A9 - Wednesday, November 18, 1981 - North Shore News YACHT WAS STOLEN AND SUNK BUT NEWS PUBLISHER... Spe ‘ was ‘i OE LEELA TREE 4s ty COREE) y ‘4 oy - By CHRIS LLOYD ; VM, “fe Ly THIEVES tore out the dash panel in their fruitless ef- forts to start the yacht which ended up drifting onto NEWS PUBLISHER rocks at Point Atkinson. (Ian Smith photo) Peter Speck never knew his beloved yacht had been stolen last week until he’ received a phone call from the Coast Guard after they managed finally to track him down on Pender Island. ST. PAUL’S HOSPITAL -R.N. REFRESHER COURSE : St. Paul's Hospital is offering a 10-week refresher course # commencing February 1, 1982 to nurses eligible for B.C. Registration, who are interested in returning to active acute The call told him his 44 ft. cutter had been stolen from its mooring at Fisherman's Wharf Marina in West Van- couver Wednesday night and found the following day on rocks off Point Atkinson - holéd and with up to six feet of water in the hull. For many boat owners, the news might well have been enough to induce them to leap into the briny from the nearest convenient jetty. But Speck, a man who refuses to acknowledge the existence of problems -— see- ing all situations only as op- portunities —- emerged from | the experience with his philosophy intact. Back at the office -_Mon- day. he calmly declared: “It’s an irritation but I am determined to practise what I preach and see it as an op- portunity.” Speck sees the situation as an inducement to carry out painting work ‘which was re- quired on the hull and to overhaul the yacht’s diesel engine. ™ And he has a renewed ap- preciation for the ferro- cement construction of- the boat which may be responsi- ble for it not being among the fastest sailboats around. The hull has a hole in it which flooded the entire starboard side and_ the engine room but Speck com- Hi, I'm Rikor Morginn, your North Shore Cadillac expert and {d tthe to show you the new Cimarron hugging. tun to drive — an efficient new kind of Cadillac tor a new kind of Cadillac owner plus 43 MPG. They are in stock now — see me soon while they fast Just ask for Rikor 922 4\1iires 984.9443 Super cleanance prices on a 1964 Caditace in stock. Make your best deal, then finance at tf No gimmick, fut) term nancing ee. | a8 moa. O "4 worse if it had been fibreglass or wood. Good old trusty, reliable ferro- cement!” There may be further pro- blems -- er, opportunities — to add to the thousands of doliars’ -worth of damage already discovered, since the thieves poured outboard motor fuel into one of the diesel tanks. ,The way Speck sees it, he’s just thankful for all the help he got in the com- plicated recovery operation which was conducted by long distance telephone. Coordinating the whole thing was Ivan Olson, ffom the Coastguard rescue cen- tre in Victoria, who had been called after the ground- ed yacht was spotted by the crew of the vessel Sorrel Skin. Olson got on to the Coastguard base in Kitsilano and got them to dispatch the cutter Swift to assess the Situation. 680 Marine Drive, West Vancouver at Park Royal it's nimble, road- arrival whether. there was anyone aboard who might be injured or just what was the damage to the yacht, the crew of the Swift stood by. Later, as it floated, they pull- ed the yacht off the rocks to prevent further damage by tide changes. Next, while a pump loaned by the Coastguard steadily bailed out water, Billy Lloyd of Mercury Water Taxi, tow- ed the crippled yacht back into Fisherman’s Cove. There it was lifted into drydock on the 50-ton strad- dle carrier at Fisherman’s Wharf Marine Services. Since then, while Speck has been tearing out damag- ed materials and having the diesel engine checked over, West Van police have been investigating the incident. They found that for Speck it was third time unlucky, since the thieves had broken into two other vessels at the marina before taking his. First they broke into the 922-4111 Uncertain ‘at their time of Esso gas station, there steal- CIMARRON by Cadillac DLA 5834 “Home of White Glove Service” ing a battery, cash and candy bars with a total value of $180. Next they hit a 25 ft. Bayfield sailboat but didn’t steal anything from it and then they smashed their way into a 33 ft. cabin cruiser where they stole liquor and a. flashlight with a combined value of $57. As to why the thieves decided to pick on Speck’s boat for their outing, a West Van police spokesman com- mented: “I guess they wanted the longest boat! ” Such a theft, he added, is not a common occurrence even in a marine community such as West Van. “We don't have joyriding with boats as much as with cars. Most people wouldn't be able to handle a boat that size.” And as Speck commented, the thieves who pickéd on his obviously couldn't. “They're just losers”, he said. care nursing in full or part-time positions. Please submit resume, including available references. to: Mrs. S. Howie Personnel Department ST. PAUL’S HOSPITAL 1081 Burrard Street Vancouver, 8.C. V6Z1Y6 Closing Date For Applications: December 4, 1981 RE-ELECT MARILYN =e. WE’RE BACK ~~ ARE YOU? 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