Swuzzlebubble III (Holland 40)

Swuzzlebubble III was a 40ft 6" Ron Holland design (a development of Holland's earlier Regardless hull), the second of Ian Gibbs' yachts to this name (Swuzzlebubble became Swuzzlebubble II after her extensive modifications for the 1979 Half Ton Cup). Swuzzlebubble III was a very professional campaign, and the one that gave Gibbs his greatest success in international offshore racing. The yacht was rated at 30.1ft IOR for the 1981 NZ Admirals Cup trials series, close to the minimum allowed for the Admirals Cup itself (which was raced at the time in three boat teams between 30.0 and 40.0ft IOR).

Swuzzlebubble III on launching day at Westhaven, Auckland, December 1980 (Gibbs Family Collection)

Interior photo of galley area (Gibbs Family Collection)

The yacht was built by Cooksons, making use of a form of construction that Holland had pioneered with his Two Tonner Imp, with a light composite hull and a stainless steel and aluminium space frame that was engineered to take keel and rig loads. This was combined with a sparse but ergonomically efficient interior designed by Brett de Thier for a very high tech appearance for the time. Her displacement of 13,500lbs incorporated 3,800lbs of ballast in the keel, and a further 3,000lbs in the hull floor.

The Swuzzlebubble III campaign got off to a shaky start, however, when her US-built Stearn mast was delayed by a week and failed to arrive in time for launching day. It later broke during windy conditions off Channel Island (off the Coromandel Peninsula) during the preliminary observation trials. A new section had to be flown in from the US which was sleeved locally. The mast was a bendy fractional set up, with triple in-line spreaders. Swuzzlebubble III sailed with a North wardrobe, including the new-style vertical cut headsails developed by Tom Schnackenburg.

Downwind during the 1981 NZ trials

The racing in the trials series was very close, with three instances of dead heats on corrected times and a margin of only two seconds between first and second on corrected time after the 40-hour, 300-mile, final race. Gibbs was involved in a plane crash the day before the trials proper, and this may have influenced the yachts' fourth placing in the first race. However, Gibbs was well supported by a top crew that included Andy Ball and Rick Dodson, and they went on to win the second race, and placed third in the third race. From there on, the regatta was all Swuzzlebubble III, winning the final three races to easily qualify in the New Zealand team, alongside Epiglass New Zealand (a Holland 40 sistership, renamed as Wee Willie Winkie for the Admirals Cup to avoid Rule 26 sponsorship issues) and Marac, an S&S 46 (re-named Inca for the same reason). 

Swuzzlebubble III during the 1981 Admiral's Cup trials

 NZ Admirals Cup trials 1981 - Swuzzlebubble III, Spritzer and Feltex Roperunner (Gibbs Family Collection)

Swuzzlebubble III went on to have an excellent series in the 1981 Admirals Cup, finishing with a flourish in the light air Fastnet Race finale to leap from seventh place to first overall on 315 points, just one point ahead of the English yacht, Peter de Savary's Victory of Burnham. This was, however, the only bright spot of an otherwise disappointing New Zealand team performance, with Wee Willie Winkie finishing in 25th place, and Inca even further back in 42nd.

Swuzzlebubble III was sold overseas and as of 2012 was for sale in Italy (refer photos below). At that time she appeared to be in very good condition (although less so by 2020), and had been fitted with a more cruising-oriented interior. 

Swuzzlebubble III slides downwind during one of the offshore races in the 1981 New Zealand Admiral's Cup trials (photo P Montgomery/Sail-world)

Swuzzlebubble III leads Monique (middle) and Epiglass NZ (left) in fresh downwind conditions during the New Zealand Admiral's Cup trials (photo NZ Yachting/Sail-world)

Swuzzlebubble III in a strong position ahead of a pack of bigger boats during the 1981 Admiral's Cup

Swuzzlebubble III as seen for sale in 2012



As seen again for sale in 2020 (photo Facebook)

Figaro Wipeout

I had to post this video, quite an amazing wipeout on this two-handed Figaro Beneteau - they go for what looks like their smallest kite, but things go downhill, literally, from about 0:30. I understand from the translation by others that the nosedive was exacerbated by the fact that the ballast tanks were not empty. The water in the tanks moved forward when the boat nosedived, helping the movement of the boat down and forward when the water came to a halt.



And if you enjoyed this video, have a look at this single-handed Figaro....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=cRFmIrDP1sg

Gunboat Rangiriri (Farr Half Tonner)

Gunboat Rangiriri was the second of Farr's centreboard Half Ton design (Design 65) for the Half Ton Cup held in Sydney in December 1977. The yacht, commissioned by Dr Peter Willcox, was launched on 24 August 1977 following a rush build of just 90 days, and was joined by Ian Gibbs' sistership Swuzzlebubble in the strong NZ Half Ton fleet.

Design 65 was a big Half Tonner, with 380mm more length, 200mm more beam and a rig nearly a metre taller than Farr's previous Half Ton design, the Farr 920. This design was 110kg heavier, but benefitted from cleaner hull lines in the stern area, and these yachts still look fast even today. Although it was often beneficial to place the engine for'ard of the mast on light displacement yachts of this size for rating purposes, Farr opted to place the engine in the centre of the boat in order to optimise the design for better performance in the big waves expected in Sydney. 

Engine placement and driveshaft (Peter Morton photo)

Gunboat Rangiriri and Swuzzlebubble were stand-out performers in the Half Ton trials, but fought out an incredibly close series with the Laurie Davidson centreboard design Waverider. Gunboat Rangiriri, helmed by Peter Walker, finished the first race in third, but bounced back to win the second race. The third middle distance ocean race was a cliffhanger, the three yachts at the head of the fleet descended on the finish line at Orakei Wharf in a bunch, with Gunboat Rangiriri taking the gun two boat lengths ahead of Swuzzlebubble, with Waverider third, just two seconds adrift. 

Above and below - 1977 Half Ton Cup trials (J Malitte)

The finish of the fourth race was even closer, with Waverider winning by only 11 seconds from Gunboat Rangiriri and Swuzzlebubble, who dead-heated for second.  In the 260 mile final ocean race, Gunboat Rangiriri and Swuzzlebubble tussled between themselves for the lead after Waverider retired with a broken rudder. It was a long race, but incredibly Swuzzlebubble led Gunboat Rangiriri home by just 32 seconds, which gave her the overall series win. 

Gunboat Rangiriri being loaded aboard a ship to Sydney (J Malitte)

Gunboat Rangiriri went on to win the Australian trials series which was the ideal build up for the Half Ton Cup itself. For the Cup Gunboat Rangiriri and Swuzzlebubble were joined by their Australian sistership 2269, and this boat, along with Waverider and the Holland design Silver Shamrock III, were the ones to watch. Gunboat Rangiriri scored places of 5/1/2/2, demonstrating excellent consistency, and then it all came down to the 250 mile ocean race finale, with all five top yachts in with a chance. Although Silver Shamrock III won, Gunboat Rangiriri finished in second, which was enough to win the Half Ton title, by just one point.

Gunboat Rangiriri slides downwind in the 1977 Half Ton Cup

Interior photo, centrecase still evident (Peter Morton)

The yacht was sold to Swiss yachtsman Dr Peter Knoblock the following year and competed in the 1978 Half Ton Cup held in Poole, England. Without her original crew she was a shadow of her former self, finishing a lowly 17th overall. Although she demonstrated her potential on occasions, especially in the final ocean race, her crew were new to the boat and unused to the techniques involved in handling a light displacement centreboard yacht, and were unable to do her justice. Further changes to the IOR in 1979 led to a 4.7% increase in her rating, but additional displacement and a new keel meant that she was still able to compete in the class, although her 1980 measurement certificate shows that she carried a Displacement-Length Factor penalty of 1.0239.

The yacht is now located in Italy and is maintained in near original condition by her current owner Claudio Massucci. She races in the Italian Half Ton Cup series held each June, and has a recent IRC rating of 0.945. 

Gunboat Rangiriri - still sporting her original livery, seen here in Italy (Peter Morton photo)

 Competing in the Italian Half Ton series (courtesy Claudio Massucci)

Featured Photos - 1984 SORC

These photographs feature some US and European yachts competing in the St Petersburg to Ft Lauderdale race during the Southern Ocean Racing Conference (SORC) in 1984. At this time most of the yachts had been developed to the limits of the IOR rule with increased displacement and relatively fine ends. Because masthead rigs were still popular they often used shooters (or bloopers in US parlance)  to provide stability when running dead downwind, especially in a breeze as during this race.

The photos have featured in a number of threads by Larry Moran (Chicago) on the Sailing Anarchy forums. Larry was an active semi-professional yachting photographer at the time, and has kindly granted permission to post some of my favourite images from his collection.


Bravura - Frers 46 (Irving Loube), 35.4ft IOR, 8th in Class C, 34th overall (photo Larry Moran, Chicago)

Morningstar, Frers 50 (John Ambrose Jr), 40.0ft IOR, 1st Class B, 4th overall (photo Larry Moran, Chicago)

Dawn Patrol, Soverel 43 (George de Guardiola), 33.7ft IOR, 6th Class C, 33rd overall (photo Larry Moran, Chicago)

Lady Be, Frers 46 (F Chalain), 35.3ft IOR, 3rd Class C, 14th overall (photo Larry Moran, Chicago)

Intuition, Peterson 42 (Patrick Malloy), 32.7ft IOR, 13th in Class D, 68th overall (photo Larry Moran, Chicago)

Pinta, Judel/Vrolijk 42 (W Illbruck), 32.6ft IOR, 8th in Class D, 24th overall (photo Larry Moran, Chicago)

Gauntlet, Kaufman 45 (G Freidrichs), 34.3ft IOR, 9th in Class C, 31st overall (photo Larry Moran, Chicago)

Quest, Rodgers 43 (R Lynds), 31.9ft IOR, 3rd in Class D, 9th overall (photo Larry Moran, Chicago)

Thunderbolt, Nelson-Marek 41 (Rodney Wallace), 32.1ft IOR, 5th in Class D, 22nd overall (photo Larry Moran, Chicago)

Smackwater Jack (Whiting One Tonner)

Smackwater Jack was another joint Paul Whiting and Murray Ross effort, following the Quarter Tonner Magic Bus and Half Tonner Newspaper Taxi. While Newspaper Taxi had been designed with the 1977 Half Ton Cup in mind, Whiting and Ross elected to enter the larger higher profile One Ton class with a new boat. 

As a development of the Newspaper Taxi concept, Smackwater Jack featured a broad stern with a long sloping transom and pronounced beam amidships. As with Whiting's earlier designs, volume forward that was lost through an aggressively concave waterline was replaced through a deeper forefoot, with a steep profile abaft the bow knuckle. A further topside concavity occurred near the transom in order to reduce volume and thereby minimise the after girth penalty. She had a longer rated length than her Farr-designed competitors (9.95m), and this was offset by a higher measured displacement (4,519kg), but also allowed more sail area, set on a relatively simple but bendy single-spreader rig.

Smackwater Jack on launching day - Okahu Bay, Auckland (above and below)

Smackwater Jack during the One Ton Cup trials (photo Jenny Green/Sea Spray)

Smackwater Jack sailing upwind, her concave bow shape clearly evident

Smackwater Jack cockpit detail

Whereas the Farr boats carried ballast within their centreboard fin, the centreboard on Smackwater Jack was only weighted sufficiently to ensure that it would sink (90kg), and the yacht thereby relied entirely on internal ballast to achieve the required minimum level of stability. The yacht was found to have insufficient headroom, and a new boxy cabin top was hastily constructed to meet regulations. The cockpit lockers shown in the above photograph were also deemed to be non-compliant and had to be filled in just before the One Ton Cup series.

Sailing to windward in the Hauraki Gulf, with her new the boxy cabin in view

Approaching a windward mark during the 1977 One Ton Cup trials

Smackwater Jack during the 1977 One Ton Cup trials (photo Maritime Museum)

Smackwater Jack started her racing career with wins in local coastal races, then went on to win the New Zealand One Ton Cup trials, held in September 1977. This did not look likely after the first race, when the yacht was forced to retire after breaking her forestay. This was followed by an indifferent fifth in the second race, but she went on to win the intermediate offshore race after holding out Jenny H. A third in the fourth race was followed by another win in the final offshore, for a clear win overall.

Sailing downwind during the 1977 One Ton Cup trials (photo Maritime Museum)

Smackwater Jack was the feature yacht on the cover of the 1977 One Ton Cup programme

However, alterations to the yacht before the Cup series proper seemed to have a detrimental effect on her performance, and a lack of on the water preparation seemed to affect her reliability. Some of her competitors sailed in the Southern Cross Cup trials which allowed them to develop their charges and overtake the Whiting design. The Cup regatta started disastrously for the crew, with the yacht again having to retire from the opening race, this time with a propeller that refused to close. She also had to retire from the gale-afflicted long ocean race finale, suffering from a host of gear damage after the second leg bash to windward where she began taking on large amounts of water. In the three races that she finished, Smackwater Jack failed to fire, scoring places of 6/4/6.

Smackwater Jack hauled out at Westhaven Marina (photo Facebook)

Smackwater Jack sails upwind with The Red Lion in close company to weather during the 1977 One Ton Cup

Sliding along in a light seabreeze on the Hauraki Gulf (photo Maritime Museum)

Smackwater Jack was later modified with a new rig, cabin and conventional companionway, and slightly more subdued gunmetal grey colour scheme, and joined Anticipation and the Farr 1104 Chick Chack in the New Zealand 'North' team for the 1979 Southern Cross Cup series. Smackwater Jack was now slightly out of One Ton trim, with a rating of 28.2ft, but had a good series, with an impressive second place in a light-air Sydney to Hobart race boosting her to fourth yacht in the individual standings, although the team finished a disappointing fifth overall.

Above and below - Smackwater Jack during the 1979 Southern Cross Cup series

Smackwater Jack seen here at the start of the 1979 Sydney-Hobart race, with Police Car visible to leeward and Anticipation towards the lee shore (photo Facebook)

A close-up view of the crew of Smackwater Jack at the start of the 1979 Sydney-Hobart race, with skipper and designer Paul Whiting in a red t-shirt to the left, and below, Smackwater Jack can just be seen to leeward and ahead of Bacardi (SM67) (photos Phil Uhl)

This panorama view by Guy Gurney shows how well-placed Smackwater Jack was at the start of the 1981 Sydney to Hobart race (fourth yacht from the right), where she would go on to finish as second yacht overall

A satellite photo of Cyclone Paul - 9 January 1980

Whiting and his crew then started in the 1980 Hobart to Auckland race, getting underway in calm conditions on 4 January. However, a storm developed in the Gulf of Carpentaria which crossed the north Australian mainland and entered the Tasman Sea as a full-blown cyclone, and tracked directly into the path of the Hobart-Auckland fleet. The Smackwater Jack crew managed to complete their scheduled radio call on 9 January, reporting that they were in difficult and heavy seas approximately 580 miles from Cape Reinga. That was, however, the last word ever heard from the boat, and a full scale search and rescue operation failed to find any trace of the yacht or crew. The NZ Herald reported in January 2008 that wreckage of part of the cockpit had been found on Ripiro Beach, on the west coast of the North Island, but this was never verified (and the wreckage did not look likely to come from Smackwater Jack in my opinion).

Updated December 2024