SD Maritime Museum 2003 Annual Report

Wings: Flights of Fancy

The Pacific Class racing yacht, known as the PC, was the first successful wooden sailboat built for southern California waters. Developed by the Kettenburg Boatworks in the 1920s, PCs were produced until the early 1950s. Over the decades, these boats were enormously successful, winning many regattas and introducing many young sailors to the water and to the art and science of sailing.

PC Hull #8, Wings, was built in 1931. After many years of sailing and racing, Wings came to be owned by Paul Hartley, Senior, former city councilman, “Mister San Diego”, and acting mayor of San Diego. Papa Hartley was most generous in his invitations to sail aboard Wings, and hundreds of youngsters learned to love sailing, to navigate San Diego waters, to appreciate our local maritime gifts through Wings. The Hartley family donated Wings to the Maritime Museum of San Diego.

Believed to be the oldest PC in existence, and perhaps the most famous of its kind, Wings represents a significant era in San Diego’s yachting history. In coordination with Rish Pavelec, PC enthusiast extraordinaire, and C.F. Koehler, master wooden boat craftsman and owner of Koehler Kraft Boatyard, the Museum undertook a restoration project to bring Wings back to her original beauty. Financial support for this project came from individual and private support, with major funding by the Ellen Browning Scripps Foundation, and supplemented by in-kind services. Conducted at Koehler’s Boatyard, the work took almost two years to complete.

In early April 2003, some 125 donors and friends gathered at Koehler’s on a sunny Sunday morning to witness the rechristening of Wings. Following greetings by Koehler, introductory remarks by museum director Ray Ashley, words of congratulations from chairman of the board of port commissioners Jess Van Deventer, and historical background from Pavelec, the lovingly restored boat was whacked by a champagne bottle wielded by Paul Kettenburg, who was present at her original launching. As the vessel gracefully slid down the ramp toward the water, a swarm of painted lady butterflies was released, carrying the good wishes of the crowd to the Great Spirit, per Native American tradition.

In the following months, Wings enjoyed sailing and racing and flying around the bay. With PC owner and Museum trustee Bob Kyle and his wife Laura, hosting the process, Wings participated in regattas, hosted guests on short sails around the bay, and even sailed alongside Star of India and Californian on November 16, 2003.