Around 1959, the late Alan Vause asked Spencer to design a slim, nine-metre cruising keeler that he could build from plywood. Partway through the design process, Vause’s circumstances changed, and the final design grew to 10.66m loa to fit the then C class rules. The late Max Carter built the hull, which Vause finished off. This became Scimitar, and she proved devastatingly fast, especially downwind.
Some years later, the late Tom Clark (later Sir Tom) approached Spencer for a sister yacht, which became Saracen. After several successful racing seasons, around 1963, Clark asked Spencer for a bigger version, which became the 18.8m Infidel.
With her length at least partly arrived at by the size of Spencer’s shed, Infidel’s light displacement concept translated into significant cost savings; she cost less than half what a traditional A-class racing keeler would have.
No small feat, Spencer built Infidel virtually single-handedly using his then-standard construction method: kauri frames and stringers sheathed in two skins of 9mm plywood. Numerous transverse floors spanned almost the entire width between the chines, making the yacht immensely strong, yet – for the times – relatively lightweight.
Spencer’s keel design incorporated elements of the modern bulbed keel. A steel fabrication flared at the bottom kept the relatively modest four-ton ballast as low as possible, while a cutaway trailing edge minimised wetted surface.
Infidel had a massive 3.6m-long aft cockpit, with another smaller one forward under the forestay to assist sail changing. The rig was a masthead; Spencer believed that while a bigger fractional rig would have been faster, the masthead rig offered easier handling.
In those days, Ranger dominated the A Class keeler fleet in Auckland. Launched in November 1965, in her first race the following month, Infidel finished second behind Ranger by only five minutes, despite losing 10 minutes due to a failed spinnaker halyard. In the 1966 Anniversary Regatta, Infidel comfortably beat Ranger, even after having to stop to retrieve her spinnaker due to another snafu. Ranger’s reign was over.
The following year, Clark decided to have a crack at the 1967 Sydney Hobart, the then-Everest of ocean racing in this part of the world.
Unfortunately for Clark, the Australian authorities decided Infidel was too lightly built and declined her entry. Whether this was due to pressure from established Australian quarters fearing Infidel’s performance is hard to say, but there is no doubt that Infidel would have done well had she been allowed to enter.
Not one to let obstacles get in his way, Clark sold Infidel to American sailor John Hall and commissioned Spencer to design the 22.2m Buccaneer. To avoid future issues, Buccaneer was designed and built to comply with the IOR scantling rules; unfortunately, this impacted her performance, and she was never as successful as Infidel.
Meanwhile, Hall relocated Infidel to Newport Beach, California, and renamed her Ragtime. In 1971, he sold Ragtime to a Long Beach syndicate, and with new sails, she won virtually every race she entered for the next two years. This included winning the Barn Door Trophy in the 1973 TransPac 2,225nm race from Los Angeles to Hawaii, beating the famous Windward Passage by just over four minutes. This result created quite a stir among the American yachting establishment.
In 1974, Ragtime was sold to Will White and Bill Pasqini, who won that year’s Newport to Ensenada race and another TransPac. In 1976 Jim Phelps, Dick Daniels and Eldon Hickman bought Ragtime, installing a bigger rig and changing the steering from tiller to wheel.
In 1977, Ragtime won the Newport to Ensenada race but only finished third in that year’s TransPac. This was won by the Bill Lee-designed Merlin, the first of a new class of yacht inspired by Ragtime that came to be known as ULDB (ultra-light displacement boats) downwind sleds. Incidentally, in 1981, Merlin won the TransPac again, with seven of the top 10 yachts being Santa Cruz 50s, a scaled-down production version of Merlin.
In 1979, Ragtime was donated to the University of California, where she languished for a few years. In 1983, Dennis Durgen bought Ragtime and raced her out of Newport. Incidentally, Durgen had previously been Denis Conner’s tactician in his successful defence of the America’s Cup in 1980.
Durgen sold Ragtime to Pat Farrah in 1985, who commissioned a significant refit, including extending the hull with a scoop,
a deeper bulbed keel, and a taller rig. Farrah entered Ragtime in the 1987, 1989, and 1991 TransPacs before selling her in 1997 to Scott Zimmer. He raced her locally and in the 1997 TransPac. Zimmer then chartered Ragtime to Pat Steele and Owen Minney for the 2001 TransPac, her 9th entry in this race.
In 2003, Ragtime was sold at auction to pay off a debt. A syndicate, including the late Chris Welsh, bought her for US $125,000. Welsh took sole ownership after racing Ragtime in the 2005 TransPac, commissioning a new keel, rudder, rig, and sails, and entered her in the 2007 TransPac.
The following year, Welsh sailed Ragtime in the Los Angeles to Tahiti race, which she won, and then on to New Zealand to win that year’s White Island race. Welsh then sailed Ragtime across the ditch to compete in the 2008 Sydney Hobart, coming first in the IRC 2 class and 18th overall. Finally, 41 years late, Ragtime got to compete in the Sydney Hobart.
Back in the USA, Welsh raced Ragtime in the 2009 TransPac. Around that time, Welsh met Tina Roberts,
a fellow adventurer. The couple became increasingly busy with other businesses, and sailing took a back seat.
Ragtime was relocated to San Francisco and mainly used for local racing before being laid up during the pandemic. However, Welsh always intended to give Ragtime a birthday and improve her performance. After considerable study, he purchased a TP52 rig to increase her horsepower and started planning how to lighten the yacht.
Sadly, in March 2021, Welsh, then aged 58, unexpectedly passed away. A shocked Roberts had to face winding up Welsh’s affairs and, understandably, struggled to decide what to do about Ragtime, then stored on a hardstand and partly stripped.
“I took a year to go through the grieving process while winding up Chris’s businesses. Many of these were coming to fruition, and eventually, I decided that the only thing to do was finish restoring the boat as he [Welsh] had always intended.”
While Roberts admits she’s no sailor, she’s an experienced and canny businesswoman with a great feeling for people. She has surrounded herself with yachting experts. One of these was project manager Alan Andrews, who wisely insisted that Roberts had to be fully involved in every decision.
“He told me if I was going to do this project, I needed to understand everything about the boat thoroughly and learn what this boat is all about.”
First, Ragtime was stripped back to bare plywood so her structure could be thoroughly inspected. To everyone’s delight, her plywood hull, kauri stringers, and frames were all in excellent condition, a massive testament to Spencer’s original build quality.
Ragtime’s hull was then sheathed in two carbon fibre skins, set in epoxy, and vacuum-bagged down. Naturally, she has been repainted in her original black livery. Three-ring frames have been added forward to accept the increased loads from the hydraulic forestay. The aft cockpit has been rebuilt wider and longer than the original, and a new composite steering pedestal has been installed.
Ragtime’s interior has been stripped and simplified, with custom lightweight bunks, a new navigation station, and removable cooking facilities. New windows and surrounds have been fitted but remain in their original shape, and Ragtime has been equipped with an all-new integrated B&G instrumentation package.
When planning Ragtime’s restoration, Welsh sought to save as much weight as possible. Before his death, he and Roberts had flown to Germany to purchase a state-of-the-art Mercedes turbocharged three-cylinder diesel car engine. The engine, which develops 75hp, weighs only 102kg. The German-based company DMV-Bootdiesel marinised the engine and fitted it with a custom saltwater cooling system.
When Welsh passed away, the finished engine was stored in California, awaiting installation. Roberts had difficulties finding someone to install the unusual engine into Ragtime. However, she eventually found someone prepared for a challenge, and the engine is now installed and ready to go.
Ragtime is now on her third keel. As mentioned earlier, Welsh installed a new keel and rudder in 2005, which haven’t been touched in this latest restoration.
Ragtime’s new TP52 rig is taller, stiffer, and lighter. Its square-topped mainsail is 42% bigger than its original. New stainless chainplates, eight new Harken winches, and a new mainsheet system have been installed.
The all-new Doyle sail wardrobe was designed by Richard Bouzaid, with considerable input from Stu Bannatyne. Construction wise, the sails are Grand Prix racing grade, with Carbon Technora structural yarns, laminated between various grades of black Taffeta sail cloth. Panels were laminated at the Doyle’s loft in Auckland, then assembled into sails at Doyle’s Newport, Rhode Island, loft. The black sails set off Ragtime’s hull to perfection.
Obviously, given Ragtime’s modest form stability (in comparison to modern designs), considerable thought went into sail design and their handling systems. For example, the downwind sails are all asymmetric, and flown from a pole rather than a prod.
“It’s been a really cool project to be involved with, and Tina and her team have done an amazing job,” said Bannatyne, “She’s now a really nice blend of retro and modern.”
These comments were echoed by Bouzaid, “She just looks incredible.”
The photos showcase Ragtime’s remarkable and thorough restoration. Without a doubt, the yacht’s in better condition now than when she was launched nearly 60 years ago. Considering the technological advances in her current rig, sails, and foils, she will also be significantly faster than in her original configuration.
Of course, as Roberts ruefully admits, this has all come at a price.
“It’s been hugely expensive; however, the boat deserved it, and she’s set up for the future.”
Roberts is an adventurous woman who has travelled and worked in many countries. She is a qualified pilot, an experienced diver, and a well-travelled motorcyclist. Hardly surprisingly, she has big plans for the newly restored Ragtime, and the yacht’s story is far from over.
“We intend to race in five regattas to work the yacht up, then enter this year’s TransPac in July. That will be her 13th TransPac. Then, ideally, I’d like to take her out of the Pacific to the Caribbean and East Coast USA to stretch her legs a little. After that, we’ll see how it goes. However, I’m not sure she’ll return to New Zealand anytime soon.”
Regardless of where Ragtime races, her sleek looks and incredible performance will continue to demonstrate just how far ahead of the pack John Spencer’s 1963 vision was. The stunning restoration of a nigh-on-60-year-old yacht is a testament to the team Tina Roberts assembled and led.
Chris Welsh, while you never saw the final result, your dream has been realised.
RIP.
That boarding platform turned a thing of beauty into a dog. Ugly. I well remember John Spencer when he lived in The Bay of Islands. When on the night shift at the Opua wharf I often came across him having a wander and we spent an hour or two chatting about yachts. I have always admired his designs. John would always try to meet up with those of his design arriving back from the Pacific. He was however a heavy smoker and one yachtee I spoke to said he tried to avoid Opua as John always lit up on board and smoked the place out. Still he was one of NZs greats and I was privilege to have met him.