South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1920-06-27
Adventure SLmp Grips
YaChtSn1en;; Many Dare
Death for Sports Sake

NEW YORK, June 2I.-The minor
accidents to the Resolute and Van
lite that caused short delays in the
trial races off Newport were not
serious. The breaking OF the ResO-
lutes mast in the first race between
the cup defenders off New Haven.
however, might have resulted seri-
ously for some OF the cre~, and it
brings 10 mind the fact that few
sports afford opportunities for acct
dents as sensational as some that
have occurred in yacht racing.
Yachtsmen, II seems, almost go 10
extremes in tempting fate by taking
chances with the lightest obtainable
material in hulls, masts and rigs,
and the contests for the Americas
cup, the greatest single sporting
trophy In the world. have supplied
some memorable mishaps. II is a
question among yachtsmen today
whether or not the coming interna-
tional races of Sandy Hook may not
contribute TO the long list OF acct
dents. Admittedly, there is always
the chance.
The slightest mistakes have often
led TO serious accidents in yacht
racing, a majority of which have
long since slipped the memory of
the average reader OF the sport
pages.
Death Knen of One Type.
In the races between the Vigilant
and Lord Dunraven's Valkyrie II
in 1893 an accident occurred that
sounded the death knell of the skim
ming dish centreboard type and the
advent Of the deep-draught cutter.
The Vigilant had won two races in
succession against the Walk. RE II.
in moderate breeZes, but despite her
two straight victories yachting ex-
perts felt that Vigilant would taste
defeat If the Valkyrie should be ia
| vored by a blast that would be strong
enough TO give her legs.
Sure enough, in the fast race, the
wind was strong and the whitecaps
rolled ceaselessly off Sandy Hook.
1t was just the sort of weather that
the Valkyrie was best suited for and
she revealed in the thrash to wind
ward, beating the Vigilant to the
outer mark by a good margin. Luck
so far had been against the Dun
raven boat, however, and the wise
acres pointed out with much shak-
ing Of heads that 1t was Friday the
] 9th, and that her bad luck would
be bound 10 have its climax. In
setting her spinnaker, which was
done flying instead OF in stops, the
topmast spreader tore a hole in the
spinnaker and the wind tore II to
shreds- In less than a minute IL
dropped TO the side OF the sloop and
dragged there all the way 10 the
finish. A second spinnaker was
hoisted. but II met the same fate as
the first, and by that time the Vigil
Oh 90 -.
and crossed the line a winner by a
small margin.
The following year, 1894, Vigilant
was sent across the ocean for
special series against the Valkyrie
ii. TO satisfy English yachtsmen that
she was the best boat. The English
Yacht Satanita was also eligible for
these races and there was much in
terest in the test between the Eng
lish boats and the Yankee.
A Fateful Choice.
As the big sloops circled around
TO the starting line a small boat con-
tanning several persons drifted in
front OF the Satanita. The skipper
OF the Satanita was in a fearful pre-
dicament He either had TO run
down the small boat and take
chance OF drowning her occupants
latter and the sharp prov OF the
Satanic cut the Valkyrie almost
squarely in two. She sank like
broken bottle and her crew was
thrown into the water. Fortunately
all OF the Valkyrie's crew was saved
by yachts that were standing by.
Back in 1875 the yacht Mohawk
built in Brooklyn, and the biggest
yacht in the world at the time Of
her launching. was known as a
death trap, for those who ventered
on her deck She was 100 feet in
length at the water line, some so
feet longer than the present Amer
lean cup defenders, and something
OF her size may be appreciated when
II is mentioned that her topmast
| spreader was 163 feet above her
deck She was a schooner OF the
old skimming dish centreboard type
and carried the greatest sail plan
| ever built over a craft possessing
only beam and inside ballast TO de-