Sunday, August 4, 2013

OD - OY Review; The Classic Moth

Voiliers classique Moth, dériveur classique Moth.

Well it wasn't the Classic Moth when One-Design and Offshore Yachtsman published their yearly dinghy review in 1964. These were the International Moths, plain and simple. (Well, the Aussies were doing their own 11-foot thing as well.). The OD-OY blurb shows a picture of a Cates design to leeward of a Ventnor/Dorr Willey type.
Update: George A., Classic Moth historian has posted a comment that the two sailors in the following thumbnail were Warren Bailey and Lewis Twitchell. If that's the case then the leeward Moth is not a Cates but one of Bailey's Mach designs (later massaged into the Cates/Florida design by boat builder Harry Cates).


Here is a picture of Pat Duane from the same time period, winning a Moth regatta in a Cates Moth. One of the best women dinghy sailors in the 1960's, she would go on to be one of the top three U.S teams (sailing with her husband) in the newly introduced Flying Dutchman two-man (or woman!) Olympic class.


5 comments:

Tillerman said...

I love these nostalgic posts.

How many degrees of separation was Pat Duane from Fred A. Mabbet?

Tweezerman said...

I wondered about that (see what you have started). To get Fred Mabbett to the Moth class you would have to go through the Star class. The Rochester Y.C started a Star fleet in 1916-1917 time frame and it looks like it hung together in fits and starts at least up to WWII. The Star class connection to the Moth would be Skip Etchells, builder, at the time, of the fastest Stars but also designer and builder of the Connecticut Moth (the Connecticut Moth is posted somewhere on this blog). I think I'll let someone else connect the dots on this one.

George A said...

The two Mothists on the cover are Warren Bailey and Lew Twitchell. Both were Moth World Champs (Bailey in 1954 and Twitch in '53).

Unknown said...

Pat Duane is our grandma, still living in Delray Beach, FL

Tweezerman said...

If Pat is willing to share any photos, stories, let me know. Always looking for material to post.