Spencer 2e 22, 1960

Very Early Days

Richard Thorne owns what must surely be the world's oldest active Cherub. This is very much how the class started in the UK. 22 is a UK number by the way, that was before the class adopted a single series internationally.

	No Spinnaker chute in these early days. Indeed right at the start of the class in the UK the rules prohibited spinnakers, and I believe trapezes too.
	Magnificent varnish! Note the stern tank. We're back before transom flaps too here.
	The early Spencers were nicely balanced boats. With plenty of rise of floor and narrowish transoms they weren't downwind flyers by modern standards and ideed they lacked the high speed stability of post 1970s boats. On the other hand you could roll tack them almost like an Enterprise!
	You can see the jib sheet leads are quite well aft (and very wide by modern standards).
	Showing off the curve of chine and forefoot.
	With the high chine the waterlines were pretty much hollow right next to the bow. Although it looks full to modern eyes this was quite a fine bowed boat for the era.
	Interior. Note that there is already a low bow tank. The rolled side decks weren't found on all boats even at that time.
Above Photos (c) R. Thorne 2003
	Coming and going - a montage of two photos from 1961 with Richard helming.
Photos: Colin Lewis 1961
	And this is the boat in action back in 1961. Richard is helming and the crew is Colin Lewis.
Photos: R. Thornes's Archives 1961

Above photos are (c) Richard Thorne 2003. Many thanks to Richard for the material. To tell the story in Richard's own words...

"The Cherub, sail no 22 (172?), was built for me by my father in the early spring and summer of 1960 and originally named "Blue Streak".  I believe that it was the first Cherub constructed with a centre board instead of a dagger board in this country (world?).  It was sailed in the 1960 Cherub Championships at Cowes by Alfie Hawksworth and achieved 3rd place overall.  I gained an equal 4th overall in the 1962 Cherub Championships again in Cowes.  My Cherub was sold at the end of 1963 to Keith Beken, the yacht photographer, for his son.  Many years later (1993), I heard that it was still in existence and being sailed at Gurnard Sailing Club by the Bradley family.  It had by this time been renamed "Nightmare", apparently due to the amount of work required to bring it back into use after lying unused under a hedge in someone's garden for  a number of years.I approached the owners who kindly showed me the dinghy in it's then form and I told them that I would be interested in buying it from them, should they wish to sell it at some future date.  I had a telephone call from them some time later that they wished to sell it and I was once more to become the owner in 1994. I sailed it in that form on a number of occasions that year and after laying up for the winter, spent the late spring and early summer renovating it which involved completely redecking the hull.  It was renamed again at this time "Prodigal".  It was sailed with my daughter as crew in 1995, 1996 and 1997 and once or twice since at Langstone Sailing Club, Hampshire.  Hopefully it will be on the water again this summer. "