Uffa Fox
Uffa Fox CBE (15 January 1898–26 October 1972) was an English boat designer and sailing enthusiast.
Contents
Life
Uffa Fox was born on the Isle of Wight and was raised in East Cowes.[1] He lived for a while in Puckaster on the Isle of Wight.
Work
He was responsible for many of the developments which have contributed to the modern popularity of Dinghy sailing. He first introduced the technique of planing to dinghy racing, and was influential in the introduction of trapezing.
In about 1943 he designed a 27 ft lifeboat to be dropped from Vickers Warwick aircraft when rescuing downed aircrew or mariners. These boats could be released from under the aeroplane retarded by six 32' diameter parachutes. Although initially adapted for the Warwick, the lifeboat was subsequently also carried by Air-Sea Rescue Lancasters and B-17 Flying Fortresses
He became a friend of the Duke of Edinburgh in 1949 and they raced together at Cowes Week on many occasions. He also took the Royal children sailing at Cowes.
Apart from having a highly successful racing, cruising and sailing career, he ran successful boat design and boatbuilding businesses in the south of England. He designed many of the significant classes of boats around today, including the planing International 14, the Foxcub and Super Foxcub, the Flying Fifteen, the National 12, the National 18, the Albacore, the Firefly, the Javelin, the Pegasus Dinghy, the Jollyboat and the Day Sailer. Many of his designs exploited the wartime development of moulded plywood.
His character is perhaps best indicated by an escapade whereby he led a group of Sea Scouts, without their parents' consent (they thought it was a weekend sailing camp), across the English Channel and up the Seine to within a few kilometres of Paris in a 25' open boat.
References
2 Graham Vine, son of Uffa Fox's former fiancee, Lilian Ethel Vine (née Cheek) formerly of Adelaide Grove, East Cowes.
External links
- Uffa Fox Website
- A picture of an Airborne Lifeboat being released
- LIFE magazine photos of Uffa and the Duke of Edinburgh
- St. Mildred's Churchyard
