Music Whenever: The Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band "Poor Until Payday"

Nothing more 'Murican" than good, old, rock-a-billy. And a parade to boot! (with what looks to be a wide-body Cadillac - no better representation of Murican bigness!)

Header Photo: Big Tasmanian Dinghy

As you would guess, I have a lot of sailing images collected from the Web; some filed in generic terms that give me no help in identifying them when I want to post them up on Earwigoagin. This great photo is one of them. I filed it under New Zealand-boat-planing, but I have no idea what class it is. This is quite a large dinghy, planing quite happily. I peg the date to be immediate post WWII. I'll see if any of my readers can fill in the details.

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I figured it would be Neil Kennedy, Antipodean historian par excellence, that would set me straight on this photo. Neil writes:

"That [photo] is definitely NOT a NZ class; we didn't ever wear white sailing gear and "Aussie Sunhats". I think you will find that the picture is of a 21ft restricted class that was sailed in Tasmania, Victoria and South Australia from the early 1900's till the 1950's. They had a challenge trophy which was fought out on an interstate challenge basis with a level of intensity to rival the NYY (New York Yankess for those not versed in American sports culture) v Red Socks saga's. I have a feeling that they originally sailed for the "Stonehaven Cup", donated by a Lord Stonehaven for interstate competition, but not 100% certain on that. I think a couple have been restored in Tasmania, and were featured in recent "Classic Yacht regatta's held in Hobart. Like all Aussie yachts they carried plenty of Rag ( sail) and a crew of hefty footballers to keep them afloat."

TOH to Neil of NedsLocker.

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More digging around the web shows this is the Tasmanian 21ft. Restricted Class, Tassie Too, recently restored. And the Interdominion Cup was called the Forster Cup. From the Royal Brighton Y.C. Victoria history:

Header Photo: English Moths Launching - Early 70's

Lowrider Moth Facebook Page

The previous header photo is of English Moths launching in the early 1970's. (I'm guessing) The International Rule had just been introduced and, in this transition period, you still see a wide variety of hulls and rigs. It wouldn't be long after this that the class started moving inexorably down the path of narrow skiffs with wings pushed out to max beam. On the left foreground you see the production Skol design, in the middle foreground, a scow, and on right foreground, the Duflos. In the background there is the mixture of the low-aspect Circle M rigs mixed in with the high-aspect Australian rig.

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While we are on the topic of the European Moths of this period, John Claridge, who would become the premier European builder of Moths through the 1970's and into the early 1990's, sends along his recollections of the epic heavy-air slugfest that was race 3 of the 1968 Moth Worlds. It is an interesting read.



Some photos that have been popping up on the Lowrider Moth Facebook group:

One of the light air starts during the 1968 Worlds. The Swiss and French contingent of Duflos designs with Finn-type rigs, that were to dominate the light air races and in the overall results, have launched out quickly in the left of this photo.

The KM Moth was one of the finishers in race 3. Here returning through the breakwater. From G. Albaugh, "I seem to recall seeing this photo years ago and if memory serves it was captioned as being John Shelley, sailing, at that time, from Malta." John mentions in his article that John Shelley was using a hockey stick mast, which this Moth seems to be using, so G.A.'s ID seems good-to-go.

The following photos are not of race 3 but I think they are from 1968 (maybe the European championship). A heavy air beat  in a good sea. All low-rigged Moths.

OD-OY Art Covers from 1965

The American sailing magazine, One-Design and Offshore Yachtsman, in modern times, morphed into Sailing World, actively published art covers back in the 1960's. Here is the sampling of the OD-OY covers from 1965.

Gerado Contreras did two very expressionist covers for OD-OY in 1965.

Gerado Contreras

Another Gerado Contreras cover.

Gerado Contreras

Jim Dewitt, a San Francisco artist, has been very famous for his sailing paintings, for over 40 years. He is the one artist that seems to intimately capture the breadth of action in sailing. Here is his OD-OY cover in 1965 with big-boat action getting the sails trimmed.

Jim Dewitt

Ted Brennan was one of the major illustrators of the One Design and Offshore Yachtsman. His pen and ink sketches made it onto the cover several times. (I am sure the starter's pistol would be very mistaken in today's culture - and I think it very odd to include it even back in the 1960's, especially with the theme of youngsters and model boats.)

Ted Brennan

Another Ted Brennan sketch of the weekend exodus out to the sailing club, or the lake outside the city, or the weekend regatta, or to the big water.

Ted Brennan

Another Cricket Dinghy Pops Up

The Cricket class is one of two (the other being the Lark scow) small sailboat classes that mark the beginning of small sailboat class racing in the United States. The Cricket and the Lark date to the late 19th century, early 20th century. Tommy Dunbar sent along photos of the second extant Cricket I have come across, a beautiful restoration he completed two years ago. Tommy writes:

"I thought you might [be] interested... to know my family has one here in Annapolis MD. The boat was my great grandfathers and I just recently finished restoring her. I have only came across one other Cricket Dinghy like it which was posted in your blog. We don’t know the exact origins of the boat but someone said it could have come from the old Ventnor boat works by Atlantic City NJ. It is believed to have been built sometime in the late 20s or early 1930s. I finished the restoration over two summers [ago]..."

CVRDA: First Regatta of the Season

The English organization, Classic, Vintage, Racing Dinghy Association, CVRDA, held their first regatta of the season at Hunts SC. Photos were posted on Facebook by Nikky Evans. I've taken the classes that I'm interested in; Classic Moth, Minisail, and reposted them here.

Ian Marshall in the Shelley design Classic Moth.

Nikky Evans

Nikky Evans

A yellow Skol design Classic Moth - I think sailed by Richard Woods. It looks like Richard is using a heavy air sail given the short foot length of the sail.

Nikky Evans

Nikky Evans

Nikky Evans

The English pretty much invented the clinker (lapstrake) built small sailing boat. Here is an pretty 12 foot Sea Ranger, found mostly at Gunfleet SC. (Geez!, the Brits have the best sailing club names!)

Nikky Evans

A Minisail. An Ian Proctor designed scow; the precursor to the Topper. Sailed by a fellow named Steve. It looks like Steve glommed a Laser Radial rig onto the Minisail.

Nikky Evans

Nikky Evans