Skipper Ruffles 1914 Quantrill 1944. Sunk 1966, Rebuilt 1970, Restored 2002. Raced in 2013 and has a facebook page as well as being on the sailingbarges blog.
Photos TBA.
| Main trade | Cement |
| Name | Orinoco |
| Port of Registry | London |
| Off. No. | 104862 |
| Tonnage | 70 |
| Tonnage system | 0 |
| Where built | East Greenwich |
| Builder | Hughes |
| When built | 1895 |
| Length ft. | 0 |
| Beam ft. | 0 |
| Draught ft. | 0 |
| Changes | 0 |
| Rig/Hull | 0 |
| Owners | Mason 1895 , Cranfield 1916 |
| History | Skipper Ruffles 1914 Quantrill 1944. Sunk 1966, Rebuilt 1970, Restored 2002 |
| OS Ref | 0 |
| Location | Iron Quay Faversham |
Sold 1966 now private.
See www.sailingbargeresearch.org.
www.sailingbargeresearch.org.uk/pages/active_barges_page_1.htm
rvey Benham recounts a conversation with Bob:
‘A Harwich race was sailed in 1877, and was won by the Centaur sailed by Jim Stone. I heard the tale of it from that fine old sailor mate Robert Ruffles. At the time of the race he was mate in Mason’s Orinoco’ (owned by Mason’s Cement Company Waldringfield). Orinoco finished third, Grooms Consul finished second. The day before the race they were unloading the Orinoco at Waldringfield and tried to get her ‘ends’ unloaded first so as to flatten her out into racing trim. But the owners
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declined, you don’t discharge there and there, you go down into the middle and work your way both ways. So they missed out and were not able to flatten her out. ‘
‘As it was they only got to Harwich on the day of the race at 6.00 am when the race started at 11.00. Each barge was allowed five hands and the course was round the Cork Lightship and the Stone Banks buoy to finish round a steamer in Harwich, a course very similar to today. They carried their punts in the hold and the Centaur, which had been a week on the ‘ways’ black leading and generally tuning up, had hers slung from the beam so that if she hit the sea the impetus from the swing would help keep her moving.’
‘There was a fresh breeze and the Orinoco was handicapped to windward by too big a jib. A tempest (thunderstorm) knocked the heart out of the wind and headed them as they came into the harbour, the Centaur a few minutes ahead. As the ebb was just starting, she scraped round the finish mark, leaving the Orinoco to turn back and forth for three quarters of an hour. In fact, said Bob Ruffles, I don’t think we should have got round, only I was forward tending the jib sheets and as we kept making boards up to the steam boat I whispered to him that I heard my skipper say ‘If we don’t get round next time I am going to sail into him.’ So that made them give out more chain and we got round. ‘
