Nov 3, 2019
USA 1984
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USA 1984
USA 1984
Dorade, scrap or sell?
I was looking at this picture of my friend John’s old wooden boat the other day, and it got me thinking about another old wooden boat that’s been in the news lately.
When I was a kid I wanted an S&S so badly, but now that I’m grown up I realize my childhood fantasies weren’t on the right track. I’m talking about the Dorade and it’s victory at last year’s Bermuda race. How that was possible I don’t know.
Whenever either Sparkman or Stephens is interviewed - I can’t remember which lol - he always tells the story of how they won the cross Atlantic race in the Dorade and the race organizers signaled them “you are the first” kind of like the America winning the 1st America’s cup and Queen Victoria being told “there is no second.” I’m still trying to figure out how that thing won anything lol. Typical S&S ego - they insult the Herreshoff designs, yet most of the S&S boats are blatant copies. When S&S launched their first boat, a six meter, they were proud that it was only 1/8″ off the waterline. Come on guys, get with the program, I’d sue my designer if my boat was 1/100″ off lol. Of course their 12 meters won a couple America’s Cup’s - and lost just as many lol.
I liked S&S so much as a kid that my dad bought the original plans for the Dorade and gave them to me as a present, a scan of the plans is below:
So why the change of heart after all these years? Look at that thing, it’s basically a fishing boat, and not one of those Grand Bankers either, not that they were all that fast lol, it’s like a sardine trawler lol. And you’ve got to remember Crowinshield, getting served at the America’s Cup trials, it just shows that commercial fishing boats are losers, and the number of boats lost on the Grand Banks isn’t very encouraging either, makes me wonder if Loyd’s has it’s head screwed on right.
The Dorade sure as hell wouldn’t have won on corrected time or anything if I’d been in the Bermuda race lol.
The 2010 Bermuda Race starts today in Newport, RI. It will be my father’s 19th race and 3rd in his own boat, Killua (pictured).
So this isn't exactly Outer Space Sunday, but it's definitely planetary! Genius photography by Eve Cohen.
Bermuda Race, June, 1958 (by jpe61).
When asked if he would bring his friend Jon Stewart next time, he said probably not as Mr Stewart is not particularly an outdoors person. “He worries about me when I do things like this,” said Mr Colbert.