by Richard Crockett
It appears that the Round the Island Race on the Vaal Dam “came of age” in 1980 when 534 boats started the race, and a competing boat was on te cover of SA Yachting magazine.
This 534 boat fleet was considered at the time as a record for a sailing event of its kind in Southern Africa . The entry of 181 keelers, 170 multihulls and 183 dinghies was perhaps also a good indication of the increased popularity of Transvaal sailing.
The Island event began in 1969 at Lake Deneys with 44 entries with the overall winner being Wibo Swart in a Finn. Another very well known yachtsman to take part in this first race was the Helmut Stauch who won the Flying Dutchman class.
There is lots to read in this article as well as pics of multiple sailing personalities of the day!
READ THE SA YACHTING REPORT HERE: Pages from 1980 03 – SA Yachting – OCR
READ THE YACHTSMAN RSA REPORT HERE: Pages from 1980 03 – Yachtsman RSA – OCR