Alan Payne Converted

THE STORY PROPHET is rarely heard which to shape their hulls. This in itself preponderance of their own designs are in his own land” is was a natural enough tendency, as the racing there. Yes, on paper it gives 100 unfortunately, a fairly cost of the design is negligible, as per cent results for overseas designs, accurate proverb, and in the compared to the cost of the finished and so the tendency remains to build Aworld of yacht design it is as true as in boat, and few are prepared to risk a large overseas designs. other walks of life. outlay on the plans of a little-known or In Australia, however (and the For many years, Australian designers untried designer. Australian yachtsman is now rapidly generally have been by-passed by Not unnaturally, English designs win awakening to the fact), yachts of English, prospective builders of racing and the the big English races and American American and Australian design are cruising craft, and the drawings of top designs do the same in American races, meeting in the tough competition of overseas designers sought, from largely because a very heavy local classics such as the Sydney-Hobart, Brisbane-Gladstone, and other major off-shore events, and the results are a definite pointer to Australian designs not only holding their own, but being superior to many of the importations. Of twelve Sydney-Hobart races already conducted, Australian designers have planned eight of the winning yachts, and in each race the majority of the starters were to overseas plans. These facts are now beginning to drive home in the minds of local yachtsmen, and at long last, our opening proverb is being scotched, and full recognition being given where it is due. Take the story of Alan Payne, young Sydney naval architect, whose yachts have earned him recognition as a designer of world class. With a win on corrected time in a Sydney- Hobart Race, 1956 (Solo) and also line honours in 1952 with the diminutive Nocturne, a mere 35-footer, the smallest yacht in the history of the race to take the gun at Hobart town. These two performances are all the more amazing when one learns that neither boat was designed- or built as an ocean racer, but purely as a cruising yacht. Alan Payne is the descendant of a seafaring family his grandfather having been a Trinity House pilot. His father was a mate on the Aberdeen line, and it was The 19 foot Payne-Mortlock Sailing Canoe gives remarkable downwind rides. therefore not unnatural that young Alan (B, Churlian photo.) (he is still young) should acquire a boat and this skiff was then duplicated for raised deck fishing launch, a 16 ft. half of his own. His first command was the Alan in diagonal planking, with a view cabin launch for a hire and drive Vandal, a 12 foot dinghy which he raced to testing the diagonal construction. Her yourself fleet, of which several were with the North Shore Dinghy Club. name was Flying Fish, and these two built and then a 27’ L.O.A. fast motor Looking back, he describes Vandal as a skiffs are still sailing today. launch. “bomb”, but this very lack of quality was About this time, the die was cast for 1946 was also a busy year, with a 40’ to set in motion the wheels that have Alan’s future by his joining the staff of L.O.A. party fishing boat, a 42’ chine made him the successful naval designer Cockatoo Dockyard as a cadet built fishing boat, the speed-beat Chicka he is today. Vandal’s troubles were draughtsman. Bill Abbott, the then D, a 19’ stable runabout of which several confided to a schoolmate, Bryce Commonwealth Vee Ess Cham- were built, a 24 launch, and a 50’ L.O.A. Mortlock, a fellow who was very handy ion, was impressed by the theories that steel mackerel fishing boat. with tools, and who had spent many of Payne and Mortlock were expressing, All the above were successful, and his after school hours and followed his impressions with a trialed and performed right up to the and holidays watching Bill Fisher at request for a 16’ skiff design- designer’s expectations. Putney build the boats for which Fisher “The less said about the skiff, the better,” Ernie Merrington was the first oil the is so well known. said Alan smiling broadly, as he mark with a request for a yacht He Vandal was restored to a more reflected on the result. The War required a yacht that would measure up seaworthy state by Bryce Mortlock who, interrupted, and Mortlock departed for to the then 35’ L.O.A limit imposed by at that time, was also building a twelve- war service, whilst Alan’s time was fully the SydneyAmateur Sailing Club. It had footer to his own design, and the two occupied on the dockyard drawing to be fast, have full headroom (the embryo designers began reading Uffa board. Merringtons being on the heavenly side Fox’s books and were quite surprised to Came the war’s end, and 1945 produced of six feet) and be built of steel. discover that there were such people as a flood of requests for plans, the first Alan had closely watched the yacht designers. Uffa Fox was at that being a 30’ L.O.A. raised deck fishing construction of the steel cutter Trade time an exponent of diagonal planking launch, followed by a 40’ L.O.A. craft of Winds when Merv Davey had built her for open boats, marine ply and moulded similar design. The latter was built at during the War, and his dockyard boats not having been thought of then. Coff’s Harbour. training had also equipped him with Bryce designed and built a second skiff, The success of these two was followed steel know-how. This, plus a personal Thunder, of conventional construction up by requests for a 32’ L.O.A. Transom study of Dutch steel construction of SEACRAFT. October. 1957 13 small boats made him feel confident of Thara, a wooden raised decked sloop, envisaged as an ocean racer, although the result. was the next yacht built to a Payne slight modification would make her Thurloo presented a few difficulties to design.She is a very lightly raced yacht, capable of going to sea, the designer did the builders, Fabricated Products, but and spent most of her days cruising. not know, but with the new possibilities they ere overcome during building, and In the meantime, 30 square metre of putting the design in the expert hands she has proved a good performer in both yachts’ popularity had increased in local of Bull, Sloman and Co., who had harbour and the few offshore events she waters, and the high performance of the already won a Hobart Race in Christina, has contested. English 30 sq. metre Tre- Sang in the it did not take long to work out. The sailing canoe was the next off the offshore racing in Great Britain aroused By accident, the design incorporated the drawing board and not from models. Its additional interest. It was not surprising, rule beating qualities that John purpose was to provide a fast boat with therefore, when someone came along Illingsworth had just built into his economical rig and per medium of a wanting a yacht with a thirty squares famous Myth of Malham and she rated swinging plank to be capable of being performance with a bit more remarkably low. handled with a crew of two. The canoes accommodation. Bob Bull saw' Hobart trophies all around were an immediate success, giving This someone was Len Wilsford, and his mantel shelf. A fast, low- rating boat downwind rides at fantastic speeds. Alan was commissioned to produce an that would plane on the “downhill” Over forty are racing today. Bryce acceptable drawing of a harbour racer runs, and he had just the crew who Mortlock was co-designer of the canoe. suitable for occasional short cruises. could drive her and stand up to the The swinging planks, incidentally, Serenade was the result, and before the nervous strain such high speeds would created quite a fuss at the time, but are drawings were completed, a social call impose. now standard equipment on many boats. from ocean wallopers, Bob Bull and Bob And so Nocturne was born. The result of two separate yacht Sloman had Bull asking what went on, Illingworth’s success with Myth of designing competitions, in which Alan on the board. Alan explained the Malham, however, had drawn attention won a second and third prize against purpose of the new boat, and when to the “hole” in the rating rule and it was world designers, was quite an eye- mention was made of Tre-sang's wave changed before Nocturne was opener to local yachtsmen, and served planing qualities, no reason could be completed. Nevertheless, she was a fast as a yardstick in assessing the offered why the new hull would not boat, and her first across the line in the capabilities of this designer. plane. 1952 Hobart Race indicates her quality. Of course, the intervening ten years of Bull enquired how she would rate under She only dipped out on winning the practical experience has brought to the R.O.R.C. formula. Not having been handicap section too, by a change of maturity his early show of promise. breeze bringing the tail-enders at top hull speeds over the last forty odd miles Solo — 57 foot steel cutter.

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