Bob Sexton's racing shells
Throughout the following years, Bob Sexton is reported to have built more then twenty racing shells and repaired many more. The following list provides an idea of which boats he built and in what years.
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Boat builder Bob Sexton in the early 1900's, leaning over a partially built racing boat (approximate year: 1900, size: 43kB, source: Regatta Museum).
Scale model of the Blue Peter from the Regatta Museum. Models were constructed by Kurt Mahle.
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A new era
When Bob Sexton died in 1944, the era of locally built racing shells died with him. Between 1947 and 1974, the Committee purchased 4 sets of boats, none of which met the quality of a Bob Sexton built boat.
The first set of boats ordered from outside of Newfoundland came from the Salter Brothers in England, who designed and built boats for the Royal Henley. They were used in the Regatta of 1948, and were considered too heavy and cumbersome by many rowers and coxswains of the time.
In 1952, a set of boats was ordered from Kelowna Boats. While these boats from British Columbia did not compare with the Sexton boats, race times did improve. These boats were retired just 10 years after purchase and were sent for use in the Placentia Regatta, one portion of the Triple Crown of Racing in Newfoundland.
 Scale model of a whale boat from the Regatta Museum. Models were constructed by Kurt Mahle.
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In 1962 and again in 1967, the Regatta Committee purchased boats constructed by
Richard Simms. He constructed the Miss India, the Miss CJON, the Royalist (which
was considered inferior by competitors), and the Blue Peter V.
Finally in 1991 and 1994, there were new race boats built by Hudson Boat Works in Ontario. These boats are still currently being used to race. They are constructed of Mahogany and Douglas Fir, weigh just 385 pounds, are 50 feet long, 2 feet wide and 13 inches deep. |
The new boats purchased in 1991 were named Captain Morgan (Seagrams), The Dictator (Crosbie Industrial), Good Luck (Newfoundland Margarine Co.), Miss Labatt (Labatt Brewery) and Miss Molson (Molson Brewery). In 1994 the shells were named The Henley (Alec G. Henley and Associates), The Herald (Newfoundland Herald), The OZ-FM (Newfoundland Brodcasting), Presidents Choice (Dominion Stores), and the Smith-Stockley (Smith Stockley Plumbing Supplies).
In 1999, just a year before the opening of the new boathouse, two more racing shells were added to the current roster. They are the Miss Tubular (East Coast Tubular) and the Broker (PF Collins Customs Broker Limited) - shells that have been donated by private companies are named by those companies.
These racing shells are still in use today.
