Daily Pilot Hall of Fame: Alan Andrews

Terry Phillips

Alan Andrews, it’s a name symbolic of capturing the waves.

The famous nautical Newport native and race boat designer Alan Andrews

graduated from Newport Harbor High in 1973. He went on to Stanford

University, receiving a mechanical engineering degree in 1977.

While attending Stanford, he was a member of the Cardinal sailing

team, becoming an All-American collegiate sailor.

About this time, Andrews began designing boats for Doug Peterson

Yachts in San Diego.

“I was always interested in sailing and began like almost everyone

else, sailing Sabots in junior high school,” Andrews said.

At Newport Harbor, he moved up to racing F.J.s, Kites and Solings. He

also became proficient in Cal-20s and was checked out aboard his

familiy’s Ranger-30, which they still own today.

It was the 1979 Transpac Race when he and two other boat designers

teamed up to create a King-Choate-Andrews boat called o7 Arribaf7 ,

which took first place in its class. That same year, Andrews opened his

own design office and by 1982, he designed his first big boat, a

30-footer named o7 Detailf7 , to be competitive in international-type

regattas.

Since that time, he has designed boats from 26-feet. up to his largest

to date, a 72-foot performance cruiser.

Locally, we frequently see the navy blue hull of an Andrews-70 called

o7 Front Runnerf7 (formally o7 Victoriaf7 ), now owned by the O.C.

Sailing Center.

o7 Front Runnerf7 holds the record for the longest distance

traveled in a 24-hour period in the L.A. to Honolulu Transpac Race.

Another Andrews-70 called o7 Chevalf7 , was first to finish in the

1995 Transpac, the first year that turbos were allowed.

Other significant Andrews boats include the famous Andrews-56 veteran,

o7 Medicine Manf7 ; winner of the prestigious 1994 “Kenwood Cup,” an

Andrews-40 called o7 Growlerf7 , and last year, with Andrews himself

aboard, he crewed an Andrews-53 named o7 Kera Koaf7 , winning the

“Kings Cup” in Thailand.

Another recent and somewhat famous design was his Andrews-60 named o7

America’s Challengef7 , owned by local Oenologist Neil Barth.

The boat was entered in last year’s “Whitbread” around the world race

but was forced to abandon the series due to a lack of corporate

sponsorship.

“I was approached by an America’s Cup Syndicate but didn’t get the

nod,” Andrews said. “I would really like to design an AC boat. The race

itself is so innovative.

“With today’s technology, new ways to do things, new materials and

lighter boats, boats are going faster and faster, who knows what will

happen,” Andrews continued. “Canting keels and rigs, water ballast, it’s

so much more sophisticated than it used to be. The future looks

exciting.”

This internationally recognized race boat designer currently sits on

the board of directors of the Balboa Yacht Club and lives in Corona del

Mar, as well as within the Daily Pilot Sports Hall of Fame, celebrating,

the millennium.