Sail Number: R-ll
Type: Marconi 3/4 Rig Racing Sloop
LOA: 40′ 3″ / 12.26m – LOD: 40′ 3″ / 12.26m – LWL: 25’0″ / 7.62m – Beam: 8′ 6″ / 2.59m – Draft: 5’5″ / 1.65m – Displacement: 10,900 lbs – Hull material: double-planked hull Burma Teak / steam-bent white oak -Sail Area: – Designer: L.E. “Ted” Geary, Seattle, Washington – Built by: Lake Union Dry Dock, Seattle, Washington – Year Built: April 10, 1926 – Current Name: Pirate – Location: Seattle, WA – Flag: USA – Locator: Museum exhibit
Historical:
One of the fastest R-boats ever built.
Pacific coast R-boat racing began in Seattle in 1913 when Sir Thomas Lipton donated a lavish silver cup to be the prize for the class. The following year, after defeating would-be American defenders Spray and Defender, Ted Geary’s Sir Tom (so named to honor the cup’s donator) dominated Turenga from Royal Vancouver Yacht Club to capture the cup. Geary and Sir Tom went on to win the Lipton every year until 1928.
“My dad promised me an R-boat if we won the coast championship this year, and we did the best possible.” – Tommy Lee
In the spring of 1925, yachtsman Don Lee of Los Angeles challenged his son Tommy to win the Pacific Coast Star Championship with the promised prize of a new R-boat. Tommy Lee sailed his Star Satellite to victory at the Pacific Coast Yachting Association (PCYA) regatta in Victoria, British Columbia, and true to his word, Don Lee commissioned Pirate for his son.
Immediately after the christening Miss Virginia Merrill (Tommy Lee’s cousin) poses for the cam
era of Webster – Stevens.
Pemco Webster & Stevens Collection, Museum of History & Industry.
Comments from the Center for Wooden Boats – Pirate is a direct development of Geary’s legendary Sir Tom, a perennial West Coast R-Class champion. In her first year of racing Pirate won the prestigious San Diego Lipton Cup for the Balboa Yacht Club.
Pirate is widely acknowledged as the first yacht, designed and built on the West Coast, to compete on the Eastern Seaboard. in !929, she was shipped to New York. Matt Walsh, skipper of the R-boat California, steered her to dominate a large fleet of Rs at the Larchmont Yacht Club, taking the class National Championships in convincing style.
Restoration & Improvements
Shortly after the 1932 installation of the engine and propeller shaft, Ted Geary had them removed to prepare the boat for more serious racing. In addition, he redesigned the boat’s sail and rigging plans to allow the use of flatter Genoa jibs sheeted closer to the mainsail. This was popularly known as the “Diamond Rig” by sailors of the time. The spreaders were moved to a point halfway between the forestay and the deck. The top attachment point of the upper shrouds was moved down to the forestay connection. A set of upper diamond struts measuring the same length as the spreaders were added at the same place. To control tip bend fore and aft, a jumper strut was fitted from the forestay tang to the head stay, and a smaller jumper was rigged on its own stay above the forestay. The foretriangle height (P2) was increased from 31′ to 35′-4″, while the base (J) was kept at 10′. This increased area forward in the plan was offset by a reduction of 14″ off the foot of the mainsail, while the gooseneck was raised 18″. At the same time, an 18″ boomkin was added at the stern to attach a standing backstay. This brought the overall length of the vessel to 40′-3″. The last additions were jib sheet winches at the aft end of the house top, port and starboard, to trim the larger jibs.
R-boat Pirate, fully restored from 1999 to 2005, is the best extant example of the R-class. Pirate also embodies the most advanced skills and talents in both yacht design and construction in the Seattle area in the early twentieth century.
Currently
From 1999-2005, The Center for Wooden Boats undertook a restoration of Pirate. The boat is moored year-round at the CWB and serves as an active, floating exhibition. A dedicated group of volunteers manages the boat and sails it to heritage events within the region. To support the Center for Wooden Boats, click here. http://cwb.org/join-support/
Provenance (The Wall of Remembrance – The Owners, Crew & Notable Guest):
Owner: (1926-1928) – Don and son Tommy Lee (Don Lee owner of (1924-1929) Schooner Invader )
Owner: (1928-1929) – Roger Marchetti
Owner: (1929-1932) – O.K. Hunsaker
Owner: (1932-1934) – Arthur Stewart, son of William L. Stewart (late president of Union Oil Company of California)
Owner: (1934-1952) – Mrs. Rhoda (Rindge) Adamso
Owner: (1952-1964) – Merritt Adamson, Jr. and Sharon (the daughter of Ted Gear) Adamson (gifted)
Owner: (1964) – Brooks Barnhill and Morton Caplan, Los Angeles.
Owner: Mrs. Adele Jacobson of Oxnard, California
Owner: (late 90s) – Blue Whale Sailing School of Santa Barbara (donated)
Owner: (current) – The Center for Wooden Boats, Seattle, WA (donated)
Resources
The Center for Wooden Boats
The Model Shipwright
