Dartmouth couple to take 250 children to sea

Aaron Ashton, Panerai Classics 2016 Young Sailor of the Year, was first introduced to sailing at the age of 7 due to a chance encounter on the yacht, Heron II. Nearly 20 years later, Aaron and his wife Abbie, are in the midst of fully restoring the same 1936 classic sailing boat from the depths of disrepair. Aaron met Abbie “at an acoustic guitar night in a bike shed in Exeter”. They have have lived in Devon since they were small children. Abbie is expecting and the baby is due in two months. She continues to help with the lighter work on the boat. These Dartmouth residents aim is have Heron II up and running this summer to compete in classic sailing regattas across Britain. In a bid to push their project to completion, they are seeking help with funding the project. In return for a funding boost, they will take 250 local school children sailing on the open sea. They are raising money for the rebuild through Spacehive Crowd Funding. This is a community crowd funding site, where projects give something back to the community. When the boat rebuild is finished, Aaron and Abbie intend to dedicate their time to introducing other young people to the world of sailing in Heron II. This sailing vessel was rescued by the couple at a critical time. After finding her in a serious state of disrepair in the Isle of Wight, they moved her to Dartmouth last summer. They have been working on her ever since. Currently, they are making her original teak deck water tight and are replacing some structural damage. They are giving the boat a full over haul of the exterior and interior. This includes a new rig, boom and sails to restore her to the original one-mast design with the original silver spruce mast. Heron II is now registered as a National Historic Vessel. According to Aaron, “she is a beautiful 50ft example of a 1930’s boat designed and built in the UK. Both her designer and her boat-builder are renowned and respected in the classic boat sector. “Heron II is a classic piece of history and a registered National Historic Vessel. A 1936 Fred Shepherd design, she was built by Woodnuts on the Isle of Wight for Stanley W Cooper to Lloyds highest standard (100A1). “She is a well respected vessel and was even sailed by the famous Uffa Fox who dedicated a full chapter to her in his 1937 book ’Racing, Cruising and Design’. Quoting from the book: ‘The Construction plan shows that Heron is well and truely built, and a hundred years from now she may easily be sailing and giving pleasure to some owner.’ “You can also get better acquainted with Heron II at www.heron2.com” Further details of the boat’s ‘Restoration and Gateway to Sailing project’ can be found on the a community crowd funding website: www.spacehive.com/gatewaytosailing.