SUMMER RACING AND CRUISING
Summer got off to a great start with Camden Classics Cup in late July, followed by the Eggemoggin Reach Regatta in early August. Erin and I, along with our daughters, raced NORA in both events, and were thrilled (and slightly amazed) to win third place in our class at the ERR! Travel writer Johnathan Blum wrote a wonderful recap of Camden Classics from his perspective of sailing Watch Hill 15 JEANNE in the daysailer class, which you can read in full here.
Following the Eggemoggin Reach Regatta we sailed East to Roque Island for a few days, and then spent the next two weeks cruising between Mount Desert Island and Vinalhaven. This time as a family aboard NORA never ceases to remind us how incredibly lucky we are to live, work and sail in Midcoast Maine!
CURRENT PROJECTS
SEA LADY – One of my favorite boats, SEA LADY, was in the shop this spring for an overhaul. 18′ LOA and designed by Aage Nielsen in 1948 as an open cockpit daysailer with a small auxiliary diesel, she was later refitted with a large house and the engine removed. SEA LADY needed a new stern post, and the owner determined that this was an opportune time to reinstall an engine. While discussing the merits of removing the house and going back to the open cockpit arrangement, we conceived a new layout that renders SEA LADY both better looking and more useable. A Beta 14 hp diesel was installed in the position indicated by her original design, and then we moved the later added main bulkhead forward 24″ – literally doubling the size of the cockpit while maintaining the two bunks below deck in the cabin. SEA LADY’s owners can now comfortably daysail with friends and family and extend their cruising range to the islands of Penobscot Bay – regardless of the breeze.
YORK 18s – As noted in the recent issue of Maine Boats, Homes, and Harbors Magazine, York Marine in Rockland is building a pair of 18′ fiberglass daysailers to a new design by the venerable Chuck Paine. Intending these boats to blend modern safety and performance with classic Herreshoff detailing, the builder and designer together chose Artisan Boatworks to install the woodwork. This included transom sheathing inside and out, the distinctive molded Herreshoff sheer planks, side decks, toe rails, and coamings. It will require an experienced eye to discern that these boats are fiberglass, unless of course you’re in the cockpit where the lack of traditional structural elements is a giveaway.
WHITECAP
WHITECAP (originally MIST) is a ROZINANTE yawl built in the 1960s under the supervision of designer L. Francis Herreshoff. WHITECAP’s owner decided to move her from Mount Desert Island to the Connecticut River, where the tidal current necessitates auxiliary propulsion. Along the way he brought her to us, and like SEA LADY, we will install a Beta 14 diesel. Once sea trials with the new engine are completed in October, WHITECAP will remain in our care until spring, when she will be transported to Essex, CT for launching and rigging.
