On 3 Oct 2007, at 19:20, Molly Mockford wrote: > And I just want to add that Mike was the sort of man who just shone > life > and joie de vivre and enthusiasm from every pore, and I feel very > proud > and privileged to have known him. A truly wonderful man.
Everything Molly said. And more. Jan and I are very saddened to hear this news. In 2000, at the late Jeff Dennison's generous invitation, both of us, along with Mike, crewed Coronation on the BCN Challenge. Now Jeff was no fool - he chose his crew carefully ;-) Jan took charge of the galley and saw to it that everyone was well fed; I was still playing rugby in those days and Jeff recognised an enthusiastic windlass wielder and lock- gate shifter when he saw one!; and Mike was chosen for his encyclopaedic knowledge of the canals combined with mathematical skills suitable for wringing the best points scores out of the tortuous BCN Challenge rules. I don't remember our score (we didn't get close because Coronation was an old girl well past her prime :-/) and I don't really care - we had a great time and the whole weekend in the company of Jeff and Mike is a great memory I'll treasure for ever. I bumped (nearly literally) into Mike at Paddington Station several months ago as we rushed in opposite directions - what a pleasant surprise, and worth stopping the daily grind for. He seemed so pleased to be living the life he'd aspired to for so long... With the passing now of both our temporary crew-mates we feel a little colder and a little frailer; somehow diminished, and a little more vulnerable to the universe. So long Mike. -- Andy Greener n.b. Whisper Pangbourne, UK http://www.nb-whisper.com
