Flicka Rapport

Rapport began as a Pacific Seacraft sailor completion kit — hull, deck and rudder only. Jack Harding bought hull #298 from the factory and finished her himself over the 1980s and 1990s in spare time from his job at Boeing in Seattle, building an interior that reverses the factory arrangement, with a long galley to starboard opposite a full-length settee and lee cloth to port. Jill Geary's account of her in Flicka Friends #18 (Summer 2000) describes a boat very strong and overbuilt even by Pacific Seacraft standards: an extremely beefy mast tabernacle, longer and thicker chainplates, and a bow pulpit taken from a Dana. She carried no autopilot, leaving self steering to a Monitor vane, and her sail locker ran from a 140% genoa down to a storm jib and trysail, with two working jibs hanked on alternately so they could share a halyard as twin headsails.

Harding and Don Marken sailed her out of San Diego for Radio Bay, Hilo in late April 2000 — a photograph shows the two aboard on 23 April, the day before departure — after more than a year of preparation, with a liferaft, hand watermaker, Paratech sea anchor and forty days' provisions aboard. They allowed thirty days for the 2,400 miles and made the passage in twenty-one, an average of 114 miles a day. Coming off the semi-trailer beforehand the travel lift showed her gross weight at 8,000 pounds, a figure Tom Davison later cited in Flicka Friends #21 as the top of the class's loaded displacement range. Accounts of the crossing by both captain and crew were later posted on the Flicka Home Page.

The Pacific Seacraft hull, deck and rudder of hull number 298 were purchased by Jack Harding as a sailor completion kit. The boat was finished by Jack in his spare time from his job at Boeing Aircraft Corporation in Seattle Washington throughout the 80's and 90's.

For more info read Flicka Friends Summer 2000.

Nothing is currently known about the whereabouts of Rapport. If you have anything to provide please contact the web captain.

Don Marken and Jack Harding, aboard Flicka Rapport (Hull 298) made San Diego to Hilo in 22 days - May 2000. Rapport's best run was 250 miles in 2 days.