National Sailing Hall of Fame 2014 Induction, Detroit Yacht Club, Sept. 28, 2014

The National Sailing Hall of Fame is dedicated to promoting sailing by preserving America’s sailing legacy and engaging sailing’s next generation through recognizing sailing’s heroes, highlighting sailing’s contribution to the American experience and culture, embedding sailing in education nationally and providing a physical home for sailing with national programming.

2014 NSHoF Induction is dedicated to the Detroit River Yacht Racing Association

Inductees:
Henry Hill “Harry” Anderson, Jr., b. June 2, 1921 in NY, NY
Nathaniel Bowditch, b. March 16, 1838, Salem, MA
Carl Martin Eichenlaub, Jr, b. July 30, 1930, d. Nov. 29, 2013, San Diego, CA
Peter Oscar Harken, b. Aug. 18, 1937, Surabaya, Java, Indonesia
Olaf Theodore Harken, b. May 6, 1939, Medan, Sumatra, Indonesia
Lewis Francis Herreshoff, b. Nov. 11, 1890, d. Dec. 1, 1972, Bristol, RI
George Dyer O’Day, b. May 19, 1923, d. July 26, 1987, Brookline, MA

Lifetime Achievement Award:
John Beresford “Jim” Kilroy, May 1, 1922, Ruby, AK

Maxi Man

“My best memories of the Kialoa years are of the crew, what we accomplished together. They’ve all stayed in touch, forging freindships around the world.”- JBK

Roger Vaughan’s write up in the Class of 2014 booklet and on the NSHOF website, used with permission:

In 1979, I sailed aboard Kialoa III on the storm-ravaged Fastnet Race. Here’s an excerpt from the book that resulted — Fastnet, One Man’s Voyage: “The Fantasy, for many who are struck as children with the terminal disease called sailing, often involves a dream boat of majestic proportions that plies the oceans of the world making a hundred landfalls, each one more enchanting than the last, with its crew sampling the world’s cultures, foods, wines and women; fraternizing with the rich and powerful, and in the best possible way. Jim Kilroy has made it a reality, and a palatable one by doing it right.”

Kilroy did it right for more than 40 years, starting in the 1960s with a series of five maxi boats all name Kialoa __ “long, beautiful canoe” in Hawaiian. His rules: you pay your own plane fare; no woman allowed to sleep on board; keep the toilet lids down; make your bunk; keep your gear and yourself clean; speak your pice, then follow orders.

Leading by example, Jim was a savvy sailor and a good helmsman who almost always started the boat. Hew was involved with all facets of the Kialoas, from design and building to usign the latest technology to solve tactical problems and assess performance. Kilroy brought the focused concentration, hyper organization, and various systems that had proved successful in his business to his race boat: “controlled averages,” the vaule of stress, physical fitness plus, and faith in the subconscious mind. The result was a dozen passage records set, and hundreds of victories from Sydney Hobart to Cowes, the SORC, Sardinia, and Antigua.

Born in Alaska into the Depression, Kilroy knew hard times. Smart and amitious from the outset, he had a keen eye for what worked and lived by it. An ace insurance salesman, Kilroy moved into industrial real estate in a comprehensive way and found his true nich. Kilroy Realty Corporation’s impressive command center is close by the Los Angeles International Airport, where Kilroy’s initial properties took shape.

If Jim discovered a Kialoa crewman didn’t have a real job, he’d be suspended. If the guy couldn’t find a job, Jim often offered him one. Several crewmen forged lucrative careers at K.I. Today, at 92, Jim is most proud of his crews’ success rate in business.

As the esteeemed British sailor Harold Cudmore commented, “In every generation there is an individual who changes the status quo for the better. Jim was that man at that time.” – Roger Vaughan