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The 100 Club: the glory of centenarian yachts

Thanks to Eric Tabarly’s vision and the efforts of the Gstaad Yacht Club, we can now all bask in the beauty of the sailing centenarians

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In the weeks preceeding Pen Duick ’s 100th birthday in 1998, her owner, Eric Tabarly, said he hoped that one day there would be a gathering of yachts of 100 years and more, to show the world the beauty and resilience of these magnificent yachts. Sadly, he fell from his beloved yacht on the way to the Fife Regatta in Scotland that same year, but he would have been immensely proud to see his wish come true thanks to the efforts of a tiny, relatively unknown yacht club in Gstaad…

Despite being landlocked, Gstaad YC now boasts 400 members, including European royalty from 20 different countries. It has thrived and in October 2011, in cooperation with the Société Nautique de Saint Tropez, the club awarded its inaugural Centenary Trophy, created by Wakely & Wheeler of London in 1911, to the race winner of a prestigious gathering of these incredible centenarian yachts.

But despite its success, a nagging question remains: why has it taken a yacht club buried in the mountains  of Switzerland to make the rest of us take notice of our centenary yachts as a potent group? One reason is there are now more boats that have passed their 100th birthday than in 1998, so it’s easier to get a sizeable group together to race. Adding to the numbers, more have been restored. It’s also true to say that there are still not that many clusters of centenarians, though Gstaad Yacht Club has chosen a very suitable time and venue – Challenge Day at Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez, where many classic boats of impeccable pedigree gather at the end of the racing season. But that’s no excuse. I remember when a group of French classic boat enthusiasts came to Britain to visit some of our many boats and museums, and wondered whether we really appreciated what we have.

Rich reserves And do we yet appreciate what we have? A bit more certainly, but why do we not have our own centenarians’ race in the Solent, or even classics events in historically important areas such as the Clyde and East Anglia? Maybe it would take losing our boats as the French did in the wars to really appreciate the number and variety of historic boats we have around our waterways.

Britain has so much to fall back on and the nation got a brief glimpse during the Queen’s Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant, despite the BBC’s best efforts to withhold the compelling histories of these boats. We are very lucky.

But do many people get to see them? Go to France and take a walk along the old harbour at Cannes during the Régates Royales regatta (part of the Panerai Classic Yachts Challenge festival calendar) or at Les Voiles a week later and you’ll see many of the world’s most beautiful classic centenarians, but we all need to do more to show the public that these are quite amazing boats that are still exciting to restore, watch and sail.

Les voiles de saint-tropez Twenty boats were registered for the 2012 Special Centenarians race during Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez. The 1897 cutter Lulu , similar to the yachts the Impressionist painter Gustave Caillebotte portrayed, set off first in a 10.7 mile-long pursuit race, followed 46 minutes later by the last one in the handicap series, the Fife 15-M Mariska . The start and finish were just off the harbour wall, which was crowded with spectators, and the breeze filled in from a 10-knot southwesterly to a robust 15 knots on this sparkling sunny day, giving a good challenge to both boats and crews.

The race favoured the boats built for stronger conditions, as the winner by 15 minutes was the hefty 1892 Charles Nicholson gaff cutter Marigold , beating the lighter 1899 Bona Fide (who won the first regatta in 2011) into second, followed by the 1905 Herreshoff NY30 design Oriole close behind in third.

They were followed in quick succession by two of the four Fife 15-Ms – The Lady Anne , who celebrated her 100th birthday in 2012, and the 1909 Hispania – who fought their own little battle with the other two, the 1909 Tuiga (see page 10) and the 1908 Mariska . Further excitement came in a near-photo finish between the 1885 gaff cutter Partridge and Hispania . The bright yellow Falmouth Working Boat Victory built in 1883 was next, with Mariska and Tabarly’s iconic Pen Duick behind.

Apart from the 15-Ms – probably the most elegant foursome in the classics world – these boats are intriguingly different. Marigold and Partridge were built to a Victorian working pilot boat design with plumb bows, overhanging counter sterns and long bowsprits. Both were built at Camper & Nicholsons near Southampton, though Marigold is slightly shorter and beamier. Both were recovered from salt water mud berths, which helped to preserve them, but it took the perseverance of their owners to recreate their finer days.  They contrast markedly with Bona Fide , designed by Charles Sibbick and built at the Albert Yard in Cowes. She has thin timbers that are more like a canoe’s than a yacht’s and with a LOA of 44ft 6in (13.6m) and an incredible amount of overhang, she is light and fast – perfect for racing. Doug Peterson found her in Italy, abandoned since 1983 and without her mast, bowsprit and spars. She overtakes many yachts much longer than herself, and has done extremely well in the Mediterranean races. Oriole is a New York 30 One-Design, penned for the New York YC by Nat Herreshoff. Other boats in the fleet included Victory , built in 1883 as a Falmouth oyster dredging boat and with a jazzy bright yellow hull. The 1896 Nan of Fife , discovered on the internet and traced to a shed in France with her counter stern lopped off and just her faint original name to confirm her identification, has been restored by the grandson of a previous owner.

Best of british It was magnificent to see such a strong contingent of home-grown heroes out on the water too. The four 15-Metres plus Moonbeam III and the 19-M Mariquita all came from the Fife drawing board and yard; in 1899 Alfred Mylne gave us Tigris , Owl was designed by Fred Shepherd in 1909, and Veronique was designed and built by Luke Brothers in 1907. But the grandfather of all the centenarians is Tabarly’s Pen Duick . Designed by Fife III and built in Ireland, she is a class act and regarded as a national icon in France, symbolising the resurgence of the country when she was raised from a mud berth after the war. Peter Erzberger, Commodore of Gstaad Yacht Club, commented: “It was a beautiful, very positive race. Today we proved that the formula is perfect and that with every successive edition we can gather more data to make the handicap system better and to have sailors enjoy the regatta more and more. By analysing the boats’ performances we will be able to sharpen the rating system and possibly create a specific “centenary rule” for the future editions. Also that is very good for the spectators, for whom it is easier to understand and even bet on who the winner will be, besides being able to admire the sheer beauty of these boats.”

At the end of the regatta, the winner’s trophy was awarded to Marigold ’s owner, Richard Allan, who said: “We are really happy. It’s great to race in an event with competitors of the same age. It’s the first time we’ve taken part in the trophy, so we’re even more satisfied. We’ll be back next year to defend our title, that’s for sure!”

Perhaps one day we will see more gatherings of these centenarians, as Eric Tabarly hoped. There are a growing number in America and though they race within a classics venue, you need to search through the listings to pick out the oldest boats, then try and find them. Perhaps we could have a special mooring or berthing area for the boats over 100 years old, so people could come and see them for themselves, then recognise them when sailing? There could be a special sailpast at the end of the event, or a dedicated website highlighting their histories that could be updated – Classic Boat has worked hard to do this already (see panel on page 14), so much information is available and there is more to be discovered. There are, of course, individual celebrations for each centenary but let’s think of people outside the classics community, show what we have achieved and saved, and let them see for themselves the incredible beauty and strength of these magnificent boats.

The club with big ideas

Nestled in one of the choicest corners of the world, at 3,445ft (1,050m) above sea level, Gstaad Yacht Club appears more than a little incongruous amid the surrounding peaks, valleys and ski slopes. Celebrating its 15th anniversary earlier this year, the club has come a long way since its inception over dinner in 1998.

Initially considered something of  a folly between close friends, the club is now thriving with an international membership. For a yacht club based in a landlocked country the GYC’s calendar is remarkably full, including ski races, car rallies, a unique race for radio-controlled yachts on Gstaad’s semi-Olympic pool, and a roster of events at its luxurious clubhouse. One of the village’s social hubs, the clubhouse hosts social and cultural events and sporting activities, and welcomes a growing number of junior members.

Do not write off this club as an eccentricity. Competing in the world’s most prestigious races, from St Tropez to Sardinia and Cowes, the GYC was also represented on the Swiss Olympic sailing team in 2004, 2008 and 2012. As patron, HM Constantine II, King of the Hellenes said: “Our vision is to create a unique, global yacht club away from the waters, instead of another yacht club by the waters.” Looks like they have succeeded. Coco Strunck

Flying the flag for centenarians

In the August 2004 issue of Classic Boat (CB194), a tiny piece appeared in the news section, wishing a happy 100th birthday to the Fife III beauty Mikado . She was preparing for her party at Northney Marina on Hayling Island. “She’ll be floodlit and we’ve got a band playing so there’ll be dancing and general hi-jinks, as well as dinner,” said the owner Michael Briggs. Since then, we’ve run a story on a centenarian yacht nearly every month. The aim is as simple as it is effective: to celebrate yachts of exactly 100 years old, much like the Queen’s birthday letter to British citizens who reach that age. And much in the same way that the Queen’s message is to congratulate a long and continuing life, so our little award only goes to boats that are still alive – and by that we mean in commission – and by that we mean still sailing, steaming, motoring or rowing, not up on blocks on land somewhere or trapped behind glass.

We were unsure at first if it would be possible to find 12 boats (mainly yachts) that have turned 100 every year. The fact that we’ve managed to do so for nine years has been a credit to the boat owners who have poured everything they have into keeping these grand old girls afloat. Twenty five have been workboats; a handful have been dinghies like the International 12-Foot and West Kirby Star. We’ve run motorboats, steam yachts, schooners and – most of all – venerable old gaff cutters. The average length is 44ft (13.4m).

We’ve had two bicentenarians – the 200-year-old Cornish gig Newquay (built 1812) and the 200-year-old Essex Smack Boadicea (1808). We’ve even listed The Cruising Association and Ratty from Wind in the Willows ! We’ve also had a couple of accidental repeats. So, would you believe it – this is the hundredth issue that has carried our centenarian feature! Good thing we decided to go big this month.

The 100-year shadow of the First World War is fast approaching, and from next year we will not be able to feature 100-year-old yachts, as few were built in those years. But just as the Queen continues to write to the exceptionally old on subsequent birthdays, we will, for the next five years at least, diversify to include yachts over a century old. And we are also considering a booby prize of a feathered helmet crest for the next reader who proudly informs us his yacht is a ‘centurion’. You have been warned… SHMH

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100-Year-Old Rasmussen Superyacht Restored

• By Kim Kavin
• March 22, 2023

Today, the Abeking & Rasmussen yard is known for superyachts like the 223-foot Soaring and the 244-foot Elandess . But a century ago, designer Henry Rasmussen was creating the 75-foot sailing yacht Talisman : the first steel-hull yacht Rasmussen’s shipyard built.

The yacht went on to sail under different names for all these years until, a few years ago, a new owner took possession. Originally, he was looking to build a boat from scratch. “But then his daughters said, ‘Why do you want to waste our resources in the world when there are so many nice older boats on the market?’ Then, he looked around and found this boat from 1920. And then, of course, he wanted to protect Earth’s resources, so he thought about how to make it very green,” says Matthias Schubert, director of project sales at Torqeedo .

So began the restoration of a 1920 yacht at a shipyard that dates to the 1800s, with help from a company making modern electric power. HCC Badevaerft in Denmark spent three years taking the boat apart and rebuilding it, upcycling as many materials as possible while adding Torqeedo electric power.

The work mixed old-school heft and current-day creativity, including when it came to removing weight to accommodate the heavy batteries. Three people at HCC—two men and one woman—spent weeks hammering concrete out of the ballast to compensate for the power system’s pounds.

A project like this is not for the faint of wallet; the drive system alone is a six-figure investment. But for those with the will to try, it can be done.

“Everybody wants to be environmentally friendly, but then nobody wants to spend the money,” says HCC owner Monica Fabricius. “This owner did.”

Deep Blue Battery

According to Torqeedo, the battery bank’s capacity of about 120 kWh allows for pure motor cruising up to 189 nautical miles aboard Talisman (that’s in calm weather at a 6-knot average speed). For longer distances, there’s a backup diesel generator.

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The 101-year-old classic yacht that runs on steam

The SS Delphine is an iconic yacht that reached a major milestone in April 2021: celebrate its 100th birthday . Now, a year older, the yacht has been renovated on the inside but still uses steam to move around. 

“She is the only superyacht in the world still operating today with her quadruple expansion steam engines,” -Emmanuel R Buetss, SS Delphine’s Manager.

SS Delphine’s origins

Although it was built for Horace Dodge , American automobile manufacturer pioneer, the 78-metre yacht has hosted heads of states while they planned peace treaties . SS Delphine was launched in 1921 at Great Lakes Engineering Works . At that time, she had the largest gross tonnage of any yacht in America. 

Originally it was equipped with Babcock & Wilcoz boilers. These supplied power for her two 1,500-horsepower steam engines. However, the engine room was updated in 2003 during a refit. Now, two modern water-tube boilers that power the original engines. 

In 1926 the SS Delphine was almost destroyed after catching fire and sinking in New York. However, she was miraculously salvaged and restored. 

Christened as the USS Dauntless

In 1942 SS Delphine was requisitioned by the US Navy and christened the USS Dauntless. During this time, she served as the flagship for naval commander Admiral Ernest King during WWII. 

Once the war was over, she hosted US president Franklin D Roosevelt, vice president Harry S Truman, UK prime minister Winston Churchill and Russian diplomat Vyacheslav Molotov . This was when they prepared for the Yalta Conference, the event that determined how Europe would be reorganised after the war.

“The privileged status of having been Admiral Ernest King’s ship certainly helped her avoid the unfortunate fate of other steamships that did not survive the war, allowing her to delight us today with her original splendor.” -Buetss

Times of changes

Once WWII was over, she returned to the Dodge family. However, over the next 50 years she changed of owners on several occasions. As a result, by 1997 her condition had worsened, so although the owner paid a low price for the vessel he had to pay €45 million to restore the iconic yacht to its former glory. 

During the five-year restoration, her original Tiffany décor layout and design was kept as possible.

“That is indeed why sailing on board the SS Delphine is not only a maritime journey, but above all a journey through time that takes us back to the Belle Époque of the 1920s in the decorations, carvings, wall patterns and carpets that are exact replicas of the 1921 plans,” -Buetss

Current times

In 2003 the yacht changed names once again, this time by HSH Princess Stephanie de Monaco. Now, the current owners offer exclusive events aboard the yacht and charters in the Mediterranean. 

You might find interesting: How expensive is it to charter a luxury yacht? 

“Sailing on SS Delphine is not only a visual pleasure but also the opportunity to enjoy a steam engine which, beyond its timeless aesthetics, also offers a unique noiseless and vibration-free comfort forgotten by the hectic modern machines,” -Buetss

The SS Delphine can receive up to 26 guests to sleep onboard and up to 150 guests for day events . Moreover, she is now equipped with modern comforts expected from a charter yacht: she has a sauna, jacuzzi, hammam, gym, swimming pool and a dressing room. This together with her Tiffany décor in her dining rooms, lounges and suites make her a unique vessel.

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Repowered 100-year-old yacht now cruises in eco-friendly silence

Palatka man's launch operates on 100 percent electricity.

An old wooden boat, which was built in 1910 and sat rotting in a barn in upstate New York since the mid-1950s, is now a restored beauty set to take to the St. Johns River for pleasure rides by its owner.

But when David Gillespie of Palatka goes out on the 40-foot launch, don't expect any commotion, unless it's from spectators who recognize they're looking at what may be the last one in existence built by Consolidated Shipbuilding.

Gillespie's silent journeys will be due to the fact that the Vagabond, once propelled by an 1,800-pound diesel engine, now runs on a fully electric propulsion system that doesn't make a sound.

The former Historic Preservation officer for the state of New York was still living in the Hudson River Valley when he saw the yacht listed for sale in a boating magazine. He bought it in 2005 and began restoring the boat as time allowed. That included almost completely rebuilding the hull and floor. He figures that, over five years, he spent $4,000 in lumber and another $4,000 in paint and varnish.

This wasn't the first boat he'd restored. "I'd done four or five others," Gillespie, 68, said modestly. (He also restores cars as a hobby.)

In 2007, the now-retired Gillespie and his wife became full-time residents of Palatka. In a few years, Gillespie had a nicely restored boat with one major problem: The old, deteriorated engine didn't run.

"I went through a process of looking at options," he said, "which included small gasoline motors, but they wouldn't have been fuel-efficient. The more I looked, the more confused I became. I got all kinds of answers to the same questions."

Gillespie was also looking to repower the Vagabond with a system that would be environmentally friendly.

He eventually turned to Huckins Yacht Corp. in Jacksonville, which has been building yachts for 84 years. "We love bringing antique and classic yachts back to life," owner Cindy Purcell said. "We do unusual projects all the time."

Purcell introduced Gillespie to Jon Hall, who has been the lead designer at Huckins for nearly 30 years.

In late 2010, the complicated process of repowering the Vagabond began.

When Gillespie and Hall met, Hall already had some experience with electric power and hybrid research. Huckins has been "toying with the idea of designing and building non-conventional yachts for some time," Hall said.

Using electric engines to power boats dates back to the late 1800s, he said. And though electric power for large ships, buses and cars is now common, the industry has not made advancements in using it in small vessels.

"I had to look at all the options," Hall said, "without taking away any of the comfort or amenities. And there's not a lot of room in a 40-foot boat."

The Vagabond's original engine was placed in the middle of the galley, "exposed with no sound or heat shield," Hall said. Replacing it with a modern diesel engine still presented a problem because a new model would weigh significantly less than the original. Additional ballast would be needed to keep the boat balanced.

Another choice, Hall said, was to power the launch with a hybrid, a diesel engine coupled with a small electric drive that relied on batteries. But he couldn't find an electric portion strong enough to power a boat of the Vagabond's size.

Continuing to search for solutions, Hall found himself overwhelmed with theories on what would be best, just as Gillespie had. Eventually he turned to Elco Motor Yachts, a company in Athens, N.Y., that had introduced the first electric engine to boating in the late 1800s. Hall began working with Joe Fleming, an engineer with Elco, and getting the answers he needed to repower the Vagabond. Quite simply, "the pieces starting falling together," Hall said. "It made for a very fun project."

That included a 35-horsepower Elco electric engine, which Hall said was equal to a 70-horsepower diesel engine. The next challenge was to find a diesel generator that "dimension-wise, would fit and not eat up the galley space." Once that was done, they had to resolve battery issues involving size, power and number because of the boat's limited amount of hull space, and find a company that would make a customized charger.

Because the motor and generator weighed about 900 pounds, half the weight of the old engine, Hall then had to re-create proper weights and balances to ensure a smooth, safe journey for the launch, which travels at about 7.5 knots (that's less than 10 mph).

Hall and his service team at Huckins recently completed their work on the Vagabond, at a total cost of about $50,000, according to Gillespie.

The result is a long-awaited opportunity for Gillespie to take a cruise lasting almost six hours without having to turn on the generator. No fumes. No noise to drown out the sounds of nature.

David Crumpler: (904) 359-4164

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There are vessels on Lake Lanier of all sizes, shapes and ages, but a boat moving to the lake next month might be the oldest of them all. 

Forsyth County residents Katie and Taylor Grimsley will soon welcome their new 30-foot Vic Franck Sea Queen, a yacht built in 1928, to Forsyth County, where they are expecting it to become a common sight on the lake. 

“We’re bringing it here to Port Royale, where we’ll use it on a regular basis and let everybody get to see it,” Katie said. 

The couple has lived in Forsyth County for more than 20 years and have owned boats ranging from cruisers to runabouts to houseboats. They were looking to downsize when they found the Sea Queen. 

“We both just kind of fell in love with it,” Katie said. 

She said once they found the boat, they found out it was located across the country, in the Seattle area and decided “Oh well, let’s do it.” 

“We pretty much have bought this boat sight unseen,” she said. “We just had to have it.” 

When they found the boat, all they knew was “it was old,” and they soon started looking into all the information on the boat, its history and its make and model. 

According to a 2011 article from The Seattle Times, the boat was meticulously repaired by Bob Irving, who originally purchased the then-derelict cruiser as a restoration project. There was no engine, rainwater in the hull and rotted wood. 

Irving purchased the boat in 1993 but the project went on for 18 years, before being completed in 2011. 

“The cabin was his idea. It just used to be open, then I think whoever had it before him tried to add a canvas to it, but what he has done is really bring out that classic ‘20s, ‘30s look,” Grimsley said.  

According to the article, the Grimsley’s Sea Queen was one of only six to eight of the boats made on Lake Union in Washington by Vic Franck’s Boat Co.  The exact number of boats was lost when company records were destroyed in a fire in 1938. 

Grimsley said the history was a big factor in buying the boat.  

“It’s the craftsmanship,” she said. “They don’t make [boats] like that anymore, and you don’t see them anymore, so whoever restored it, it’s nice to stay that way and make sure it doesn’t wind up in a boatyard again.” 

While there is a lot of history to the boat, its 3,000-mile journey will be the first time it has left the Pacific Northwest and will be its first time being on freshwater full-time.  

“It is an ocean-fairing boat,” Katie said, “but on Lake Lanier, you kind of need one of those on a busy weekend.” 

The Sea Queen is being transported by Scott Craig with Recreational Performance Machines and is expected to be in Georgia by mid-September. 

Grimsley is a member of a group of owners of classic boats that meet at marinas around the lake to show off their boats to each other and the community. The Sea Queen is a few years older than the current record-holder, Katie said.  

“I think she’s the oldest on the lake,” she said. “There’s a sailboat… that’s a 1934 I think, so this boat will technically be the oldest on Lake Lanier.” 

She said that many people stop and ask questions about the boats. She’s expecting the same for the Sea Queen, too. 

“It does turn heads,” Katie said. “We always get stopped and asked about our woody, so this boat, she’s going to really turn some heads.” 

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Why I Sail A 100-Year Old Boat

HERRESHOFF STORIES

Submitted by Don McLagan from President H12 Association

Why I Sail A 100-Year Old Boat 

Today when twin hulls foil on top 

Why splash through waves that slow and stop?  

With carbon-fiber’s proven use 

Why still a mast of sitka spruce? 

When titanium’s in demand 

Why lay-up fiberglass by hand? 

And as I stop to think of it 

A GPS would help a bit. 

The boat I sail’s a century old 

At least in its design and mold. 

When Princip shot Duke Ferdinand  

That year when World War I began, 

When Charlie Chaplin’s on-screen vamp 

Introduced The Little Tramp, 

Then Cap’n Nat got Emmons’ note 

And made by hand the H12 boat. 

He had a goal for ease of sail 

So kids could learn in Buzzard’s gale, 

Though it’s not hard to make her go, 

The trick is not to sail her slow. 

The gaff-rigged main can be perverse 

The peak-set is the devil’s curse: 

Stretch it, loose it, lower to lee, 

Forget to raise – a tragedy! 

There’re more mistakes that can occur 

When putting up the spinnaker. 

I’ve made them all and here’s my list –  

It starts with getting a forestay-twist; 

I’ve had it doused into the sea 

Which slowed my pace considerably; 

Other times it’s up too long 

And I jibe the mark completely wrong. 

This H12 boat can separate 

The best, from sailors not-so-great 

Because it tests their seamanship 

Instead of high tech brinkmanship. 

So when it’s a comparison 

Of Cap’n Nat and Ellison, 

I’m proud to sail, when I cast off, 

The boat that’s named for Herreshoff. 

— Don McLagan, 2014 

     President H12 Association 

Share your Herreshoff Story.

We want to hear from our Herreshoff and America's Cup Hall of Fame Community.

Detroit Yacht Club opens time capsule after a century

On April 22, 1922, members of the Detroit Yacht Club laid a cornerstone on their clubhouse and placed a time capsule right below it.

Exactly 100 years later — to the hour — current members temporarily lifted the cornerstone and opened the time capsule. 

Rows of boats set a backdrop on the gloomy and overcast Friday afternoon as club members eagerly awaited the ceremony at Belle Isle. Club commodores dressed in crisp black suits and donned black-rimmed hats with white tops. 

"(The cornerstone was) cemented in place by then-Commodore Garfield Wood and with the Detroit Mayor James Couzens present," said Commodore John McGill. "Today's simple ceremony recognizes the determination and grit and the vision that was required to create this ... the clubhouse plans were built and executed by volunteers who were the great innovators and industrialists of the time."

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The cornerstone itself is made of granite and weighs about 1,000 pounds, McGill said. A boat steering wheel with a "DYC" flag across it, the club's logo, is branded on the side of stone.

Shortly after removing it, the crowd parted to make way so Henry Horldt, who has been a member of the club for 75 years, could look at it.

Meanwhile, fourth-generation club members Christopher and Megan Estabrook, 11 and 12, carried the time capsule inside.

Longtime member Michael Alberts pried the 100-year-old box open using a variety of tools and then gently removed them.

The artifacts inside include old magazines, photos, blueprints of the clubhouse and a Detroit Free Press newspaper. 

Bill Heller showed up to the ceremony in a masonic apron and top hat. He met his wife, Robin Heller, at the club when they were kids.  

"I'm a second-generation member, as my wife is … we met here when we were kids," Bill Heller said. "We never dated. We didn't date until years later. And then we ran into each other and the rest is history. We've raised our kids here.

Robin Heller has been a member for 44 years, she said, and is now the president of the Detroit Yacht Club foundations.

She said a lot has changed that the time capsule doesn't reveal. When she grew up, unmarried daughters stayed on their parents' memberships, but unmarried sons had to get their own memberships by the age of 21. 

And still, The Detroit Yacht Club runs in the Heller veins, Robin Heller said.

"During the summers, we would move out into the boat," she said. "We would go, before children, we got our suits lined up and we would basically get dressed, take showers and eat here. We'd go home once a week for mail or laundry."

Alberts said they're going to try to preserve and digitize each of the artifacts, though they're not exactly sure how. 

Now, members are left to ponder what they want to include in 2022's time capsule. 

Contact Emma Stein: [email protected] and follow her on Twitter @_emmastein.

Published on March 26th, 2015 | by Editor

Bayview Yacht Club’s 100-Year Milestone

Published on March 26th, 2015 by Editor -->

Ten years after it was founded in Detroit, Michigan, the Bayview Yacht Club held its first Bayview Mackinac Race with only 12 canvas-sailed wooden boats competing. The year was 1925, and much of the fleet never made it to the finish line off Mackinac Island.

But not to worry, as the club persisted in nurturing this Great Lakes distance race into the extraordinary destination sailing experience it is today, with hundreds of boats and thousands of competitors from the Midwest and beyond converging on Lake Huron for the start and celebrating their finish, more than 200 miles later, in the grandest of style on Mackinac Island.

As easy as it is to measure a sailing organization’s success by such a remarkable achievement as the Bayview Mackinac Race (now famously sponsored by Bell’s Beer), the reality is that the scale and distinctiveness of this event, due for its 91st annual running this July, is merely a microcosm of the larger world of its host Bayview Yacht Club, which in 2015 joins the heralded ranks of yacht clubs with a 100-year history.

“In 1915, at the hands of four gentlemen, a small yacht club took shape in a three-story tin boathouse on Motor Boat Lane,” said Commodore Hanson Bratton. “Now, in its Centennial year, Bayview Yacht Club has over 1,000 members, including world-renowned racers and leaders in the sport, and a 5,000 square foot ‘Shrine of Nautical Culture’ as its clubhouse on Clairpointe Street (no. 100 for those who like coincidences), just minutes from downtown Detroit.”

The “View” in Bayview is from the edge of the Detroit River at the mouth of Lake St. Clair and commands a sweeping panorama of islands, the cityscape of Detroit and the shore of nearby Canada. The club itself is one for all seasons: legendary for the sailing scene that sets the standard in Michigan, an acclaimed junior sailing program and regattas – both one-off and re-occurring like the Bell’s Beer Bayview Mackinac Race – that cement its national stature and continually draw devoted members as well as participants.

Among those carrying the torch for Bayview Yacht Club as he sails the world is member Stu Argo, Jr. “I’ve been involved with seven America’s Cup teams and locally with four Canada’s Cup teams, and I’ve been fortunate to win at least one of each of those,” he said. “Through the junior sailing program here and then in bigger boats on Saturday and in Mackinac races, you learn how to do things right. It’s the character of people around here to teach you the right way to do things.”

In many ways, Argo’s thoughts reflect the fortitude of the club’s founders and followers in preserving the club’s basic tenants, which as written in its history books are “development of sailors; preservation of the finest traditions of the sea; continuance of that finer class of sportsmanship, which seems born largely of the sea and sea-minded; and development of sailing vessels, which add fresh glory to the most daring and romantic of all sports.”

Practicing what it preaches, Bayview Yacht Club won the Canada’s Cup – a cross-border match racing challenge first held in 1896 and with a format similar to the America’s Cup – four times (1972, 1975, 1988 and 1994) and is unmatched in being either the challenger or defender over eight consecutive Canada’s Cup competitions. It was one of the first yacht clubs to create a women’s invitational regatta, and now its Detroit Cup is a revered Category 2 Match Racing event that hosts champion women sailors from around the world, while its point-to-point WOW (Women on the Water) Regatta is in its 11th year. After 19 years of hosting the NOOD Regatta, Bayview Yacht took over the reins of that successful event to run it (for the fourth time this year) as the Bayview One-Design Regatta. And as expected, the club hosts a full slate of club, local and regional events, including a blessing of its fleet in early June.

Fred Kreger, who has been a BYC member since 1964, epitomizes what being a sailor at Bayview Yacht Club means. “I race two to three times week, and I’m at the club five days a week in the summertime. If there’s a race I do it.”

Now in his 90s, he has won the Bayview Mackinac Race 15-18 times and recalled sailing with Henry Burkard’s famously successful Meteor, a 32 footer, for 27 years. “The first 10 years we sailed, we came back with a flag (for first, second or third) from each of the Macs.” Kreger also competed aboard a Formula 60 trimaran, a 50 footer, an 80 footer and a 36 footer during his Mac career. “After my 50th time (2001), I skipped the next year, but then I decided to go back because it was no fun to stop. I don’t know why I stopped.”

Impressively, Kreger has a total of 62 Bayview Mackinac Races and 46 Chicago Mackinac Races (another popular distance race held on Lake Michigan) under his sailing belt, making him one of only 32 “Double Old Goats” (completing 25 or more of each of the races) and, more scarce, one of 13 “Grand Rams” (completing 50 or more Bayview Macs).

“There’s a lot of track; I have no idea how much I’ve run,” he said jokingly before nonchalantly adding that he also has been with four Canada’s Cup campaigns, completed 24 SORCs and currently handles foredeck aboard the Beneteau 36.7 Grizzly.

“The club hasn’t changed much over the years; like any place it’s the people that make it special,” said Kreger. “Bayview is the sailing club around here, so if you are going to sail, this is where you have to sail from. Our 100th anniversary is a great occasion for us, and we’re looking forward to another 100 years.”

Additional information: www.byc.com

Bayview Yacht Club will host the following major regattas in 2015 4th Annual Bayview One Design Regatta – May 28-31 91st Bell’s Beer Bayview Mackinac Race –July 18 start 11th Annual Women on the Water (WOW) Regatta –July 31 – August 1 Tartan Ten North American Championship –August 13 – 16 Detroit Cup Category 2 Match Racing event in BYC Ultimate 20s –August 27 – 30 Beneteau First 36.7 North American Championships –September 1-13

Tags: Bayview Yacht Club

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