On This Day – 4 January. A Newspaper History of Sailing

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. “Lack of Wind Delays Start of Tough Hobiecat Race”. The start of the Argus Stannic 100 Hobiecat race from Hout Bay to Langebaan was delayed today as competitors waited for the wind to pick up.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1985 01 04 320 79

1985. “Hardman’s Laserator Lifts Buffalo Cup At Zwartkops”. The ideal weather at Zwartkops last Sunday allowed the fleet to sail two races over a special course for the individual class trophies at stake.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1985 01 04 320 86

1985. “Yachtsman Finishes Journey Without Crew”. A·Durban yachtsman, Mr Harry Clinton,·brought his 10-metre ferro-cement sloop Chipanoo into East London single-handed yesterday after his two crew members allegedly jumped ship off Coffee Bay.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1985 01 04 320 65

1990. “Close·Shave for Bertie Reed As Grinaker Capsizes”. South Africa ‘s Bertie “Biltong” Reed had a close shave on Tuesday night when his 18 metre yacht Grinaker capsized in the south Atlantic ocean.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1990 01 04 383 1

1993. “Roving Reed Sets His Sights Far Beyond Rio”. Bertie Reed, South Africa’s most famous yachtsman, went to sea for the first time in 18 months yesterday with his leg in plaster and announced plans to sail around the world again.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1993 01 04 318

1993. “Crew all NSRI”. The whole crew of the yacht IGI Sea Rescue, the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) entry to the Rothmans Fourth Cape to Rio Yacht Race, are members of the NSRI.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1993 01 04 327

1994. “Dinghies Make Light of Heavy Weather”. A saga of mishaps failed to put a dampener on a dinghy regatta at Saldanha. The littlest boats with the biggest hearts had to take on heavy weather to decide the outcome of the 1993 Mirror National Championships.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1994 01 04 614

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