AGOSTINO STRAULINO & NICOLO RODE

World’s Champions, 1952, 1953 and 1956

 

Agostino Straulino and Nicolo Rode made up an unbeatable team during the mid-1950’s. However, the first major win of Straulino and Rode was the European Silver Star in 1938. By the time he won his last Silver Star in 1959, Straulino, with Carlo Rolandi crewing, had won 10 Silver Stars, eight of which were won consecutively between 1949 and 1956. The team of Straulino and Rode also won the Olympic Gold Medal in 1952 and the Olympic Silver Medal in 1956.

 

(Lower photo: “Forty Years…”)

 

Below is O.G. # 2958, Merope, built in 1949. The following photo is of Lippincot # 3316, Merope II, built in 1953. In 1956 Straulino had Skip Etchells build him another boat, # 3810, Merope III.

 

(Photo: Ogilvy collection)

(Photo: 1954 Log)

 

SKIP & MARY ETCHELLS

World’s Champions, 1951

 

The most successful husband and wife team in the Star Class was that of Skip and Mary Etchells. In the 1945 World’s they placed 3rd overall. Later they went on to win the Gold Star in 1951. They also won numerous other regattas, including the North American Silver Star in 1958, various 1st District Blue Stars, Arms-White regattas, Bedford Pitcher regattas, and other 1st District regattas.

 

Skip Etchells was a marine architect and ran the Old Greenwich Boat Co. He took a very close look at the tolerances allowed in the Star specifications and built his Stars to take the maximum advantage of the variations allowed. O.G. boats won several World’s and many other regattas.

(Photo: Forty Years…)

 

(Photo: “A History…”)

 

 

C. STANLEY OGILVY

(Photo: Ogilvy Collection, credit Bepe Croce. Ogilvy’s Flame, Star # 2700,

 crossing the finish line at the fourth race of the 1948 World’s at Cascais.)

 

C. STANLEY OGILVY

Star Class Editor and Historian

1913-2000

by Bill Parks

Stan's involvement with the Star Class began conventionally, with a youthful introduction to Stars as a crew and then as a skipper on Long Island Sound in the 1930s. He soon became a fleet officer, and was co-chairman of the Organizing Committee of the 1937 World's Championship when only two years out of college. He later served as a member of the Governing Committee and as Vice-President of the Class. In 1946 he took over the editorship of the Class newsletter Starlights and its yearbook, the Log, a post that he held with pride and consummate skill for nearly 40 years.

 

Stan won a Continental Spring Championship in 1947, a Continental Championship in 1952 and placed third in two World's Championships. He remained near the top in all his Star racing endeavors for decades. Author of the book "Thoughts on Small Boat Racing", Stan broke the ice for a flood of similar publications that followed.

 

As Chairman of the Judiciary Board of the Star Class during the 1980’s, he advised and guided the Class officers with statesmanlike skill and diplomacy, while handling all protest appeals as well as scads of other contested issues.

 

His lifetime of dedication to the Star Class has given him a unique perspective from which to comment on the yachting scene. In 1991 he published through the Class a book entitled "A History of the Star Class". The book is truly a labor of love.

 

Stan was a truly first class yachtsman and sportsman. He was honest and forthright to a fault and stood for the absolute best that we all strive for. A great loss for yachting and our wonderful Star Class.

 

 

CARLOS de CARDENAS


(Photo: Forty Years…)

 

CARLOS de CARDENAS

World’s Champion, 1954 and 1955

 

The person to break Straulino and Rode’s winning streak was “Charlie” de Cardenas Sr. In 1954, with his son Carlos Jr. crewing, he came within one point short of a perfect score by coming in 2nd in the fourth race. The next year they made a repeat performance, although this time not with such excellent scores in individual races.

 

 

(Photo: 1960 Log)

 

HARRY NYE and his GALES

 

Here is Harry Nye making knots with one of his series of Gales. Harry Nye was part of Murphy and Nye Sailmakers located in Chicago. This was one of the first firms to get into using synthetic materials for sails, and was the sailmaker of choice for the Stars in the late 1950’s before North Sails really got going.

 

Harry Nye participated in his first World’s in 1936 and by 1938 was knocking on the door with a series second. In 1941 he had a series 2nd again and then in 1942 won his first Gold Star. In 1949 he won his second Gold Star. He also won 5 Silver Stars and a host of other honors.

 

 

LOWELL NORTH

FOUR TIME WORLD’S CHAMPION

 

Unprecedented in the Star Class is the record of four World’s Championships won by Lowell North. In 1957 when Lowell won his first Gold Star with Jim Hill crewing he was already no stranger to the top ranks of the Star Class. At the 1945 World’s Lowell, at the age of 15, won four Gold Bars as Malin Burnham’s crew. Then at the 1949 World’s on Lake Michigan Lowell at the age of 19 had a record of four 1st and a 2nd. Unfortunately he DSQed in the second race. James Hill, also 19, was his crew at this event. In 1956 at the World’s in Naples, again with Jim Hill crewing, Lowell won second in the series with Agostino Straulino taking first.

 

Here we see Jim Hill and Lowell North in Star # 3877, North Star III, on their way to winning the 1957 World’s held at Havana. Note Jim’s athletic ability to hold his torso away from the topsides. Pretty hard work!


(Photo: 1958 Log; credit John Bryson, Sports Illustrated)

 

NORTH STAR III IN RIO

 

Here is Lowell North with Thomas Skahill up front during the World’s held at Rio de Janeiro in 1960. This was to be Lowell’s third win, the fourth and last one to come in the 1973 World’s held in his home waters of San Diego.

 

Lowell had started North Sails a couple of years previous to this time. He brought to sailmaking his engineering skills in aeronautics. He found a blue dacron cloth which had better characteristics than the standard white cloth. The advertisement for North Sails in the 1960 Log commented that the blue cloth which North was using had a preferable hard slick finish. Thus for a couple of years North Sails were made with the blue cloth, which of course made them very distinctive.

 

The North Sail loft was located on the San Diego waterfront and was a short walk to the shop where Carl Eichenlaub had his boatworks called Eichenlaub Marine. Carl Eichenlaub, with the design help of Lowell North, built top-flight Star boats from the mid-1950’s to the early 1970’s. Eichenlaub boats, in the hands of such skippers as Lowell North, Bill Ficker, and Joe Duplin, won several World’s Championship titles from the late 1950’s through the 1960’s.

 


(Photo: 1960 Log)