When a Boat Chooses Its Skipper
Jiwa in the Indonesian language means ‘soul, spirit or vital force’. It is also the name given to a 28-foot trimaran yacht by its builder Wayne and his wife Jill who were practitioners of an ancient Indonesian meditation at the time. You may have noticed that by coincidence, the letters comprising Jiwa are the first two letters of each of their names.
Jiwa was designed on Waiheke Island by an Englishman named Bernard Rhodes who had sailed from his homeland to New Zealand in a 22-foot baby sister of Jiwa named Klis. Bernard had started his sailing career as a young boy on Lake Windermere in England and went on to become a certified naval architect, a skill that would serve him well during his future years in New Zealand.
In his spare time, he built Klis and in 1966 set off single handed for the West Indies, eventually arriving in Aotearoa three years later in 1969.
His work at shipbuilding yards in England had instilled in him a deep dislike of nuclear submarines and super tankers and during the 1970s he crewed on, or skippered, well-known ships like Spirit of Peace and Fri during protests in the Pacific against nuclear weapons testing and proliferation, enduring some epic confrontations with the French navy along the way. Thanks to the efforts of the Peace Squadron and many other individuals and organisations like Greenpeace, we are fortunate to be still free of the nuclear menace. With the current bunch of nutters in world leadership positions, especially the one who holds the recently re-named US Department 0f War’s nuclear codes, I for one am glad that NZ is a nuclear weapons- and ships-free zone.
During the 1990s Bernard, with his Japanese wife Yachiyo and their two sons, sailed their newly-built 38 foot catamaran Flying Carpet to Japan. Having lived on Waiheke for some time, I knew Bernard and his whānau (family); I was privileged (along with my wife at that time, Kimiko) to spend a few days with them on board Flying Carpet on an island off Nagasaki, where one of two atomic bombs was tested on humans at the end of World War II. The test was successful. Estimates vary but they managed to kill between 75 and 80,000 people with just one bomb. And to think they have another 5,177 bigger ones sitting there awaiting the pressing of the red button, not to mention the stocks of bombs that other nuclear powers like Russia, France, England, Israel and others have. We live in a mad world.
Since their return to NZ (surviving a typhoon on their way home), the Rhodes family have been involved in many maritime projects including Hauraki Gulf charters, volunteering on Spirit of NZ and restoring classic wooden boats.
On my return from Japan, and living in Whitianga, I had been thinking of trading my 23 foot Wharram catamaran for a larger vessel due to the arrival of a water-loving baby daughter Hanako. James Wharram, another Englishman, had designed a flotilla of cheap-to-build Polynesian-style catamarans ranging from 4.3 to 19 metres.
Wharram was quite a colourful character. He had two wives and often had several relationships with other women at the same time.
He lived what he called ‘an open and free Polynesian lifestyle’. His designs were popular with those without deep pockets and are found in waters all over the world.
Anyway, I wasn’t sure what kind of boat would replace my small Wharram catamaran named Ruamoko (god of earthquakes, volcanoes and seasons), a name which I am sure protected her and her crew during many a sea voyage around the gulf. However, while walking along Ostend Causeway on a visit to Waiheke Island I came across a trimaran pulled up on the sand. It had a familiar look and I suddenly realised it was a larger version of Klis II; I thought it had to be a Rhodes design.
I tracked down its builder and owner Wayne Robson who had named her Jiwa. He was a well-respected Waiheke house builder with a fine eye for detail and quality. Wayne told me that his boat Jiwa was for sale but there was already a prospective buyer. I asked if I could see inside and on opening the hatch I was greeted by a beautiful natural wood cabin with a small kitchen, two single bunks and a toilet. There was another almost double bunk aft. “Well,” I thought, “This is the boat for me, if it decides to come my way,” and sure enough, a week later Wayne phoned to say it was mine if I wanted it. He told me that Jiwa had taken about a year to build in his back yard, so I guessed that the price he was asking would have only covered the cost of materials. With Bernard’s design experience combined with Wayne’s quality building, I said “Yes please” without hesitation and without bargaining over the price. I knew I was getting a quality craft.
To be continued …
Words by Ross Liggins
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