| Launched | 28/11/1980 (date of construction contract), launched 1981 |
| Owner | Shane and Lorraine Kearns |
| Purchased | April 2014 |
| Contact | shane.p.kearns@bigpond.com |
| Configuration | Tall double spreader rig |
| Colour | Flag Blue hull with white boot stripe, grey deck |
| Berthed | Drummoyne NSW (previously Sandringham, until 2014) |
| Sail Number | 3430 |
| Australian Registration | |
| State Registration | SS34N |
| Call Sign | |
| Builder | Standard Swarbrick hull, built in Perth fitted with the upgraded Mk 11 keel design and spade rudder, then shipped to Southern Ocean Yachting Industries in Seaford Victoria and fitted with a custom composite deck from the Dubois two-tonner Saulater mould. |
| Hull Number | 91 |
| Fit Out | Racing basic |
| Previous Owners | 1981-83 Ron Langman and Doug Russell, 1983-2013 Ron White, 2013-14 Frank Pearce |
| Previous Names | 1981 to 1983 – Evergreen, 1983 to 2014 – Shenandoah 11, 2014 on – Azzurro |
The Yacht’s Story
Shenandoah underwent a refit during 2005. Little is then known until she was bought by Shane & Lorraine Kearns in 2014 again looking worn after several years of hard racing. They restored her over 2014 and changed her name to Azzurro, see photos below.
Photos
During her 2014 refit (photo: S Kearns)
The Newcastle-Bass Island Race 2016:
“We took the .75 ounce down when it was constant 25 true and poled out the jib top and full main. This squared us up with the waves and the breeze was gusting up around 28 true when we had some great surfs all above 16 knots, then a couple of 17’s and then hit the magic 18!” (Shane Kearns)
Webmaster note: this is the highest authenticated speed reached by an S&S 34, just beating the 17 knots recorded by Morning Breeze (then Morning Star) racing in WA under Swarbrick ownership in the early 70s
Four Sparkman & Stephens boats Azzurro, Dorade, Eve, Kialoa II sail past the Opera House Picture: Andrea Francolini. Courtesy The Australian newspaper
Congratulations for your victory at the Gold Coast race, it seems to me to be amazing !
Good luck Shane. Fantastic story about the boat and your tenacity to get it sailing again. Sound RAE mantras.
Thank you for the encouraging comments.
I am still working on the boat 4 years after purchase to make it go just that little bit faster 🙂
Our next race is the Sydney to Noumea on 2 June and then the Groupama – (1 lap of New Caledonia).
Then back to defend our title in the Sydney to Gold Caost race at the end of July.
We’ll see if all the improvements make a difference.
r