Eight years ago, the pages of this magazine were alive with one of the rarest and most enlivening stories we have ever published. Our Restoration of the Year Award, started in 2007 for the rebuild of the 122ft (37m), 1920-built Herbert White cutter Lulworth, was split for the first time in 2011 into two categories: over and under 40ft (12.2m). The small-boat prize went to the 26ft (7.9m), 1935 Harrison Butler sloop Mischief, while the big-boat winner was the 42ft (12.8m), 1945 German Frers ketch Vagabundo II. The story of her restoration, by her 23-year-old owner and his mates from boatbuilding college, was a riot of youthful energy on a shoestring budget. For the next few years, the classic yacht racing scene, traditionally the preserve of an older, wealthier crowd, welcomed young Robbie and a revolving gang of 20-something vagabonds as they sailed the world, racing and partying hard in the Mediterranean, Caribbean and USA. Years passed, then in 2017, we published the news of the death of Robbie’s father, Philippe, so instrumental to Robbie’s life.
Robbie, who I never met at the time, and Vagabundo II were the last things on my mind while tramping the pontoons at the Yacht Club de Monaco back in September at the biennial classic – on a day so still, it seemed unclear whether there would be any sailing at all. A smiling young man in a Mylne T-shirt and cap approached and offered a ride out on his RIB to see the fleet. He stuck out his hand and said: “I’m Robbie Fabre.” Girlfriend Pippa and younger brother Henry and partner also hopped aboard, and we headed out into a still, blue sea, where crew were jumping overboard from yachts to cool off. Robbie drove slowly around the fleet, as the rest of us sat astride the RIB’s sides, trailing our feet in the sea, while we caught up on his life before, and after, Vagabundo II.
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة January 2020 من Classic Boat.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة January 2020 من Classic Boat.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
The Need For Speed
Saving lives at sea has always been bound to the speed of rescue, from the first rowing boats to the 60-knot, all-weather motorboats of today
ROW YOUR BOAT
There has been a steady rise in recreational rowing over the past few years, and the choice can be bewildering. What’s the right boat for you?
Traditional Tool
JOINER’S NAME STAMP
Classic misuse of a word
Real classic ownership involves rot, rust and reward
SCUD MISSILE
Herreshoff’s newly-restored Bar Harbor 31 Scud lit up the classic racing scene in the Med in 2020 with a double win at Cannes and Saint-Tropez
BOSUN'S BAG
PRACTICAL TIPS FOR THE TRADITIONAL BOATER
DOUG LEEN - Tugboat man
Vietnam vet, park ranger, dentist, small-craft conservator and tugboat skipper.... meet Ranger Doug!
CHANCE TO SAVE AN Albert Strange yawl
Chances at Albert Strange ownership don’t come up often, and Sheila II is the quintessential Strange – and one with a great history, too
AFFORDABLE CLASSIC Salcombe Yawls
A friend and I once decided that walking might make a change from sailing. So we set forth to walk from Branscombe to Bigbury, a 100-mile stretch of the south-west coastal path marked by knackering climbs and knee-wrenching descents.
Cardiff, Wales - Save The Elena Maria Barbara!
A rare, 18th-century schooner replica, restored to the tune of around £1 million, could be abandoned if a buyer is not found soon.