Manu Rere T-Boned

“Oh God, my life is destroyed!”

That was the reaction of Glenn Tieman, perhaps the world’s thriftiest long-term cruiser, upon hearing the news that his beloved cruising catamaran Manu Rere had been t-boned and severely damaged. The boat had been at anchor off Terengganu, a sultanate and constitutive state of federal Malaysia.

There are thrifty cruisers and then there is Tieman, who is originally from Modesto. His first cruise, from California to Thailand, was on a 26-ft cat he’d built for $3,000. She didn’t have a cabin per se, and naturally didn’t have an engine or any such luxuries.

Mind you, this was a 10-year cruise, the first seven years of which he lived on an average of $1 day. He splurged during the last three years of the cruisie, blowing $3 a day.

Glenn is an unusual guy. He likes to sail to primitive communities and become part of of those communities for months at a time. Local chiefs have encouraged him to take the hand of one of the local girls.

After 10 years, family and friends convinced Glenn that he was missing out on life. So he came back to Los Angeles and taught school for a year or two. He soon reached the conclusion that he was missing out on life by not being out cruising. So he built another cat.

Manu Rere is a 38-ft replica of a Polynesian cat from more than 100 years ago, made with materials — other than epoxy — available back then. The beams, for example, are attached to the hulls with lashings, as are the rudders. When Glenn wanted to sail, he would raise the masts by hand.

As we recall, Manu Rere cost him something like $14,000 to build. As you can see from the accompanying photo, she has no house. All the accommodations are in the hulls.

We last saw Tieman in October 2008. We were on a Baja Ha-Ha rest stop at Turtle Bay, and he’d just begun his cruise with his new boat.

To be honest, we have no idea what Glenn’s been up to since then. He’s not the kind of guy to write a lot. But we suspect he’s been out cruising most or all of the time. Based on today’s email from him, we know that he was back in the States taking care of his ill father when his catamaran was damaged. Glenn won’t be able to get back to his cat until July 5 at the earliest, and it’s not clear if the cat realistically can be saved.

We wish Glenn all the best, for he’s one interesting and unique individual. Based on his incredible cruising accomplishments, he’s a member of the Wanderer’s Sailing Hall of Fame.