BRIAN PLUMB – The Life of Brian

Fifty one years ago, a young Perth policeman won a Pan Pacific Moth title in Wellington, New Zealand. A multiple State champion and Nationals runner-up, he had been at Maylands Yacht Club for fourteen years, firstly in VJs, then Moths. His name is legendary at Maylands Yacht Club – Brian Plumb – past MYC Commodore, Vice Commodore and club general committee member for many years. Brian dominated Western Australian Moth sailing throughout the 1960s, with five State titles, culminating in his well-deserved Pan Pacific Title in 1968. Along the way he was three times Nationals Runner-Up throughout the 1960s. “I should have won that first National Title in Brisbane in 1965/66”, Brian said. He was leading in that championship going into the last race, but had not anticipated the strong tide that day, which pushed him too close to a in light winds. Touching the mark with his boom, he retired immediately – there were no 360 degree turns to exonerate rule infringements in those days! He was again runner up in Hobart in 1966/67. Then, at the Perth Nationals in 1967/68, he would have also won the title if he could come home first in the final heat. But victory again eluded him in the last race of the series – he was runner up for the third time. Another Brian - Brian Pearce, also from WA, won that title. Brian Plumb was satisfied that he had turned the tables on Pearce at the Pan Pacs.

Undoubtedly, their great rivalry spurred both skippers on to perform at their best.

Above: Brian Plumb holds the Pan Pacific Moth Title trophy, 1968

Four Australian Moths contested the NZ held Pan Pacs championships in 1968 – and they took out the first four placings, all sailing with Perth made Cassidy . The argument had raged for years as to which shape was superior – the Australian scow or the European type hull which was favoured by the Kiwis. The stable Australian scow design was faster in strong winds. In the end, the first three places went to the three West Australian skippers competing. In many of the races only seconds separated these three skippers, who had only recently finished 1st, 2nd and 4th in the Australian Nationals held in Perth in December, 1967.

Left: The scow Moth Ballerina and Brian Plumb win in Wellington, NZ, 1968

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Perth Nationals, 1967/68

Of this series, Brian said: “It cost me the title when Brian Pearce beat me by half a boat length in ’67- 68 in Perth – once again in the last heat, to beat me for the championship.”

The two Brians – Plumb leads Pearce in the exciting final heat at the Perth nationals in 1967/68

Brian Pearce (Redwings 6132) catches Brian Plumb (Ballerina 6483) at the finish to win the 1967/68 Nationals, Swan River, Perth.

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Up to this series, New South Wales Moths had largely dominated the National titles. Perhaps the strong south westerly Fremantle Doctors gave the WA skippers an edge. Sydney mothies in particular generally sailed in steadier winds under 15 knots – and you had to stay upright to win in Perth! Almost to prove this point, Brian Pearce’s worst heat of the series was sailed in light and fluky conditions.

In fact, this series was significant, being the first ever won by a West Australian Moth sailor.

1967/68 Nationals WA skippers – Brian Pearce, Brian Plumb and Graham Lillingston

Final placings were:

1. Redwings (B. Pearce, WA) 3; 2. Ballerina (B. Plumb, WA) 11.7; 3. Chamozzle (G. Marshall, NSW) 21.7; 4. Joy (G. Lillingston, WA) 30.4. 2.

Left: Brian Plumb, sailing on the edge, on a fast downwind plane, Swan River.

Joined Maylands Yacht Club in 1954

Brian said about his sailing at Maylands:

“I first joined Maylands Yacht Club in 1954 as a thirteen year old. In the early days, when I first joined, we had the old boat shed. Rigging space and river access wasn’t that great on the club side and for about the first 17 years the majority of us would rig on the grassed area on the eastern side of the jetty and we launched our boats on that side. When the new clubhouse was built in 1971 the club grounds had been completely altered and everyone then moved over to the club side of the jetty where we now all rig. In my first year as Commodore the club had building alterations and the change rooms were enlarged to what we now have. The change rooms and toilets

3 originally comprised of our present toilet area only. It was very, very small. We couldn’t use the change rooms while building was going on. The same year the boys moved the bar from the committee room to its present location. The other alteration has been the addition of our new boat shed on the jetty side of the club.

The original MYC clubhouse in the 1960s

I started sailing as crew on a VJ named Jet in 1954-55 for about one-and-a-half seasons, and then I was very fortunate my father bought me a VJ named Ballerina. Incidentally, Terry Gaunt was the champion of the VJs and he came with Dad and me to check the boat out for us. Terry said it was a very well-built boat, so Dad bought it for me.

VJ Ballerina (Brian Plumb) narrowly leads Villain (Terry Gaunt Snr) at Maylands YC, 1950s.

I sailed VJs for about 6-7 years before moving into the Moths, which I sailed for about the next 15 years. These were the best years of my sailing life as I visited every state and New Zealand, something I would never have done if it wasn’t for sailing. Sailing at nationals is something really special for both sailing experience and making lifelong friends. GP 14s were starting to get established about then and I sailed one of them for five years with my brother-in-law Henry Houghton crewing for me. When my daughter was 10, I bought a and she sailed with me for a few years. My son, Jeffrey then sailed with me for a while before taking over the helm. One day he said to me, “Dad, you are too heavy for a crew; it is time you moved out.” His cousin Nicole Bonny then sailed with him for a few seasons and I did the support boat for a period until I bought a . I

4 sailed the Laser for about five years and finally, I sailed a Hartley and had another brother-in-law, Doug Bonny, crewing for me.

Brian Plumb is “all-concentration” as he sails one of his early Moths – a good lesson for young sailors.

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Brian with his Hartley and sailing with Doug Bonny.

BRIAN PLUMB - HONOUR ROLL

Commodore: 1990-91, 1991-92, 1992-93, 1996-97, 1997-98. Vice-Commodore: 1969-70, 1993-94, 1994-95, 1995-96. General committee member for many years. Club and State Moth measurer for about 10 years. MYC Power Boat Captain for many years.

BRIAN PLUMB RESULTS MOTHS Pan Pacific Moth Champion 1968 WELLINGTON NZ Runner Up National Champion 1965/66 BRISBANE Runner Up National Champion 1966/67 HOBART Runner Up National Champion 1967/68 PERTH State Moth Champion 1962/63 State Moth Champion 1963/64 State Moth Champion 1964/65 State Moth Champion 1965/66 State Moth Champion 1970/71 Runner Up State Moth Champion 1967/68 State Heron Champion 1988/89

Brian thanks his Moth boat-builder, George Scadden, for building fast Moths for him:

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Power Boat Captain

Brian was ever the club man, freely giving his time to not only help new sailors develop their skills, but taking on all manner of official and unofficial duties over the years. One such role involves “boats and buoys.” Brian said of this role: “Clem Eaton, John Wood and myself started looking after the Support Boats and Buoys in 1998. At that time we had a large Support Boat that required a vehicle to launch it. Having discussion with the Club it was decided to sell the large boat and replace it with lighter Aluminium ones that could be launched by hand.”

Opposite: Brian and past Commodore Les Mack at launch of a new support boat.

These are the type of boats the club still uses which are ideal for our Flat Water.

It was Terry Gaunt Snr who proposed that the Committee name the new support boat pictured here, “Brian Plumb” in February, 2015, an inspired gesture with unanimous Committee support.

Brian said of the club’s support boats: “We fitted the first two boats with the flooring and consoles and the Outboard Dealers fitted the Motors. The latest boat we have was totally fitted out by the Boat Dealers. We would go to the club every Wednesday, pick up the Fuel Containers, take them to the Service Station, fill them up and return to the club and refuel the boats ready for the next Sunday. The buoys were originally Plastic Piping about two metres long with concrete in the bottom to make them stand upright. We would often lose some of these buoys that were probably hit by Power Boats and sank mostly around the time of the Sky Show. We came up with the present design which are filled with foam so they can’t sink and fitted Plastic Pipe to the top.

Brian has now retired from sailing having recently sold his beloved Hartley TS16. He has logged many successful sea miles in his competitive sailing career and has achieved more than that gangly thirteen year old youth (he was known as ‘the spider’) could ever have envisaged when he first came down to the Maylands Yacht Club to set his sails on the waters of Maylands. He saw the slow demise of the scow Moths from the late 1970s. But undoubtedly too, his outstanding achievements inspired

7 a new generation of Mothies in Western Australia. The Club’s greatest sailing achievement would soon come in the shape of Rob O’Sullivan when, as a Maylands skipper, he would go on to win a world Moth title in Sweden in 1974 and follow that up with a second World series in Brisbane in 1978.

The Moths finally died out at Maylands with just one Mothie, Dave Hogg, on the water up to a few seasons ago. Brian said: “Unfortunately the Moth fleet began to collapse with the passing of Clem Eaton, but it was great to see Dave Hogg still competing until a few years ago, as the Moth has been a wonderful boat for the club. It has provided myself, along with many others, a magnificent and successful sailing life at Maylands Yacht Club.”

Editor’s Note: The Moth has also provided much ongoing West Australian and Australian success at World level – as this 1979 press clipping below shows.

Rob O’Sullivan (pictured above right) joined Maylands Yacht club in 1965, eleven years after Brian and also benefited from Brian’s freely given advice, sailing sportsmanship and camaraderie. Rob commented on Brian’s influence on his own sailing career recently:

“Brian was always a true gentleman, and sportsman, and his above biography is only a glimpse of the man who I witnessed. If I remember

8 correctly, no one but Brian himself witnessed his hitting of the buoy in Brisbane in 1965/66. You are an absolute true sportsman.

Without doubt my own success began due to Brian’s generous handing over of his templates of the Whirlpool Design Moth that Brian and George Scadden had developed. Before that, I had a Randall skiff and moulded hulls, which were inferior to Brian’s design. Without Brian’s generous assistance, I would not have achieved what I did.

Brian - we witnessed the best ever era in sailing and unbelievable mateship. Thank you Brian.”

Brian must have set a cracking example for the young Rob O’Sullivan, as within 9 years, Rob achieved the pinnacle of Moth sailing, winning the World Title in 1974 in Sweden for Australia – and for Maylands Yacht Club! Rob won the Worlds again in 1978 in Brisbane, after which he contested the 1979 Worlds as part of the WA trio pictured above. Unfortunately, a new slim-hulled design, sailed by Britain’s David Izatt won that year. However, Greg Hilton would go on to win the Worlds in 1982 in Australia – and that would be the last Australian scow victory at World level as the new slim designs took over, culminating in the evolution of the foiling Moths we see today. And many years later, in December, 2019, congratulations to Australians , Kyle Langford, Tom Burton and Scott Babbage for their recent World Moth Series success in Perth – taking out the first four placings……………….

Tom Slingsby (#4696) in full flight on the Swan River – with fluttering moths following!

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By Chris Holyday For ‘The Mudlark’ Maylands Yacht Club Magazine December, 2019

My thanks to Steve Fox for early Brian Plumb info which appeared in the December 2007 Mudlark and to Rob O’Sullivan for his recollections of racing alongside Brian from the 1960s at Maylands.

Note re Rob O’Sullivan, MYC’s Greatest Achiever – See link to Rob’s full story below: http://www.maylandsyachtclub.org.au/files/Rob%20OSullivan%20FINAL%20 Web%20Site.pdf

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