Chesapeake Bay Bermuda 40 Association Turns 40

Members of the Chesapeake Bay Bermuda 40 Association recently celebrated the 40th Anniversary of the founding of their club with cocktails and dinner at the Annapolis Yacht Club. The organization started with a rendezvous of eight boats on the Rhode River in 1977 and now has a membership of 92. While a majority of the boats are concentrated on the Chesapeake Bay, the organization has expanded to include Hinckley sailors on the East, West and Gulf Coasts, the Great Lakes, Canada, Australia, Singapore and the Netherlands.

Commodore Pat Cooper, of St. Michaels, highlighted accomplishments of club members over the last four decades including the 17-year circumnavigation by Edythe and Dick Gantt, the winning of the St. David’s Lighthouse Trophy in 2014 by Connie and Michael Cone, and the seven years of award-winning participation in the Elf Classic Yacht Race. She also noted that CBB40 is a Founding Member of the National Sailing Hall of Fame.

Past commodores, John Melchner, George Tornell, Michael Cone and Dick Cooper, all gave brief recounts of their terms in office. P/C Cone said CBB40 “changed his life” when members suggested that instead of transAtlantic cruising, he and his wife, Connie, try long-distance racing, a choice that led to their victory in the Newport to Bermuda Race.

Hinckley General Manager Elliot Anderson was on hand to award this year’s Hinckley Elf Race Trophy to P/C Charles Miller.

The organization was started by owners of Hinckley Bermuda 40 sailboats as a way of building camaraderie and sharing information about their classic yachts. Hinckley build 203 B-40s between 1959 and 1991. The owners of Hulls 1 and 203 are members of the club and sail on the Chesapeake.

CBB40 membership is open to owners of all Hinckley-built boats, sail or power. For more information about membership in the Chesapeake Bay Bermuda 40 Association, contact Secretary/Treasurer Penny Zahn at penny.zahn@gmail.com. Follow the club on Facebook.