On This Day – 17 February. A Newspaper History of Sailing

by Richard Crockett

From the overwhelming response I receive from these posts, from all over the world I may add, the interest is cranking up rapidly and I am being connected with some wonderful people thirsty for more. Thank you all who have made contact.

Should you wish to copy, forward or share material from here, PLEASE acknowledge the source as: Sourced From the SAILING Mag Archives & Historical Records.

To read the full reports, click on the LINK following each headline.

1990. “Bartolomew Dias Yachters Already in Fear of the Doldrums”. Skippers, with only six weeks to go to the start of the Bartolomew Dias Race from Cape Town to Lisbon, are already talking about the most crucial factor- the dreaded doldrums.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:   1990 02 17 135

1993. “SA Yachting Hoists Foil Sail”. South African yachting, still on a high after the Cape To Rio event, gets a significant double boost in July, when the J22 World championships and the annual Crystic Week regatta are held back to back in Durban.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:   1993 02 17 758_Redacted

1995. “Shark Nets Snare Yacht”. Near disaster for British couple. A raging south-westerly wind; a strong current; shark-infested waters and a yacht without any navigational instruments are all the ingredients for a disaster.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:   1995 02 17 375

1995. “Provoyeur Finds Icebergs ‘Scary’”. Sightings of icebergs by three sailors in the BOC Challenge around-the-world race were reported yesterday – as the yacht of American David Scully fleetingly became a submarine and Australian Alan Nebauer was nursing injuries from a knockdown.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1995 02 17 378

1999. “Autissier Snatched From·jaws of Death”. Italian skipper Giovanni Soldini, who rescued Isabelle Autissier from her shipwrecked yacht told race officials that all was well and he was resuming course for Cape Horn.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1999 02 17 492_Redacted 2

1999. “Learners Take to the High Seas”. Learners from high schools on the Cape Flats have taken to the high seas. This is thanks to a South African sailing academy, which aims to train 250 teenagers from previously disadvantaged communities annually.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1999 02 17 495

Comments and contributions are welcome. Email: editor@sailing.co.za

What is “On this Day” About?
I am busy archiving many boxes of press cuttings I have accumulated and which I guestimate run into tens of thousands! A daunting task which I believe to be necessary before ditching them as I have been concerned for many years about the lack of interest Clubs, Classes and other sailing related organisations give to preserving their history.

Should you wish to copy, forward or share material from here, PLEASE acknowledge the source as: Sourced From the SAILING Mag Archives & Historical Records.

From the overwhelming response I receive from these posts, from all over the world I may add, the interest is cranking up rapidly and I am being connected with some wonderful people thirsty for more. Thank you all who have made contact.

This is my personal crusade, and instead of simply archiving and keeping the contents away from prying eyes, I will share my spoils in the hope that you will enjoy reminiscing as much as I do, and continue to do as I wade through the labourious process of scanning each and every cutting in my archives.

As each scanned cutting will be searchable, I will be able to create presentation packs personally tailored to a persons exact requirements – ie. Rothmans Week, the NCS Regatta, the Rio Race, Mauritius Race, Vasco da Gama Race and more – or simply by the name of an individual (like Ant Steward and his open boat exploits) who want a record of his/her sailing career for the family archives.

I have already done this by scanning in excess of 10 000 pages of material I have on ‘Voortrekker’ – from idle chatter, to concept, to the formation of what ultimately became the South African Ocean Racing Trust (SAORT), to the fruition of the 1968 OSTAR Race in which Bruce Dalling and ‘Voortrekker’ excelled – and even beyond that.

The possibilities are endless – so watch this space.

Comments and contributions are welcome. Email: editor@sailing.co.za