The story so far - Dad's perspective

[Day 1 aboard Monkey Business]

Where to begin, where to start and what to say? This is the problem that I am faced with, but as you can see that problem has been solved as I have now started!

Boats, that’s the subject of this story.

By now, I am sure you will be up to date with the story of Monkey Business. I will take a step back a number of years.

I think my first love of boats started when my Dad took the family to the paddling pool in Portstewart. He had a model yacht with him. He set the sails, set the rudder and let it go, leaving the rest to the wind. The yacht always made it back to land at the other side of the pool. Like many other things in my life, the passion was there but the get up and go was not.

The first sailing I did came along quite by accident many years later. The year was 1981, I was married and living in Donegal. My wife Mary’s best friend married a man who’s father had a yacht in Lough Swilly. This yacht owner and man of the sea was Ned O’leary. His two sons Joe & Johnny were to become life long friends and great sailing companions which they remain until this day! I crewed on their boat “Duskie” a 33ft Moody. We raced regularly on Lough Swilly, sometimes competing in longer races out of Lough Swilly, around the Limeburner Bouy and back to Fahan. We cruised to Mulroy Bay, Tory Island, Aranmore Island, Bunbeg, the Islands in between and and all round the North West coast of Ireland. By this stage I had been seriously bitten by the sailing bug, fueled by my time spent on yachts coupled with the beautiful coastline I was blessed to live on.

[Acting the maggot off the coast of Donegal]

[Catching dinner!]

By 1985 Mary and I had moved north to Coleraine, my hometown and also where Mary had spent seven years at boarding school, the place we would now call home. Married life, raising children and work brought new changes and demands and whilst my activities on the water and yachting ambitions were on the back burner, the fire in my heart for boats was still burning.

At this stage we had two young children and I took the plunge buying an inflatable dinghy and 5hp Suzuki engine. We had some fun with it, but it was referred to as the “garden boat” the children didn’t understand why it moved and flexed in the water.

The next little boat to come along was a Mirror Dinghy, another under used vessel, it could also have been considered a “garden boat!”

Although we only lived 4 miles from the sea, for reasons which are now far beyond me, I did not pursue my love of yachts as I should have!

Some years later the next boat I bought was a 18ft Foxcub, a popular boat designed by the famous and well regarded designer Uffa Fox. The boat was for sale at Whitehead Marina just outside Belfast. When I went to do a deal on the boat I noticed that the trailer wasn’t in very good condition which I remarked to the lady selling her. Her response was “the trailer is not for sale but you can have it if you wish!” The deal was done. A friend of mine had borrowed a car transporter to help me get it back home to Coleraine. We winched the boat and trailer onto the flat bed, strapped it down and set off. Seemingly he was unaware of the value of the special cargo that we were carrying as he was booting down the motorway from Belfast at 70mph! I remember thinking “If this boat falls of we might as well keep on driving!” We made it to Coleraine, just as we slowed to turn into the driveway of my house….BANG! One of the supports on the trailer had snapped and the boat had fallen over, luckily the strap managed to hold it in place and I was able to right her onto an even keel again and got her safely unloaded into the back yard. I named this boat “Lir” a Lord of the Sea in Irish Mythology. Unfortunately, another vessel which did not cover many nautical miles!

[A nice example of a Foxcub 18, Lir was red]

My mind was often drawn back to our times racing in Lough Swilly. Two boats in the fleet that we often competed against always caught my eye. One was called “Tishomingo” and the other “Makoma”. During the races, these two boats would often finish well behind us in the Moody 37, that was until the wind and sea kicked up, then the tables were turned. These two little wooden boats with their long keels dug their heels in and left us in their wake! As you may have worked out, these boats were folkboats. Another love story had begun and I wanted a folkboat so so much! The years continued to slip by…

Sadly, the owner of the folkboat “Makoma” had past away. Whilst on a family trip to Donegal to see Mary’s family, we took the car ferry from Magilligan Point to Greencastle. As you drive up the slip way in Greencastle, McDonald's’ Boat Builders faces you, and there she was, Makoma! She was laying in their yard in very sad and sorry state, no cover and full of water. I saw her on many occasions and eventually I managed to make contact with the deceased owners son. Long story short I was now the new owner of Makoma. I had her transported on the ferry from Greencastle to Magilligan and then onwards to Coleraine by tractor. Another chapter begins!

[McDonald's Boat Builders Greencastle]

Makoma needed a lot of work to restore her to her former glory but the hull timbers looked sound, the Volvo MD2010 looked good and the aluminium mast, sails and rigging were all in good order. The rudder was broken and the entire interior needed to be ripped out and replace. I thought it was save-able and doable…

I started into the project like a man with four arms, I ripped out the insides, chart table, bunks, engine and bulkhead and had her back to a bare hull in no time. At this point I realised that every new born male should be born with two numbers on his forehead: 20m x 30m – the dimensions of the shed that he will certainly need when he grows up! The task did not lend itself to a backyard in the formidable Northern Irish climate.

For too many reasons to get into, namely children needing to be clothed, fed and educated poor Makomas refit ground to an extended halt. In the meantime however I had been blessed with three wonderful children and I am happy to say that they have all excelled and are now wonderful and successful adults.

[A nice example of the Nordic Folkboat]

The boating story was about to take another nose dive….

During a cold winters day I decided to move Makoma, she was on a large trailer in our backyard. Anyone who knows me will know that I am a terrible man for doing stuff on my own! I hooked up chains and an electric winch in order to reposition the boat. As I got Makoma moving, one of the wheels on the trailer got stuck on a kerb, I put the winch control on the ground and operated it with my foot whilst pulling on the chain to try and get her turned. What happened next still makes the hair on my neck stand! Makoma started to rock back and forth on her trailer, this started to get worse and then BANG she fell off sidewards and the two large trailer wheels went right through her hull. I will never forget that sound, but what I hadn’t expected was the 300 litres of water that came rushing out of her hull next!! The drainage holes in her hull had been blocked by leaves and unawares to me she was full of water, once the momentum started it only increased! I rearranged the winch and chains and managed to right her back to an even keel. Eight boards and ten ribs needed replacing to fix the large hole in her hull.

I know at this point you will be thinking “this man is a total idiot and does not deserve to have a boat”.

This is also what I was thinking...

Makoma was originally built for a Church of Ireland Minister by the name of Dean Good who had worked as a missionary in Africa. Upon his return to Derry he commissioned Alan Stewart of Ramelton Co, Donegal to build him a folkboat. She was named after the mountain behind the missionary in Africa, Mount Makoma. When Alan Stewart was building Makoma, he was also building another folkboat, she still lies unfinished in his shed in Ramelton!

This brings us up to present day, Makoma is still fixable but due to health, age and finance reasons she needs one or two people with a love of wooden boats. Sadly that person is not me. I was recently offered space in a brand new dry shed to keep her in which I intend to do, I have been cleaning the hull inside and out.

We will see what happens!

It is now October 2020. I turned 64 in March of this year and something was about to happen in my life which I could never have imagined in my wildest dreams. I am still coming to grips with the reality of it all….

On Thursday 23rd October my daughter Megan arrived home late in the evening as a surprise. She lives in Belfast working as a Speech & Language Therapist. She said she going to work from home the following day and had decided to arrive down the evening before to surprise us. We were chatting and Megan told us about a photography course that she had enrolled in, I was delighted to hear this as I have a keen interest in photography. She explained that she had a weekly project to complete for the course and told us that she needed us for some photos on Friday afternoon. I had some errands to do on Friday and was under strict orders from Megan to be back home for 16.30 in time for her “photography project”, I was a bit bemused but did not argue!

I arrived back just in time and she told me that she had to take a photo from one view and then take the same photo from an opposite angle, I had my doubts but didn’t want to put her off so I followed orders and did what she asked. Our house overlooks the River Bann and Coleraine Marina, so Megan took a photography of Mary and I looking over at the boats and then she said “Right let’s go over there now and get another photo” So away we went, like lambs to the slaughter!

[Part 1 of Megan's "photography project' looking over at the boats]

When we arrived at Coleraine Marina I thought I had it figured out, there is a new fish restaurant there and I guessed she was going to treat us to lunch. Wrong! She lead us onto the pontoons and got us positioned for the next photo. The next thing I heard a voice behind us saying “would you like me to take one of the three of you?” I was turning around about to say “no thanks, my daughter is doing a photography project” but when I turned around I saw my son Brendan who works in Belgium!

[Part 2 of Megan's "photography project" - still oblivious at this point, if you look closely you can see Brendan starting to sneak out behind the sprayhood]

I just knew I could smell a rat!! His Mum did not even turn around! I said to her “there's a man talking to you there” She turned around and froze, feet unable to move and began to cry! Brendan was standing on the deck of a large yacht. I was just about to say “Brendan, get off that boat, you don’t do that sort of thing, walking all over someone else’s boat!!” but before I could speak he said “Sorry it’s four and a bit years late but Happy 60th Birthday”

At this point I though I was the victim of a big wind up and called him a “lying dog” among other things! We had not seen Brendan in almost a year due to the pandemic, so him even being there was a big enough shock already!!”

He then carried on to say “This is Monkey Business and this is your boat” from then on I was totally speechless, I walked up and down past this Beneteau 38s5 bewildered!

For the past 25 year’s I have woken up, opened my bedroom curtains and looked across at the yachts often thinking “I wish I was looking over at my own yacht!”

Who says dreams don’t come true!?

The next chapter begins – God Bless Monkey Business and all who sail on her!

It is now the end of November 2020, life is very different from normal and we are all cursed with Covid-19. It has affected us all in many ways. Due to my own health condition I have been shielding for almost a year. I have only seen my mother once this year, she is 97 and was moved from her own home to a nursing home. I have seen my eldest son Mark, his lovely wife Paula and my two beautiful grandchildren Charlie & Ella only once this year. I am very aware that I am one of the lucky ones, my heartfelt condolences go out to anyone who may be reading this who have lost loved ones.

I do not have the words to say thank you for the good things I have in my life. I hope you have enjoyed reading my little story and look forward to reading about the adventures that lie ahead.

Stay safe and remember, no Monkey Business!!

Kind Regards

Damian

[The first run down the river in Monkey Business]

[Myself and Joe O'Leary aboard Monkey Business]