As one might discern from my numerous postings on the subject, I am an unabashed fan of motorsailers
I’ve written in the past;
“
One particular design has haunted me for years. It was I think a Phil Rhodes design somewhere around 60'~70', a ketch, with a sizable twin engine room, over which was located a grand main saloon with portlights above deck level. This main saloon had great comfort and expansive vista's, and opened onto a sizable aft deck with a fishing chair at its center. There was even a mini-flybridge helm station and a crow's nest. What a great all-around design to liveaboard and travel the world. She could do anything and everything!! I have in 30 years only seen one or two comparable designs, and sadly I lost those clippings and the pictures of the original design, but the concept has remained with me all these years.”
Just recently I was given some old issues of RUDDER magazine from the 1959-‘63 era. As I paged thru these issues I couldn’t help but notice the numerous times the term motor sailer came up. No wonder this term stuck in my head
In this same era, 59-61, there appeared on TV a wonderful new series called “
Adventures in Paradise” written by noted author James Mitchener and starring Garner McKay as the ex-Koran vet Adam Troy who bought an old sailing schooner Tiki and set up a trading business among the South Sea Islands.
http://capitainetroy.free.fr/eng/home.html
http://www.fiftiesweb.com/tv/adventures-in-paradise.htm
This was truly
adventure inspiration, and certainly a big spark to my interest in cruising the world upon the sea.
As if that wasn’t enough, in 1963 the actor Sterling Hayden published his book
Wanderer;
“
They never taught wandering in any school I attended. They never taught the art of sailing a vessel, either. Or that of writing a book. It's all so mysterious and – yes – enchanting. And that is what I suppose this book is all about.”
Since its first publication in 1963, controversy has surrounded Wanderer, the autobiography of Sterling Hayden. Just as he approached the peak of his career as a movie star, Hayden suddenly abandoned Hollywood, walked out on a shattered marriage, defied the courts, and set sail with his four children aboard the schooner WANDERER. A broke outlaw, he escaped to the South Seas.
Wanderer is the inspirational story of a complex and contradictory man; a rebel and a seeker, undefeated by failure to find himself in love, adventure, drink, or escape."
http://www.sheridanhouse.com/catalog.../wanderer.html
So this was the era I began to get interested in boats. You can see the influences I was under; get on a sailing vessel and take off somewhere. Motor Sailers seemed to offer the best of all worlds for this adventure. And those designs by Rhodes & Alden were my favorites.
This subject thread is dedicated to those designs by these two gentleman. I will begin with a clipping I found in one of those old Rudder issues that most closely resembles the one in my old memory. The issue was Feb 1964 Show issue. The vessel is Rhodes 70’
Sharelle, and there was a sister ship
Kanaloa. (attached dwg)
:?: I still have not found the cutaway, perspective dwg I remember seeing in a full or two page advertisement for such a vessel. Anyone help ?
