The Life-saving Littlejohn
We have recently received some unusual praise of the Littlejohn outboard bracket, the owner being particularly impressed not just with the bracket's outboard stowage function, but with its surprising versatility in an emergency. The following account testifying to its strength and utility comes from a letter from Mr Brian Light of Mid-Glamorgan:

We were motor-sailing along the north Cornish coast towards the Camel Estuary in our Moody 29, against a flooding tide with just a puff of breeze, when the engine splutterred to a halt. We had caught about 50 metres of blue line around the propeller which - for the second time in four years - the rope-cutter failed to dislodge. It was still five miles to the Estuary and four hours left before the turning tide would have made entry almost impossible. Without some propulsion, we were going to be in trouble.

Littlejohn to the rescue! By a stroke of luck, I had got a Littlejohn bracket and a boarding ladder on the yacht. 'Misty Blue' was slowly drifting backwards and with the light breeze now fading, my only hope was to rig up the 2 h.p. outboard on the transom. The operation was successful and we reached safety after several hours, at about 2 knots.

It should be possible, with ingenuity, to rig up the Littlejohn outbaord stowage bracket to the transom of most yachts, to provide some degree of self-help. In this case, it proved rather more reliable than the rope-cutter, and saved our bacon!

Designer Marine
6 Market Street
Alton
Hampshire
GU34 1HA
United Kingdom