Ferrari of the schooners’ also offers race-based sail training
By Robin Dudley of the Leader
Form follows function – it’s one of the reasons sailboats are so aesthetically pleasing. Design details are there to do something, not just look pretty. And one of the prettiest boats around keeps busy winning races as well as teaching kids and adults about sailing.
The 84-foot, 106-year-old schooner Martha, operated out of Point Hudson by skipper Robert d’Arcy and his wife, Holly Kays, did Port Townsend proud at the Swiftsure Inshore Classic on May 25. Martha won her division and the overall score against 60 boats, most of them much newer.
With her heavy wood hull and Dacron sails, how does Martha manage to keep up with the modern racers? “She’s the Ferrari of the schooners,” d’Arcy said. “The ocean hasn’t changed.”
Read more about how this older boat beats its modern competitors.