Class of 2014: Harry, Nathanial, and Carl

The National Sailing Hall of Fame will induct eight people into the National Sailing Hall of Fame this weekend during their 2014 ceremony in Detroit, MI. Meet three of the members of this year’s induction class:

Henry H. Anderson, Jr. has been yachting’s predominant international statesman for more than 60 years. At the age of 15, he went on his first Bermuda Race. At 17, he watched his family’s friend, Mike Vanderbilt, win the last America’s Cup held in the J-Class. In 1958, Anderson was involved in renewing the Cup in 12 Metres. As a representative of the New York Yacht Club, he hosted President and Mrs. Eisenhower on the America’s Cup race course. For more than 20 years, he was an America’s Cup race official. (In 2013, at age 92, Anderson would twitch his moustache at the Cup multihull event going on in San Francisco). There is nary a noteworthy body of water upon which Anderson has not competed or officiated, a smart waterfront tavern where he has not raised a glass. Presidents and royals take his calls. Communicator, problem solver, philanthropist, and fun-loving friend, sailors – from hall of famers and CEOs to captains — know him as Harry. MORE

When one considers that Nathanial Bowditch died 176 years ago, what he accomplished in his 65 years on this earth is even more impressive. His formal education ended at age 10, when his family’s financial distress required him to work in his father’s cooperage, curtailing opportunity for intellectual advancement. But Bowditch was an unusual teenager, one who spent his evenings studying Greek and Latin. When he was 13, Bowditch wrote a booklet on marine navigation. At age 15, he designed and built a barometer. He taught himself calculus in order to study Isaac Newton’s Principia Mathematica. Jobs in ships chandleries as a young teen led to voyages as a ship’s clerk. At sea, he learned French, kept meticulous notes on lunar positions, navigational techniques, wind, tide, currents, and applied his mathematical genius to celestial navigation. MORE

Carl Eichenlaub is best known for the winning boats he built (Lightnings, Snipes, Stars), and for his determination and remarkably innovative way of keeping friends and competitors alike up and running on the water. Working out of a 40-foot container full of tools and supplies, he served as the U.S. team boatwright at six Pan Am and eight Olympic Games. Given the strength of those talents, it would be easy to forget that Carl Eichenlaub was also a formidable sailor, twice winning the Lightning North Americans, finishing second once, and finishing second in the Snipe Nationals. MORE

COMMENT: We will provide an update on all the class members this week. Also, I am looking forward to participating in the 2014 induction festivities. If you plan on attending, be sure to look me up and let’s talk sailing. – Craig Leweck, Scuttlebutt