On This Day – 7 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.

1985. “Mobbs Trophy Goes to Screw”. In ideal Sprog weather, Screw (W Schmelzer and A Warne), sailed consistently well to win the coveted Mobbs Trophy at Zwartkops on Sunday afternoon: Second and third positions went to
Sphyrna (M and P Morgan) and Scrab (C Scribante and A Mew) respectively.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1985 03 07 324 23

1989. “Nic’s Birthday Treat – Junior Yachtsman of Year”. Claremont schoolboy Nicholas Cloete had a special treat on his 15th birthday – he was named South African Junior Yachtsman of the Year by the SA Yacht Racing Association.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1989 03 07 371 3

1991. “Bossanova Set to Lead Beachcomber Fleet Merry Dance”. The Bossanova is being groomed to lead the fleet a merry dance in the Crystic Beachcomber Crossing from Mauritius to Durban in September.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1991 03 07 107

1992. “Tony Rings World on Raw Fish and Onions”. Solo yachtsman Anthony Steward is back in Australia preparing his cockleshell yacht for the last leg of his epic 27 000-mile lone voyage round the world.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1992 03 07 127

1994. “Paynes Lead As Others Capsize in Heavy Seas”. After only one race, foreign yachtsmen, especially Australians, have put their stamp of authority on the Fireball International Week which began off Durban’s Vetch’s Pier yesterday.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1994 03 07 330

1996. “Nothing Wrong with Junk”. An intrepid South ·African adventurer has overcome piracy and disaster to reach the halfway point of a dream to circumnavigate the globe.
To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1996 03 07 637

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