Living , Modern

Scott

Allan

1946 -

The following is paraphrased from Allan’s nomination:

In the late 1960’s-late 1970’s, the sport of sailing underwent enormous evolution and progress ranging from technological and tactical developments to a rapid growth in the number of Americans participating in sailboat racing.

Scott Allan quietly emerged as one of America’s elite helmsmen during those seminal years whose racing resume, now 40 to 50 years removed, is vast in terms of breadth and variety of disciplines in which he often dominated or “podium placed”.

2019 NSHOF inductee Robbie Doyle described Allan as “one of the most underrated sailors in the country…he’s won the Prince of Wales, Congressional Cup, and Transpac.” (Annapolis Evening Capital, October 5, 1985)

While helmsmen in that era gained tremendous success and notoriety by specializing in one or two disciplines or classes, Allan won across this national and often international spectrum at a very young age.

Dubbed “Mr. Intensity” by Ed Adams (Sail Magazine, October 1979), Allan’s wins as a helmsman – all by the age of 26 – include the following:

  • Two Snipe Junior National Championships
  • A Collegiate National Championship
  • Multi-year First Team All-American Intercollegiate sailor
  • The first ever College Sailor of the Year (Everett Morris Trophy)
  • An overall Transpac win (youngest winning helmsman ever)
  • A Congressional Cup (youngest winning helmsman ever)
  • US Sailing’s Prince of Wales National Match Racing trophy
  • Sometime sparring partner helmsman on Intrepid for the French America’s Cup team FRANCE 1, and
  • An Olympic Trials victory resulting in a helmsman position on the 1972 U.S. Olympic Team.

 

A more detailed list of Sailing Honors and Accomplishments:

  • 1950, First Sailboat Race – Flight of the Snowbirds, Newport Harbor, CA (age 4 as crew)
  • 1958, U.S. Sailing’s Sears Cup National Junior 3 Man Championship, 2nd Place crew (at 12 yrs. old)
  • 1958-1963, Sears Cup Finalist, beginning at age 12, crew and skipper
  • 1961, Newport Harbor Junior Sailing Champion, Newport Harbor, CA (2019 NSHOF member Dave Ullman finished in 2nd place)
  • 1961, Snipe Class Crosby Cup Winner (National Championship Qualifying Series Senior/Adult Division), 1st Place, Old Saybrook, CT (at age 15 against 60 plus boats)
  • 1962, Junior National Snipe Champion, 1st Place, Seattle, WA (age 16)
  • 1963, Junior National Snipe Champion, 1st Place, Fort Worth, TX (age 17)
  • 1964, U.S. Sailing’s Mallory Cup National Adult Men’s Championship, 2nd Place, Detroit, MI (at age 18 — 2nd place to 2019 NSHOF member Buddy Freidrichs)
  • 1964-68, Member of University of Southern California Varsity Dinghy Team, helped to establish team as a Varsity Sport
  • 1965, Selected to U.S. Collegiate Team Racing All-Stars to tour the United Kingdom, as a Freshman, winning the British-American trophy for Multiple Team Racing events
  • 1965, Congressional Cup Match Racing Championship (De Facto World Match Racing Championship), 2nd Place crew/tactician
  • 1967, Congressional Cup Match Racing Championship, 1st Place (at age 21, remains youngest winning helmsman to date – winning over a fleet including Bob Bavier, Ted Turner, Arthur Knapp, and Barney Flam).
  • 1967, Intercollegiate National Champion, 1st Place Skipper in A-Division fleet racing and leading USC team to overall Henry Morse Trophy National Championship win and top end-of-year ranking.
  • 1967, Collegiate Team Racing National Champion, skipper of U. of Southern California’s 3-on-3 team racing national championship squad
  • 1967, First Team Selection to College Sailing’s first-ever All-American Sailing Squad and Member of Nationally Ranked U. of Southern California Sailing Team
  • 1967, Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association Hall of Fame, inducted into both Regatta and Competitors Divisions
  • 1967, Overall Transpac Race winner on CAL-40 “Holiday Too” (Co-Skipper and Tactician with brother Skip Allan -Youngest winning skippers to date)
  • 1967, U.S. Sailing’s Prince of Wales Match Racing Championship, 1st Place, Martha’s Vineyard, MA (defeating Bill Cox in finals with 2019 NSHOF Members Robbie Doyle competing as well).
  • 1968, First Team Intercollegiate All-American and Member of Nationally Ranked U. of Southern California Sailing Team
  • 1968, Everett Morse National College Sailor of the Year Trophy, Inaugural Winner
  • 1969, 5.5 Metre North American Champion, 1st Place (tactician to NSHOF member Ted Turner)
  • 1970, Flying Dutchman North American Championships, 2nd Place to Canadian Hans Fogh
  • 1971, Selected to U.S. Olympic Training Team (Flying Dutchman), funded to train and compete throughout Europe.
  • 1971, Flying Dutchman World Championships, 4th Place, La Rochelle, France (65 boats competing)
  • 1972, U.S. Olympic Sailing Trials (Flying Dutchman Class), 1st Place, Buffalo, NY
  • 1972, Member of U.S. Olympic Team for Munich Games, Helmsman for Flying Dutchman Class, (Tim Stearn crewing)
  • 1973, Begins campaigning multiple handicap racing boats, including Britton Chance designs, skippering and winning the Annapolis YC for overall Fall Series high-point, multiple SORC campaigns on Norlin, Farr, Peterson, and Holland designs, and One-tonners and Two-tonners 1974-1994 with customers, and Annapolis-Newport races with customers.
  • 1976, 1st Place, Skipper, Quarter Ton North American Championship, Hilton Head, SC (Farr 727 “WHY WHY”)
  • 1977, Sometime sparring partner helmsman on “INTREPID” for the French America’s Cup team FRANCE 1, Newport, RI
  • 1978, Begins campaign in newly established J-24 Class which brings together many of the world’s top, young helmsmen. In those formative years, Allan consistently places “on the podium” at national/international level events than any other J-24 helmsman, including John Kolius, Augie Diaz and NSHOF members Dave Ullman and Dave Curtis.
  • 1978-1982, Chesapeake J-24 Highpoint Champion
  • 1978, J-24 Inaugural North American Championship, 3rd Place of 64
  • 1979, J-24 Inaugural Mid-Winter Championship, 3rd Place of 52
  • 1979, J-24 Inaugural World Championship, 4th Place of 78 (winning 2 of 5 races)
  • 1979, Congressional Cup Match Racing Championship, 3rd Place
  • 1981, J-24 Mid-Winter Championships, 2nd Place of 64
  • 1985, Class Winner of Block Island Race Week, 1st Place, Skipper, Farr 33 “Sugar”
  • 1985, Class Winner of Block Island Race Week, 1st Place, Skipper, Farr 33 “Sugar”
  • 1985, Chesapeake Bay IOR-B Highpoint Winner, 1st Place Skipper, Farr 33 “Sugar”
  • 1987-1989 Pro-Sail Professional Formula 40 Catamaran Series, 2nd Place in Overall Money Winnings
  • 1995, Congressional Cup, 3rd Place
  • 1998-2000, Melges 24 Annapolis Fleet Champion
  • 1999, J-30 North American Championships, 1st Place (Tactician)
  • 2000, Elected to Annapolis Maritime Hall of Fame for Sailing and Sail making Accomplishments
  • 2001, Block Island Race Week, Overall Race Week Winner (Tactician on Farr 33 Sugar)
  • 2010, MORC Internationals, 1st Place (Tactician)

 

Additional comments from Allan’s nominator, regarding his contributions in the Technical and Contributor categories of nomination, are in pdf: Allan, Scott additional resume information

 

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