Boat Name: Toogooloowoo IV

Sail: KA 6

Year Built: 1967

Designer: Sparkman & Stephens

Modified by Gary Mull

Builder: Billy Barnett

Owner: Torsten Dornberger

History: Designed and built for John Taylor of Australia to compete in the initial Australian American Challenge, proposed by Taylor in 1968. The match race series took place on San Francisco Bay in 1969, the Summer of Love, under the auspices of the St Francis Yacht Club in San Francisco. At the time, St Francis Yacht Club asked the Seattle Fleet have a trial to determine a defender, since there were no sixes in San Francisco. US81 Goose won the defender trials in Seattle, and the boat was trucked to San Francisco. With Brian Wertheimer at the helm, Goose eventually triumphed in the 7th race. Toogie originally had no rudder, only a trim tab controlled by a wheel. One of the anecdotes of this race series concerns a dockside conversation between a young, gimlet-eyed Scott Rohrer (sailing on Goose with a 3 to 1 lead) and Olin Stephens, who flew out from New York to witness the series. Shaking Mr Stephens' hand, Scott said, "You can't feel too bad about this, either way, an S&S boat wins the Cup." Olin was said to have replied, "Yes, but one would like to see more progress than that in 30 years of yacht design," obviously chagrined, and hoping Toogie would win. Toogie was later modified by Gary Mull, a rudder added, and renamed St Francis IV. Mr Taylor later commissioned S&S to design both KA 7 Toogie V and KA 8 Pacemaker. As St Francis IV, she won the Australian American Challenge the next year. She spent many years in Canada, following the 1973 World Cup in Seattle owned by Vic Palmer. Vic renamed her Buzzy V. Both Vic and his son Kirk owned Buzzy III at different times. After leaving Canada, she spent some time on Flathead Lake in Montana before being sold to Torsten Dornberger of Germany in the Fall of 2000.

 

Toogie IV in Canada in the 80's:

 

 

The photos below show Toogie after restoration in Germany, but without her lead, which will go back on in Spring 2004.

 

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