Growing up, I learned a few boat names before I even learned to ride a bike. One of those was Dorade, though I was probably a jaded teenager before I actually set eyes on her. And this year, I finally got to go sailing aboard this legend.

Dorade: 2012 Newport-Bermuda race

Dorade: a 52ft yawl designed by Olin Stephens - here photographed at the start of the 2012 Newport-Bermuda race.



In April, I went to the Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta to join an 11-strong all-women’s team led by JJ Fetter and Pam Rorke Levy. Their job involved turning the crew's years of sailing and varied sailing backgrounds (dinghies, small keelboats, big boats) into a team. It was our job to apply all that experience (and newly gained knowledge) to getting Dorade around a tropical race course.

But we should be talking about the oldest girl of all—the one who brought us together.

Dorade’s skinny six-metre-inspired lines have had such an influence on yacht design that it’s hard to imagine anyone describing her as a “freak,” but in 1930 she was a complete departure from the beamy schooners that dominated the racing scene.

After Olin and Rod Stephens’ grandfather sold the family coal business in 1929, their father, Roderick Stephens Sr., commissioned S&S design Number 7, a 52-foot yawl, which became Dorade. Dorade was designed late in 1929 by Olin Stephens and was launched from the Minneford Yacht Yard in May of 1930.

After winning the 1931 Fastnet Race and receiving a ticker-tape parade through New York City, her critics were silenced. She then moved to the West Coast for several more victories, including the 1936 Transpac Race.

As the century wore on she was raced, cruised, and even owned by a liveaboard for 20 years, before joining the family of Matt Brooks and Pam Rorke Levy.

In addition to winning races, Dorade is remembered for naming the type of deck ventilator (the Dorade vent) we all now take for granted on boats of all sizes, which allows air but not water into cabins via a baffle inside the vent.

You can go for a virtual sail on Dorade by watching videos from John Burnham’s adventures on her in 2012, preparing for the Newport-Bermuda Race. We’ve collected them together in one playlist, Dorade: Racing a Classic Yawl. Plus you can see my report on the regatta here: Antigua Classic week: halfway report

Meanwhile, thanks to Matt Brooks and Pam Rorke Levy for having the vision to return Dorade to blue water, which has allowed me to fulfill a lifelong dream of racing on her.

Written by: Carol Cronin
Carol Cronin has published several novels about the Olympics, sailing, hurricanes, time travel, and old schooners. She spends as much time on the water as possible, in a variety of boats, though most have sails.