"We're only travelling at 2.9 knots, now only 2.5." Stefan Lieser stares in horror at the log of the "Lone Star". His fellow sailors tug at the sheet of the 70 square metre light-weather genoa, adjusting the traveller of the mainsail sheet, which measures 31.8 square metres. "After all, this is a racing yacht," says co-skipper Lieser.
A summery Saturday afternoon. The sun shines from the blue sky onto the Baltic Sea, which resembles a duck pond here at Fehmarnsund. The wind is making itself scarce, and the marina in Heiligenhafen is bustling with activity. "So many ships only leave here when there's no wind," says Jürgen Ruhl, shaking his head as he looks at the countless sailing yachts. Almost all of them are motorised.
The classic sails for the Nuremberg Yacht Club
"We try to sail as often as possible," explains Birger Gilson. Full of expectation, he points to a slightly darker cloud in the sky. "Maybe it will bring a bit of wind." What was that? Advocates of true sailing, apparently experienced salt humpers, and then Franconian slang? Why not? Ambitious sailing and the origin of the sailors from the Franconian region in the federal state of Bavaria are of course not mutually exclusive. Welcome to the club boat of the Yacht Club Nuremberg (YCN).
Other interesting classics:
It was founded in 1961 as the Yacht-Club Noris. The club's most successful member to date is Jörg Spengler (1938-2013), who won the bronze medal with the Tornado at the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal and became world champion in Copenhagen in 1975 and Long Beach in 1977. In 2019, Yacht-Club Noris and Yachtclub Frankonia, which is based on the Großer Brombachsee, merged to form Yacht-Club Nürnberg. With over 600 members, the YCN is the largest sailing club in northern Bavaria, including around 100 "lake sailors". The club's own training programme has a good reputation far beyond Nuremberg. The training cruises on the "Lone Star", affectionately known as the "Old Lady of the YCN", play a major part in this.
The classic sailboat takes a leisurely turn through another tack. The large genoa is guided around the mast by crew member Marcus Wildt - the wind pressure alone is not enough today.
The "Lone Star" has a long history
This classic has been sailing under the YCN banner for 45 years and as a club yacht for 40 years. The moderate long-keeler was commissioned in 1967 under the name "Suca" by Hamburg property developer Willy Kuhrt. The Matthiessen & Paulsen shipyard in Arnis on the Schlei was to build him a regatta yacht based on a design by naval architect Uwe Bartels. The design was based on the RORC (Royal Ocean Racing Club) formula in force at the time. Boat builder Willi Paulsen produced the sailing yacht with the classic S-frame and diagonal carvel planking made of mahogany. Construction number 227 was handed over to Willy Kuhrt in the spring of 1968. He sailed the 13 metre long racing yacht under the banner of his sailing club Wedel-Schulau (SVWS) until 1976. In 1969, the "Suca" came fifth in the Admiral's Cup, the unofficial world championship for ocean-going sailors, together with the "Rubin" and "Klar Kimming".
The International Offshore Rule (IOR) is then developed from the RORC formula and the formula of the CCA (Cruising Club of America). This conversion requires the yacht to be rebuilt. The hull, which was originally left natural above the waterline, was given a striking yellow coat of paint. However, as the yacht does not bring the hoped-for regatta success, Kuhrt commissions his third "Suca" from Dübbel & Jesse on Norderney, made of aluminium, which was the material of the day. He loses interest in his mahogany yacht and therefore sells it to Dietrich Krügel from Stein near Nuremberg in 1976. Krügel renamed the regatta yacht "Lone Star" and sailed it under the banner of the Yacht-Club Noris Nürnberg. Until 1981, Dietrich Krügel took part in many regattas and cruising boat competitions such as Kieler Woche, Nordseewoche, Kiel-Sandham, Kiel-Korsør, Flensburger Woche, Rund Langeland and Rund Seeland.
40 years ago, the classic goes to the Nuremberg Yacht Club
On 22 September 1981, Krügel sells his yacht to the YCN, which he has often supported as a patron. This time, he donates the agreed purchase price to the club. In 1982, the club starts its first season with its own yacht. The permanent berth was moved from Kiel to Heiligenhafen. "We've been moored here on this wooden jetty for so long that we even have our own nameplate on it," explains Jürgen Ruhl, the current sports director for sailing.
In 1982, the office was called Schifferrat Fahrtensegeln. The incumbent Georg Zimmermann was responsible for the "Lone Star" at the time. His credo can be read in the special club booklet "50 years of the 'Lone Star' 1968-2018": "The 'Lone Star' has been entrusted to the yacht club as a valuable asset. Every sailor is therefore obliged to keep the ship and equipment in good order. You can set a certain framework with regulations, but much more important is the moral obligation of each individual, the fellow sailors, the ship and the club."
The classic "Lone Star" is well equipped - and has already travelled a lot
At the time, the yacht had a total of 17(!) sails, an adjustable propeller, a trim tab behind the keel, a profiled stay with a double groove for setting and changing the headsails and a hydraulic backstay tensioner. The "Lone Star" is now sailing with a fixed propeller and without a trim tab. The moulded stay had to make way for a simple forestay, on which headsails with staysails are used. Instead of a hydraulic backstay, there is a fixed one.
During these years, the classic "Lone Star" has been travelling for more than 20 weeks per season, mostly in chain trips with up to six legs. The yacht, which has had its characteristic blue hull colour since the 2000 season, is sailed on the North and Baltic Seas. England, Shetlands, Haparanda, Lofoten, Helsinki, Riga, Tallinn, Göta Canal, Gothenburg, Oslo, Stockholm and Limfjord are listed as sailing destinations in the logbooks. Qualified club members can also use the "Lone Star" for private cruises.
In the winter of 2004/05, the M & P Jachtwerft Paulsen - successor company to the Bauwerft - carries out extensive renovation work. This includes in particular the renovation of the wooden deck.
Whereas before the turn of the millennium, only two to three training cruises for the BR (area) and BK (coastal) sailing licences were on the cruise schedule each year, more than 70 percent of the cruises are now used for training: skipper training, youth, mileage and examination cruises, for example for the sports coaster licence (SKS). The classic "Lone Star" is rarely used for private trips; many club members prefer to charter a yacht with furling sails in the Mediterranean. "She's not a family boat either," says Jürgen Ruhl, looking at the interior layout. And asks with a smile below deck: "Welcome to the chic of the seventies."
Today, the "Lone Star" mainly sails club cruises
Built in 1968, the yacht looks a little out of date with its eight single berths, the rather dark saloon and a toilet room through which you enter the forward cabin. In terms of seaworthiness, however, it is clearly superior to most modern production yachts. A chart table worthy of the name is located on the port side next to the companionway ladder. In addition to plenty of space, the navigator also has relatively modern technology at his disposal. Vertical bars and a handrail under the ceiling offer the opportunity to hold on tight when the boat is in position. This is useful on the way to the foredeck. The toilet with pull-out washbasin is located behind the forward cabin with two bunks under which sail bags are stored.
In the saloon, there are (somewhat cramped) pilot berths above the benches. Like the bench seats, which are also used as berths, these are of course equipped with lee sails. The "skipper's berth" is located to starboard under the cockpit in the aft section. Those who want to climb into the "dog bunk" on the port side have to be even more acrobatic. "Let's call it the comfort of a mountain hut," explains Jürgen Ruhl.
The club cruises on the "Lone Star" are always sailed with a skipper, co-skipper and up to six crew members. As there are currently always two free berths due to the coronavirus, the amount of space and comfort has increased somewhat. "To sail the 'Lone Star' in a sporty manner, however, at least five people on board are good," says Ruhl and climbs back up the ladder to the deck. Behind the bridge deck is the small cockpit, which is divided into two sections. The classic is balanced on the small steering wheel. "The rudder blade vibrates at speeds of ten knots or more," explains Ruhl. "Eleven knots have also been logged in the past."
Thanks to its characteristics, the "Lone Star" is a good training ship
The "Lone Star" is still a fast yacht with strong wind qualities. There is a choice of three different sized genoas and three jibs. All are attached to the forestay with stays. "Nothing else makes sense on a training yacht," says Ruhl. The sailing wardrobe also includes trysails, blisters and spinnakers.
"The yacht has very good sailing characteristics and can cope with a lot of wind," assures sports manager Ruhl. "On my first trip here on board, a dark storm cloud came towards us. I said, 'We have to reef now'," he recalls. "Claus just said dryly: 'We would do that on my yacht now, but we don't need to on this ship here'."
Claus Wilhelm Behnke's private Hanseat yacht is moored just a few boxes away from the classic yacht "Lone Star" on the jetty in Heiligenhafen. The 75-year-old was responsible for the club yacht from 2012 to 2019 in his role as Sports Officer Sailing. The industrial clerk met Jürgen Ruhl at a company event organised by their former employer Siemens. The two got talking about their sailing hobby on the Dutch tall ship "Banjaard". Ruhl is active on the dinghy in the sailing club in his home town of Erlangen.
For 15 years now, he has also frequently sailed together with Behnke on his Hanseat. The Hanseat is always craned on the same days as the "Lone Star". So Jürgen Ruhl regularly helps out on both yachts. "That's why I've known the mast and the electrics of the 'Lone Star' much longer than its sailing characteristics," explains the 63-year-old electrical engineer. He was quickly won over by the sailing characteristics when he joined the "Lone Star" for the first time. Ruhl became a member of the YCN in 2019. In 2020, he takes over from Behnke as Sports Director Sailing.
Meticulous preparation for the driving licence test on the classic bike
First, however, the "Lone Star" skipper starts a 14-day training cruise the next morning. In the first week, the co-sailors collect the nautical miles required for the SKS practical examination. In the second week, they are prepared for the exam, which takes place at the end of the trip. Ruhl, who also teaches the SKS theory, takes great pleasure in the training.
The arriving crew will presumably also be delighted by the charm of the "Lone Star" and enjoy the admiration of the yacht from other sailors in the harbours. Just like Marcus Wildt, who is leaving now that his skipper training is over. He comes from Jena, came to the Nuremberg club some 250 kilometres away on recommendation and was so impressed by the yacht and the seamanship practised on board that he became a repeat offender. He has already been on board for the SKS practical cruise and two skipper training courses, this time together with his partner Isabela Santos Valentim. Both enjoy the sporty sailing on the former racing yacht. "It's a great contrast to our own Bavaria 37 with furling mainsail and genoa, which is moored in Barth on the Bodden."
On the first weekend in October, the "Lone Star" season, which usually begins at the end of April, will come to an end with the uncraning. "This is always the conclusion of the last SKS training cruise," explains Sports Officer Sailing Jürgen Ruhl, "as an interesting addition to the training content."
This always includes learning and practising good old-fashioned seamanship - on this classic from a time when rushing to start the dugout diesel was still frowned upon.
Technical data "Lone Star":
- Design engineer:Uwe Bartels
- Shipyard/year of construction: Matthiessen & Paulsen/1969
- Construction method: Diagonalkarweel, mahogany
- Hull length: 12,98 m
- Width: 3,68 m
- Draught: 2,20 m
- Sail area on the wind: 101 m²
- Weight: 11,0 t
- Sail carrying capacity: 4,5
This article first appeared in YACHT 22/2021 and has been updated for this online version.
