Sailing Magazine
by Richard Crockett
“On This Day” finishes on Wednesday.
For the past 12 months I have steadfastly, every single day, published “On This Day – A Newspaper History of Sailing”. Now is the time to call it quits and change the theme and content.
I have found the history contained in the newspaper cuttings I have at my disposal to have been very interesting and informative, and judging by the following this Blog has, so do you!
The new theme will continue to inform on the history of the sport, and will take information from the multiple resources I have at my disposal. These include every single copy of SA Yachting magazine which started in 1957, to the final issue of SAILING Magazine which ceased publishing in July 2017. That’s 60 years worth of history there alone. Plus I have copies of Yachtsman RSA which began life as a newspaper and ended its life as a magazine in 1984. Add in my extensive photo library, my reference library of thousands of books on sailing – and there is enough material to weave together some magical Blogs.
So please don’t abandon ship just yet, please read the new offerings with an open mind as they are published, and should you enjoy them please like and share as far and wide as possible.
I have a plea as I endeavour to collate the history of our sport in this country which sadly gets tossed in trash bins far too regularly. Please assist me by sharing with me your personal archives, pics, press cuttings and whatever, so that I can scan them, share them and preserve them. My promise is that I will treat all material sent to me with the utmost care, and get it back to you safely.
Finally, should you wish to copy, forward or share material from this Blog, PLEASE acknowledge the source as: Sourced From the SAILING Mag Archives & Historical Records (www.sailing.co.za)
To read the full reports, click on the LINK following each headline.
1967. “New Racing Season”. Tomorrow the yacht basin will ring to the cheers of hundreds of yachtsmen as they .shout “Three cheers for the Commodore,” and thus welcome in the new racing season.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK: 1967 09 29 + OCR 29
1969. “Sailor’s Visit Goes Adrift”. Mystery surrounds the movements of world·famous yachtsman, Robin Knox-Johnston, who was due to arrive in Durban from Britain yesterday.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK: 1969 09 29 – Pfotenhauer – 000150
1970. “Old-timers in Race to Rio”. Two fabulous oldtimers will be battling for honours when the Cape to Rio race gets under way next January. One is the Durban-based ketch, Cariad 1, built in 1896 and the other is Tuluaq, a two -masted schooner, built just two years later.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK: 1970 09 29 504
1986. “Louis Launches A Dream to Sail Away”. Once an obese, successful businessman, now a born·again health fanatic and adventurer, 41-year-old Louis Botha has found a novel way to spread the word about his new zest for living to all armchair adventurers.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK: 1986 09 29 – 000053
1991. “Chris the Cocktail King Switches to Ocean Racing”. The face was unmistakable but what was Christian Lenferna doing at the Grand Bay yacht club in Mauritius last week on the eve of the 1991 Crystic Beachcomber Crossing?
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK: 1991 09 29 732
1994. “Rum Floes As Bowman’s Crew Celebrate”. Rum was Floe-ing at the Point Yacht Club last night with the announcement that Southern Floe was the overall handicap winner of the Mauritius Crossing Race from Grand Baie to Durban.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK: 1994 09 29 966
2000. “Young South African Blows Bronze Chance”. Young gun Gareth Blanckenberg succumbed to pressure yesterday as he blew his hunt for Olympic bronze with two mediocre performances in the Laser class.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK: 2000 09 29 418
Comments, thoughts and contributions are welcome. Email: editor@sailing.co.za
