The Moth Class and Rob O’Sullivan

Rob O’Sullivan first joined Maylands Yacht Club in Perth as a 14 year old back in 1965. Since then Rob says he has probably built close to 50 boats over the years as a self-taught backyard enthusiast. Not a bad record for someone who does not rely on technical drawn boat lines, but uses a “good eye and what the perfect boat should look like.” Timber home built boats were the norm and he had the skills needed for success in the Class – an innovator, a skilled hobbyist, physically fit and with no small amount of sailing ability thrown in. The Moth suited Rob, and Rob suited Moths.

Australian Moth Titles were limited to 64 boats in those years, and it was difficult to even gain a State jersey. Seventy five boats contested the 1973/74 WA State Selection Series alone! Rob won the Nationals held here in Perth that year with no need to race in the final seventh heat. Winning the Nationals gave Rob the opportunity to contest the August 1974 World Titles in Sweden.
World Titles - Taby Yacht Club, Stockholm, Sweden – 1974

Seventy four boats were competing from ten different countries at the 1974 Worlds. When Rob arrived in Sweden he was informed that his brand new scow Moth that he had built specifically for the Worlds, had been holed in transit. He had built a different style of boat, still a traditional Australian scow, but with less width in the bow and transom sections – and built very light yet very stiff. The European skiff style shape had proved superior in typical European light wind conditions up to that time.

Rob went on to repair the damage in time for the first race. However, he soon found the very light winds, average 4 to 5 knots, were not to his or his boat’s liking. A 12th and a DNF (due to the time limit) in fading breeze saw his jaw dragging on the ground after two heats. Terry Gaunt Snr had given Rob some advice before he left for Sweden: “Don’t worry if you don’t sail up to expectations on the first day of racing. Remember that you have always got a chance the next day.” Rob said that no truer words were spoken.

When he awoke next morning he found that a good low front had moved in, accompanied by a 12 to 14 knot breeze. Rob said: “ As I cycled to the camping area that morning from my billet home, I was so excited I don’t think my backside came to rest on the seat – and everyone around heard me coming.” Rob was back in the game. Ian Brown (defending title holder and fellow Australian) also found the conditions to his liking. Brown had brought over a new”wedge” design – a wide stern, flatter skiff than the Europeans were then using. It led immediately, after these Worlds, to the Europeans adopting the design and adding detachable tube wings with canvas trampolines. This made the boat much lighter. (From IMCA UK Yearbook, 1976).

That day, after a close tussle, Ian with his new skiff wedge design, came in first with Rob second. A great result for Australia. In the afternoon race, that result was looking to be repeated – until Ian capsized and damaged his centreboard case in a downwind tacking duel with Rob, and was forced to retire. Nevertheless, Rob had his first win – in fact, he finished some 15 minutes in front of the fleet!

The lay day next day saw some good breeze wasted but it allowed for a quick repair job to Ian’s boat with Rob’s help (sportsmanship was alive in those days). In the next race, it was Ian first again and Rob second. Due to Ian’s DNF in the race prior, Rob was narrowly ahead on points, but had to finish the last race ahead of Ian and also place highly to win the title.

The final heat was described by Rob as an anticlimax. The start was postponed twice in a fading breeze. Once underway, Rob found himself up with Ian and the faster light breeze European skiffs at the top mark. However, from there the breeze was fading and Rob was dropping back as it faded - to around 15th position! The World Title was slipping away.

However, Rob became the new World Champion when the whistle blew to cancel the last heat which had become a drifting match. Second went to fellow Australian Ian Brown and third to Czech, Tomas Tokos. Rob then sold his 55lbs (25 kgs) boat to a local Swede.

Rob was runner up in the 1975 worlds held in Australia. He won the Nationals and World titles double again in 1978 in Brisbane against 84 boats – just to prove that it was no fluke the first time! He finished well in front in the 1978 Nationals series, clinched by heat six of seven heats, held on Waterloo Bay with placings of 1,3,1,2,1 and 3. He won the following Brisbane Worlds by a much narrower margin – 0.3 of a point, luckily winning the event in the last 100 metres of the final seventh race. Maylands Yacht Club acknowledged Rob’s first World Title in 1974 with a welcome home celebration at the Club – claiming that it was a Mrs Gourlay’s victory cake that she had baked before he left as the main reason he won! However, we will probably side with Rob’s own thoughts – he was able to scale the heights of World Moth sailing as an innovator, a skilled hobbyist, being physically fit and with no small amount of sailing ability, and possibly an ounce or two of luck from those ancient Swedish weather gods thrown in.