European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - June 20, 1985, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Focus Crew members raise fore sails on the photos and Story by King Cruger Bureau chief a ship from americas past an apparition from the Days when men went Down to the sea and fought its impersonal fury in sturdy wooden sailing ships is embarked on an 18month voyage of Goodwill to 27 ports in 16 european the ship is the Pride of a 90footlong Han built wooden Schooner launched in 1977 by Maryland biggest City As the recreation of the Baltimore a Clipper Doest really describe a ship As to sail plan or Hull but simply Means the something Akin to formula one Auto racing or to the term Max boat in yacht explained Jan prides 34yearold in the Early he America had Little Protection against pirate and foreign naval lacking a vessel with the size and strength of British americans soon discovered that Speed was the Best insurance their vessels could America employed Baltimore clippers to run enemy blockades and to protect the Low in the fast and these new Clipper ships outta neutered even the most heavily armed and embodied the highest advancement of nautical technology of that during the War of Baltimore clippers were successful in seizing approximately British merchant they served As merchant vessels and Revenue during their As Many As on fifth of Baltimore population invested in these privateers Legal pirates and reaped the financial awards of these the Way Miles tells the need for Baltimore clippers declined during the Era of peace following the War of since their design was not suitable for carrying Large in the 1840s and 1850s their design became the foundation for the larger three masted Baltimore clippers made Way for the Yankee clippers and China clippers which had the strength and the cargo capacity to provide a commercial link Between East and until a couple of weeks when Pride of Baltimore made first land Call at after a transatlantic no Baltimore Clipper had been seen in european Waters for 150 to experience at first hand what life before the Mast is like in this relatively new i joined the ship at Guernsey in the Channel islands and sailed with it for the next several Days before going ashore at i found that Pride is a Blac hulled Beauty that sketches a mighty Cloud of Canvas skyward 95 feet to the tip of its Topmast and for 136 feet from the Point of its Bowsprit along to the end of its Canvas it not Dacron or some other synthetic sail for Pride uses few modern the compact world of Pride with its rows of g the belaying pins is a throwback to the Era of Marlin Spike seamanship and much heaving Aid hauling Are needed to make the ship sail an 5 horsepower diesel engine nicknamed w Iron Topsail and a watertight Bulkhead Forwar modifications required to obtain insurance because of its Low profile and no nonsense business Pride is distinctly Low on creature there is no standing room Lin the Crews quarters and Crew members sleep in curtained bunks arranged around the opener a where they take their besides the Pride is crewed by 1l4ilors eight men and three All of them you professionals who mostly Cut their Teeth Aboa other old fashioned american sailing Crew keep their belongings in sturdy wooden sea since there Are Only enough bunks of any visitors aboard must hot bunk it slipping into a still warm berth that just Bee i vacated by a Crew member going on they say that 155 men served aboard a vessel like Pride during the War of where they put them All is a bit of a although i think the original vessels May have been some 20 feet longer than no one really knows the exact dimensions of the originals since no plans of them Only paintings and said he said that although Pride has a top Speed of 13 or 14 knots and has logged runs of 220 Miles in a it is a relatively slow boat by modern the Crew of sir Winston Britain famed three masted training May beg to differ Pride beat the modern Day vessel during a 21hourlong race from England to the Isle of Wight during my Short visit aboard the lets go for the Miles repeatedly exhorted his Crew during the grueling race that featured tack changes every 10 to 15 minutes for its first eight who once sailed with two other men aboard a 38foot Sailboat on a round trip voyage from the Carrilean to the Falkland Doest believe in stressing prides rather delicate no one really knows just How much punishment the Rig will so we Are always careful not to put on too much sail in High he because of its Low Pride is a wet and during the race against Churchill we frequently took Waves Over the Bow that left much of the decks the person on the Helm has no wheel to steer but instead steers by Means of a Rosewood in Light winds the Tiller can be controlled by hand but most of the time it must be moved by heaving on a line wrapped around a Crew member spends an hour on the Helm at a time and that Long enough on a Windy night since there is no shelter available from the when Pride left Baltimore on March 31 it had Crew members climb the Mast on the Pride of Baltimore Pride making Waves in Europe Captain Miles at the two tiny passengers nip and two Coal Black who were six weeks they Are still aboard and have acquired Fine sea legs in the although it has been noted that when the decks Are awash the two Kittens want no part of life because of quarantine nip and tuck Are confined to quarters aboard Pride while the ship visits its at Tower near the Tower of and will be open to the Public there this before sailing for its next where it will serve As a platform for Independence Day activities during its stay there from july 1 until july Pride Cost to build and its annual running costs Are according to the we get a tremendous return for the Money considering the value of the publicity Pride generates for the Many Baltimore and Maryland firms hire the ship out during its port Calls As an atmospheric Center in which to entertain potential customers and employees on we know that the contacts made aboard have resulted in Multi million Dollar said remaining ports of Call on prides itinerary this year include Copenhagen july Stockholm july Kiel Hamburg France Spain Lisbon 1621 and Spain Pride will have a Winter Layup at Malaga and maintenance work will be done from november until next March when she will set sail on a tour of the prides return to Baltimore is set for some of the Crew members taking a break in the the Clipper docks in 10 stripes Magazine june june stripes Magazine 11