Sail Number: J/K7
Vessel Type: J-Class
LOA: 127′6″ / 38.86m – LOD: 127′6″ / 38.86m – LWL: 83’0″ / 25.29m – Beam: 21′6″ / 6.55m – Draft: 8’6″ / 2.59m – Displacement: 143 tons – Sail Area: – Original Name: – Original Owner: W.L. Stephenson – Current Owner: – Year Launched: 1933 – Designed by: Charles E. Nicholson – Built by: Camper & Nicholson, Gosport, United Kingdom – Hull Material: Steel – Bridge Clearance: – Homeport:
Historical:
Velsheda was named after the owners three daughters, Velma, Sheila and Daphne. She was not designed to compete for the America’s Cup but she often raced against “Endeavour”, “Shamrock” and “Britannia”, between 1933 – 1936.
Designed by Charles Nicholson and built by Camper & Nicholson in 1933 for Mr W.L. Stephenson, Owner of Woolworth chain of shops, she was built in 1933 at Gosport. She was Nicholson’s second design for a J Class and Stephenson’s second big yacht.
In her heyday in the 1930s Velsheda only sailed for just 3 seasons. She then spent almost 50 years stuck in the mud, and quietly rotting, until her astonishing rescue in the early 1980s by Terry Brabant (a scrap dealer with extraordinary vision). At the time not a single J-class yacht remained in seaworthy order and the class faced extinction.
Rebuild:
‘Velsheda’ was purchased in 1996 as a bare hull lying at mooring in Portsmouth Harbour, and was taken to Southampton Yacht Services, on the River Itchen where a two year comprehensive rebuild was completed to bring her back into immaculate racing condition. She was fitted with the tallest one piece carbon mast in the world and a comprehensive suit of racing sails were produced, developed from wind tunnel testing at Southampton University. She was re-launched in November 1997. Dykstra Naval Architects were employed for the refit and also of other J Class yachts in the current racing field, including “Shamrock V”, “Endeavour” and “Ranger”.
Provenance (The Wall of Remembrance – The Owners, Crew & Notable Guest):
Owner/Guardian: – W.L. Stephenson