Alan Payne for America’s Cup Hall of Fame

by Dana Paxton on 2 Jun 2005 Three legends of America’s Cup sailing – George ‘Fritz’ Jewett Jr. (San Francisco, California), Alan Payne (1921-1995, Australia), and Jack Sutphen (San Diego, California) have been named as the 2005 inductees to the America’s Cup Hall of Fame.

Each of this year’s inductees played a crucial role in America’s Cup campaigns during much of the modern era of the Cup, respectfully as syndicate head, designer, and sailor.

The inductees will be honored on the occasion of the Rolex America’s Cup Hall of Fame 13th Annual Induction Ceremony to be held Friday, October 14, 2005. A black-tie dinner, sponsored by longtime supporter Rolex Watch U.S.A., is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at the St. Francis Yacht Club, San Francisco, CA.

Presiding over the Induction Ceremony will be Halsey C. Herreshoff, President of the America’s Cup Hall of Fame. ‘These three individuals fit the greatest traditions of America’s Cup racing and thus should be in the America’s Cup Hall of Fame,’ said Herreshoff.

‘San Francisco in 2005 is appropriate both because we shall induct two Californians and also because of the strong Cup role of St. Francis and its members.’

George ‘Fritz’ Jewett Jr. (1927-) – From 1974 until 2000, he played a pivotal shoreside role in making the United States’ America’s Cup teams competitive.

Besides chairing five defence and challenge syndicates, Jewett was a key participant in four Stars & Stripes campaigns, from 1987 until 1995. His final Cup role in 2000 was as chairman of the America One Challenge syndicate on behalf of the St. Francis Yacht Club.

In all, Jewett helped three different clubs mount America’s Cup campaigns. Under the New York Yacht Club burgee, he began as co-chair for Intrepid in 1974 and subsequently as chair of the Enterprise, Freedom, and Liberty syndicates.

The Stars & Stripes campaigns were under the San Diego Yacht Club burgee, and finally, America One represented the St. Francis Yacht Club.

Jewett is an avid sailor and member of the St. Francis Yacht Club, New York Yacht Club, San Diego Yacht Club, Pacific-Union Club, Bohemian Club, Villa Taverna, and Spouting Rock Beach Association in Newport, R.I.

He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Dartmouth College in 1950 and a Master of Business Administration degree from Harvard Business School in 1952. Joining Potlatch Corporation in 1954, he moved into corporate administration in 1955.

In December 1999, Jewett retired as Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors, having been elected in December 1977. He is also a longtime philanthropic contributor to the arts, science and medicine on both local and national levels.

For Jewett’s remarkable contribution to the America’s Cup initiatives, he is elected to the America’s Cup Hall of Fame.

In response to his nomination Jewett stated, ‘The 1974 Intrepid campaign to defend the Cup against Australia was very exciting for my family and myself. While the competition was intense, we gained many friends as well as a strong desire to win the next Cup series.

‘We enjoyed the camaraderie and being associated with the best yacht designers, boat builders, sail makers and sailors in the world, many of whom are in the America's Cup Hall of Fame. I am honored to be included in this group of people who helped to shape the America's Cup competition as it is today.’

Alan Payne (1921-1995) – A brilliant naval architect, he designed Gretel and Gretel II, two of Australia’s first America’s Cup challengers.
When Australians decided to venture into the America’s Cup, there were few Australian naval architects capable of designing 12 Metres - no boat of this type had ever been designed and built in that country.

Having studied naval architecture at Sydney Technical College and the University of New South Wales and in 1945, Payne was the only Australian naval architect to devote all of his business to yacht building, both sail and power. His 55-foot Solo won the Sydney Hobart race in 1955.

Payne, having created fast lines for numerous racing craft, was the logical person to elevate Australia to competitive Cup status. He set to work on a four-year project in which he analysed the lines of Vim, America’s best trial horse brought over by Sir Frank Packer.

Payne proceeded to test a total of 30 models toward developing Gretel’s design. In the 1962 America’s Cup, Gretel gave Weatherly a run for her money.

Gretel was hugely admired for her superiority in fast downwind sailing. This quality won a race for Australia and nearly a second race in a tight series in which Bus Mosbacher and Weatherly defended the Cup for the New York Yacht Club.

In 1970, Payne designed Gretel II for Packer and skipper James Hardy. The new design proved to be an even more dangerous challenger.

Racing against Intrepid, which had won the Cup three years earlier, Gretel II was in contention in the first race until a crewmember fell overboard.

The Australian boat won the second race on the water, but lost it in the protest room. After Intrepid won the third race, Gretel II took the fourth before losing the series in the fifth.

Payne maintained his involvement with the Cup after 1970, designing the 1983 challenger Advance and consulting for a defence syndicate in 1987.

For his tremendous dedication to America’s Cup designs Alan Payne is selected for membership in the America’s Cup Hall of Fame.

Jack Sutphen (1920-) - Began his America’s Cup career in 1958 as a sailmaker with Ratsey & Lapthorn on City Island, NY. He was with the Weatherly campaign that year.

In 1974, Sutphen was with the Courageous Campaign as was Dennis Conner. He had made a name for himself racing against East Coast legends Cornelius Shields and Arthur Knapp out of Larchmont Y.C.

When Conner brought together his own Freedom Syndicate for the 1980 Cup, he needed someone to skipper his trial horse in a two year campaign and felt Sutphen had great credentials.

Thus began a pattern of many successive campaigns, including the great Freedom triumph of 1980, the U.S. defeat in 1983, and the monumental comeback in 1986-87 in Australia.

It was out of Hawaii and Fremantle that year that Sutphen sailed daily with the backup crew on the trial horse to Stars & Stripes, as Conner worked toward regaining the Cup. His crew was labeled ‘The Mushrooms’, because it was kept in the dark and could be pulled out and ‘canned’ at any moment.

‘There was a great spirit on that boat,’ Sutphen recalled. ‘I think we made Dennis and Stars & Stripes better.’ This support continued through several subsequent campaigns. He has been with nine America’s Cup campaigns from 1958 through 2000; seven with Team Dennis Conner.

Sutphen sails and races to this day. He is the perennial champion of the San Diego Pacific Coast Class and at least once a week, can be seen on San Diego Bay in his 85-year-old Herreshoff 12½ footer Loafer.

For his dedication and notable accomplishments in America’s Cup competitions Jack Sutphen is selected to the America’s Cup Hall of Fame.

Tickets are available to the public by contacting the America’s Cup Hall of Fame at 401-253-5000 or e-mailing t.souto@herreshoff.org.

For more information, visit www.herreshoff.org