 |
|||||||||||
|
 |
 |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
By Wolf Breit, 6/01/2008
Having recently been involved in bringing three second hand Petticrows Dragons to Sydney I thought that Layday between the Ted Albert Memorial Regatta and the first race of the Prince Philip Cup in Hobart would be a good time to record some of the experience gained.
Petticrows in the UK have been the dominant Dragon builder in Europe for the last 20 years. Of around 50 new boats being built each year in the world, Petticrows account for 35-40. This market dominance reflects in the strong Petticrows service back-up which is so apparent at the key European and World title events. Standardisation of spare parts across most Petticrows built since 1995 is a major feature.
In Sydney we now have five Petticrows Dragons ranging from 1997 to 2002 builds. We also have four Ridgeways using Petticrows masts and booms. With this kind of critical mass of Petticrows patrons, I have decided to build a small back-up stock of Petticrows parts, particularly those which are costly and take time to get out of the UK like mast sections etc to support this fledgling Petticrows fleet. This support of course extends to all other Petticrows equipment users around Australia. Please contact me on wb@asindustries.com.au if I can be of help.
Second Hand Petticrows: The UK and Ireland are a good source of second hand Dragons, particularly as an increasing number of well heeled European owners are getting into the habit of upgrading into a new boat every three to four years. Petticrows hold a number of second hand boats on consignment and these will usually have been vetted and brought up to scratch replacing worn or tired parts. These boats can be found on the Petticrows webpage www.Petticrows.com. There is of course a cost attached to this Petticrows service which might reflect in a 10-20% premium on a boat you could buy direct from an owner. Depending on the boat and the arrangement Petticrows have with the owner, they may put you directly in touch with the owner. My experience with buying two boats direct from their owners was positive, however, I did go to the UK and Ireland to look over the boats. This may not be necessary however, particulary if you can get Petticrows or some of our contacts in the UK to comment informally about the boat of interest.
As we are trying to promote the rejuvenation and growth of the Sydney (and Australian) fleets, our UK contacts and I will try to put you into direct communication with an owner/s in the UK or Ireland. Informally we will be able to advise you about the second hand Petticrows market in Europe and how to get your boat to Australia with a minimum of hassles. The British Dragon Association webpage www.britishdragons.org is also a fruitful source of second hand Dragons.
Every Petticrows Dragon has two unique numbers to identify it. The Petticrows “build number” is stamped on an aluminium plate at the helmsman’s end of the cockpit. My 2002 model is build number 341, 1999 Petticrows are around 250-280, and 1997 builds are around 190-220. Build number 528 recently came off the Petticrows production line. The second unique number is the sequential ISAF registration number or “plaque number” for all European dragons built. This number is spot engraved into the inside hull of the boat and with about 50 new dragons being registered each year, this number increases accordingly. My 2002 dragon is number 1038 and the boats coming off the production line will now be around 1280.
The Costs: The strength of the Australian Dollar has brought good second hand boats from Europe within realistic reach of Australian Dragon sailors. A 1999 Petticrows for example with Harbeck trailer (costing about $12-14,000 new) plus a range of extras like boat covers and a suite of sails will cost in the region of $55-60,000 all up delivered to your yacht club hard stand in Australia. The price will of course vary according to the extras that come with the boat like a Tactic and the condition of the sails etc.
Having negotiated the purchase of this example 1999 boat, the cost of ownership builds up as follows: approximately $45k (say $35k for the boat and $10k for the trailer) paid to the boat owner in Europe by telegraphic transfer. You’ll need to get an invoice or Bill of Sale from the owner and the boat’s measurement documentation and trailer details like its Vin number. Get this Bill of Sale made out for “boat with trailer”.
Approx $6-7k for freight from the UK to an Australian port in a 40 ft High Top container. You should agree for the owner to supervise the loading of the container. Four tension clip straps tied from the axels to the container floor plus two other straps each front and back of the trailer as well as wooden chocks for the wheels nailed to the wooden floor of the container will suffice. A shipper like Peters & May in Southampton will organize container and shipment and insurance. At this end you will need a Customs clearance agent to arrange unloading at your port of choice and customs clearance. I was able to attend the container unloading.
You will need to collect the boat from the port and are allowed one trip to a destination without having registered your trailer. I had some difficulties registering my trailer over the Christmas period so the NSW RTA suggested I can get a Permit for an Unregistered Vehicle for each of the one way trips to Hobart and back – worth knowing about! Approx $5-7k for duty and GST and clearance charges. I would be happy to discuss this with you.
This all up cost of about $55-60,000 for a 1999 Petticrows inclusive of trailer and a set of sails compares with the cost of a new Petticrows GPR boat for PDS38,800 ($90,000) plus trailer for PDS5,350 ($12-13,000) before any extras or sails and before shipment and clearance of $25-30k. The Petticrows website www.petticows.com.uk has details of the cost of new boats and accessories.
When your boat gets to Australia you will need to do a number of things which can be quite time consuming:
Depending on the city you are in, you may need to register your boat with the local Maritime authority. In NSW, any sailing boat over 5m in length needs to be registered at cost of about $135. CAT7 safety inspection
Your trailer will need to be adapted for Australian compliance. A trailer specialist will do this at cost of $2-2,500, the main part of the modification being the trailer electric override braking system needed in Australia for a combined trailer plus boat weight in excess of 2000kg. The trailer needs to be registered. Coping with the NSW RTA can be tedious. A Permit to Import the trailer (same as for imported cars) is required for this. From my experience, this can be obtained after having imported the boat into Australia and is quite straight forward, particularly with evidence of the trailer compliance modifications having been made. My import agent advised me to import the boat on a trailer rather than treating the trailer as a separate imported item. Your import agent will help you get the Permit to Import – it can take 1-3 weeks to get this in retrospect.
Contact YA and get your sequential Dragon boat number at cost of $35. I believe AUS205 is the last number to have been allocated.
This all seems an effort, but as the passionate Dragon owner will know, an effort which is fully rewarded by the racing experience in a very well engineered boat which has evolved for optimal and responsive control.
Don’t hesitate to contact me if you would like to discuss my experience of buying my Petticrows boat in Ireland and bringing this with two other Petticrows to Sydney at end of 2007. I’ll be happy to give you whatever advice I can. My details are wb@asindustries.com.au or 0412 291552.
Back to news page >