See the New Solo 14 video

In the age of Sailing ships the Whitehall was the boat of choice for harbor transportation (See History of the Whitehall). They were used in great numbers in the east coast ports of New York and Boston, and on the west coast in San Francisco Bay. In fact the oldest rowing club in the United States, formed in 1873, is the  South End Rowing Club in San Francisco and they still have and occasionally row classic Whitehall boats.

I had heard many times about the Whitehall collection there, and it was just a few weeks ago when Alan Calder, a twenty-four year member of South End, invited us over for a tour of the facilities. As Allan let us inside our jaws dropped and our eyes got wider because as myself, Marie Hutchinson, Adam Kreek, Brad Vickers and Jordan Hanssen entered the building, the first thing we saw was wall to wall Whitehalls. Almost all were equipped with sliding seats and finished bright in shiny clear varnish. There were singles and doubles plus a larger six-station model set up with sweeps.

Alan walked us through the club facilities and explained a bit of their history. It was originally located further up the bay, the south end of the bay, hence the name South End. It was moved to its present location next to Fisherman’s Wharf around the turn of the century. The building is original and all wood, like the Whitehalls. It is very well maintained. If I lived here I would join South End. Alan tells us there are memberships available and the rates are really reasonable. He showed us the weight rooms, handball courts, wood shop where the boats are rebuilt and maintained, and a large professional kitchen. The main club room features a stunning view of the harbor with the Golden Gate Bridge off in the distance and the Hyde St. Pier right next door with its collection of museum ships.

Right next door and sharing a common wall is the Dolphins Rowing Club. This club is no newcomer either as it was founded in 1877. Alan toured us through Dolphins as well and again we were simply amazed as they also own a major collection of classic wooden Whitehalls pretty much all equipped with sliding seats and outriggers.

We examined their six position model with its offset slide seats which facilitated sweep oars – one per rower, with the oarlocks set up on the opposite gunnel as can be seen in the photograph below. This boat looked to be around 30 feet long.

Although clubs members have access to both facilities they are separate organizations and on the water they race quite competitively.  They each have a large number of modern racing shells and other rowing and some paddling craft.

Often they race the Whitehalls on special occasions on courses set out around the bay such as across to Angel Island. I’d love to be there when the six station boats race against each other.

The factor that keeps these boats from being used even more often is the amount of time, someone said three hours, that it takes to clean off the salt and dry them out before stowing them back in the clubhouse.

Alan Calder had just raced a Whitehall Spirit™ Solo 14 that morning in the OWRC Diablo Point Rowing Race and I asked him how it compared to rowing these classic woodies, which he has done quite often. He said the Solo 14, because it is a lot lighter and uses carbon fiber oars, required much less effort to propel through the water and also feels a lot faster under way. In the near future we would like to get a Solo 14 set up at both clubs for members to try. The nice thing about a Solo 14 is wiping down or hosing off for storage takes minutes and there’s no annual maintenance required.

The afternoon of April 19 was a record for hot sunny weather and members were sunbathing on the sandy beach in front of both Clubs. In the shot below you can also see the special launching ramps that can be lowered or raised to accommodate the tide conditions and the Hyde St. pier next door.

Open Water Swimming is another club activity that both clubs members engage in with great enthusiasm and just that morning there was a swim across the bay under the Golden Gate Bridge to the north side and back. They have swimming races to Alcatraz Island and another relay event in from the Farallon Islands located 27 miles outside the bay. And that is where the Great White sharks gather each year. These are tough and fearless folks! 

A special thanks to Alan Calder and the South End Rowing Club for the tour and we look forward to another visit in the near future.

Life's a beach… if you're a Whitehall Spirit™ Solo 14.

I speak to a lot of people everyday around the world about our boats; how they can be stored, moved, configured, cared for and most of all used easily.  When people ask me if I have a boat personally (absolutely! Nimble… my trusty Solo 14) they always are intrigued by how my boat is kept on our beach… locked to a rock.  This month I thought I would let people in on the simple efficiency of Nimble's tie up system.

The trick was that I have a great pebble beach with great big rocks sticking out but no dock and am not allowed to put one in.  I am not allowed to build a ramp or create shade in the water (as it’s a spawning ground for herring) so the boat must stay high on the beach and go up and down with the tide when it’s all the way in . 

For an easy solution, I put an eye bolt into a rock and the boat lock cable runs through the bow eye and eye bolt.

The boat sits on an 8 ft section of standard trax and I have a folding trax section for taking along or for when the tide is out and the beach is longer.  These trax can be "leap frogged" for really low tide days but most of the time it is not necessary.

In the stern, there is an anchor plate system with spliced looped shock cord attached that I run up through the stern eyes. 

Simple clips on the interior fastened to the rear mushroom cleats make tying up a snap… or a clip…. That's it. Done!

This system has been proven over some brutal winter storms and summer boat traffic.  The system holds the boat securely in place with no lateral movement.  This is necessary as there are some good size rocks on either side. The shock cord allows the boat to rise and fall with the tide and is always ready to go at a moments notice.

 

It is important to have your boat easy to use and quick to put away so that getting out on the water is enjoyable from start to finish. See you out there!

Dog-Skid - Not recommended for the Poop Deck

Here’s a feature we have fitted out several Solo 14s with already. It’s a non-skid grid glued onto the forward and aft seat areas to keep your best friend from slip sliding around. Owners report their dogs love it as they no longer slide or skid.

Call or email for details – available installed or as a kit to stick down yourself.
1 800 663 7481 or  info@whitehallrow.com