KC-287: Restored and Then Destroyed

 Back in 2013, I received an email from a 16 year old Canadian who was restoring a 1960's International 14. That seemed somewhat odd. You don't often come across a teenager restoring a vintage racing dinghy... it's just not something that teenagers are into. She said it was a Grampian which indicated it would be a Buller II design. When I restarted up on this blog in September 2020, I sent out an email to some of the old contacts who mentioned they were restoring International 14's and I received one back from Nicole Armstrong-Smith, the teenager who was now a young adult.

"I did end up fully restoring the I14 – I’ve attached a .zip of photos to this email. It was a great high school project to do with my dad. I sold the boat in 2017 to another gentleman with a house on the lake in Port Dover, ON, Canada. Just a few weeks ago I saw a Kijiji advertisement with pictures of the boat saying he’s selling the masts, booms (I had 2 sets), sails, etc. because the boat hit the rocks and apparently there was nothing left of it. I shed a tear or two reading it..."

As you can see with the before and after photos, Nicole and her Dad did a superb job on bringing this Buller II back to pristine condition. What a shame that KC-287 no longer exists!

The Buller II had steps in the hull, both in forward and aft sections.

KC-287 in a new coat of red paint.

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Fred Buller was a renowned Canadian aeronautical engineer who was active in designing International 14's during the early 1960's. He added a lot to the history of the International 14 class and is worthy of a separate post later on.

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Update December, 2020: More details on KC287 from Canadian International 14 historian Rob Mazza:

"[KC] 287 was John Robertson's boat that he sailed in the 1967 team racing in England. He never liked the boat because he felt it had a hollow in it's run, which made it difficult to get on a plane! He sold the boat to the Grundland brothers at Queen City Yacht Club... It really is a shame that this great piece of 14 history was lost, especially having been so lovingly restored."

John Robertson racing KC287 in the 1967 POW, England

Four Early Canadian 14's

North American International 14 history kept trickling in during my hiatus at posting to this blog. Interesting history of four early Canadian 14's popped up over the last three years.

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KC-166

Mark Merritt has been pursuing the history of his Corneil International 14 and reached out to Rob Mazza, Canadian International 14 historian, who sent this email and photos of Peter Jarvis's Corneil, KC-166. From Rob's email:

"I finally heard back from Peter Jarvis, who I ran into at the Toronto Boat Show in late January. He sent me the attached photo and note on his George Corneil Fourteen KC 166 from 1956. This was the 2nd to last 14 built by George Corneil. So that KC 142 sail number on the battens in the boat may not be that improbable!

I have in my records:

KC 127 - Nimbus - Paul McLaughlin - 51 Bourke
KC 133 - Moonbeam - Harvey Bongard, Bruce Kirby Harry Jemmett - 51 Bourke
KC 144 - Wee Irish? - Bud Whitaker - 54 Bourke
KC 166 - - Peter Jarvis - George Corneil - 1956
KC 173 - Soo-perb - Mike Pruett, Dick Vine? - 1st Proctor 1 in Canada - 1954 in England?

Mark, there seems to be no question that the boat you have is indeed a George Corneil, and probably dates from the early 1950s, and may well be the 3rd to last Corneil built if the 142 sail number is to be believed.

Rob"

Peter Jarvis KC-166

And Peter's note to Rob  Mazza.

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KC-5

Maureen Flagler sends along photos and a history of two Bourke "bones" boats that have been in their family, KC-5 and KC-25.

"My sister... was able to find some photos. In addition she has attached photos of an earlier I14 that my Mother and Father sailed from Ottawa during WWII. It was originally named Alisada and renamed to Eagle II. The registration for that one is KC5. We don’t know when that boat was sold or to whom."

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KC-25

"After the war, our parents lived in Oakville and we believe the Chinook (KC25) was built there with Bill Gooderham... We think he is from the Gooderham family of Gooderham and Worts Distillery. KC25 (Chinook) has small ribs throughout the interior. The photo shows the interior of Chinook – KC25."

Maureen says that KC-25 was last splashed into the water in the 1980's. (The date that this photo was taken.)

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KC-26

Ryan Grinnell from Toronto Canada sent this email and photos about a famous Canadian 14.

"...International 14 that has been in my family for over 50 years. Her name is Conneda and I even saw a reference to this name linked to Charlie Bourke. Could this be the same boat? The sail number is US 424 and according to my dad, via my late grandfather, it was the first molded plywood I14."

Ryan Grinnel's grandfather sailing.

Again, from Rob Mazza's International 14 history, published in the RCYC newsletter, we have the history of Conneda.

"In 1946, with the help of Prof Parkin and technician Jack Noonan (a Brittania member and dinghy sailor, as was probably Parkin). the National Research Council hot-moulded three Bourke designed 14's and, according to Kirby, a very special fourth one for Bourke himself, called Conneda. Her clean rib-less interior was admired by all. "You don't take a sponge on board, just a duster," said Paul McLaughlin. The first three boats stayed in Ottawa to further build that fleet, while Conneda went to RCYC and was later sold to sailmaker Colin Ratsey in New York."

My records indicate that sail number US-424 was indeed registered to Colin Ratsey, so it is a good bet that Ryan Grinnel's family does indeed own the famous hot-molded Bourke "Conneda".

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From Tom Vaughn's International 14 history, here is a photo of Conneda. Certainly the most naked 14 ever. There couldn't be a more stark difference between the Uffa and Bourke "bones" 14's of the pre-war era and this new-fangled hot-molded 14.

The 1969 CDA and International Team Races: The Transition Regattas

The 1969 International Team Races and the 1969 CDA, both held in Kingston, Ontario Canada, was a watermark event in the International 14 class.

The International 14 class came late to the trapeze. For the post-WWII years, through the 1950's and 1960's, the 14 was a two man hiking boat even though most of the other crewed performance dinghies of that era; the Flying Dutchman, the 505, the Fireball, had already quickly adopted the trapeze. In 1969, the single trapeze was allowed on a trial basis at the Canadian National Championships (CDA), held at the CORK regatta. It obviously made an impression as during the CDA regatta, the International 14 World Council approved the single trapeze, beginning with the 1970 season forward. This set up a very rare situation. The International Team Races, ran the week before CDA had remained a hiking only competition. The 1969 Team Races and the 1969 CDA were to be the old and the new; a transition compressed over two weeks.

I have some grainy photos of the old; the International Team Races held before the CDA, the hiking only event. These feature the U.S. East Coast team taking on Canada. I can identify the U.S. numbers but unfortunately not all the Canadian ones, KC 349, KC 353, and KC 334. I do know at least three of the Canadian skippers; Graeme Hayward, Harry Jemmet, and Andre Julian

US-851 is Sinjin Martin (KIII)

Graeme Hayward KC-354. One thing that is noticeable is the sideways bend of masts for the hiking International 14's. This would go away with the addition of the trapeze.

Frank and Judy Lawson in US-802 leading Graeme Hayward, KC 354.

Stuart Walker and Lev Huntington in US-848 (Kirby IV) covering Graeme Hayward.

US-802 Frank and Judy Lawson (Souter-Casson)

Stuart Walker and Lev Huntington using "Ladies Aids" for extra power upwind.

Bob Reeves and Ted Spivey; US855 (Kirby IV)

A stern shot of US855 going upwind

The trapeze finally arrives on the International 14

The English would dominate the International Team Races, winning all the races. Jeremy Pudney, the English maestro, would win the CDA, the first 14 regatta with a trapeze.

1969 was also a transition year for some of the old guard. 1969 would be the last International event for Stuart Walker. He would win the International 14 U.S. Nationals that year at Saratoga Lake but he was already taking up racing the Soling, a class he would remain in for the rest of his life. Bruce Kirby, who had released his iconic International 14 designs, the KIV and KV, the previous two years, borrowed Stuart Walker's International 14 for the CDA. He was working in Chicago as a sailing journalist and would pop into 14 regattas occasionally in the 1970's.

Lapstrake 14 Uncovered in Cincinnati - KC 142

Mark Merritt came across this beauty on Ebay; the 14 having been stored inside a Cincinnati airplane hanger for umpteen years.  Mark now has ownership and has been doggedly researching the origins of this interesting lapstrake 14 for several months.  (Mark only obtained the hull; there was no rig or centerboard/rudder with the 14.) What he has dug up so far:

• There is KC 142 written on the battens that were in the hull.
• There is the name "Whirley" and "RCYC" on the transom.
• He has tracked the hull as being registered in Toronto Harbor in 1955 to a person "Alvey".
• She is identical to the International 14 "Brooke", a lapstrake 14 restored by Woodwind Yachts and now residing on a New York lake.

The hull is in remarkable condition. (Click on the photo for a hi-resolution image.)

A snubbing winch for the jib. An interesting cleat under the main thwart. (See another photo further in this post.) Stringers are on 8 inch centers.

Whirly has a long jib track which Mark has determined is original. The fairlead appears too big to accommodate a block though it matches the jib track on "Brooke".

The transom bridle is consistent with the metal transom bridles fitted to the L.S.S.A cat-rigged 14's.

The design has the typical transom tumble-home of a pre-WWII Uffa 14.

This is an odd cleat, sitting under the main thwart. It seems to work by pushing the back in or out. The rope leads up to the bow stem - a jib downhaul?

From the side view the design doesn't appear to be as deep-chested as the Uffa designs of this period.

The gunwhales are relatively wide and there is a mini-mini-foredeck at the bow stem.

I've sent out some inquiries to various contacts. Bruce Kirby confirms my initial impression, that Whirly is probably a George Corneil design. George Corneil was a one-man shop in Toronto who had a reputation for producing fast L.S.S.A 14's in the 1920's and 1930's.

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Update October, 2020: Mark sends along this email.

"Been recreating the rudder and centerboard from existing plans, and reverse engineering the insides of the centerboard trunk. Since there is a shock cord rig to hold the centerboard arm up(centerboard in down position), but give it some give, if it struck something underwater, I'm going with a non-weighted all wood centerboard. Have found period correct bronze(tufnol also) blocks etc. that were missing. Still haven't found original rig. For the sake of getting WHIRLY underway, I just might temporarily use my Tasar rig. Also have a Windmill rig; slightly smaller but all wood. We shall see."

2016 Aykroyd Catboat Regatta This Weekend

I just got off the phone with Brett Somerville from the Juniper Island Store who confirms that the 2016 Aykroyd Catboat Regatta on Stoney Lake, Ontario is this weekend, August 6 and 7. The Aykroyd "cottage" 14-footer was part of the L.S.S.A 14-footer class, the dinghy class that was the predecessor of the International 14 dinghy, primarily in Canada but also in Rochester, New York. The Stoney Island cottagers, led by Hugh Drake and Jay Matthews, have been busy restoring these pre-WW II cat-rigged dinghies since the 1960's and now have a robust fleet of around 15 of these lapstrake beauties out for weekend racing. I'm working on getting some contact with fleet members so I can fill out more details of this interesting historical collection of dinghies.

I've pulled some photos from the 2015 Aykroyd Championship, taken by Nick Glas, which I found on the Web and will repost them shortly.

Click here to view some of the other posts about the L.S.S.A 14-footers on the CBIFDA blog.

Aykroyd on Ebay

Tom Price sends along an L.S.S.A 14, an Aykroyd, his eagle eye spotted for sale on Ebay.

A nice restoration but the rig is off. The lake Aykroyd's were gunter rigged, not gaff rig. This looks like a modification to the original.

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Upadate: August 2, 2016: This Aykroyd is now on Craigslist. $4900 is not a bad price for a complete restoration but the market is tiny. This dinghy is located in Raleigh, NC of all places. Her name is Bijou.

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Another L.S.S.A 14-footer in Ontario

Mike Paradis, from somewhere north of Toronto, sends along photos of his L.S.S.A 14-footer; best guess is that it is an Aykroyd "lake" 14-footer. It was previously owned by his father-in-law Russ. His father-in-law bought it around 1958-59 but it comes with sails that date it back to 1937. Looking at the photos it appears this one was converted to an International 14 rig as there are two mast steps, one being in the normal position for the original cat rig and the second further back through a thwart. It also has turning blocks for the long foot I-14 genny. Mike confirms there is a jib that came with the boat and his description of the mast matches the Uffa 3 diamond International 14 mast.

Mike is having Woodwind Yachts do a restoration.

Two photos.

LS.S.A 14-foot dinghy uncovered in upstate Vermont

Owner is putting a 1918 date on this one.

Click here to go WoodenBoat's Facebook feed.

Here is the comment I put up on the Woodenboat Facebook post.

"Technically the racing class was called the L.S.S.A. (Lake Skiff Sailing Association) 14 foot dinghy. An active class from 1900 to about the beginning of the 1950's, though superseded by the amalgamation of the R.Y.A 14 and the LS.S.A 14 into the International 14 rule after the 1933 Seawanhaka Team Races (which in actuality made the R.Y.A 14 into the International 14 foot dinghy). George Aykroyd built racing versions as well as a recreational Lake version; this one looks to be the recreational Lake version. When referring to an Aykroyd 14, this usually means the recreational Lake version. I'm not sure how many of of the racing versions have survived. (T.P. has listed some of the other designers, though Canadian Charles Bourke is probably the most famous designer of both the L.S.S.A. 14 foot dinghy and the International 14 foot dinghy.) The Aykroyd 14 (restored, as well as some new builds) races as a fleet at Stoney Lake, Ontario. These dinghies sport[ed] a large cat rig of 140 square feet with two crew.

L.S.S.A 14-footer Dinghies Pre-Start in Toronto Bay

A photo from the City of Toronto archives shows a fleet of L.S.S.A 14-footer dinghies milling about in the background with a large crowd of onlookers in the foreground. My best guess of time frame would be around WWI, perhaps slightly later. This may have been a photo of a 14-footer regatta held in conjunction with the Toronto Exhibition, an annual summer fair.

Charlie Bourke's Riptide on Toronto Docks

From the Toronto newspaper, The Mail and Empire, a photo of Charlie Bourke's Riptide sitting on the docks during the 1934 Team Races with the English and Americans. The photo definitely shows that Riptide was still a LSSA 14-footer though, probably at this point, sailing with a sloop rig instead of a cat rig.

Charlie Bourke Models

Charlie Bourke, courtesy of the Canadian International 14 Newsletter

Some may consider Charlie Bourke as Canada's greatest 14-foot dinghy designer (even surpassing Bruce Kirby, but that may elicit some arguments!). Charlie designed and raced both the LSSA 14-footers and the International 14's and his post war International 14 designs dominated Canadian racing up into the 1960's when the Kirby designs took over. His design career spanned over 35 years and he was the instrumental mover and shaker that converted the Canadian LSSA 14-footer over to the International 14 class in the late 1930's. His victories and membership in Canadian teams are too numerous to document here.

Scott Kerr, who is married to Charlie Bourke's grand-daughter, Meghan, sent along some photos of two of Charlie Bourke's own hand carved models. They are of interest because these are designs Charlie was doing after competing against the Uffa International 14's at Seawanhaka Y.C, 1933. One model of Riptide is dated 1934, the year after the Seawanhaka Team Races. Here is my reply to Scott Kerr:

"The Seawanhaka Team Races, where the English and the Canadians and the U.S (Seawanhaka club members) raced the LSSA 14's and the English International 14's against each other, was held in Sept 1933. The English came back to race the Canadians and the U.S in 1934 in Toronto. So Riptide is what Charlie was designing after he saw the English open International 14's in 1933 (and to Charlie the two approaches to a 14 dinghy were like chalk and cheese). It is interesting that in 1934 Charlie still maintains the fore-deck as was allowed in the LSSA 14's. The model looks very much flatter than I would have expected. The LSSA 14's were very fine lined dinghies with balanced rocker whilst the Uffa Fox International 14's were broad transom, rocker forward designs."

The 1934 Riptide side view. It's hard to discern from the photograph but it looks as if there is a little bit of flare at the gunwhale.

The 1934 Riptide top view. (Note that Charlie has retained the fore-deck of the LSSA 14-footer, the English Uffa International 14's were open dinghies.)

The inscription on the inside, bottom of the model of Riptide.

The other Charlie Bourke model is definitely in the International 14 design camp. There seems to be some tumblehome which was a characteristic of English Uffa pre-war designs. Rocker has deepened and moved forward.

Many thanks to Scott Kerr and wife Meghan for sending along the photos.

Another Mallette Lapstrake 14 has been found

Andre Cloutier of Ravenwood Canoes sends along pictures of an original Mallette International 14. Supposedly four were built around the Gananoque area of Canada before World War II with one known to be, at the present time, in the small boat collection at the Antique Boat Museum. This one has been stored under a cabin somewhere in the Canadian wilds, though it certainly looks like a good candidate for restoration. Unfortunately the owner has not been inclined to sell this Mallette.

I did a post a while back on Simon Watts building a reproduction of the Mallette with an intention of publishing plans at some point.

Some pictures of the current Mallette discovery.