Ultimately, the decision on whether to
build or not to build comes down to this:
build a boat because you want to build a
boat, not because you simply want a boat.
Planning the interior
The great advantage of getting exactly the
boat that you want, can only be realised
through proper planning. We looked at
many, many boats, in real life and on the
web. So much has been done before, so
learn to understand what Picasso meant
by ‘good artists copy; great artists steal’.
The purposeful-looking Ongemak alongside at the Royal Cape Yacht Club
The homebuilt windvane proves to be
reliable and works wellAlways have a measuring tape at hand;
measure the heights of seats you like;
measure the width of the bathroom door
on the aeroplane. When things got critical,
we built parts of the interior out of
cardboard first. The most important thing
is to keep things as straightforward and
simple as possible. Have good geometry
solve the problem rather than lots of
moving parts. Many small decisions had
to be made but, for the sake of brevity,
here’s a list of the main features we
wanted and achieved:PRACTICAL
ABOUT THE AUTHORSOloff and Muir de Wet grew up in a
small town in the interior of South
Africa, 200 miles from the sea. Oloff
studied mechanical engineering and
then pure mathematics. He taught at
a school in KwaZulu-Natal. Muir
studied medicine and worked in
Mexico, Peru and the Middle East.
The brothers drove through Africa in
an old 4x4 and then got stuck on
building a boat. Ongemak is in
Lüderitz, Namibia, and soon to sail
for St Helena.