According to Richard "Jud" Henderson in his book Chesapeake Sails: A History of Yachting on the Bay, there were a couple C-31s raced successfuly on the Chesapeake Bay. William "Billy" Myers of the Tred Avon Yacht Club sold his Triton, White Shadow III, to purchase a Columbia 31, which he predictably named White Shadow IV. Henderson states that, "Myers decided to switch boats not only because of the Columbia's racing potential but also because of her superior accommodations below." He goes on to state that, "Myer's new boat, White Shadow IV, did exceedingly well in Chesapeake races, winning fleet High Points (the Labrot Trophy) two consecutive years."
He also talks about John F. Hanks of Hampton Yacht Club. Hanks evidently knew a lot of people at the new Norfolk, VA plant and "they made a 'special' effort to give him a better boat." He had them fit a 4 foot taller mast to Surfrider. His boat had "a number of unique modifications: addition of a 'pie plate' - a horizontal plate to inhibit hobby horsing and act as a cavitation (ventilation) plate; utilization of the centerboard well to minimize the number of through-hull fittings; and installation of a fiberglass centerboard with a NACA (National Advisory Commission for Aeronautics) 0009 sectional shape." Modern owners will find some irony that "Despite the extra care, however, Zanks wrote that his first job after taking delivery was to remove the toerails and rebed them to rectify severe leaking at the hull-deck joint."
Another interesting innovation of Zank's was mounting a half hull model to the bulkhead at the forward end of the saloon where it could be seen from the cockpit. Using cables, pulleys, and springs, the half hull's centerboard would go up and down and indicate the position of the boat's centerboard.
Henderson notes that, "...Surfrider did exceedingly well racing on the southern Bay, winning a number of High Point awards. After Zanks sold Surfrider, she came into the possession of Buzz White and later was owned by James White of Gibson Island."
Here is a picture of hull 5. Unfortunately it is not known whether this boat belonged to either Myers or Zanks.
Where are these boats today? Well we found one. I received this message from Jeff Serrie:
I saw that picture of the C-31 racing on Chesapeake Bay and when I saw hull#5 and the name White Shadow IV I realized I was looking at my boat. A few months ago I was sanding off the old name Gemini and underneath the paint I could make out the name Pamatiki and under that White Shadow IV. I was told by the previous owner that the boat was hull#4, but I later found that it was hull#5 when I removed a ceiling liner from the port quarter berth. The numbers 31 and #5 were written on the back side of the plywood. The numbers are also written underneath the teak toerail on the trasom. Thanks for posting that info. It's nice to know some of my boat's history.
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