From: Ted Devey
Sent: 10/27/10 12:07 AM
To: Subject: A voice from the past!

Hi John,

You may recall a decrepit ex RR engineer who contacted you about June last year babbling on about modifying his older VXA II with the newer worm/wheel course setting kit. This is the same old codger !

Well, life just got in the way but I’ve finally got to hell out of it this year and am now in Portugal grovelling merrily along on what measly proportion of my pension Gordon Brown deigned to leave me!

While I’m not as yet one of your band of faithful world girdlers, just a few Biscays, Irelands, Scillies and bits of Atlantic — (I got over the ‘manhood through suffering’ stuff years ago) — the ‘old’ Hydrovane, with the simple mod of removing the wire and pulley course setting whatsit and fitting a Tee bar locking screw, has been a cracking bit of kit – Just like a good wife — it just keeps quiet and works ! Bit male chauvinist that — Sorry!

However I really would like to do the upgrade so that I can adjust it from within the cockpit instead of risking me’ life leaning over the stern — and since I’m mostly single-handed going over would not be so funny. I don’t relish floating in the middle of Biscay waiting for someone to bring me a cup-a-tea!

I’d be most grateful if you’d send me the kit to convert this old model. I will fit it over the winter when I hole up somewhere either here in Portugal or Morocco and will send you pics of the mods if they will be of use to you others contemplating upgrading theirs.

Now, I look forward to this mod and to setting the old girl to do all the work again while I sit and contemplate my navel!

If it works well enough, I think I might marry it! I can’t afford a younger model!

All the best
Ted Devey
Yacht Edewsia

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