Conversations with Classic Boats

Follow Conversations with Classic Boats
Share on
Copy link to clipboard

A podcast about classic boat designs and the stories behind them. Hosted by Tom Darling

Tom Darling


    • Nov 19, 2024 LATEST EPISODE
    • infrequent NEW EPISODES
    • 4h 20m AVG DURATION
    • 34 EPISODES


    Search for episodes from Conversations with Classic Boats with a specific topic:

    Latest episodes from Conversations with Classic Boats

    Ep 31 - Six Meter Pre-Worlds Take to Long Island Sound in September 2024

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 19, 2024


    Seawanhaka Corinthian Yacht Club in Oyster Bay on the North Shore of Long Island was the birthplace of International Rule Six Meter boats. In 2025, the "Santa Claus of 6 Metres," a Swiss-Canadian named Rainer Muller, hopes to bring his Sixes collection to anchor the 2025 World Championship in Long Island Sound. Over 20 Six Metres, dating from 1924 to contemporary, are expected to be on the line.

    Sailors Log #3 - Stan & Sally Honey

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 12, 2024


    A husband and wife team sail a revived famous 1960s offshore design, the Cal 40, to victory in America's venerable Newport to Bermuda Race. Stan and Sally Honey, along with their friend Olympian Carl Buchan, sailed the boat as it was intended—like a canoe-shaped, 15,000-pound dinghy.

    Ep 30 - Two Curators Have a Gam

    Play Episode Listen Later May 6, 2024


    Christina Brophy, Senior VP of Mystic Seaport Museum and Evelyn Ansel, Curator of the Herreshoff Marine Museum, and herself a Mystic native, join in a gam to explore how a marine museum curator comes to be. The two outline an exciting 2024 exhibition season. Go visit MSM and HMM this summer- and mention Conversations with Classic Boats!

    Ep 29 - College Sailing Goes Offshore—1928 to 2023

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 22, 2024


    In the late 1920s, competitive college sailing originated in keelboats. Through long-running events like the McMillan Cup and a range of college offshore regattas across the country, college sailors, from expert to novice, are enjoying the camaraderie and fun of sailing big boats. October 2023 saw the Princeton Offshore Team win its class during a weekend of wild weather at the Storm Trysail Club's Intercollegiate Offshore Regatta.

    Ep 28 - Trailblazers and Triumphs in Women's Competitive Sailing

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 7, 2023


    A five women team makes women's sailing history. In September 1985, mastering an international fleet and Hurricane Gloria to take the inaugural Rolex International Women's Keelboat Regatta and pointing to the inclusion of Women's Sailing in the 1988 Seoul Olympics.

    Sailors Log #2 - Bob Johnstone

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 14, 2023


    Bob Johnstone, Co-founder with his brother Rod of JBoats, founder of MJM Yachts at the age of 68. He holds a profound appreciation for boats, ranging from the 3-foot DF-95 to the 50-plus J Boat designs developed over the past 46 years. Now, as an author of Marketing Maverick, he continues to make waves in the industry.

    Ep 27 - Sixes in Seattle: The Search for the Lost Fleet

    Play Episode Listen Later May 3, 2023


    We go cross-country in search of the iconic Six Metres of the 1930s. We find the crème de la crème, Goose and Llanoria, in the boatyard of this design's dedicated collector, Peter Hofmann, at Port Madison Yacht Club on Bainbridge Island, across the sound from Seattle. Photos from Peter Taylor tell the story of these beautiful keelboats.

    Sailors Log #1 - Dave Perry

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 24, 2023


    We debut our Classic Conversations , The Sailors Log, talking to match racer, rules guru and overall great sailing guy Dave. Perry

    Ep 26 - Uffa Fox, Bruce Kirby: The Flying 14s and the Modern Planing Dinghy

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 13, 2023


    From England to Canada to America, Uffa Fox and Bruce Kirby are the 20th century pioneers of the planing dinghy. This episode features an exclusive interview with Nat Philbrick, an American author and historian, winner of the National Book Award, and finalist for the Pulitzer Prize.

    Ep 25 - Solo Sailors - Clay Burkhalter

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 21, 2022 46:50


    Our featured long distance solo sailor- Clay Burkhalter, tells the tale of his 2007 Transat Race in Acadia, his J Boats designed 21 foot offshore boat.

    Ep 24 - Collecting the Classics at the 50th Opera House Cup in Nantucket

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 16, 2022 29:45


    The 50th running of Nantucket's Opera House Cup attracts the elite classic boats to race and be seen at the Classic Yacht  Exhibition

    Ep 23 - Signature Boats: A Senior Classic Goes to the Onion Patch

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 13, 2022 19:40


    Jesse Terry prepares his Alden classic, Abigail for the Thrash to the Onion Patch, the 2022 Newport to Bermuda Race, the iconic American offshore contest.

    Ep 22 - Story Boats: The Tales They Tell Pt.1

    Play Episode Listen Later May 13, 2022 30:00


    Mystic Seaport Museum presents "Story Boats: The Tales They Tell", a fascinating collection of historic watercraft and the tales that go with them. From May 28 to August 14, the show presents eighteen boats & the intimate stories and adventures of the people behind them.

    Ep 21 - Carleton Mitchell and the Chesapeake Bay Log Canoe

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 24, 2022 22:50


    Carleton Mitchell, blue water racer, writer, photographer, loved to portray the native designs of the Americas. One of his favorites, the sailing log canoe, is iconic to his home waters of the Chesapeake. A wild concoction of wood and canvas, the log canoe has skimmed across the Bay for almost 150 years.

    Ep 20: Model Classic 2.0- Radiosailing Goes Frostbiting

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 25, 2022 41:00


    We visit three radiosailing racing venues to answer the question:" Who frostbites model yachts in NJ?

    Ep 19 IC Classic- 88 Years of Winter Sailing at the Larchmont YC (Pt II)

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 4, 2022 40:00


    Larchmont Winter Sailing has brought out the best in frostbiting for generations. This episode features two exclusive interviews from Crissie Klingler and Butch Ulmer who talk about their history frostbiting in Larchmont

    Ep 18: IC Classic- 88 Years of Winter Sailing at the Larchmont YC

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 20, 2022 37:06


    Winter sailing pioneer and author of Race Your Boat Right, Arthur Knapp, led the way for modern frostbiting at Larchmont YC. A new kind of racing-cold!

    Ep 17: Chasing Roosters Part 2

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 17, 2021 33:18


    Barnegat Bay and the sailing haven of Mantoloking are our sites for exploring the home-grown Bay classes, Sneakboxes and Duckboats, timeless designs from the 19th century brought forward to the modern running of the Duckboat World Championships

    Ep 16: Chasing Roosters Part 1

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 2, 2021 55:08


    This episode, we go down south to the Jersey Shore, where watermen have plied Barnegat Bay since the European-invasion of the 16th Century. These episodes show a all star cast of the boats that Tom fell in love with: The EBoat or EScow, A Cat, Sneakbox and the Duckboat.

    Ep 15: Herreshoff, Hickman, Hunt: 100 Years of the American Runabout (Pt. 2)

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 28, 2021 34:01


    A 1914 design, the Hickman Sea Sled, re-emerges in 1957 via the hand of C Raymond Hunt, as America's iconic runabout. It is the Boston Whaler, 13 footer.

    Ep 14: Herreshoff, Hickman, Hunt: 100 Years of the American Runabout

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 20, 2021 36:01


    HHH. Herreshoff, Hickman, Hunt. 100 years of the American personal powerboat: the launch, the American runabout, the American speedboat

    Episode 13: Clem and Jim's IOD Adventure Pt II

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 15, 2021 30:14


    IOD reborn. The new redone Etesian takes her maiden sail, Newport to Stonington.

    Episode 12: Clem and Jim’s IOD Adventure

    Play Episode Listen Later May 15, 2021 43:33


    We help a good friend in his quest for the perfect wooden International One Design (IOD)

    Episode 11: J Boats Speaks (Part II)

    Play Episode Listen Later May 6, 2021 37:47


    In 1977, two brothers channeled Nat Herreshoff and started a boating phenomenon that produced a string of iconic modern keelboats. Bob and Rod Johnstone tell the creation story of JBoats.

    Episode 10: J Boats Speaks

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 15, 2021 47:59


    In 1977, two brothers channeled Nat Herreshoff and started a boating phenomenon that produced a string of iconic modern keelboats. Bob and Rod Johnstone tell the creation story of JBoats.

    Episode 09: Golden Age of the Sixes (Part II)

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 24, 2021 33:18


    The International Six Metre reaches its design peak with S & S designs like Fun, Goose, Djinn and Llanoria as fear of European conflict postpones international competition until 1947's Seawanhaka Cup

    Episode 08: Golden Age of the Sixes

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 11, 2021 32:33


    In the Golden Age of the Sixes, designers, builders, owners, and skippers strive for the winning package as Seawanhaka becomes the epicenter of international Sixes competition

    Episode 07: Day of the Sixes

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 25, 2021 3008:00


    The Second International Rule and the British American Cup ignites international competition between designers and sailors alike in the Six Metre. Class. Designers like Olin J Stephens arrive on the scene.

    Episode 06: Dawn of the Sixes: Seawanhaka and the International Six Meter

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 5, 2021 2176:00


    The International Six Meter, with its rich history of match and team racing, traces its roots back to America's oldest yacht club, founded 1871, Seawanhaka Corinthian in Oyster Bay, New York

    Episode 05: S & S Twins: Finisterre and Fidelio

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 4, 2020


    The story of Finisterre, the famous three-time winner of the Bermuda Race under legendary yachtsman Carleton Mitchell, pioneer of cruising the West Indies and her twin design, Fidelio, built two years later, a gem of a classic design, winner from Block Island to Maine

    Episode 04: Man and Their Dinghies

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 29, 2020


    We go throughout New England in search of the perfect little boat. Featuring a talk with the people behind the most famous dinghy brand of all time, Dyer Boats.

    Episode 03: Model Classic Instant Classic

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 1, 2020 74:44


    Model boats have captivated serious sailors for centuries.From the 1920s to today, model yachting in vintage wooden craft has become the fast growing field of radiosailing with high tech, carbon fiber sparred performance miniature yachts. We capture the latest multi-colored DF-95 model yacht in the inaugural Nantucket Regatta

    Episode 02: Alerion Past, Present, Future Perfect

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 30, 2020 51:32


    The personal boat of Captain Nat Herreshoff has taken on many identities over more than 100 years. That includes being the design of choice for the largest classic wooden keelboat fleet in America

    Episode 01: Dolphin

    Play Episode Listen Later May 8, 2020 28:23


    Dolphin, the winningest boat in American history, has a history of colorful owners since its 1914 birth . Her skippers tell the tale of this Newport 29 and its siblings alive today

    Claim Conversations with Classic Boats

    In order to claim this podcast we'll send an email to with a verification link. Simply click the link and you will be able to edit tags, request a refresh, and other features to take control of your podcast page!

    Claim Cancel