On This Day – 30 March. 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.

1959. “Titles Change Hands in Yachting Regatta”. The 1959 Durban Easter regatta of the Natal Yachting Association reached a thrilling climax yesterday when the final rounds of the class championship were sailed on the bay. A feature of the results was the victory of two young helmsmen, Bruce McCullagh and Neil Donkin, who beat the champions in the Finn and Sprog divisions respectively. (ED. It should be Bruce McCurrach and NOT McCullagh).
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1959 03 30 media 656

1968. Yachtsman Sails Back to U.S.”. American yachtsman Al Eddy left Durban this week in his 30ft. yacht Apogee to continue his trip back to the United States.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1968 03 30 580 3

1968. “Yachtsman Hurt, So Wife Sails”. Mrs. Carmen Stauch, a Pretoria grandmother and wife of the veteran Springbok yachtsman Helmut, yesterday raced her husband’s Flying Dutchman in the South African Yachting Championships at Saldanha Bay after he had been taken to hospital as a result of a serious accident involving a motor boat.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1968 03 30 580 5

1990. “Special Labels”. Souvenir hunters had no trouble finding mementoes at the Cruising Association of South Africa’s welcome party for participants in the Portnet Dias Yacht race at the Royal Cape Yacht Club recently.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1990 03 30 069

1990. “Sailors Rarin’ to Go for Lisbon”. Table Bay is set to see colourful spinnakers galore when the Portnet Dias Trophy race starts at 3pm tomorrow.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1990 03 30 233

1994. “American Pair Flourish in Light Winds”. If conditions continue as they have during the last two days, competitors in the Durban Unlimited 505 pre-world championships will go home thinking that Durban is a flat-water, light-wind sailing venue, rather than a windy venue with good all-round testing conditions, writes Richard Crockett.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1994 03 30 297

1998. “Vasco Da Gama Race is Test of Skill and Courage”. While you landlubbers were hard at work during the latter part of last week, I was at sea between Port St Francis and Durban bringing Golden Sovereign, a competitor in next month’s Vasco da Gama race, to Durban.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1998 03 30 710

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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