22
SVN Solovelanet Global
James Wharram
S a i l o r s
O
n September 27th, 65 years ago, Ja-
mes Wharram set sail from Falmouth
in Cornwall aboard Tangaroa, a self-
built 23-foot double canoe, what to-
day would be called a catamaran. His
destination was Trinidad, across the ocean.The
crew consisted of two German young women, age
23 and 17 (plus a child born during the voyage).
Wharram wanted to prove to the world that a ca-
tamaran was a boat suitable for tackling the ocean
with confidence, and succeeded. Having reached
his destination, he dedicated himself to building
another catamaran, a 40-foot with V-shaped hulls,
which he named Rongo, receiving the help of
many sailors, including one Bernard Moitessier. He
sailed to New York, and from there he returned to
Europe on August 18th, 1959. Rongo was the first
catamaran to brave the North Atlantic storms on a
west to east route, proving that not only a catama
-
ran could cross the ocean, it could do so against
the wind.
These two voyages turned the young engine-
er into a catamaran builder. Today, after more
than 65 years, Wharram continues to work, and
in his 50 years, his company has sold thousands
of projects. We interviewed him while his latest
project, the Mana 24, was being introduced.
Sixty-five years ago he set
sail on a self-built wooden
catamaran with two German
girls. From that moment on,
he will dedicate his life to
self-built catamarans and sell
them all over the world
di
Luca
Da
Damos
The Mana
24, the
replica
of the
historic
Tangaroa
