PORT TOWNSEND
THUNDERBIRDS
by Roland Nikles
A HISTORY, AND REVIEW OF THE 2020 SAILING SEASON A successful season of racing on Port Townsend Bay has come to an end. At the center of the planning and implementation, as every year, was the Port Townsend Sailing Association (PTSA). And once again, the Thunderbirds were the big local fleet. Many 48° North readers will be familiar with the venerable Thunderbird, but the boat’s rich Pacific Northwest history is nearly matched in intrigue by the recent coalescence that brought a fleet home to Port Townsend, and Port Townsend sailors to this fleet. Nathaniel Seaborne penned his design for the Thunderbird in response to a 1958 challenge by the Douglas Fir Plywood Association for a design that could be “both a racing and a cruising boat … sleep four … capable of being built by reasonably
Thunderbirds have attracted a wide variety of sailors in Port Townsend, from more casual sailors to highly experienced racers.
48º NORTH
skilled amateur” and, crucially, “outperform other sailboats in its class.” And it did. By 1980, there were more than 1,000 Thunderbirds sailing. Perhaps more impressively, the class association received more than 25,000 requests for the building plans (which first cost $2, and are available today for $60). Thunderbirds immediately showed their speed, beating many larger and more expensive boats. Three sailing enthusiasts in Port Townsend — Jim Daubenberger, who owned a clothing store on Water Street, attorney Glenn Abraham, and physician Bill Scheyer — took notice. In 1963, they commissioned hulls 241 (Zaca), 242 (Dorado), and 243 (Caveat) from Bill Knottingham Marine in Tacoma. “The boats were inexpensive,” says Jim’s son, Joe Daubenberger. “In 1963, the bill of sale for these Thunderbirds was $2,650, including sails and other options,” said Joe in a tribute to his father in the Port Townsend Leader. That’s a little less than what this author paid for a Thunderbird (Falcon, #1177) two summers ago. Putting that in perspective, median income in the greater Seattle Area in 1960 was $6,225, so the purchase of a new Thunderbird in 1960 set you back nearly one half year’s median income in Seattle. Even back then, a Thunderbird was not so inexpensive for most people. Today, median income in metropolitan Seattle is $102,500 (2019) and you can purchase a new J/80 (also 26 feet) for $55,000 — or a little more than one half of a year’s median income. The Thunderbird was the J/80 of 1960. Well, not quite as fast, but much better to cruise!
42
DECEMBER 2020
