Historical

By Richard Crockett Here’s more Class and Club news from the May/June issue of SA Yachting magazine – with many interesting references to people, places, trophies and yachts – making it compelling reading for those with a thirst for knowledge about days of yore. Class News covers: • FD class • Sharpie class • Dabchick class • Goodricke class • Finn class The Clubs section covers: • Federal regatta • Royal Natal yacht Club • Royal Cape Yacht Club • …

By Richard Crockett I was more intrigued by the description of the winds on Table Bay than the actual design of this concept 25-foot racing dayboat by Kees Bruynzeel. I personally don’t recall ever seeing one, so cannot be sure whether the concept had any traction or not? In 1959 when the concept was floated under the headline “In Pursuit of Speed” the cost was estimated to be £700. The feature opened like this: “In Table Bay as autumn comes …

by Richard Crockett Here’s something slightly different today as our South African coastline is generally devoid of islands, so anything written on them is likely to be of interest to seafaring folk. The feature is written by Mary Kuttel on the islands of the Cape coast. Mary is the mother of a robust sea-going family, who are fortunate owners of the fine 60ft clipper-bowed ketch ‘Atalanta’. This is how the feature opens: “Desolate and bleached are most of the islands …

by Richard Crockett It’s Friday, so to end the week and give you some lengthy reading into the weekend I have decided to share the Club Notes and Class News from the 1959 March/April issue of SA Yachting magazine. In the Club section there is news from: • Bloemfontein Yacht Club • Natal Outboard Club • Federal Yachting • King William’s Town YC • Island Sailing Club • East Rand YC • Transvaal YC • Knysna YC • Haenertsburg Moves …

I am currently researching and writing the complete history of the Lipton Cup from 1911 to the present day. Although my personal archives are extensive, there are gaps which I am battling to fill, especially in the founding era from 1911 to 1923, and again in the 30-Square Metre era from 1952 to 1973. If anyone out there has any historic Lipton Cup material to share with me, please make contact (editor@sailing.co.za). I am looking for results (race by race …

By Richard Crockett Today it’s time to share some dinghy news – with the Graduate dinghy appearing in the pages of the March/April issue of SA Yachting magazine. I personally don’t ever recall having seen a Graduate dinghy, but have a single photo in my archives of one. Maybe an alert old salt will recall these and can tell us more about the local fleet? The feature, whose author is nameless, said this: “In 1952, Dick Wyche who, with his …

By Richard Crockett It appears that the old historic editorials I have been sharing this month have struck a chord, so here’s more on an FD as written by Jack Koper who built a new FD on a shoestring. The teaser went as follows: Stretching-in the sails of the Flying Dutchman ‘Sagacity’, which was built for only £160 by Jack Koper, and collected seventh place at the “National”. The home-sewn sails here show only a small pucker at the luff, …

by Richard Crockett Earlier this month I shared an editorial which prompted David Abromowitz to call me and share a very funny but rude story about a race, in days of yore, to PE. Be sure to ask him about it when you next see him! On 26 December 1958 six yachts and their intrepid crew started the race from Simonstown to PE, as was reported in the January/February 1959 issue of SA Yachting. “Six starters lined up at the …

By Richard Crockett “A whole generation of South African yachtsmen can thank the Sharpie for their greatest sailing thrills” said the sub-head to this 1959 feature from SA Yachting magazine. The author was Herbert McWilliams who went on to say this: “My first introduction to a Sharpie took place at Durban in 1932 (when I was taken (by I forgot whom) to a shed where a couple o f partly-finished hulls were hanging from the rafters. They had, I was …

by Richard Crockett Having shared the teasers on the Hermanus National Regatta, here’s the report which said this as a teaser: • Champions Had to Fight Harder for Honours • Winds Blew High and Low • Revolution in Sails • Camp Jollifications • Admin Was Tops The opening paragraph which follows sets the tone and gives one an immediate impression that this was a very fine regatta: “Though there was no centenary this time to add lustre to the event, …

By Richard Crockett I was interested to stumble across today’s” find” from a 1958 issue of SA Yachting magazine as it really appears to be the first reference the magazine made to the possibility of sailing on the Vaal Dam. And remembering a great editorial written by SAILING Magazine staffer Mel Field in 1989 on cruising on the Vaal Dam, I have included this as a bonus read. But getting back to the 1958 article, it’s opening few paragraphs read …

By Richard Crockett Last week I shared a small feature on Hermanus Yacht Club being hosts for the 1959 National Regatta. Today there is more as the advertising leaflet for the regatta was published in SA Yachting magazine. The event was being pushed and marketed hard – and why not? The words in the opening paragraphs make the venue tantalisingly attractive, and read as follows: “Quite apart from the racing, next month’s national Sailing Regatta at Hermanus is certain to …

by Richard Crockett Last week I shared the thoughts of Helmut Stauch on his campaign in Europe, and today share this rather lengthy feature in which he summarises this European campaign. “How wonderful it is to be back home again. We had our first sail at Hartbeespoort the day after we arrived, and found it just as nice (and tricky) as anywhere overseas. “I am now getting our whole trip a bit into perspective and there are a few impressions …

By Richard Crockett I have always enjoyed the “outside-the-box” thinking shown by university students when thinking up pranks, drinking games – and in today’s case – a test of seamanship skills. Written by Hilary Spears, founder of the Spearhead two-man dinghy, the introduction read as follows: “There was one course only pinned up in the University Yacht Club, which had to be learnt off by heart before the start and it sure was something to remember. It read like this: …

By Richard Crockett In today’s historical offering John Goodwin tells of his voyage from English Harbour, B.W.I., to Cape Town in the Laurent Giles-designed four-tonner ‘Speedwell’. This feature appeared in the 1958 September/October issue of SA Yachting magazine. Interestingly, I have the original photo of Goodwin and ‘Speedwell’ arriving in Hout Bay – and share that today. The feature opened as follows: “Speedwell” was launched from her resting place under the mast shed at Nelson’s Dockyard, English Harbour, Antigua, where …