Richard bertram
Encyclopedia
Richard Howard "Dick" Bertram (4 February 1916 – 28 April 2000) was a champion sailor on powerboats and racing yachts and a leading boat builder and broker.. Born in East Orange, New Jersey, Bertram learned to sail at a young age with his parents on the waters of Barnegat Bay
. He owned his first boat at age 8, sailed in his first race at age 10 and was skipper of intercollegiate championship boats while attending Cornell University
. After college, Bertram continued competing in numerous races throughout the world and was notably referred to by Sports Illustrated
as "one of the finest ocean racers anywhere". In 1947, Bertram relocated to Miami, FL, where he opened Richard Bertram & Company, a successful yacht brokerage firm. Among his clients were Aristotle Onassis
, the Aga Khan
, King Hussein of Jordan and Prince Bertil of Sweden
. With his yacht brokerage business successful, Bertram continued racing and set standards in the World Offshore Powerboat circuit. Often, he raced in his own 31' Bertram Lucky Moppie. He founded Bertram Yacht, a Miami-based manufacturer of production pleasure boats, in 1960. Bertram Yacht began the first large production runs of boats with C. Raymond Hunt's revolutionary deep-V hull design.
Barnegat Bay
Barnegat Bay is a small brackish arm of the Atlantic Ocean, approximately 30 miles long, along the coast of Ocean County, New Jersey in the United States. It is a long barrier peninsula, as well as by the north end of Long Beach Island...
. He owned his first boat at age 8, sailed in his first race at age 10 and was skipper of intercollegiate championship boats while attending Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
. After college, Bertram continued competing in numerous races throughout the world and was notably referred to by Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
as "one of the finest ocean racers anywhere". In 1947, Bertram relocated to Miami, FL, where he opened Richard Bertram & Company, a successful yacht brokerage firm. Among his clients were Aristotle Onassis
Aristotle Onassis
Aristotle Sokratis Onassis , commonly called Ari or Aristo Onassis, was a prominent Greek shipping magnate.- Early life :Onassis was born in Karatass, a suburb of Smyrna to Socrates and Penelope Onassis...
, the Aga Khan
Aga Khan
Aga Khan is the hereditary title of the Imam of the largest branch of the Ismā'īlī followers of the Shī‘a faith. They affirm the Imamat of the descendants of Ismail ibn Jafar, eldest son of Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq, while the larger Twelver branch of Shi`ism follows Ismail's younger brother Musa...
, King Hussein of Jordan and Prince Bertil of Sweden
Prince Bertil, Duke of Halland
Prince Bertil of Sweden , Duke of Halland, was the third son of King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden and his first wife, Princess Margaret of Connaught.The prince was born at Stockholm...
. With his yacht brokerage business successful, Bertram continued racing and set standards in the World Offshore Powerboat circuit. Often, he raced in his own 31' Bertram Lucky Moppie. He founded Bertram Yacht, a Miami-based manufacturer of production pleasure boats, in 1960. Bertram Yacht began the first large production runs of boats with C. Raymond Hunt's revolutionary deep-V hull design.
Races
- Lightning World 1948, Champion
- Lightning World 1949, Champion
- Southern Ocean Racing Conference 1949, Champion Tiny Teal
- Southern Ocean Racing Conference 1950, Champion Ticonderoga
- Southern Ocean Racing Conference 1951, Champion Belle of the West
- Havana-San Sebastian Transatlantic Race 1951, Champion Malabar XIII
- Cat Cay Race 1955, Champion Finisterre
- Newport - Bermuda Race (Bermuda RaceBermuda RaceThe Bermuda Race, or Newport Bermuda Race, is a biennial yacht race from Newport, Rhode Island to the island of Bermuda, a distance of 635 nautical miles across open ocean. The first Bermuda Race started in 1906 from Gravesend Bay, N.Y. with three entries. The race was held several times in the...
) 1956, Champion Finisterre - Miami-Nassau Race 1956, Champion Doodles II
- Miami-Nassau Race 1957, Champion Doodles III
- Newport - Bermuda Race (Bermuda RaceBermuda RaceThe Bermuda Race, or Newport Bermuda Race, is a biennial yacht race from Newport, Rhode Island to the island of Bermuda, a distance of 635 nautical miles across open ocean. The first Bermuda Race started in 1906 from Gravesend Bay, N.Y. with three entries. The race was held several times in the...
) 1958, Champion Finisterre - America’s Cup 1958 Vim
- Newport - Bermuda Race (Bermuda RaceBermuda RaceThe Bermuda Race, or Newport Bermuda Race, is a biennial yacht race from Newport, Rhode Island to the island of Bermuda, a distance of 635 nautical miles across open ocean. The first Bermuda Race started in 1906 from Gravesend Bay, N.Y. with three entries. The race was held several times in the...
) 1960, Champion Finisterre - Miami-Nassau Race 1960 Champion Lucky Moppie
- Miami-Nassau Race 1961, Champion Lucky Moppie
- Miami-Nassau Race 1962, Champion Lucky Moppie
- Miami-Nassau Race 1963, Champion Lucky Moppie
- Miami-Nassau Race 1964, Second Place Lucky Moppie
- Cowes Torquay Race 1965
- Transatlantic Race Malabar VII
- Transatlantic Race Ondinne
Awards
- World Champion of Offshore Boat Racing 1965
- NMMA (National Marine Manufacturers Association) 2007 Hall of Fame Inductee
- Barnegat Bay Sailing Hall of Fame 2008 Inductee
Further reading
- Bertram, Kate and Richard Bertram. Caribbean Cruise. A story of their voyage from New York to the West Indies and their five years in the tropics. W.W. Norton 1948.