Actually, the Carat guy bought crude and sailed her in the Admiral's cup etc. then sold her back into the US where she was painted black and renamed Michigan Crude. Her hull was entirely made of Aramid Unidirectional roving. One BITCH of a layup job. We really didnt' have tools available yet to cut the kevlar, essentially had to hire a full time scissors sharpener. We did lay up some sample panels the same thickness as the hull and "popped some caps at em" Definitely bulletproof.
Michigan Crude was a Sera. I think she was the same boat that was first named Louisina Crude.
La. Crude did indeed end up on the lakes as Michigan Crude.
A great post about Tommy Dreyfus which comments on Louisiana Crude and Your Cheatin Heart:
Read the post
Apparently these two boats were involved in some sort of IOR scandal:
"Yes, it was "Louisiana Crude" (Peterson Serendipity 43) that was caught up in the scandal at SORC in the early 80's. Did she win, and get stripped of her title? My memory of those days is a bit foggy. LC led to the birth of "Your Cheating Heart" at SORC the next year. She was another Serendipity 43, I believe. "
"Louisiana Crude won class and fleet in the 81 SORC, her rating protest was never proved and the boat still holds the title with Tom Blackaller as skipper. Williwaw was found cheating as was Acadia. Seymour and Bert were both banned from sailing for a year and neither returned to Grand Prix. Neil "Harvey" was the BN on Acadia. Louisiana Crude became "Chicago Crude" and won plenty. Solid kevlar construction."
" Believe that La. Crude went to Sweden to become one of the Clarets and back to the US as Michigan Crude on the great lakes. "
"Actually "La Crude" did go to Sweden as the first in the "Carat" range. They followed that with a couple of Frers 50's of the same name."
"During that period there was a lot of creative ballasting and measuring being done. It was around that time that the measurers started to get the specific gravity of the water at measurement. At least one boat was trucked to Great Salt Lake for measurement. The measured overhangs on the Serendipidity 43's varied more than any difference in build or interior could have accounted for.
Crude was raced in the Governors Cup in Nassau in 81. The crew was taken off in a tender right after the finish and the boat was sailed away. If you want the particulars, ask Rod Davis. He and Tom Blackaller were in the bar at Yacht Haven that afternoon discussing Dennis' reaction.
There wasn't a lot of love lost in that interrelationship."
This picture of Sweden's "Carat" may not be the same boat, as it is a shot from the 1985 Admiral's Cup
6 comments:
That picture is of the Frers 50 "Carat" which was originally named "Retaliation" and which won its class in the '82 SORC skippered by Denis Connor. Victor Forss (sp?) bought it and renamed it "Carat" as was the name of most of all of his racing sailboats.
I raced on "Michigan Crude" out of Harbor Springs, Michigan, USA the summers of 1990-92 when it was owned by Larry Rellinger. Michigan Crude did at least one Chicago to Mac and one Port Huron during those years.
It was painted dark blue. It had a tiller and no wheel. We raced against Traveler, then owned by Dave Irish. The last I heard it was bound for Long Island Sound.
I was the "BN" on "Michigan Crude" 1985-1986 out of Charlevoix. Did both Chicago and Port Huron Mac races those years. Last I saw of her was when I put here away after a rather eventful '86 Red fox Regatta.
Ray Pride and Richard Bockmann bought Michigan Crude from Larry Rellinger in the middle 1990's, brought her to Sag Harbor on Eastern Long Island, re-named her Louisiana Crude and raced her locally with considerable success. Indeed, at every port some sailer would always stop by and tell a story or two about sailing on Crude. Tom Blackaller made her famous. Everyone wanted sit in the cockpit and hold the tiller that Tom steered. Richard always said she was like a girl you wanted to date but could never bring home to your mother.
Crude was always maintained as a spartan race boat even when modified to meet the IMS.
Louisiana Crude was donated to the Breakwater yacht Club, a Sag harbor community sailing club in the late 1990's in the hopes that she would be used by young sailers. She prooved to be pretty tough on the unseasoned and unweaey and was ultimately sold to a young automobile engineer who was returning to Sweeden. He and two other crew sailed her across the Atlantic departing with only 8 gallons of fuel and 20 gallons in water in her minimal racing tanks and made a successful delivery.
After buying the first "Acadia", Frers-78, renaming her "Blå Carat" [Blue Carat], Victor Forss purchased "Louisiana Crude" reaming her "Rå Carat" [Crude Carat]. She was by then the 5th Carat. Forss would go on with "Carat V", exRetaliation, bought straight after SORC-82 and then another Frers 50' 86 before the final Carat VII from Farr 1989.
"Rå Carat" was thus not "included" in the counting of Carats.
We sailed Crude back to Flordia after 81 SORC Win, the Boat was definitely set up to sail well, got to give that to the Builder Dreyfus and Blackholler....the fact that it rated 2 feet slower than all other Serendipitys, well you can figure that out yourself.
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