Sailing Magazine
by Richard Crockett
I am scanning and archiving press cuttings I have accumulated and which I guestimate run into tens of thousands! A daunting task which I believe to be necessary as for many years I have been concerned about the lack of interest Clubs, Classes and other sailing related organisations give to preserving their history.
This is my personal crusade to save the rich history of our sport, and to share it in the hope that you will enjoy reminiscing, and learning more.
To read the full reports, click on the LINK following the headline.
1985. “Fair Wind Sets Howard Davis Well Ahead of Fleet”. THE bigger yachts in the Cape-to-Uruguay fleet would have revelled in the conditions in which the ketch Howard Davis left Cape Town harbour yesterday.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK: 1985 01 11 440
1985. “Sponsors Share Festive Cheer”. The ESG New Year Regatta at the GLYC –
George Lakes Yacht Club – which is the highlight of the Southern Cape sailing season was a resounding success (once more). Forty boats from all over the country were there to compete in five separate classes.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK: 1985 01 11 320 44
1985. “Sleeping Sailor Runs Aground At Blouberg”. An Austrian yachtsman’s 46-day solo voyage from Brazil ended in drama early today when he fell asleep and his 13-m ketch ran aground on rocks off Bloubergstrand.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK: 1985 01 11 320 93
1987. “New Zealand Skipper is Wary of Wily Warrior Conner”. Stars and Stripes and New Zealand, the fastest and most durable contender yachts over three months of America’s Cup racing, are fitting protagonists for the final challenger series starting on Tuesday.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK: 1987 01 11 20
1988. “Round-the-island Race is On”. The annual round-the-island yacht race is to be staged at the Vaal Dam for the first time in five years next weekend. ·
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK: 1988 01 11 4
1990. “Optimist Skippers Take Honours At Junior Champs”. Western Province Optimist skippers took the honours at the junior national championships held at Swartvlei from January 2 to 8, winning all of the first 13 places.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK: 1990 01 11 383 13
1990. “Former Springbok to Fly Tricolour in BOC”. Former Springbok yachtsman JJ Provoyeur has entered the 1990/’91 BOC Challenge solo round-the-world race, but is to sail so under the French flag.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK: 1990 01 11 383 14_Redacted
1993. “Do-it-Yourself Tongue Surgery is Plain Sailing”. A French yachtsman in a solo round-the-world race carried out an operation to save his tongue in the middle of a storm and following instructions sent by telex.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK: 1993 01 11 376
1993. “Drama on High Seas for Sunday Star Yacht”. The yacht Sunday Star was heading·like a dream for Rio on Saturday, its spinnaker filled with 25 knots of south-easter, when a welded plate snapped and the steering went.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK: 1993 01 11 384
1993. “Hobie World Champion”. The current Hobie 16 World Champion, David Kruyt and his wife/crew Janine, will be defending his title at the Hobie 16 World Championships on the Caribbean Island of Guadeloupe in January.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK: 1993 01 11 388_Redacted
2007. “Could EL Become SA’s New Yachting Mecca”? City leaders believe a marina could be ideal for Orient Beach. A plan to turn East London’s beachfront into an entertainment hub that includes a new yacht club and marina is being touted by city leaders.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK: 2007 01 11 625
2007. “Team Shosholoza Aim for Semi-final Spot”. A semi-final spot in the America’s Cup will count as success for South Africa’s team flying to Valencia in Spain this week to participate in the world’s most prestigious sailing event.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK: 2007 01 11 714
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.
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 have, 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. Rathmines 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 8500 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
