J-CLASS AT PORTOFINO
Top, L-R: A 5.5; the 6m Dan, and the 8-M Miranda III enjoy the competition while, main photo, Michael and
Elizabeth standing by the helm of Shamrock with tactician Patrick Aucour (right) and Robbo on main (left)
It’s more than ten years since I stood on Shamrock V’s deck, at the time of her relaunch, after an extensive two-year rebuild in Pendennis, Falmouth, early in 2001. Back then her 1953 interior had been replaced and she’d been converted into a splendid cruiser racer for her Brazilian owner. Her huge teak-swept decks (you feel like standing on tip-toe to see the bow) were festooned with dull-bronze-look hydraulic Lewmar winches and her brace of 205 hp Caterpillar engines could power her along for 700nM from her 3,875-litre diesel tanks, housed in her remelted (but original lead) keel. There had not been a chance to sail then, either for CB, or for Elizabeth Meyer, project manager for the restoration, who had also restored the 1934 J Endeavour
during the late 1980s. In fact Elizabeth had been removed from the project only a month or two before its completion and so for her too, this Portofino charter was the first time she would be back on board Shamrock V, a boat she had been intimate with since her company, J Class Management, had taken over running Shamrock’s sailing programme in 1986 and then continuing through to her subsequent sale and the major part of her rebuild. With any acrimony over her split with the boat long put aside Elizabeth and her husband Michael McCaffrey are in Italy to enjoy some racing. The plan had only come together a week earlier and Cambria was persuaded to come here too.
CLASSIC BOAT JULY 2011 33
EMILY HARRIS
CARLO BORLENGHI
EMILY HARRIS
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