Sailing Magazine
by Richard Crockett
To read the full reports, click on the LINK following each headline.
1967. “Hurricane Threatens Yacht Race”. Hurricane-fed Atlantic gales today threaten to postpone the fourth race for the America’s Cup until Monday.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK: 1967 09 16 – Pfotenhauer – 000095
1989. “Ready to Hit the Breeze From Grand Baie”. It all depends on wind conditions and indications late this week were that the 37 yachts in the Crystic Beachcomber crossing from Mauritius to Durban which starts later today off Grand Baie will have good winds behind them on the beam initially.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK: 1989 09 16 025
1990. “Martin on Tack for A Million”. The most dramatic racing duel to hit the high seas began yesterday.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK: 1990 09 16 – 000355
1991. “Concern As Storms Batter Favourite for Beachcomber”. There was disquiet here In Mauritius yesterday for the skippers of the favourite for the Crystic Beachcomber Crossing with their 18-metre downwind flyer, Coldcor, caught up in heavy weather – apparently still hundreds of miles from the Island.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK: 1991 09 16 870
1994. “Double Trouble As Meek Stakes Claim”. There’s double trouble afoot in sailing this weekend, and if you have a view of the sea, chances are at some point you’ll be seeing the livewire start of the Cape’s yacht racing season, the Orion Double Cape Race.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK: 1994 09 16 018
1994. “Three-way Race for Honours”. Grand Baie is a flurry of frantic activity today as final preparations are made on board the 10 yachts due to compete in the Point Yacht Club’s Mauritius Crossing race which gets under way at 1pm SA time tomorrow.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK: 1994 09 16 – stitched
1995. “Hurricane Luis Demolishes Couple’s Dreams and Hopes”. Two years ago Viqui and Duncan Pooley boarded their yacht Intaka at the Royal Cape Yacht Club and set sail for the wealthy and romantic Caribbean island of St Martin – only to have their dreams dashed.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK: 1995 09 16 078
Comments, thoughts and contributions are welcome. Email: editor@sailing.co.za
About “On This Day”
It was towards the end of September last year, yes 2019, that I started “On This Day. A Newspaper History of Sailing.” So nearly a year has passed without a day being missed and without there being any newspaper news or pics available in my newspaper archives to share.
It all started while I was 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 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, and that of our sport.
This is my personal crusade, and instead of simply archiving and keeping the contents away from prying eyes, I share my spoils in the hope that you will enjoy reminiscing as much as I do.
As of the end of September the format will change as it’s simply not sustainable to continue for another full year on a similar basis. I have some 25 000 scanned newspaper cuttings, and have used the best so far – but as in life some variation and change is required. What those changes are I have not crystallised yet, and would enjoy feedback from followers of this Blog as to what they would like to see.
I have tons of material available – from every single issue of SA Yachting, Yachtsman RSA (newspaper – remember it?) and Sailing Inland & offshore Magazine. Between those publications – from October 1957 until June 2017 – a period spanning 60 years of coverage of the sport of sailing in this country – I have in my possession.
I am scanning every single issue of those 60 years – that’s 720 issues – and digitising them to get the fullest value possible from them. So far I have uncovered some incredible gems in their pages, and will share these as we go.
Plus I have a photographic archive of photographs in b/w negative format, colour negative, colour slide (transparency) and photographic prints I intend to scan, digitise and share with the sailing community at large.
But all this takes time – and is a slow process – so all I ask is for patience.
My plea thought – to all followers and everyone interested in the history of sailing in RSA, is to please assist me by sharing their personal archives, pics, press cuttings and whatever with me, so that I can scan them and share them. My promise is that I will treat them with the utmost care, and get them back to you safely.
To date, the response to “On This Day. A Newspaper History of Sailing” has been phenomenal, and it’s heartening to see how many people appreciate, LIKE and SHARE the material I have shared in the past year. And this is from ‘Saffers’ and others who have lived and sailed here, or have travelled internationally to sail here.
I am overwhelmed by the response – and thank all those who have personally 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.
As each scanned cutting and article is searchable, I am 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) – for those who want a record of his/her sailing career for the family archives.
I have already done this by scanning in excess of 18 000 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 as it all simply gets better every single day!
So sit back, grab a cup of your favourite brew, and enjoy what’s on offer today.
