The event begins informally at 5pm with a static display of two iconic Whiting-designed boats on the hardstand outside the club: Taranui 3 (the plug for the Whiting 47) and Magic Bus, the 1976 Quarter Ton Cup winner. Original plans, photos, and memorabilia from Whiting’s design archives will be available for viewing.
The formal portion of the evening starts at 7pm in the club’s upstairs lounge. Guests will hear personal recollections and reflections from key figures in Whiting’s life and career, including his sister Penny Whiting MBE, and family members Tony and Grant Whiting. The tribute will be introduced by long-time friend and marine professional Kevin Lidgard.
Whiting’s career was marked by early brilliance. Raised in a seafaring family, he designed his first keelboat — the Reactor 25 — in 1968 at just 16 years old. The design was commercially successful, with 70 Reactor 25s produced. He later designed the 46-foot Tequila for his father, followed by the Reactor 45. His design language challenged the norms of the International Offshore Rule (IOR), favouring lightweight, fast hulls with dinghy-like responsiveness and refined deck layouts.
His international breakthrough came with Magic Bus, designed in collaboration with sailor Murray Ross. Originally intended for the South Pacific Quarter Ton series, the boat went on to win the 1976 Quarter Ton Cup in Texas. This victory placed Whiting firmly among the elite yacht designers of the era. It also marked the beginning of a highly productive collaboration with Ross, who brought a sailor’s eye to Whiting’s technical innovations.
Whiting continued to experiment with half-ton and three-quarter-ton designs that married speed with clever rating optimisation. Candu II placed sixth at the Half Ton Worlds in Trieste, and Newspaper Taxi dominated the 1977 Schweppes South Pacific Half Ton series. His designs were known for pioneering features such as centreboards for improved trailerability and reduced pitching, and Whiting often refined his innovations into practical production models.
The growing demand for his designs saw moulds exported to Japan, Germany, Australia, and the US. Plans were underway for a new One Tonner for the 1981 Worlds, but tragically, his life and career were cut short. In 1980, Whiting, and his wife and crew vanished aboard Smackwater Jack while returning from the Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race. Despite extensive searches, only supposed fragments — such as cockpit grating and teak fittings found 28-years later near Omamari Beach — were ever recovered. The wreck has never been located.
In recent years, his legacy has been rekindled through the restoration of Magic Bus, found abandoned in San Francisco and brought back to New Zealand through the efforts of boatbuilder Dave Hurley and the Whiting family. The project relied on original drawings and memories from those who had raced her. The relaunch in 2018 marked not only the return of an historic yacht but also a reminder of Whiting’s enduring influence.
READ OUR 2021 ARTICLE, THE MAGIC’S BACK!, ABOUT MAGIC BUS’S RESTORATION.
The tribute evening on 15 May offers a rare opportunity to reflect on Paul Whiting’s role in redefining yacht design during one of the sport’s most creative eras. Open to the public, the event welcomes sailors, designers, historians, and anyone with an appreciation for New Zealand’s rich maritime legacy.
Venue: Ponsonby Cruising Club, 141–151 Westhaven Drive, Westhaven, Auckland
Time: Boat displays from 5pm | Formal tribute starts 7pm
Enquiries: (09) 376 0245
Paul was at the forefront of NZ yachting at a time when we led the world in innovation at both racing and cruising. Sadly those days have gone and we are the poorer for it.