Historic Regatta Results

[dom]

Bit of a long shot, but does anyone know of anywhere where it's possible to find race results from historic regattas, going back to the 80s?

My dad and I used to crew on a cruiser class yacht which belonged to a middle-aged couple. I can't for the life of me remember the name of the yacht, but I'd dearly love to know what it was and where she is now. My dad's long gone and the only thing I can remember about the owners is that I think they lived somewhere near Stalham surgery.

We weren't the most experienced of crews, but actually did remarkably well at Wroxham and Oulton Weeks for a couple of years, getting up amongst the top finishers on quite a few occasions. I'd guess that was probably around 1984-86 or so. If I could see the results, I suspect it might be enough to allow me to work out which one was us. I've tried looking at current lists, but the names of boats and crews are all so familiar, I haven't got a hope of working out which yacht it was without narrowing things down a bit.

[Vaughan]

I am afraid I can only answer your question by asking questions!

Was this an older wooden boat or a new one with a Fibre-glass hull?

Was she gaff rigged, with a topsail, or Bermuda rigged?

All registered River Cruisers have a sail number.  Do you remember it?

Was the boat kept on Wroxham Broad?  If so was she moored on a buoy?

 

[marshman]

The Race results will, I guess, still be held, by the clubs concerned. I bet that certainly Wroxham will have theirs, Horning too but you are facing an almost impossible task without knowing the name of the boat. Almost certainly the owners name or the skippers name will be recorded but you are asking a lot without a name. I guess many names will be familiar as a number will still be around, but if not even you remember the name of the boat, my guess it is it will be an uphill battle!!

[JanetAnne]

Back in the 80's Oulton Week results used to be published in the Lowestoft Journal as were the results of the normal weeks racing as well. I know this because I have some clippings but only for BOD's 

[dom]

7 hours ago, Vaughan said:

Was this an older wooden boat or a new one with a Fibre-glass hull?

Was she gaff rigged, with a topsail, or Bermuda rigged?

All registered River Cruisers have a sail number.  Do you remember it?

Was the boat kept on Wroxham Broad?  If so was she moored on a buoy?

She was an older wooden boat, I think fully varnished. Probably gaff rigged, but no topsail.

I've usually got an incredible memory for detail. I can remember stupid things like tyre sizes on cars I owned 30 years ago but, for some reason, nothing seems to have sunk in regarding name or sail number on the yacht. I was always on jib and can picture my feet wedged against a toe rail in the cockpit as we heeled over, but I just can't visualise much else. I suspect the memories have probably been blanked out by drunken antics in the clubhouse at Oulton and my dad going overboard one race and only just being recovered by the safety boat!

We used to do an alongside tow down to Oulton and I can remember Golden Galleon coming past on one occasion at high speed, putting up a massive bow wave and nearly wrecking the yacht - but I can't picture where we set out from. I think it probably was a swinging mooring on Wroxham Broad, but I'm not sure if that would have been her permanent home, or if she was just there following Wroxham week.

I keep thinking that I want to get back up to Oulton at some point for a powerboat evening meeting. I might have to get around to doing so next year and leaving a bit early to see if WOBYC have old results. I suspect if I saw the helm and boat name in the results, the memories would all come flooding back.

[LizG]

I almost think the Golden Galleon would put your memory into the late 1970s??? Could be proved wrong.

Okay my questions - how many crew on board

Was the helm also dealing with the mainsheet or was there someone else on the stern dealing with that?

Did you have winches for the jib

Did it have a bowsprit

Can you remember the occupation of the helm

I'm thinking of Melody or Bryony maybe?

Liz (who remembers sailing at Horning, Wroxham, Barton, Thurne and Oulton in the 1970s but not the 80s)

[Turnoar]

If it was an all varnished hull then that narrows it down a lot. On the basis of that and owner in the vicinity of Stalham Surgery it’s a long shot but possibly Reed Robin?

Based on varnish only my other thoughts are Barracuda, I know she was based at Wroxham back around that time but not sure re racing. Other varnished yachts I can’t link in but may jog your memory are Phantom, Loyalist and Cynthia. Not sure if Cynthia was raced, her rig had gone by the turn of the 90’s.

With the passage of time some may have been painted of course, were the  Pandora’s varnished when in hire.. but I may have opened a box of worms there!

[dom]

40 minutes ago, LizG said:

I almost think the Golden Galleon would put your memory into the late 1970s??? Could be proved wrong.

Okay my questions - how many crew on board

Was the helm also dealing with the mainsheet or was there someone else on the stern dealing with that?

Did you have winches for the jib

Did it have a bowsprit

Can you remember the occupation of the helm

I'm thinking of Melody or Bryony maybe?

Liz (who remembers sailing at Horning, Wroxham, Barton, Thurne and Oulton in the 1970s but not the 80s)

Definitely 80s. I actually looked earlier and Golden Galleon was running until the 90s. The EDP says she sat on the Yare from 00-06 before being scrapped.

Answers to your yacht questions:

4 crew. 2nd crew member in addition to the helm at the stern. The cockpit was on the small size for 4.

The jib was on capstans(?), so you put a turn or two around a roller and pulled the sheet by hand against a ratcheting mechanism, rather than a winch with a handle.

Bowsprit - I think yes, but couldn't guarantee

Can't think of the helm's occupation. My dad worked for Norwich Union. I suspect he may well have met them through work.

Looking at the class website, Melody certainly doesn't look wrong, although she's in white paint and with a topsail, which goes against what I'd said previously. The name doesn't jar either and the helm's name seems vaguely familiar. Built by Ernest Woods also sounds right. I'm going to let that run round in my head for a while to see if it stirs any other memories. The only thing I wonder is whether the helm from the mid 80s would realistically still be listed on the class website now. I'd image they'd probably be heading for 80 now, but I guess the site may just show the info from when she last raced, which could be some time ago?

[LizG]

I think I missed the bit saying varnished. Also Sleeping Beauty springs to mind - Melody was painted?

[dom]

1 hour ago, Turnoar said:

If it was an all varnished hull then that narrows it down a lot. On the basis of that and owner in the vicinity of Stalham Surgery it’s a long shot but possibly Reed Robin?

Based on varnish only my other thoughts are Barracuda, I know she was based at Wroxham back around that time but not sure re racing. Other varnished yachts I can’t link in but may jog your memory are Phantom, Loyalist and Cynthia. Not sure if Cynthia was raced, her rig had gone by the turn of the 90’s.

With the passage of time some may have been painted of course, were the  Pandora’s varnished when in hire.. but I may have opened a box of worms there!

Reed Robin sounded familiar, but looking at her details, I think a) she's too long, and b) she has Stuart Turner propulsion, which I'd imagine to be an original period engine. I'm fairly sure ours didn't have an inboard, which was one of the reasons we towed her to Oulton. I think I may remember Reed Robin from racing, and possibly also Loyalist, but none of the names sound right for ours.

My primary memory is of seeing her tied alongside our Broom, either on tow, or on a swinging mooring at Oulton. Because she was lower so I was invariably looking down, it's possible my brain may be confusing a varnished transom with a varnished hull. It's really unlike me, but I just can't picture her clearly. I guess it's an age thing

I guess another option is to try and get up for one of next year's regattas so I can do a bit of sleuthing in person. I'm fairly sure I'd know her the second I saw her if she's still around.

 

[Turnoar]

Morning Calm is another all varnished yacht probably on the racing scene around that time. Corsair too, clinker one though not the clipper class. Dusky Maid. All still going strong.

 

[dom]

Definitely wouldn't be Morning Calm, as she was built by C&G Press. I'd have remembered if that was the case, as I was friends with one of their descendants in school.

Not clinker. I'd have remembered if that was the case, as my dad's best mate had spent the preceding years rebuilding a clinker motor cruiser. I spent countless days listening to the constant sound of hammering of roves! She's another one I'd love to see again - Josephine from Summercraft, she was virtually scrap a few years ago, but I think she's had a fortune spent and now on the Southern Broads somewhere.

Dusky Maid doesn't sound at all familiar. I'm fairly sure she had a modest sounding, single word name.

I've been through the entire class list and think I'm going to have to find some sort of record of results to stand any chance of tying it down. If I could see the results for Oulton 85 and 86, it'd narrow it down massively. After that, I could quickly eliminate a few I know we raced such as White Wings, or the long, sweeping designs like Loyalist. I think you'd fairly quickly get down to a relatively small list and be able to easily work out which she is. Wouldn't surprise me at all if it turned out she was Melody.

 

 

[Vaughan]

10 hours ago, dom said:

it's possible my brain may be confusing a varnished transom with a varnished hull.

I was thinking that as well, as I can't place a competitive cruiser with a varnished hull.

I have been thinking of No  4, Swallow, then owned by Ken Lord and previously by Tom Percival.  She was kept on a buoy on Wroxham Broad and although quite small was a very handy racing boat.

[dom]

6 hours ago, Vaughan said:

I have been thinking of No  4, Swallow, then owned by Ken Lord and previously by Tom Percival.  She was kept on a buoy on Wroxham Broad and although quite small was a very handy racing boat.

The size is about right, but I think she may be a bit too lean and elegant judging by the (not great quality) pictures I can find online.

I can't help but think with it being within a few years of his death and our being loosely acquainted with him, I'd have known if it had previously been Tom Percival's boat, especially racing at Oulton week.