Last year the Ol’ Man enjoyed it’s best turnout in years with 65 boats competing.   This year we hope to break that turnout and we are looking to possibly go into triple digits.  In past year’s the Houston Yacht Club’s offshore Extravaganza “Harvest Moon” has fallen on our OMOS weekend but this year their regatta takes place the weekend before – thus the battle cry – “You can drop your boats off here – we’ll leave the light on for you!!”

Buddy Techmeyer was a long time boat club member, pilot, friend, and truly unique jewel of a person who passed away too soon in 1990 but his memory lives on!   In 1973 the quarter tonners came on the scene – a sailboat formula similar to IOR that allowed certain dimensions to be modified as long as everything fit within the formula.  The formula made for a wide variety of boats to be built and developed – many people had custom design “one offs” built which were basically throw away boats.  The interest was sensational and soon hundreds of quarter tonners were being built all over the world. 

Buddy bought a very red colored Kiwi 24 which he named Diablo back in 1973 in an attempt to qualify for the quarter ton worlds which would be held in Corpus Christi in 1976.  Only ten boats from the US could compete at the worlds and Buddy enlisted Ed Hiebert and Rosser Bodycomb to crew for him.  Buddy had never skippered a boat in a race before and Ed had never even set a top sider on a racing boat.  Rosser was the veteran on this team.  Diablo wound up missing qualification for the worlds by one point but Buddy and the team had performed very well and with his ever good sportsman spirit Buddy dropped the line “they knew we were there!”

Bob Smith was a long time sailor and writer for Yachting Magazine and Buddy had spent quite a bit of time with him flying him around the state in search of venues to host the Quarter Ton Worlds.   Bob was famous for both his sailing and his work as a sailing journalist.  Bob Smith died in a car accident in 1974 after a night out with the Australian Americas Cup team.  Buddy started the Ol’ Man of the Sea “Mini Yacht Regatta” in 1974 in honor of his friend Bob Smith who’s pen name was “Ol’ Man of the Sea.”

 The regatta was a level racing event which drew nineteen participating quarter tonners.  The first regatta was won by Bob Chilton from Rush Creek Yacht Club in his Kiwi 24 Truckin Machine.  Buddy and his Diablo had  swapped races all series with Bob and they took second and almost won.   Buddy then packed up Diablo and took her to Corpus Christi for the Quarter Ton North Americans for a fourth place finish.

The format for the regatta was unique as a two weekend event consisting of skippers meeting at noon Saturday, two races that afternoon, three races the following Sunday.  Then everyone would leave their boats in the harbor and go home for the week returning with three races the following Saturday starting in the morning and then two more races and trophies on Sunday.  This was a very popular format because traveling sailors could leave their boats rigged and it felt like it was worth the effort to travel and set the rig up.  The Ol’ Man also set up two weekends of unforgettable parties and an excuse to get a great sailing fix!  This two weekend racing format carried on until 1992 when it was changed to a one weekend event due to the number of regatta’s competing for participants.  Soon after the first regatta the Boat Club added all classes of racing and the tag line “Southwestern Keel Boat Championship” was branded upon the event.

Buddy Techmeyer was the heart and sole of the regatta for the next 16 years.  To most of us who did not know Bob Smith, Buddy Techmeyer was the Ol’ Man of the Sea.  The Ol’ Man arrives out of the water on Friday October 13th at 7:30 to light the 32nd Annual gathering of Buddy Techmeyer’s wonderful tribute to all of us.

Mark W. Smith
Regatta Chairman