Preview: A Good Boat, Up Close — The Nordic Folkboat LORRAINE

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This video about Carol Hasse and her nordic Folkboat Lorraine is what we are aiming for at OffCenterHarbor.com.  Combine an attainable and versatile boat, and a knowledgeable owner with plenty of specific techniques and understandings, and what you’ll see is a perfect recipe for happiness afloat.

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You can leave a comment or question for OCH and members below. Here are the comments so far…

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54 Responses So Far to “A Good Boat, Up Close — The Nordic Folkboat LORRAINE

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    John Wujack says:

    Hello Carol, I hope this finds you. I’m considering a Yuloh for my Stone Horse and am intrigued by the hardware on Lorraine. Can you point me in the direction of a fabricator for both a Yuloh and the hardware, please? Any assistance would be appreciated. Kind regards, John Wujack, Poulsbo, WA

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      John Wujack says:

      Carol, Port Townsend Foundry does not have the pattern for Yuloh mount. Any ideas ?

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    Ahoi Mench says:

    I love Carol Hasse. Everyone loves Carol. Everyone.

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    Dan Young says:

    Carol is such a treasure to the Pacific Northwest wooden boat and sailing community. I had the pleasure to sail with her aboard the Schooner Adventuress in the late 80s. She is a wonderful teacher and story teller. I still remember her helping repair the Adventuress’s main sail after it blew out in a stiff breeze up in the San Juan Islands. We unbent the sail in Victoria and sent it south. Several days later it showed back up beautifully patched and we were under full sail again that day out in the Straights of Juan de Fuca. Seeing her Nordic Folkboat and how simple yet prepard for almost any adventure is an insperation.

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    DOUGLAS ST. ONGE says:

    Great video of Carol’s work of love. Only wish I could live my life again and have what Carol has. The only thing missing. or maybe I missed seeing it was a sea anchor. Maybe there is a good reason for not having one. When I was a deck hand on an iron ore carrier in the great lakes we had sea anchors on the life boats and what a great item to have. It really kept the bow into the wind when we had a heavy wind blow or whatever.
    Again I loved Carol’s spirit and knowledge of sailing.

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    Charles McDonnell says:

    Loved the video, what a passionate woman with her love for sailing and classic wooden. And like Linn and Larry Pardee keeping it simple. Years ago while living in San Francisco I had a similar boat called a Frisco Flyer. Kept the boat in Alameda at Fortman’s Marina. There was a boatyard close by called svendsons, Karl Svendson was the king of Folksboats on the bay. He actively campaigned his own boat and there were almost always one or two in his yard or at his docks. Thanks for the memories
    Chuck

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    Donald Goldring says:

    Loved the video and Carols love of the Folkboat. I grew up in Sarnia Ontario, Canada and sailed on Folkboats on Lake Huron in the the late 60s and knew Bill Abbott and his shop where he built many Canadian Folkboats. They were a lovely boat to sail and race!

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    Lannis Morris says:

    Nothing pretentious about this lady or her boat. Her enthusiasm is a wildfire and very contagious. Her well done videos by her sailmaker on how to sew on rings and hanks and sail hardware helped me and my wife complete our Sailrite main and jib for our recent build. Thank you Carol for sharing your skills and your story with all of us. It completes the circle in a beautiful way.

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    David Lea says:

    This is a really wonderful video. Carol is clearly someone you can trust with your life. But it upset me too. For some years I owned a rather similar boat to a Folkboat, a Tumlare designed by Knud Reimers. I guess the Tumlare is not as strong or quite as seaworthy as Lorraine but she had that indefinable magic in the way she handled, so accurate, fast and joyful. Like Lorraine she was a beautiful boat in every way. Carol and Lorraine brought back many memories of sailing the west coast of Britain. I had to let her go about 5 years ago (age and expense). I would love to post a couple of photos but I’m not sure how to do it on this blog.
    I now have a half-decked Ness Yawl which Iaian Oughtred owned for a while.
    All the best to you, it’s a lovely community you have going there. David Lea

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    Jim True says:

    As a SF Bay sailor back in ‘65 I remember seeing a folk boat for the first time. I watch her grace as she flowed through bay water tracing and reaching like a cormorant on sea breezes. Lovely comes to mind, a lovely little sailor, a lovely little boat, with lovely lines.

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    Glenn Callahan says:

    My daughter and son and I have someone new to admire. What a treasure you are Carol!

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    Rifat Sele says:

    Wonderfuly inspiring video. Thank you Eric and thank you Carol. Nordic Folkboat has now inspired me as a small and manageable boat for a guy like me for singlehanded. Carol’s description of the body of waters which we call Salish Sea – Straight of Giorgia is as she described a wonderful place on earth where one can enjoy life long sailing and existing in fully submerged in beautiful and peaceful small sea and art loving communities. I had the opportunity sailing these body of waters with my dear 80+ year old friend Brian and her daughter Rachel and family for many years ago. After watching this lovely video with Carol’s sweet elaboration of the details of the place, I am looking forward to go back and enjoy this heavenly part of the world all over again. This time hopefully with my own wooden boat and who knows maybe a Nordic Folkboat. Thank you again for the “inspirations”.

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    terry brower says:

    It was my privilege and pleasure to visit with Carol Hasse during the 2015 Wooden Boat Festival. I enjoyed the seminar on sail making at her sail loft in Port Townsend, Washington. The short 1 1/2 hour session barely scratched the surface of her obvious knowledge of sail making. I would be proud to have one of her sails on my boat.

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    Paul Gill says:

    Wonderful video! It was inspiring to see an owner so in love with her boat, and a boat so worthy of that love!

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    John Buchbinder says:

    I LOVED this video, the story, the boat and the woman…it actually brought tears to my eyes, experiencing the relationship between Carol and Lorraine through the medium of video. I felt privileged to have been taken into her world. Keep up the great work OCH!

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    Christoph Harlan says:

    I have always loved this boat and NOW I am smitten – totally… with this boat and her insightful and delightful owner!

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    michele del monaco says:

    This video is contagious: I’ve decided to sell my 1966 Illingworth sloop for a wooden Folkboat. Simply beautiful

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    Charles Zimmermann says:

    This is a wonderful video because it really conveys the feeling of what it is like to own and maintain an older wooden boat that is well built, nice looking, small enough to be affordable, and yet large enough to do a lot of coastal sailing, in a variety of weather conditions. For more information on Folkboat associations see all of the External Links at en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Folkboat. Many thanks to Carol Hasse for a video that gives us so much to learn from.

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      Skip Leinau says:

      These lovely ladies, Carol & ‘Lorraine’, and a most excellent video are why I signed onto OCH. Her contagious enthusiasm reminded me of how I felt sailing. So glad to find this video again. Just watched it 3 times & hope to see it again. Thanks OCH, Carol et al. Sure enjoyed!

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    Charles Zimmermann says:

    There is a Facebook group “Friends of the Nordic Folkboat (Nordisk Folkbåt)” which I joined very recently. .I am a member of another Facebook group called “Kosterbåt: K6 , K20, K22, K25, K32 & K38.” Among owners of Koster boats, I must be the only one who is a U.S. citizen. Geir Stene (from Norway) posted a short history of Koster boats at http://syethena.wordpress.com/about-sy-ethena/ :

    “There are some Koster sailing boats in Norway, but not that many. Mostly we have the knowledge of five or six. Our boat is a Koster K-25, the smaller K-6, K20 and the larger K-32 and K-38 are the most common. We would very much appreciate if you as a reader have further knowledge than we have gathered here. We will correct, update this article as we get better informed.
    In the west coast of Sweden this is a traditional boat, frequently seen. Not all that many Cravell build though. Our estimate so far, by what we have read , is that there must be about 60 taken care of and still sailing. From the 1860 ies and up til the 1970′ies these boats where built in pine, and later on some few in mahogany.
    The boat is said; to be Swedes on the west coast ( Koster Islands) that looked at the Norwegian type of boats, The “Risørskøyta” and local boat builders developed The Kosterboat, a smaller boat suited for the seas around Koster, windy, and no deep waters. They needed a smallish boat to travel in both harsh winds, and with little winds, as the weather changes rapidly. It’s also said that Collin Archer looked at (amongst others) the Koster boat when he developed his Collin Archer. One could claim it’s a true Pan Scandinavian boat!
    In the times where the boat was developed the connection between Norway and Sweden was very close, as they are now. At times the area ( North west Sweden) used to belong to Norway, so we all feel kind of related, even these days.
    The boat was originally used for merchandise and transport of goods, vegetables, fish and so forth. It was around 1900 – 1920 the working class in Sweden really looked at using sailing boats for leisure. The Koster boat is classified in 1897 as an own boat class and the sailing union SSFram is established 1896; http://www.ssfram.com They didn’t have the capital as the more wealthy people, so they joined into collectives, bought up these old fashioned boats ( that now had less value and interest for merchandise and transport, due to the engines becoming available for most people) They started modifying the boats, making an interior, fit for regatta, leisure and holiday usage. The amazing part is that this seems to have been the focus, during the over 100 hundred years of history of this boat, the pride of a great, and useful boat construction, with a long Scandinavian boat tradition, later on appreciated of some 60 peoples of enthusiasts in Scandinavian area.”

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      Greg Stamatelakys says:

      Thank you Charles, for giving us your history of the type.

      Greg

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    Stephen Jackson says:

    Carol, thank you for your complete openness and sharing of your love of sailing and Lorraine.

    Steve, thank you for your wonderful videography.

    Eric, thank you most of all, for your incredible ability to connect with, and bring out the best of, those whom you interview–you are truly gifted here (few, if any, would have your wisdom or maturity to say so few words during this meeting).
    Steve

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      Steve Stone says:

      Thanks Stephen. We’re especially proud of this one with Hasse. Be sure to check out her video on OCH re: sailmaking if you haven’t already.

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    Stuart Asbjornsen says:

    OK, this was the first video I watched after joining, It was wonderful.

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    Carol Hasse says:

    Thank you again, OCH for your beautiful video work and for your kind words about Lorraine and our loft. And thank you to all who have posted their appreciation. I can answer a couple questions posted over the last few months. The bronze yuloh mount was made by Chuck Hancock at the Port Townsend Foundry. PT Foundry has a wealth of classic fittings for boats of every size. My half-size guitar was built by Steve Grimes–a friend and former Port Townsend resident who lives on Maui building guitars and recording and performing music. Cheers!

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      Ronald Trivane says:

      I will show this video to my daughter ang young granddaughters to let them know what sailing is about. Your wonderful video makes you beg to be on a sailboat. Theses OCH videos give me such pleasure when I am waiting for spring to come and to be sailing on the Severn River and Chesapeake Bay. Cheers. Ron Annapolis MD

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        Steve Stone says:

        Ron. I can speak for everyone at OCH in saying this thrills us that you’re showing to your daughters. Very cool. Steve

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    Rick Robinson says:

    Carol, her sailing experiences, her boat “Lorraine” and your excellent video fan the embers of my heart that long ago burned for the desire to spend long stretches of time maintaining, sailing and living aboard a small, well kept boat. The dream remains alive.

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    cees borns says:

    Werkelijk fantastisch,wat een schip,een schoonheid.

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    Karl Seidenberg says:

    When I saw the bronze flat top compass & its cool mount, I knew this was the real deal! Wonderful.

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    Ellen Massey Leonard says:

    What a lovely boat, story, and video! It makes me a bit nostalgic for the Strait of Georgia where I spent many happy years of my childhood learning to sail. Of course not all the boats there were as gorgeous as Lorraine, so it good to know there are people like Carrol keeping up a beautiful tradition.

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    Steve Godfrey says:

    I have watched this video many times now. It goes to the heart of inshore/coastal sailing. Capt. Hasse has a bronze mount for her yuloh. Do you know where one might get one like it?

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    joseph platzer says:

    Fantastic and very inspiring visit with a cool woman and boat.I found the small guitar carrol was playing very interesting.I would be interested to know what kind it was and who made it?
    Thanks,

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    Jim Dinneen says:

    Great, great video. Carol said so much in such a low key way and there was so much of the boat to look at, that I will have to watch the video several times to absorb it all. As mentioned above, great lady, great boat, great story.

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      Eric Blake says:

      This was without a doubt one of those pieces that pretty much nailed everything we are about at Off Center Harbor. Carol is one of those people that will inspire me forever. Gives me goose bumps watching it again.

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    Kirk Gresham says:

    Lovely, lovely, lovely,

    Both Lorraine and Carol. I’ve honored to know both for nearly twenty years and Carol is always that humble, gracious and generous to everyone and everywhere she goes. You’re always treated like her dearest friend, no matter who you are. By the way, the little cutter on the other side of the marina with the tan dodger is my little 16ft. Sam Devlin cutter, “Eider”. Last summer, as I was loading her for a week long cruise ’round Whidbey Island. Carol walked up behind me, asked what I was up to, and when she understood she rumaged around in her car saying, “Oh, I’ve just got to find something here…a little gift for your cruise”, and hand quickly handed me a little yellow dacron bag she’d sewn. That’s classic Carol. my “Eider’s” sails were made by Carol in 1980 and still my only set!

    I love her, and her sweet Lorraine,

    “Captain Kirk” Gresham of “Eider”, Port Townsend, WA

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    Warren A. Wheaton says:

    Carrol Hasse really has it all figured out and says it all so well………what we all feel but can’t express nearly as well. Great boat and a truly great lady! Well done.

    Thanks!

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    Don Slater says:

    Do you have any videos or printed info on dipping and standing lug rigs?

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    Thomas Morgan says:

    Three treasures:
    The woman, the boat, the story.
    Thank you

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    Robert Baird says:

    Great Boat! Simple, thoughtful, and cared for by one who loves what wooden boats bring into our lives; wonderful people, amazing places and a call to traditional craftsmanship. Can’t wait to share this story with my friends and family.

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    Jerry Rose says:

    Hey, What a beautiful video. Carol is a very inspirational person. I don’t think I’ve ever heard someone put why we love good boats with history so simply. Just great!

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    William Boulden says:

    Thank you. This is the stuff that dreams are made of for most and heaven for the few who can.

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    tom bergeron says:

    i don’t remember taking a breath or looking away from the screen during this presentation because it was so full of info on all the gear we all should cary and tale of the evolution to its completeness. there was a disappoingtment at not seeing video of her sailing which might point to the validity of the adage, “leave them wanting more.”
    this is exactily the kind of video that will get me to sign up for another year when the time comes.

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    Steve Stone says:

    I’ve been traveling with Eric for a couple years or so shooting these videos now and rarely, if ever, have I seen him rendered speechless. And speechless from awe, no less. Note that it’s over 5 minutes into the video before Eric raises his chin off the cabin sole, composes himself, and tries to find a relevant word to utter. When Carol finished her tour of Lorraine, Eric and I just turned and looked at each other… both in such awe, and with such respect and gratitude… he finally said: “What the hell just happened?… Did you GET all that?” We’re having such a good time making these videos for members… glad you all are enjoying them as much as we are making them.

    And wait til you see Carol’s sail-making shop, and her walk-through of how Hasse & Company makes sails… coming this winter.

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      Halie Sloat says:

      How is that video of the Sail Loft coming, Steve?! I’m dying to see it!

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    Prescott Powers says:

    Wonderful!

    This is the kind of video that will help me last through the winter until next season on the water. :-)

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