Old Quarter Tonners -Magic Bus

[salkbj]

Originally Posted by booster

salkbj and Paul B!
Regarding complete results I will check with the other Swedish sailors competing in San Remo -79.
Regards,
Booster

Am I the lucky guy!!!
I found a Spanish magazine (Vroom) on the Spanish ebay. It contains an 1979 San Remo Quarter Ton Cup article.
Let us hope it contains some substance. I'll let you know as soon as I get it.
cheers

[booster]

Timoniere!
So your father bought an Impensable. If i remeber correctly it won the HT in -73 in france. The Scampi V with Norlin was 3rd, but managed to beat all the Elvström HT. Elvström won in -72 with Bes in Marstrand, Sweden. Norlin did not compete in -72 after winning 69-71.
Regards,
Booster

[Timoniere]

Hi Booster,
yes, my father bought an Impensable by grp sandwich with balsa wood built in a small series by Quere Paillard at La Rochelle in 1975. We were selected for the Trieste Half Ton Cup 1976 (won by Cudmore on Shamrock...) but we didn't partecipate the race as I and my crew (so 2/5 af the whole crew, indeed)were busy at the 470 juniores italian champioship. It was a pity as we were perfectly competitive with Perception (Mull, 2nd at Trieste), Balanzone (Sciomachen 4th at Trieste) and Ovosodo (Norlin 10th at Trieste)but we won the Italian Champioship for serial boats 2 years later. Our Impensable was called Celina Seconda, just for information. She was a very good boat upwind in every condition and acceptable downwind in light wind... of course respect those times Half Tonners.
Regarding Impensable (the "original" with Michel Briand at the helm), she won the Cup in 1973 while in 1974 the grp version (twins of the our's one) were second and fourth with North Star 1st and Scampi V 3rd. At the same Cup, the original Impensable renamed El Pepito was not really competitive.
But now, please, let me have some news about Butterfly.... and some pictures.
Coming back to Norlin's design, Ovosodo was an evolution of Zett, built by De Cesari by wood moored for 4 or 5 years at my Sailing Club (so I know her very well): absolutely a great boat!

Originally Posted by booster

Timoniere!
So your father bought an Impensable. If i remeber correctly it won the HT in -73 in france. The Scampi V with Norlin was 3rd, but managed to beat all the Elvström HT. Elvström won in -72 with Bes in Marstrand, Sweden. Norlin did not compete in -72 after winning 69-71.
Regards,
Booster

[Timoniere]

Hi Booster,
Resolute Salmon is still sailing in Italy.... in my town, there is the previous design of her; she had a big centerboard (no more now) and a narrow square stern (!).... her name is FORMULA but she was nor fast nor famous as Resolute Salmon, of course. Those were "experimantal days" and the most interesting's ones were in Quarter and Half tonners because cheaper.
Coming back to BUTTERFLY, I presume she was fast upwind till 15 kn..., wasn't it?
Regards

p.s. is Peter Norling still in business?

Originally Posted by booster

Timoniere!
The Norlin centerboarder QT Butterfly was similar in concept as the Chance Jr designs Resolute Salmon and True North.Fuller in the bow, however, but with same broaching tendencies downwind.
Regards,
Booster

[booster]

Salkbj, Timoniere et al!
Nice to see you have an article from -79 QT in progress, salkbj. My brother Carl has found an article from -77 QT showing Butterfly. I will try to scan it, perhaps next week when I have got the mag from him. Butterfly has now a keel and 7/8-rig. Nice to hear about Norlin designs in Italy. Yes, Peter Norlin is still active at an age of 68, mostly designing R-yachts 2.4mr and 6m. He was 4th at the 2.4mr Worls in 2008 and 11th last year. Norlin has designed Italian 6m as well.
Regards,
Booster

[Timoniere]

Thanks Booster,
I'll wait for Butterfly's pictures with pleasure. Yes, I know that Peter Norlin designed some italian 6m several years ago.... I remember one for Lorenzo Bortolotti, at that time he was a consultant for North Sails Italy... and I was a young apprentice (17 years old) in their very first loft in Milan. In those times I spent a couple of days with Scott Kaufmann in Genova during the Boat Show as he was in Italy for the building of Vanina (2 Tonner ?): he was a very kind and patient (with me) guy..... Who knows something about him? Is he still active?
Regards

Originally Posted by booster

Salkbj, Timoniere et al!
Nice to see you have an article from -79 QT in progress, salkbj. My brother Carl has found an article from -77 QT showing Butterfly. I will try to scan it, perhaps next week when I have got the mag from him. Butterfly has now a keel and 7/8-rig. Nice to hear about Norlin designs in Italy. Yes, Peter Norlin is still active at an age of 68, mostly designing R-yachts 2.4mr and 6m. He was 4th at the 2.4mr Worls in 2008 and 11th last year. Norlin has designed Italian 6m as well.
Regards,
Booster

[booster]

Timoniere et al!
Yes, Butterfly was increadibly fast upwind in 15 knots and long waves. No pitch at all. She was very fast downwind in light conditions as well. In choppy sea it was more average. As I recall Bortolotti at least won an European Chamionship with the Norlin 6m. Scott Kaufmann rings a bell, heavy displacement yachts, but I don't no if he is still active. Let's hope Paul B can arrange for a dinner with a son of Scott at get the details (compare Bruce King)!
Regards,
Booster

[Timoniere]

Yes,
Bortolotti won a 6m European Championship with a Norlin grp boat.... I remember when he was choising the boat: I repeat, I was a young 470 sailor that spent some of his holydays from school learning to make sails at North loft of Milan... many years ago, indeed.
Regarding Scott Kaufmann he was an Australian designer living in USA, he was one of historical Ganbare's crew (with Ron Holland, Lowell North, John Green and others - Tim Stearn and John Driscoll, may be)... his most famous boat was America Jane III that was 3rd at 1975 One Ton Cup (won by North's Pied Piper): she was big, heavy and.... very very fast. America Jane III did a bad job in the first race (15th) so her possibilities to win the Cup ended from the beginning but she would be the best boat of the series without that damned firts race!
We'll wait for some news about this smart designer....
Regards to all

Originally Posted by booster

Timoniere et al!
Yes, Butterfly was increadibly fast upwind in 15 knots and long waves. No pitch at all. She was very fast downwind in light conditions as well. In choppy sea it was more average. As I recall Bortolotti at least won an European Chamionship with the Norlin 6m. Scott Kaufmann rings a bell, heavy displacement yachts, but I don't no if he is still active. Let's hope Paul B can arrange for a dinner with a son of Scott at get the details (compare Bruce King)!
Regards,
Booster

[Bullitman]

Hello to all NZ sailors - your discussion on the old IOR quarter tonners is fascinating. Would anyone have any idea where the Fauroux Bullit F8051 is at present. I believe she was brought from France to Auckland in 1980 for the QT cup and was sold there. She was one of the biggest QT's Fauroux designed and I hoped someone knew of her whereabouts. What an amazing aft section.

[Ramona]

Originally Posted by CT 249

I can't remember the early career of The Syndicate; she did well, but didn't take out a high-profile event IIRC. I seem to recall seeing her in Sydney Harbour a couple of years ago but that may have been another of the Dubois boats. I seem to recall that The Syndicate was from the modified Beach Inspector mould; the stern was made narrower.

I can't remember where The Syndicate fitted into teh Dubois 1/2 development. I think she came after the Beach Inspector replacement and also had the same modifications. BTW I think Beach Inspector is in Northern Tasmania; Lock on Wood was last heard of in Hobart; Madmen's Woodyard was in also in Hobart last I heard..... at least they got it to Hobart, unlike when I drove her onto a sunfish and took the rudder out in the Sydney-Hobart years ago! Anyone know what happened to Flying Circus, or was she the temporarily-renamed Beach Inspector?

Beach Inspector has just come on the market in Tasmania.

[Paul B]

Originally Posted by Bullitman

Hello to all NZ sailors - your discussion on the old IOR quarter tonners is fascinating. Would anyone have any idea where the Fauroux Bullit F8051 is at present. I believe she was brought from France to Auckland in 1980 for the QT cup and was sold there. She was one of the biggest QT's Fauroux designed and I hoped someone knew of her whereabouts. What an amazing aft section.

Check the QT Class site (http://www.quartertonclass.org). Click on the Fleet. There are 2 Bullits listed (one the '78 Bullet, the other the '79 and '80 Bullit). There is contact info for both owners.

[Timoniere]

In those years Faroux did really good jobs! Do you remember One Tonners designed together with Finot and Berret? I helmed a First Class 12 (Beneteau) that was a less extreme version of those One Tonners (same mould but no fractional rig)....: she was a nice boat fast in every conditions and not so bad for cruising even if not really well build (that's to save money, of course!). Fin keel was really "flexible" at root and the owner was forced to put stiffners along it to prevent bending.

Originally Posted by Paul B

Check the QT Class site (http://www.quartertonclass.org). Click on the Fleet. There are 2 Bullits listed (one the '78 Bullet, the other the '79 and '80 Bullit). There is contact info for both owners.

[Paul B]

Originally Posted by Timoniere

In those years Faroux did really good jobs! Do you remember One Tonners designed together with Finot and Berret?

Yes, those boats were surprisingly fast. They ended up 2nd and 4th in the One Ton Class at the SORC in 1985. That was a very competitive class, with good designs from a lot of the best designers of the time present.

I have photos of them at that SORC around here somewhere. I will post them if I came across them.

[Gary Baigent]

Originally Posted by Bullitman

Hello to all NZ sailors - your discussion on the old IOR quarter tonners is fascinating. Would anyone have any idea where the Fauroux Bullit F8051 is at present. I believe she was brought from France to Auckland in 1980 for the QT cup and was sold there. She was one of the biggest QT's Fauroux designed and I hoped someone knew of her whereabouts. What an amazing aft section.

I thought Bullit was shipped away from here after the Quarter Ton Cup - pretty sure the boat is not in NZ.

[Bullitman]

Thanks guys. Paul I am fairly sure neither of the bullits on the UK site is the one that I am interested in. Gary, from what I am hearing I think that you are right - she may have been shipped away straight after the cup in '80. Do you have any memories of her sailing in that particular event ? You mentioned that she was wickedly quick downwind against Farr's Anchor Challenge etc (co-incidently QTC current champion). Wonder what she was like upwind.