On This Day – 16 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.

1985. “Record Entry After Wind Abates”. The fourth and final round of the Western Province Point Series regatta at Hermanus Yacht Club was blown out by winds of 30 to 40 knots last Saturday.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1985 02 16 322 28

1989. “Longhaul Splash Brightens the Weekend”. The False Bay 50, the Fish Hoek longhaul event for Hobies, takes place on Saturday hosted by the Fish Hoek Beach Sailing Club and Rip and Tear.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1989 02 16 370 9

1990. “’Giantkiller’ Hopes to Rule the Ocean”. A radical 43-foot racing boat being built by JM Boat builders in Cape Town is being billed as a “giant-killer” for the prestige Crystic Beachcomber Crossing race from Mauritius to Durban this year.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1990 02 16 139

1991. “Open Boat Sailor Sets Out”. A kiss from a sweetheart, a teddy bear, biltong; a bottle of wine, and the yachts that came to say goodbye will be etched into solo yachtsman Anthony Steward’s mind as be heads for St Helena Island on the first leg of his bid to be the first solo yachtsman to sail an open boat around the world.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1991 02 16 141

1991. “Another Buoyant Lone Mariner Sets Sail”. The singlehanded bluewater sailing acts of John Martin and Bertie Reed are hard to follow. But Anthony Steward, a relatively unknown lawyer-cum-sailor from Cape Town, is going to try, and he could well upstage South·Africa’s finest solo yachtsmen.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1991 02 16 849

1998. “Making Waves in Southern Oceans”. When an international sporting event has to be postponed due to a couple of players being mugged, it’s a very sad day indeed. Prison ships have been mooted as a solution to prison overcrowding, but unless these vessels are left to ride out a few southern ocean storms they would hardly be a deterrent to the criminals we have to put up with at the moment.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1998 02 16 166

2001. “Alone, Alone on A Wide, Wide Sea”. British lone yacht skipper Ellen MacArthur logs 95 days of supreme physical effort, cheating death in an icy ocean and battling sleep deprivation before she sails into-port to end her Vendee Globe single-handed adventure.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  2001 02 16 618 & 619.

2002. “’Skins’ Ready to Take on the Sailing World”. The Skins have been sailing together for only seven months, but they’re looking forward to taking on the world’s best later this year.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  2002 02 16 177

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

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