Stellas Across The North Sea

Since the revival of the Stella Class Association, we have increasingly come into contact with (and welcomed as members) Stella owners on the other side of the North Sea.

Many early Stella Class races saw the east coast fleet racing to the Netherlands and Belgium, and a number of boats subsequently migrated there. The register has five Stellas based in the Netherlands and one in Belgium. There is also one reputedly in France – see tailpiece.

Hans van't Slot is originally listed on our records in 1983, and is still the owner of # 47 `Red Sirius'. We have no note of her original builder or earlier history but between 1992 and 1995 Hans undertook a major rebuild of his boat. This included removing + raising the entire deck and adding an extra 'plank' for the sheer strake thus giving more room inside. The entire hull was resin treated and the exterior epoxy sheathed. The deck is now teak laid, the interior completely refitted and she now has a 10hp Vetus diesel. Hans lives in Sint Maartensdijk and is a committee member of the Yacht Club W.S.V. Sint Annaland where `Red Sirius' is based.

# 55 `Scarlet' was sold by Geoff Payne (from Leicester) in 1979 to a Andre de Jong - noted as a member of the Royal Norfolk and Suffolk Yacht Club - who took the boat to Holland. In October 1981 she was in the ownership of Ed Schmidt of Amsterdam. Ed sold her to Paul Romyn who originally wrote that he had acquired `Scarlet' in 1987, that she was built in 1962 and had `.made several trips to England.'. Correspondence to Paul at Almere Haven has since gone unanswered. What news of Paul and is `Scarlet' still in existence?

#57 Carina was until recently owned by Sal Colpaert who sailed her on the Veerse Meer. We’d love to hear from her new owner.

# 81 `Scatty' passed on from a Mr Sainsbury to W.A.Wallhead of Burray in the Orkney Isles early in 1983. In 1992 she was bought by Fokko van Steenwijk of Bilthoven and taken to Holland. When Fokko rejoined the Class Association early in 1997 he commented `.it never entered my mind to pass her on.'. `Scatty was built in 1962 as `Ship number 905' by Rowhedge Ironworks Co. Limited of Colchester, and Fokko now keeps her at Dohkumer Nieuwe Zylen.

# 86 `Sung Foon' (previously called `Nebula') was owned until 1977 by Admiral Sir Anthony Morton KCB, who was the UK's Military Representative at the NATO Building in Brussels. Having sold it to a Dutchman, he wrote again in 1981 to say that he had seen the boat for sale, and in very good order, at Muiden in Holland. (At that time we now know she was owned by Chr. Jongerius of Utrecht).

In May 1982 she was sold to J. Witsen Elias of Bussum who confirmed her built by Tucker Brown in 1964. She was based at the Royal Netherlands Yacht Club at Muiden. In 1988 `Sung Foon' was again for sale, Mr Witsen Elias asking £6,100. In 1997 she was listed with the Class Association by C.M. Verhoven of Doetinchem and based at Ketelhaven.

More recently we learnt that Sung Foon was owned by Frans Peter Verhayen of Gronigen, and subsequently by the Magendens family from Mengelo.

# 87 was originally listed with the name `D-Day' and owned by Jaap Meijer of Amsterdam. Only this week we hear from Arjen Djikstra (again as a result of his finding the Stella website) that he bought the boat from Jaap in 1994 and had renamed her `Spica'. He confirms she was built by Dan Webb and Feesey in 1964.

Next >>