CHUCK’S SANDERS CUP INTERLUDE

The glamour 14ft class in New Zealand was the One Design or Jellicoe Class which was contested between provinces for the Sanders Cup annually since 1921. It was responsible for an outburst of fervour for centreboard racing throughout the length of New Zealand in which Auckland was frequently the also-ran.

The provincial yacht associations held selection trials every year to select a competitor for the event, held in rotation around the country in January. For 1936 the Auckland trials resulted in a win for Aileen, built by Percy Vos in December 1932 for Ray Clare. She was skippered by Trot Willetts in the 1936 Sanders Cup race at Auckland, but the contest went to Avenger of Canterbury, sailed by Elliot Sinclair. In 1937 Aileen was beaten in the Auckland trials by Endeavour built by Billy Rogers for Warwick Parkes and sailed by Doug Rogers at the contest in Lyttelton. Lavina of Wellington won.

In late 1937 Owen Cronin of Onehunga bought Aileen and put her in the Auckland trials for the 1938 contest against Parkes’ Endeavour and the veteran Iron Duke sailed by C. Dunsford. Cronin appointed Chuck Auger as skipper. Aileen won the trials in a fine display of sailing from Chuck. For the contest at Dunedin, however, the Manukau team decided on a heavy crew to counter expected strong winds. As a result, Aileen made a poor showing against the southern boats, especially Kitty from Wellington sailed by Nigel Blair, which won convincingly.

For the 1939 Auckland trials, Cronin entered Aileen again, this time skippered by W. J. Potter, while Chuck Auger skippered the ex-wellington representative Clyde, built by Ted Bailey in 1928 and now owned by Claude Pickering of Onehunga. In his crew Chuck had his son R.H. Auger Jr as for’ard hand. The competition was the new boat Marjorie, built by J. Ewen for Warwick Parkes, Aileen and Endeavour plus the ex-otago and Paremata Kia Ora, sailed by W.T. Matthews. Marjorie was selected but, again, the southern boats prevailed with a win to Huia of Canterbury. It was not until the Centenary 1940 contest held at Wellington that Auckland turned the tide with a win for Billy Rogers’ Caress.

Cupid was also sold to the Manukau, but it was Sea Gnome that immediately dominated the under 18ft centreboard classes. It was the MCC which awarded my trophy to Chuck in 1929 for winning its under 18ft Championship with Sea Gnome which also won the championship with the MYC. In fact, Chuck and

Sea Gnome won both clubs’ under 18ft Championships every year until he decided to sell her in 1936 to G. Lloyd and move up to 18-footers by buying Atalanta, the glamour Waitemata 18.

Billy Rogers of Curran Street had built the round-bilge, bermudan-rigged Atalanta II (V57) for Bourne Wilson of Argyle Street in October 1934. In her first season on the Waitemata she was scratch boat and the best performer, originally sailed by Doug Rogers and brothers Bob and Fred Rogers, but they left to crew Billy Rogers’ crack 14-footer Vamp in 1935. When Chuck bought her in the winter of 1936 she easily became the Manukau Champion.

Moving ahead again, Chuck had Arnold ‘Bill’ Couldrey of Northcote design and build him a new 18-footer, Marie Dawn, said to be an improvement on Couldrey’s crack 18-footer

Jeanette. Jeanette (V90) had been built by in late 1938 for 18-year-old Jim Faire of Herne Bay as an out-and-out racer with an eye to the ‘World’ 18-footer Championships against the Australian 18s for the J.J. Giltinan Trophy, coming up in February 1939. After a dispute-ridden series, the New Zealand 18 Manu won the title, with Jeanette second. Chuck was busy sailing 14-footers at this time (see Sidebar) but the glamour of the Aussie contest attracted him greatly.

Marie Dawn (V3) was almost complete when war broke out in September 1939. Chuck did the finishing work and had her in the water by November. With such a skipper and such a pedigree there was no doubt that Chuck would win all the races he entered – 14 prizes in 15 starts. He clearly had in mind a scoop in defending the Giltinan Trophy against the Aussies in 1940, but Hitler put paid to that. Probably because Chuck decided that Jeanette was as good a boat, he bought her and sold Marie Dawn to George Lepper of Northcote in 1943. Jeanette carried on winning the MYC Championship Cup for Chuck in 1947 and 1948.

From here on the Augers’ boat ownership becomes blurred as Chuck’s eldest son Richard Henry Auger Jr crewed with him and probably shared ownership. The final two yachts in this category were Shirlene (T76), a Jack Brooke-designed 14-footer owned between 1943 and 1946, followed by Escapade (S10), the crack 16-footer built by Trot Willetts in 1939, winning the MYC Championship Cup in 1951.

Chuck was a legend on the Manukau. Trevor Canute, the current MYC Commodore, says that one of the older members tells the tale of how Chuck would arrive at the annual prizegiving, collect his many trophies, put them in a sugar sack then heave it over his shoulder to catch the tram home.

THANKS TO: Trevor Canute, Robin Elliott and Bill Simpson for material in this article.

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