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HERITAGE
GOLDEN OLDIES
TROPHY 2013
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1
A
merry band of enthusiasts for racing multihulls from the 70s/
80s met up in Sète. The
aim: to celebrate, show off
some superb restorations,
and meet up with a few nice
surprises...
By Philippe ECHELLE
70
They're back!
THEY REFUSE PLANNED
OBSOLESCENCE!
Hurricane Jeanne (September 2004),
which involved the loss of a dozen
precious racing boats in SaintDomingue, crystallized the exasperation of lovers of this fragile heritage,
reduced to a few dozen experimental
platforms. The founding initiative hatched under a fertile compost, cultivated by a few isolated enthusiasts. By
saving certain famous examples
(Royal, Télégramme de Brest, A
Capella, Moxie, Aile Bleu, Hydrofolie…),
the handful of curators have kept the
flame burning. Their names are Marc
Fazilleau, Charlie Capelle, Craig
Alexander, Jim Rubin-stein, Jacques
Lehn, Alain Small-Etienne, Stuart
Rogerson, Stephen Marcoe, Philippe
Laperche… Their initiatives have protected the race from extinction! We
owe the multihull to a few pioneers:
the Frenchman, Eric de Bisschop,
with the Kaimiloa expedition just
before the second world war, then
the Hawaiian group CSK, Arthur Piver
in California in the 50s and 60s, and
finally the leader of the American
creative explosion: Dick Newick.
James Wharram was the first to
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any lasting relationship in spite of appearances, and are all original, non-reproducible one-offs. They would therefore have
no chance, faced with the steam roller of
consumerism, without the intervention of
attentive watchkeepers, and the recognition of their heritage value. Just like the
treasures of Ettore Bugatti or the violins
by Stradivarius and Guarnerius, inventions such as Cheers, A Capella, Rogue
Wave, Godiva, or VSD must be entrusted
to posterity; the message they convey is
important.
2
7 REHEARSALS FOR
A SINGLE CONCERT!
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cross the North Atlantic
aboard a catamaran he had built himself:
Rongo; Kelsall then developed the foam
sandwich with well-known success
(Three Legs of Mann I, II and III and many
others). By having Eric Tabarly test Toria,
he opened the way for the Allègre-designed Pen Duick IV. The taste for speed on
the water was launched by a tiny tribe of
diehards, for whom life began at 20
knots! Their followers were racers breaking away from the stiff measurement
rules of the time, architects who felt
cramped in the decrepit designs of the
Southampton school and a few trend-discovering journalists. They were the ‘pilgrims’ of a new research for the absolute.
Coming from France and England, they
landed on the American coasts to assimilate the visionary shapes and techniques
of the wizard of Martha's Vineyard, the
Gougeon brothers, Walter Greene and
Damian MacLauglin. These Maine druids’
quest merged with the spirit of Blondie
Hasler’s transat; their inventive and ico-
noclastic process remained tinged with
vestiges of Puritanism. Small is beautiful!
Cheers and the Vals are transparent
examples of this moderation, their courage and the relevance of their ideas.
Back in the old continent, the ill-assorted
group of young European ‘novices’ (C.
Capelle, J.F. de Prémorel, M Van
Peteghem, N. Irens, M. Lombard,…) got
to work and smashed the framework.
What followed is well-known. The ‘French
frenzy’ (Phil Weld’s expression), fed by
sponsoring, opened the doors to ‘folly’,
and invented very high speed on the
water, with the Formula 40s, Orma 60s
and the Class G maxis. The whole of this
saga rests on just two hundred or so prototypes, fewer than half of which still
exist.
THE URGENCY OF A HERITAGE
Just like these fast boats, the story of
modern multihull ocean racing has been
written in less than 50 years! From Nigel
Tetley’s Victress in the Golden Globe, to
the proa Cheers (3rd in the 1968 Ostar) to
Groupama III or Banque Populaire V, this
universal saga has been constructed by
just a few hundred builders and racers.
How has a modest adventure been able
to create such strong links with the
public? The surviving machines bear witness to an exceptional technical, sporting
and architectural heritage, and must be
passed on to future generations. They will
never be rebuilt, will not necessarily have
1 : Different sizes, periods and stories don't stop the game of racing together...
2 : The parade of the Golden Oldies fleet in the town of Sète.
3 : An old gaffer’s meeting? Not really! We find some wonders on the water, which only want one
thing: to race!
Convinced of their extraordinary interest,
the crazy lovers of these legendary multihulls meet, share, open their treasure
chests, and have been having a good
blow-out once a year in the spring in the
Mediterranean since 2005: this is the
famous Golden Oldies Trophy. The
Atlantic hasn’t been forgotten, as on
Lalou Roucayrol’s invitation, a Golden
class has been integrated into the 3 editions of the Estuary Challenge at Port
Medoc. The island of Houat welcomed
the 2012 gathering, and the 2013 edition
should see more than a dozen boats...
The Trophies are precious opportunities
for demonstrations, but are above all,
meetings for the owners, during which,
above and beyond the pleasure of the
confrontation, the enthusiasts exchange
4 : I designed Godiva for racing, but it is perfect for cruising two-up! (D. Newick)
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HERITAGE
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information, compare the qualities of
their boats and get the energy for future
restoration challenges, as the final goal
often takes several work sequences.
Emulation is contagious and affects certain observers, who one day find themselves at the helm of their own boat.
Since the first Trophy in Canet-inRoussillon, close links have been woven
with the FFV clubs. In 2005, ‘the organization’ (limited to the choice of a date and
a few phone calls) was surprised by the
success of the operation; the reactivity of
the Catalan port’s 2 clubs turned these
improvised regattas into an incandescent
festival, with a buoyant future. The tone
was set! The editions at Port Saint-Louis,
Mèze, Balaruc, Canet again, and PortCamargue followed, before the invitation
of the revived Sète YC, which wanted to
celebrate its 150th anniversary ‘in the
town’.
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THE TASTE FOR SPEED ON THE WATER WAS
LAUNCHED BY A TINY TRIBE OF DIEHARDS,
FOR WHOM LIFE BEGAN AT 20 KNOTS!
PETITION TO SAIL UNDER SÈTE’S HILL
The Thau lagoon and the port of Sète
have for a long time been a melting
pot for the blossoming of various nautical cultures. André Allègre based his
boatyard at La Plagette; he was the
first to put two of his creations (Pen
Duick IV/Eric Tabarly and Cap 33/JeanMarie Vidal) on the podium of the 1972
Ostar! The passion for multihulls continued to express itself around this little
sea; amateur construction, architec-
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ture, production of catamarans…
Today the nursery is still active and
several restoration specialists can now
take on multihull refits. Sète, a cosmopolitan town of memories and tradition, should one day amalgamate with
the Golden Oldies fleet. A symbol of
this openness, carried with respect for
the activities of fishing and trade: the
250m of the Quai de la Marine, in the
heart of the harbour town were put at
the disposal of the Golden Oldies
Trophy and the 30 machines present.
THE WIZARD OF MARTHA'S VINEYARD’
ON THE QUAI
DE LA MARINE
The story of this exceptional meeting
began during the reconstruction of
Fleury Michon IV in the Sète-based boatyard, Rive Sud. Thierry Péponnet (gold
medallist in the 470 at the Seoul
Olympics, he has settled in this port in
the Languedoc) had been observing the
activity of the tribe for a certain length of
time, with the intuition that the exhibition
of these machines could provide a spectacle in keeping with the perfect setting
of Sète’s quays. Having come to the
annual general meetings at the Paris
Boat Show as an observer in 2011 and
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2012, with the president, MarieHélène Leclerc, then to the
2012 Port Camargue edition, the
decision was taken, along with
the fishermen who are at home
here, to open up the town to
the multihulls of the ocean
racing heritage during the Whit
weekend. Carried along by their
momentum, the owners of
Newick-designed boats (whose
reconstructions and restorations are continuing at a good
rhythm) decided to pay homage
to their guru, by presenting
danger of withdrawal or dilution. Sometimes it works, and
everything grows, to become a
sort of festival; osmosis sets in
between a site, an event; the
public, and the players in the
festivities. This was the case in
Sète! The show’s scenario saw
its intense moments and respiration; the heart of the activities
pulsated on water, in the
taverns and on the quays. The
Friday parade was a success
(high risk activity, given the
constraints: passing under the
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THEY WERE THERE
Moxie : 50 ' D. Newick trimaran, winner 1980 Ostar
Fine Mouche: 45’ Newick trimaran,
ex-Fleury Michon IV
Région Picardie : 60’ Morelli/A. Petit Etienne cat, Tour
de l’Europe, mile record
Pléioné : F40 trimaran, formerly Michel Desjoyeaux’s
Biscuit Cantreau
Aile Bleue : 42’ Newick trimaran, ex-Gigi, 1982 Rout du
Rhum
Gulfstreamer : 60’ Newick trimaran, capsized in the
middle of the Atlantic in 1972
Lady Godiva : 31’ D. Newick proa, ex-Godiva
Chocolatier, 1980 Ostar
VSD : 55’ D. Kelsall trimaran, winner of the 1982 two-up
Transat
Tahiti Douche : 55’ D. Charles proa
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Alcyon : 31’ Twiggy trimaran, sister ship of Rennie
Pat's : 50’ schooner trimaran, with rotating masts,
formerly D. Newick’s personal boat
Black Cap : 36’ Newick Echo trimaran
around fifteen of his most brilliant creations.
3 DAYS OF BOISTEROUS
NAUTICAL FESTIVITIES!
It can be a bold undertaking to
organize an associative event in
an open public area; there is a
bridges, timing of the openings,
respect for the presentation
rhythm, the boats’ reduced
manoeuvrability). The attentive
care by the former America's
Cup sailors (Bertrand Pacé,
Albert Jacobson) in the tenders
helped the perfect unfolding of
the operation, in the sun and
Magnolia : 52’ D. Newick Traveller
Catalina : 18’ Allegre cat, the oldest French multihull
still sailing
Chien jaune : 28’ P. Riviere trimaran
3 Tremolinos : 21' D. Newick
4 Catalan ‘patins’: 18’ cat with no rudder; the oldest
racing multihull class in the world
SILVER OLDIES
2 Polynesian pirogues: 18' C. Campi
Pilgrim : 38’ J. Wharram cat
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: An Echo 36’ (D. Newick) flat out; it has just overtaken the 45’
Prana!
Largyalo : 65’ J. Wharram Pahi
6 : Golden crew in action aboard VSD...
7 : The Echo 36’ Black Cap chasing Lady Godiva.
8 : Fine Mouche (ex Fleury Michon 4) in the breeze during the last leg;
Prana : 45’ Riviere trimaran
9 : A line up of wonderful, mythical objects: that’s the magic of the
Jo's toy : Prao 35' D. Kergomard
the architect is aboard!
Trimaran Corsair 25' Ian Farrier
Dragonfly 35' Jens Quorning /Voiles au Large
association
Golden Oldies Trophy!
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HERITAGE
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with a light breeze for the opening of the
huge Bassin du Midi to leisure sailors.
The next day’s heavy seas were providential, allowing the public to admire the
boats; from now on, a decreed ‘bad weather day’ will systematically open the
Trophy events! Dick Newick, the hero of
the edition, had never experienced such
an international homage; he took the
time to visit, one by one, each of his
‘daughters’, certain of which he had not
seen for 30 or 40 years. Pats (formerly
his personal trimaran), superbly restored,
was there, with a ‘Welcome Dick
Newick’ banner stretched between the
two rotating masts. Jean-Claude
Feuillarade (marine surveyor and recent
owner) did him the honours, with much
emotion. Further on: the sublime Aile
Bleu, the legendary Moxie (winner of the
1980 Transat), the incredible proa Godiva,
or the wonderful Fleury Michon IV (Fine
Mouche) saved from certain destruction,
by Alain Borsotti...
10 : The incredible Pat’s (formerly Dick
Newick’s personal boat) on its first outing
after a one-year restoration.
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: Jean Claude Feuillarade explaining to
Dick Newick the work carried out on Pat’s,
on his former boat...
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The fleet’s visit ended aboard the huge
and very tribal Largyalo, which had come
especially from Barcelona to celebrate
James Wharram’s 85th birthday. The
meeting between Dick Newick, James
Wharram (who had not seen each other
since 1959) and Marc Van Peteghem was
a choice moment, which I will leave you
to imagine! What happens when the
undisputed wizard of the 80s meets the
guru who popularized the multihull with
10,000 boats, and one of the two architects from the ‘fastest design office in
the world’? They think up other chal-
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lenges together...humanitarian this time!
The port’s bars and restaurants made
their facilities available, to welcome
groups of talkative, excited enthusiasts;
the evening talks in the Brasserie St Clair
were particularly appreciated. The discussion forum with Dick was the opportunity
for an intimate, privileged exchange; the
talk/projection by Hanneke Boon and
James Wharram on the Lapita expedition
revealed a little-known nautical adventure
between the Philippines and the lost
archipelago of the Kiribatis. Patrick Ast’s
film looking back at the life of André
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They said:
Visit our web site www.multihulls-world.com to discover all the contributions sent by these
privileged participants.
Allègre, in the presence of Jean-Marie
Vidal was also an intense moment.
HARD-FOUGHT RACES
The Golden aficionados like to sail;
aided by their passion, they sometimes forget that what they have in
their hands is a unique object. This
gives rise to some superb start
sequences, exciting duels and side by
side finishes. There were top-level
racers, muddlers, quite a few experienced sailors, former racers and a
few adventurers. The flavour of this
mixture is unforgettable! At the time,
the competition on the water was
vital, then everyone recounted the leg
in their own way; later the result
would be drowned in mutual admiration in the fishermen’s hospitality tent.
Despite the noise of the festivities, we
couldn't forget the efforts and the suffering (even those freely consented
to). Everyone knew that Alexey
Solyanik the Ukrainian owner of
Gulfstreamer was still at sea and
would arrive on the last day. Nobody
forgot VSD’s two Atlantic crossings in
2012, turned into a workshop-boat for
the rescue of the last big racing proa in
the world: Tahiti Douche (Golden
Oldies Trophy 2013). We thought of
Charles Michel, also at sea, delivering
his Native (Newick trimaran) from the
NW coast of Mexico. Sometimes this
pagan celebration, which carried on in
the cockpits, was so dense, strong
and communicative that you wanted
to see it last until the end of the night,
but there are so many other adventures to be experienced! Biotherm is
lying abandoned in the Pacific, the
moulds for Val are at Walter Greene’s
place, the emblematic Rogue Wave
wasn’t there, nor was Cheers...
Dick Newick
Beautiful France!
It was wonderful to be invited by the Golden Oldies. It was fantastic to be welcomed by the
owners of eleven of my creations. I was sorry I only had time to sail aboard three of them, but it
was in perfect conditions. I hadn’t seen certain of these boats for over 30 years.
James Wharram
I was born English, but from a political and cultural point of view, I am European! During the
Golden Oldies meeting at Sète, I felt at home in the middle of this European social culture. As a
Golden Oldie (I hate that word!) myself, I would also like to thank the organisers of this event. If
you are interested in the appearance of Pacific multihulls in 20th century leisure sailing, the Sète
meeting was the place to be.
Paul and Anne Buttin (owners of the proa Godiva)
After a first ‘courtesy’ visit, during which four of us (!) slid into the little 9-metre proa, Dick said: I designed this boat for Rory (Nugent), to race the singlehanded Ostar, but finally for two-up cruising
it’s very comfortable! Tomorrow, please, I would like to sail with you!
Christian Février (Photographer-racer-journalist ‘The multihulls’ leading light’)
When I look at my photos of PAT’S, I am surprised to discover that this boat is superb on all points
of sailing! What a talent Dick has!
Bernard Mallaret (Director of Delta Voiles)
What can I say, apart from congratulating you on one day having had this great idea, and
developed it to this point.
My feelings: that the Oldies’ crews are more into racing than the idea we have of them, and that
they got well into the game of start lines and compulsory courses.
My surprise: having sailed on a superb ‘modern’ boat and having cast an affectionate glance
at some old boats. In general, it’s the opposite.
My favourite: PATS, which blew me away with its performance and its appearance on the water.
My hope: That the organisers continue!!!
Olivier Mesnier (ex director of CIM, back from a round-the-world voyage aboard the 53’
catamaran JANGADA)
I had read a few lines on the subject of the Golden Oldies Trophy and met a few of the recognized experts, the initiated shamans; rigorous archivists had mentioned that we could see some
legendary multihulls and amazing personalities! It was enough to justify a trip. I had another reason for the trip; after sailing round the world in a catamaran, it seemed obvious to me that my
next voyage would be aboard a trimaran! I simply had to improve my culture! On arriving on the
pontoons, I came across Hervé Cléris (22 racing transats, founder of the M50 class), who had just
come back from Polynesia. Having retired from ocean racing, he talked about his races. From
that moment on, we shared the settees of the completely restored Newick design, Fine Mouche
(ex-FMIV). Then Jérome (Brochier), the owner of Aile Bleu, another Newick trimaran, accosted us
with a broad smile and invited us for coffee in the cockpit. At the evening aperitif in the bar, I met
the incredible Stuart (Rogerson) who is refitting the valorous Kelsall-designed VSD (at an age
when most people have sold their comfortable cruiser a long time ago). His son Zach, on the
proa Tahiti Douche, has inherited the same serenity...essential when sailing aboard this machine!
There was no lack of colourful, very human personalities... Hang on lads, I’m interested in your life!
As a newcomer to the sect, a simple observer, I found myself a few hours later in PATS saloon listening to Dick Newick talking about his memories, before going to drink a beer with James
Wharram aboard the Pahi 65 Largyalo! Incredible... The Golden Oldies Trophy? Long may the
passion and the spirit survive!
The incredible encounter!
Dick Newick, Hanneke
Boon, James Wharram
and Marc Van Peteghem:
the ‘multihull connection’!