Edam, 22 September 2002
This message concerns the 50 year anniversary celebration of the Flying Dutchman Class
To: Editorial office

1. Record number of ex-Olympic Champions at Loosdrecht Lakes in Holland !

Dear Editor,

Rodney Pattisson, Luis Doreste, Miguel Noguer, Peder Lunde, Alejandro Abascal, Jorg Boysen Møller / Jacob Boysen Møller and Jorg and Ecke Diesch. These are the ex - Olympic Flying Dutchman champions from 1960 till 1992. All will be present on October 11, 12 and at Loosdrecht form the "Conrad Gulcher Memorial" regatta. This race, held at the ‘native water’ of the Flying Dutchman, is the international highlight of the 50^th anniversary of the IFDCO (International Flying Dutchman Class Organisation).

Apart from the ex Olympic Champions, many other World and European Champions and current FD sailors will race in a field of not less than 80 boats origination from 14 countries. They will all race for the honour of winning the Conrad Gulcher Memorial regatta, which is the traditional seasons closing regatta of the Dutch FD fleet.

Designed by Dutchmen Conrad Gulcher and Uus van Essen in 1951 the Flying Dutchman had a vigorous start. Within 5 years 400 boats were built. The sensational design culminated in the Olympic Status in 1960. The FD remained this status until 1992.

The program of the 50^th anniversary is attached. Highlights during the festivities are a forum discussion followed by a reception on the Friday afternoon and a ex- champions and VIP race on Saturday

The ex-champions will sail 3 short races. Boats for press will be made available and there will be ample time for interviews with the ex-champions and other participants.

The address van de Royal Yacht Club is: Oud Loosdrechtsedijk 151,
1231 LT Loosdrecht, The Netherlands. More details may be found on the link to the anniversary website via: www.sailfd.com .

For more information please contact the Flying Dutchman Class:

Frank Havik, fr.havik@quicknet.nl
Tel:+31 (0)299-320850
Mobile: +31 (0)6-53 64 64 53.

Edam, 5 oktober 2002
This message concerns the 50 year anniversary celebration of the Flying Dutchman Class
To: Editorial office

Almost 100 Flying Dutchman at the start on the Loosdrecht Lakes in Holland !

Dear Editor,

A record of sailing boats will come to the 50 year anniversary of the legendary Flying Dutchman class. There are now 91 entrees but the organisation expect finally a totall of 100 boats. There is also a hugh interest from old olympic champions. Two times gold medalist Rodney Pattisson but also 1992 winner Luis Doreste, Miguel Noguer (games 1980), Peder Lunde (games 1960), Jorg Boysen Møller / Jacob Boysen Møller (games 1988) and Jorg and Ecke Diesch (games 1976). All will be present on October 11, 12 and at Loosdrecht form the "Conrad Gulcher Memorial" regatta. This race, held at the ‘native water’ of the Flying Dutchman, is the international highlight of the 50^th anniversary of the IFDCO (International Flying Dutchman Class Organisation).

Apart from the ex Olympic Champions, many other World and European Champions and current FD sailors will race in a field of not less than 91 boats origination from 15 countries. They will all race for the honour of winning the Conrad Gulcher Memorial regatta, which is the traditional seasons closing regatta of the Dutch FD fleet.

Designed by Dutchmen Conrad Gulcher and Uus van Essen in 1951 the Flying Dutchman had a vigorous start. Within 5 years 400 boats were built. The sensational design culminated in the Olympic Status in 1960. The FD remained this status until 1992.

The program of the 50^th anniversary is attached. Highlights during the festivities are a forum discussion followed by a reception on the Friday afternoon and a ex- champions and VIP race on Saturday.

The ex-champions will sail 3 short races. Boats for press will be made available and there will be ample time for interviews with the ex-champions and other participants.

The address van de Royal Yacht Club is: Oud Loosdrechtsedijk 151, 1231 LT Loosdrecht, The Netherlands.

For more information please contact the Flying Dutchman Class:

Frank Havik, fr.havik@quicknet.nl
Tel:+31 (0)299-320850
Mobile: +31 (0)6-53 64 64 53.

South Africa, october 9th
From Jan Willem Danny Gülcher

50 years of passion for fun with
The Flying Dutchman

A father with a passion for fun and not just for himself, but also for all those that were around him and those that knew him. Is it because it is in his nature or is it something that is developed through the years? Talking from a vantage point, being his son, I would say it runs in the family. His dad, my grandfather, was equal in stature when it came to fun. Many anecdotes told to me by our dear Tante Hes, show me that a line of serious endeavour keeps the Gülcher family together. Born in a basket as a crib in 1947 and put in a boat if sorts (Canadian canoe) gave us immediately the ability to understand his aim and fun for the water sport. What made my dad want to develop a boat that has speed, agility and be fun to sail without some background information? And so when I was still in nappies, my dad collected designs from as far back as the VOC, Mayflower and volumes full of forms and designs that stood the test of time. What was it that made a boat go fast and be manoeuvrable? To find out, correspondence with well sailed and tested sailing friends around the world, were called upon to further the studies of his dream.

In My youth fun came to the fore by bringing home a ‘joll’ now called an Optimist. The boat was assembled, with great fun, in the living room, with the whole family. All the information collected through the initial year, to the time Us van Essen was daily in our midst, was of great value. My Mam, as supporter and fun loving mother, missed nothing of the development of this great idea and realised it’s significance and potential for the generations to come. It is a boat that has the potential to sail all over the world for people that understand the meaning of competition and with a means to reach out and have fun. If it wasn’t for the energy and optimism of my father, without stopping, pressing on to achieve the goal, we still be sailing the old model ‘T Ford’, for lack of a better word. What made it unique for us, as a family was not the enormous drive to achieve the dream but more the way in which we were involved. A family established at the end of the war, with the hardship of the loss of two children and leaving two sons, one of which loved the sport and the other selected to concentrate on music and literature. Dad in his own wisdom, had to steer a steady course involving us in the FD. Our free days were spent on hockey, tennis and above all sailing.

We had a house where sails, on the landing of the second floor, would be hung out to dry, where the dining room furniture would be moved to make way for templates, sails, layouts and drawings. It was a place where people from all over the world would arrive unannounced but were always welcome, due to the ability of my mam to be ready to provide dinner for a family or more.

A father so passionate about it’s concept and dream, that conversations in any other sphere would diplomatically steer in the direction of boats and sails and ultimately, the FD. But still all of it was fun, making boats and catamarans out of cardboard, painting them with water-resistant paint and sail with great gusto in front of the house on the pond. There was no barrier for seeing the world through eyes of the guests we had in the house during the fifties and sixties and the openness of dad to help. Was the boat a means to express the feelings he had towards man or was it an obsession? I believe his desire for fun gave him the means to relate with the rest of the world through the FD.

In many ways I had deep discussions about sport and in particular sailing, and my question to my dad was always this: What makes sailing so different from any sport?

His answer was always the same:

‘The elements are not in our hands, but in the hand of the creator God.

We are the tools in which we try to make use of these elements.

The equipment is the means we know to stay reasonably safe in these elements.

All sailors know this and have great respect for it. And because they know, they are eager to part with their knowledge so that another will have a greater security to go through these elements. No other sport can compete at this level of knowledge and sharing.

The inspiration of the Flying Dutchman was not just a boat, speed, Olympics and world achievement, but fun, knowledge and searching for new ideas.

How ideal it may sound for friend and outsider is of no consequence to me, I know that my dad, from the day he said farewell with the knowledge, that he had fun, fulfilment and above all, made friends with no strings attached.

For the record of sailing: Most boats designed after 1958 had some concept and or sail plan based on the Flying Dutchman.

It stood the test of time and in my Guinness book of records, it is the same principal of sailboat design as music is to Bach.

Jan-Willem Denny Gülcher

South Africa 9 October 2002

Edam, 17 October 2002
This message concerns the 50-year anniversary celebration of the Flying Dutchman Class To: Editorial office

4. Exiting celebration 50-year anniversary Flying Dutchman in Holland !

Dear Editor,

Never before so many Olympic Champions were gathered in Holland as last weekend on the Loosdrecht Lakes. Ten sailing champions together with hundreds of present time FD sailors from all over the world, came to Loosdrecht to celebrate the 50^th anniversary of the Flying Dutchman Class. Famous names such as Rodney Pattison form the UK (2 x Gold and a Silver medal), Jorg and Jacob BoysenMoller from Denmark (Gold and Silver), Miguel Noguer Spain (gold 1980) and Peter Lunde from Norway who won Olympic Gold in 1960.

The special champions race for on Saturday afternoon was one of the highlights of the 3 day lasting FD festivities. The 58 year old Pattison proved in 3 matches he remains a Flying Dutchman Sailor to his fingertips, leaving only the Boysen Moller team to finish just in front of him. Provisional crew Niels Kamphuis: "unbelievable how this guy steers, continuous small pushes on the tiller, it almost seems he can push the boat against the wind".

The senior champions proved that sailing can indeed be a very attractive sport to watch. They were cheered at by spectators in dozens of small ships turning the first Loosdrecht Lake into a floating stadium. Former Dutch Champion Ben Verhagen: "Never before I saw so many spectators for a yachting race, this proves the Flying Dutchman is still very much alive"

During the anniversary also the regular yearly Coen Gülcher Memorial regatta was held. This regatta is named after the Dutchman who designed the fastest dinghy ever in 1951. Danish Boysen Moller team consolidating their top level in present FD sailing also won this regatta with 71 boats competing from 15 nationalties. The Hungarians Szabolcs Majtheny and Andras Domokos finished second and the Dutch team Klaas Tilstra and Adriaan Schmal finished third.

Coen Gülcher Regatta 2002 50 year Flying Dutchman

For more information please contact the Flying Dutchman Class:

Frank Havik, fr.havik@quicknet.nl
Tel:+31 (0)299-320850
Mobile: +31 (0)6-53 64 64 53.