Round the Island Race.. Dinghies 6th June 1953.

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pierre
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Round the Island Race.. Dinghies 6th June 1953.

Post by pierre »

I thought this article gleaned from the Osprey website would be of interest to you all.
Nail biting stuff in places, written originally for the Yachting World Annual 1954. A very close race indeed.

http://www.ospreysailing.org/cms/index. ... 1953-cowes
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GBW505
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Re: Round the Island Race.. Dinghies 6th June 1953.

Post by GBW505 »

Thank you Pierre,

I am, of course, always pleased to see "Coronet" mentioned!

Gillian
davidh
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Re: Round the Island Race.. Dinghies 6th June 1953.

Post by davidh »

Pierre,

I have now researched this race in detail not once but twice! Firstly, as part of the story of the Coronet/505, as this was very much a key stage in the development of the 'new' boat. Then, secondly, as part of the work that I have been doing for next years Ian Proctor centenary, which will start at the Dinghy Show in March. I have been lucky to track down and interview primary sources, other sailors who took part in this event, so have already got a very

I am not in the business of denigrating anyone so am not going to say anything negative about that particular narrative. But, that said, it has to be seen as Ian Proctor's own view of events and misses out on some important facts and details. Ian had invested a great deal of time and effort in preparation for this race, far more than the other competitors and was sailing Osprey three up with a stellar crew - Cliff Norbury and John Oakeley. He even made a special mast for the event!

I'll be featuring all of this in the Proctor talk at the Show, associated articles then in real detail in the 505 book.

Watch this space

D
David H
pierre
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Re: Round the Island Race.. Dinghies 6th June 1953.

Post by pierre »

Hi David
I just thought it an interesting read, (and have no particular axe to grind as to the boat despite being an Osprey sailor); and surprised at how close the finish was.
Sounds like Proctor was wise to have 3 aboard.
The following page on the site is a piece on the La Baule two hander trials that year. (Same source I believe) Fairly obvious to me that the FD was a shoo-in for the Olympic spot.... although you may know differently of course.
It's all interesting reading. Got quite wrapped up in it all.
Cheers
P
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davidh
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Re: Round the Island Race.. Dinghies 6th June 1953.

Post by davidh »

Pierre,

Too close.....and you've clearly not had the story about the cake that was on board Osprey.
Ian put a lot into the race and was a deserved winner, though looking at the margins had Coronet had a proper suit of sails she might have done even better (she sailed with an old suit of 14 sails). Add to that the thought that Max Johnson, whilst a good and competent helm, was up against some all star competition - Proctor, Fox, Banks and Holt to name just a few. The Nethercot boat was interesting - like Osprey, effectively a 17ft long merlin (but a Rocket) with a sliding seat.

La Baule was something else, there are stories that are only now coming out of the wood work. Luckily, as with the RTI race, there are still a few people around who competed and are thus able to provide some primary source material. I probably won't write up about La Baule anywhere else until after I've completed the 505 book - for the simple reason that there are some new facts to come out that will change the way we view the post event horse trading - suffice to say that the old way of thinking about how the 505 came into being will need a rethink.

D
David H
pierre
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Re: Round the Island Race.. Dinghies 6th June 1953.

Post by pierre »

Looking forward to the 505 book David.
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davidh
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Re: Round the Island Race.. Dinghies 6th June 1953.

Post by davidh »

Pierre,

It is a slow process, for every time I try to come forward in the chronology of the story, I get dragged back to those days somewhen in 1952 to 1954 when so much was going on in the world of performance dinghy sailing.

Some of this is only partially referenced to the 505 story but if the narrative is captured and recorded for this project, then I don't see anything else on the horizon and the detail will be lost. As I have already mentioned, I've been able to track down people who were actually sailing at these events, so have their first hand accounts - in some ways they must have been supermen (for they were pretty much all men in this part of the story) - for the power in these 'new' designs had advanced quicker than the fittings and layout that would make using them pleasurable.

The other problem of course is that the 505 book is not the story of the class here in the UK, but of the boat and how it has been sailed/is sailed on a world wide basis.

be patient - it is coming but 'tis a slow task. Anyone who has seen Real Magic will know the level of detail that I go in to, my hope is that 'Simply the Best' will be even better than that!

D
David H
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