Malabar X
Named for a spit of land off Monomoy Point, Cape Cod, that disappeared
in the eighteenth century, Malabar was the name given to thirteen
cruising yachts designed by John Alden. The first three of the series,
begun in 1921, were schooners of just under 42 feet in length. Malabar's
four through eight were cruiser-racers of between 47 and 54 feet,
intended to be raced with one paid hand. Number nine was intended
to be sailed with two paid hands. Malabar X , also designed for two
paid hands, was the largest of the Malabar's and the last to be schooner
rigged.
Malabar X placed second in the 1930 Bermuda Race. The 1932 Bermuda
Race—sailed from Montauk, New York, rather than New London,
Connecticut— Malabar came in first in a dramatic finish for
Alden, whose Grenadier, Water Gypsy , and Teragram finished second,
third, and fourth, respectively, on corrected time. Malabar X was
also the third Alden design to win the biennial classic, Malabar IV
having done so in 1923 and Malabar VII in 1926.
In 1933, Alden sold Malabar X to John P. Wilson of Grand Haven, Michigan,
and she remained a fixture on the Great Lakes through the 1940s with
fine showings in top races. In 1951, she was sold to E. Jo Chamberlain
and returned to the East Coast. After a few seasons in the Caribbean,
she was sold to William Lee Pryor III, who moved her to New York in
the 1980's. Alden built three more boats in the Malabar series; Malabar
XI was a yawl, and XII and XIII were ketches.
Doug Hazlitt purchased the Malabar X in 1999, after
she had been severely damaged in hurricane Bob. Doug trucked her from
Long Island to Cayuga Wooden Boat Works, in Ithaca, New York, where
an extensive restoration began. Shipwright and facility owner, Dennis
Montgomery and his crew, spent 2 years-over 20,000 man-hours rebuilding
the historical vessel. The Malabar X was re-launched spring of 2002,
and spent the summer cruising the shores of Seneca Lake.
