Historic racing yacht seeks new captain in France

A historic racing yacht built in Kent is up for sale in Brittany after twice being rescued by French enthusiasts.

Called Black Joke, the 11-metre yacht of English cutter design was built in 1890 to be used in regattas.

“Going fast was important because the tradition was that the loser would pay for the drinks afterwards,” its current owner Jean François Coudreau, of Nantes, told The Connexion.

“Even today she holds her own against many modern boats because she is light and can carry a lot of sail.”

The yacht was mainly built of oak, with pine and acacia fittings and a teak deck.

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Restoration project

It stayed on the English register until 1949, when it moved to Dutch and Luxembourg ownership, before being transferred to the French register in 1973.

“For whatever reason, she was effectively then abandoned and left to quietly rot away in the north of France, until a Frenchman found her in 1980 and restored her completely,” said Mr Coudreau.

“He sailed her and used her regularly for 20 years, until his death.

“His family did not want anything to do with her, and she had actually sunk in Granville port by the time I came across her in 2020 and decided to restore her again.”

The restoration was done in a boatyard near Nantes.

“I thought it would take a year,” said Mr Coudreau, 80, who used to be a professional hot-air balloonist.

“In the end it took a year-and-a-half for 1,560 hours of work.

“There were no surprises – the boat was very well built. I have restored two or three boats in my life and I find it very pleasing.”

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New owner needed

Mr Coudreau said he is now too old to sail the yacht, which he believes is one of the oldest boats still registered and used in France, including the naval training sail ship Belem.

“My daughters are not at all interested in taking her on, but they would like to take on some of the money from a sale,” he laughed.

“I would like her to be bought by someone who is passionate about boats, even in England because it would be like going home for her.”

He has fitted a small diesel motor to make manoeuvring in harbour easier, and there are four bunks in the yacht, a small galley, shower and WC.

“You can cruise along the coast comfortably, and there will be no problem crossing the Channel,” he said. He has advertised the boat on leboncoin.fr for €35,000.