SV Fruition Excels @ Venice Yacht Club

This just in!  An update from SV Fruition owner Bill Gately:  "I have attached the recent cover and article from the Aug.-Sept issue of the news magazine of Venice Yacht Club here in Florida that you may find humorous and worthy of adding to the your Blog.   All of the photos on the cover of the magazine are those of Fruition under sail."

 

Fruition Race Video

 Here is a YouTube video of Fruition at the 2022 Bone Island Regatta (Florida)

The annual Bone Island Regatta from the Sarasota area to Key West is held as the last event of the September-to-May “Boat of the Year” competition sanctioned by the Sarasota Bay Yachting Association. 

This regatta at about 160 miles is also the longest race race of the nine race “Boat of the Year” competition. Boats compete under West Florida rules in four separate fleets - spinnaker, non-spinnaker, cruiser and multihull. 

The regatta is a non-profit event organized selflessly and competently by Alice Petrat as a service to the sailing community with assistance by an all volunteer team. The land-based events at the end of the race are many and memorable.

Fruition 2023 Update!

Fruition continues to actively race in the Venice, Sarasota Bay and Tampa Bay area.  She is still fast, despite her age, her shorter 6' 6" keel and her dependable 1984 Hood racing mainsail.  New engine, new asymmetrical spinnaker same old(er) scurvy crew!   These boats were made to last!

When we moved from MA to FL there was a local racing fleet that called Fruition out of retirement.  We have Fruition as one of the fastest "racer/cruiser" in the Sarasota area.  We go up to Davis Island Yacht Club at the head of Tampa Bay to race with the top dogs in the racer/cruiser category and have always been at the podium to the chagrin of the local hot shots.

 

Recently, Fruition won the 2022 Sarasota Bay "Boat of the Year" competition in her class and is now in first place for the 2023 competition with only the Venice to Key West Regatta remaining (in which she placed 3rd last year).  

 

Fruition Update

"Battleship" Bill Gately has written in with the latest on Fruition -- thanks for the update, Bill!

"After 26 years, in October, 2008 Fruition left Hingham, MA towards Hampton, VA to participate in the Caribbean 1500 Rally.  She left after replacing all standing rigging, a good thing since the trip to Hampton and much of the race to Tortola was in heavy winds (near to moderate gale).  She sailed exceptionally well, heavily reefed and mostly underwater, at 179 degrees with 7.2 knots to weather directly into the strong SE trades for 8 days.  She was probably the fastest boat in the fleet but wuz robbed by participants who failed to follow the race committee's course instructions to avoid a potential hurricane.  One cannot protest in a "Rally"!

In 2009 Fruition sailed to Annapolis, MD and then, in 2010, to her new home in Venice, Florida where she sits at the Venice Yacht Club.  In 2013 she is started racing again, this time in the local fleet."

Fruition Update

From Battleship Bill (see comment on Fruition profile page):
"At summer 2008 Fruition is still moored at Hewitt's Cove in Hingham, MA.. She is kept up-to-date and, while used for almost exclusively for cruising, placed 2nd in the 2008 Figawi non-spinnaker top non-spinnaker class.

Fruition's New Orleans Marine hull was sent to Palmer Johnson for a first class fitting out by her original owner (two heads en suite, telephone pole-like Hood Sto-Way mast, etc.). She is, technically, a PJ-43, although her hull and measurements are exactly the same as a Serendipity 43. Except, of course, for the new, heavier 6'3" scheel keel that Jim Taylor designed for her and JAM in 2005. She sails very well with the new keel; she lost two or three point to weather but is slightly faster at all other points of sail.

Fruition is headed for the Caribbean 1500 Rally in Nov. 2008."

Fruition

Fruition, Gately, PHRF NE -- Jim Taylor of Marblehead (Taylor Yacht Designs) did some work on this Serendipity 43, as well as on JAM/MoJoe.

Fruition originally lived in Scituate, MA but was never actively raced (or sailed for that matter). I believe it had a fairly full interior for that type of boat as well as a furling main, etc. I think they tried to make a fast cruiser out of the boat.This was during the early to mid eighties. Haven't lived down that way for a long time so, no idea of the status now.