Thunderhead History

©2003 Daniel Forster

Thunderhead was designed by Philip Rhodes and built by Abeking and Rasmussen in 1961. This 49 ft masthead cutter was the last in a series of designs done by Mr. Rhodes for the owner Paul Hoffman. As a racer-cruiser Thunderhead was very successful in Long Island Sound series as well as Multiple SORC and Bermuda races.

The hull is double planked African mahogany on laminated oak floors and teak keel.
The design combines a bald headed Clipper bow with a broad curved transom. The wide deep cockpit features an elevated bench for the driver and a full width thwartship bench under a typical Rhodes hard dodger. Twin chart boards swing down from the shelter overhead to provide a cockpit nav station. The aft bulkhead is one inch plexiglas allowing great light down into the saloon and the central panels of this bulkhead are removable creating a secondary entrance to the cabin.

The main companionway is located amidships on the starboard side through a sliding hatch opening on the trunk top. Two brass handrails flank the staircase which curves 90 degrees to the cabin below. Located at the bottom of the companionway is the galley to port and navigator's bunk and nav station to starboard. When originally built, the chart table hinged up to reveal a small electric organ underneath. Opposite the nav station is a small head with integral shower and forward, the owners cabin now has a double bunk over which hangs a gimbaled compass. Opposite are a dressing table with hinged stool and sliding cabinets. Further forward behind a bifold door is the fo'c'sle with storage for sails, ground tackle, spare equipment and lines. A cast bronze hatch provides access from the main deck to this area. In the aft end of the cabin is a U shaped seat around a gimbaled mess table which is supported by the bronze centerboard trunk. Outboard are quarter berths port and starboard.

The mast, hollow spruce, is 70 feet off the water and quite high for a yacht of this era. It is said that after the first year of ownership, Paul Hoffman decided to add an additional 8 feet to the mast. Thunderhead is a quick boat in light airs and this extra footage may have accounted for some of the boat’s successes in light winded Long Island Sound. Phil Rhodes reviewed the changes after completion and agreed with the alteration.

In the late 1970's John Ridell became the third owner of Thunderhead. He lived in southern California and hired Giffy Full to sail the boat to it's new home. Giffy, with rotating crew members, sailed the boat down the ICW across the Gulf of Mexico, thru the Panama Canal and up the coast of Mexico to Los Angeles. There in its new home, the boat underwent a major restoration. The interior was completely removed and much of it rebuilt including all of the systems, wiring, tankage, and electronics. It is said that one carpenter worked on this restoration steadily for 3 ½ years. The result was a masterful restoration, modernized, yet faithful to the original yacht.

The boat returned to the East coast by truck in the late 1980’s and lived in Rockport where it was meticulously maintained by its owners Sandy and Barbara Lewis.
Thunderhead now hails from Blue Hill.

LOA 48 ft. 9 in.
LWL 37 ft.
BEAM 13 ft.
Draft 5 ft. 6 in. centerboard up 9 ft. 11 in. centerboard down
Sail area 964 ft sq.