Sans dérive, sans safran
A report from Frédéric Monsonnec on the Golden Oldies Multihulls meet up in Port Camargue, France, May 29-June1, 2014. ~Editor
No centerboard, no rudder!
Every year, the Golden Oldies Multihulls association organizes events in the Mediterranean (See Golden Oldies Trophy 2103 for report on the Sète meeting in 2013) and on the Atlantic coast. During these meetings, passionate fans of old racing multihulls (25 years minimum), gather to…
1955 Time Machine - Woody Brown Catamaran
This is an interesting time capsule - a 1955 Manu Kai class 20’ catamaran, designed and built by the legendary Woody Brown. According to the seller, the original owner has passed away. He special ordered the boat direct from Honolulu and it was made specially for him. The catamaran has been stored inside and has not been used for years. From the included paperwork:
Manu Kai Catamarans are built to the highest construction standards by…
Alain Thebault Interview
This is a nice interview of L’Hydroptere skipper Alain Thebault by CNET’s Molly Wood. L’Hydroptere is a member of a very exclusive club: “Former holders of the world sailing speed record”. Unlike most record holders, the flying hydrofoil trimaran is not limited to shallow and waveless speed traps, but is open ocean capable. Highlights include photos of Alain’s early scale models that he built as a teenager.
This post is also a test of…
Happy is the man
Loïck Peyron: Triple winner of the Ostar, holder of the Jules Verne Trophy, champion of many other races including the Barcelona World Race and the Transat Jacques Vabre, and an America’s Cup helmsman in 2010 (Alinghi) and 2012 (Artemis). In 1986, he finished fifth overall and first in his class in the Route du Rhum (Saint Malo, France to Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadalupe), despite a dismasting at the start. “One of my best races”!
After…
Golden Oldies Trophy 2013
Frederic Monsonnec reports on the annual meet up of classic racing multihulls and the people who love them - from Sète in the south of France. ~Editor
Every year since 2005, many French sailors passionate about “old multihulls”, but also Spanish, English… meet in the Mediterranean around their boats. These “fans” are members of the association “Golden Oldies Multihulls” (you can find an English page and many pictures and video on the
The Proas of John Pizzey - Part 3
I started writing for Proafile because over the years I had seen several comments about this mysterious Mr. Pizzey! No mystery really, just a lack of information, so I thought I should rectify that and record my proa adventures. By the time I had finished putting pen to paper and thinking about what I was writing, my new design became clear as it had to meet the objectives I put down in writing. The design has been done conceptually…
The Proas of John Pizzey - Part 2
My introduction to modern proas, after designing, building and sailing my offshore catamarans, was aboard Tony Williams’ proa. It worked extremely well, was fast, fun and controllable but a bit complex in its rig. However it scored with no rudders or centreboard and was steered very effectively by the sail which was set on a spar with a central boom at the end of a gantry like mast. I grew fond of that sail arrangement and endeavoured…
The Proas of John Pizzey - Part 1
John Pizzey may be an unfamiliar name to proanauts outside Australia, but we hope to correct that. John has been experimenting with proas as long or longer than any modern inventor, and he has an immense body of both practical and theoretical knowledge to share. Proafile is pleased to present the first article in a series, authored by John Pizzey. ~Editor
A few thoughts on cruising proas after many years absent from sailing them but…
Archival video of CHEERS
Archival video footage of some golden oldie multihulls, including CHEERS sailing in Newport after finishing third in the 1968 OSTAR. Proaporn begins at 7:20.
1968’s London’s OSTAR (Observer Single-Handed Trans-Atlantic Race) featured a large fleet of capable entrants, mostly traditional monohull types with a few of the relatively newer multihull yachts mixed in. Among the latter group was a little yellow proa designed by Dick…
A Solid Gold Nugget
I saw mention of this Piver Nugget restoration at Small Trimarans.
Sailing into history; restored trimaran on bay again after 39 years
The 24-foot, multi-hulled sailboat Kaija was built by Kurt Larsen of Pleasure Point in 1964, stored for almost 40 years and given to Niels Kisling of Capitola two years ago.
Kisling, a historian for the Santa Cruz Yacht Club and board member of the Capitola Historical Museum, held court Sunday at a…
