Sailors compete in the Rock Hall Yacht Club’s Frostbite Regatta on January 22, 1956. The boats pictured are Penguin class dinghies, designed in the early 1930s for frostbite racing by Philip Rhodes. The Chesapeake Bay became a center of Penguin sailing, and classic examples of these family-friendly wooden sailboats are still found on local waters. The first Penguin hull is on display at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum.
If you can identify any of the people in this picture, please contact [email protected]. Image courtesy of the Historical Society of Kent County.
Bill Lane Jr says
That is my Mom and Dad in #3521 ‘The Dormouse’ Dad always sailed with a cigar! It doubled as a reliable telltale in light air!
frank durkee says
Your article on Penguin racing brought back found memories. As a camper at Camp Wroxeter on the Severn in 1950 I learned to sail in the camp’s loan Penguin. I think my skill level would still be a tiller and main sheet. Tipping over was follow by a day of wearing a gunny sack as camp attire. The gunny sack itched but the sea nettles hurt. Seventy-four years and I still remember “Prepare to come about”.
Neal Carter says
FYI, The class was designed in the late 30`s. I have Penguin, #17 made in 1939, the first year and the first batch of boats. The design was an instant hit. There were nineteen dinghy`s built the first year after the plans were published in Yachting Magazine.
The Annapolis Yacht Club held the first Regatta for the class in 1940.