Opposite: Outsider was a member of Germany’s 1983 Admiral’s Cup-winning team… Germany won again in 1985. An infamous moment (left) in Admiral’s Cup history when Italy’s Mandrake T-boned Promotion VII in 1993 – also breaking the thumb of Promotion helm Bouwe Bekking
introduced, there was no better place to get the latest gossip.
Spreading the scope by a few miles, to take in Cowes, Hamble, Havant and Southampton, it would require a big piece of paper to list all those who helped us go racing. Names like SP Systems, the Wolf- son Unit, Spinlock, Lewmar, Spencer’s, Diverse Yacht Services, The Rig Shop, Proctor and an array of sailmakers like McWilliams, North Sails, Bruce Banks, Mike Relling, Sobstad and Ulmer Kolius. Many boats were also being built on the Isle of Wight, by builders like Rob Lipsett, Kilian Bushe, Solution and Vision. If I remember correctly I was involved with four island-built boats in the early 1990s: Unibank (a Judel-Vrolijk 45), Inespal (JV40), Swing (JV45) and Port Pendennis (Dubois 40). Nomex-cored boats, pre-preg laminates – exciting stuff in those days and with so much to learn.
In 1972 the commodore of the Royal Lymington Yacht Club, Admiral Sir Derek Steele-Perkins, wrote in a short study on the history of Lymington: ‘Lymington has developed into a major yachting centre: the explosion of “boating” during the 1950s and 60s was a phenomenon peculiar to our Island Race. Whether the compulsive urge to sail, drive or paddle any craft that can float is a condition for the psychologist; or, more probably, an escape from the pres- sures of over-crowded Britain and the bureaucrat, the fact remains that, statisti- cally, for every foreigner, 200 more Britons take to the water. History declared that Lymington should develop along recre- ational lines and geography has conve- niently decreed our harbour as one of the twin havens at the end of the Needles Channel… it was inevitable that Lyming- ton would attract the modern keelboat.’ Marinas, boatyards and ancillary indus- tries all sprang up in response to the demand which by 1990 reached astronom- ical proportions. There was then only one overriding question: when to cry ‘Enough is enough?’
Sadly this outcry reflected not just personal opinion… Instead of facilitating new solutions a lack of space and facilities led to many companies and much of the specialist workforce leaving the little Geor- gian town in search of more commercially viable locations. Of course, to be fair,
raceboats have got bigger and the town is not ideally situated for transporting very large objects, whether by road or by river! Still, the camaraderie and buzz of the period 1975–2000 are sadly missed at times and it was nice to revisit it at Warborne Farm. In such moments we are reminded that the racing community is still like a large international family. Meeting up with old friends also gave me extra energy to look forward to 2015 when I aim to see as many of the ‘family’ as I can and be of help wherever I can. So, Merry Christmas and best wishes from the Dutchman!
By the way, I think the commodore was out of whack with his figure of 200 to 1 – he obviously never visited Holland or the Baltic countries. Then again he was not all that out of touch, considering that in 1972 he also wrote the following: ‘I believe that keelboat racing will increase in the west Solent but in handicapping I consider we should reconcile the racing of unrated boats to their IOR-rated sisters and not try to encourage a local handicap system. If we do this it will encourage more and better boats to race in these events.’ Three cheers for the commodore – I know a few people of influence who over 40 years later have yet to attain his level of perception… ‘More and better boats’ is not a bad ambition for 2015.
Already I cannot wait to see our nine new TP52s lined up. But above all enjoy your sailing. To borrow a ‘flower power’ mantra from another US icon, Stephen Stills: ‘If you cannot sail the boat you love, love the one you sail.’
As for the news and gossip at the Chequers Inn, it’s still there. I was told at the bar that Ganbare, the game-changing Doug Peterson 1973 One Tonner, has just been sold and is on her way from Italy to Lymington, to be raced from there. Ganbare is a true classic. Like Dorade before her, she changed yacht design. Built by Carl Eichenlaub (another legend, from San Diego) to a shoestring budget, she marked the beginning of the end of the design hegemony of S&S and Dick Carter. In fact, Ganbare’s stripped-out interior and minimalist deck layout most likely were partially budget driven. Eichenlaub, as the story goes, partnered in the boat and financed his bit through his friend, John Mueller, while Doug’s grandmother was kind enough to help with the other half. Bill Green was involved in her build and was also a crewmember. With her short overhangs and crisply separated keel and rudder, Ganbare (Japanese for ‘Hang in there’ or ‘Go for it’) caught the attention of many sailors around the world. Jeremy Rogers was just one of them. The rest is history…
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