed
sandbank - its still there.."
We use our stop for a very welcome beer and think about the situation..
Than Robert told : We never blow the ballsttank complete - the last 20%
cost to much compressed air. And we decide to blow the forward tank
complete and even the aft. I turned handwheels big as in a car and the
air whistle to the tanks.. A minute later outside Robert saw the bubbles
from both side of the hull - put the engine to full reverse and we get
the monster free..
We decided that today is not the day to dive and drive it back to the
harbour - mostly because we want to go to the pub for a beer or two.
Years later the boat was sold and many years later I became a good
friend of
Walter, the new owner - since some years my wife and I visit him one
time a year - than we sitting in the sub - drinking in the sub bootles
of beer or other alcoholic.. I was many times in this sub.. Last month
Walter was here to see my boat and to tell us that he sold his boat -
because he gets to old.. And we drunk a beer or two in my new submarine
- its now more or less a tradition. Only the people, boats and places
changes sometimes.
How often I dived with the Spurdog in the 16 years of here existence ?
Hmm.. never.. why I should ?
Good night fellows.. Carsten