Harman Hawkins Trophy
The Harman Hawkins Trophy is awarded yearly (the first award was presented at the 2005 Spring Meeting in Newport, RI) to an individual who has made outstanding contributions to the sport of sailing in the field of Race Administration (Judging, Race Management, Appeals and Racing Rules). Selection of the recipient will be made by the Race Administration Committee from nominees sought by the Judges, Race Management, Appeals and Racing Rules committees. Nominations are open from January 1 through September 1. Submit a nominee.
About Harman Hawkins (1919-2002)
2010 Harman Hawkins Award
Arthur "Tuna" Wullschleger
Born and raised in Larchmont, New York, Arthur Wullschleger, who became known to all who raced and sailed with him as “Tuna”, grew up sailing on Long Island Sound, learning to love sailing at Larchmont Yacht Club, where he eventually became Commodore. As a young man, he spent his summers in a French speaking Canton of Switzerland with family, where he became fluent in French. He attended College at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY studying engineering. During his college years, his passion was racing outboard powered hydroplane class boats. This series was held in many geographic areas of the US, and Tuna pioneered a system whereby he maintained a centrally based engine shop in Kansas City, MO, where his outboard motors were rebuilt, tuned and maintained, This innovation in logistics allowed him to exchange engines that were race worn for a fresh motor on the way to the next event simply by detouring there en route to the next racing venue. He became very successful on the circuit, eventually winning multiple class championships with this system, including the U. S. Amateur Championship in 1938.
After receiving his degree, at the outbreak of World War II, Tuna enlisted in the US Navy where as a young officer, his knack for this type of organization and insight for staging and logistics was recognized in the fleet and he was assigned to be part of an advance team that would travel throughout the Pacific. Starting in Alaska where the Japanese were very intent on gaining a foothold in this territory, the team would establish defensible bases which were then supplied with fuel and ammo or even made into strategic forward airstrips that helped thwart this invasion attempt. Eventually, Tuna concluded the war period doing this throughout the Pacific as US Marines recaptured island territory. In September 1945, he was present, as an aide to the senior naval officer, when the Imperial Japanese Navy surrendered their naval base at Ominato.
After the war, Tuna returned to Larchmont and spent a successful career running the family textile business. There he formed an association with Colin Ratsey that would lead to many well known ocean racing boats named Golliwog, beginning with a sister ship to Finnisterre and finishing with a well known series of C&C Yachts to his final Peterson Three tonner. His racing career took him to many places and included numerous Bermuda Races, Transatlantic races, Skaw Races to Scandinavia, Cowes Weeks and Fastnet Races. This was in the heyday of Offshore racing which has spanned the Offshore Grand Prix Races we still hold today. Along with this pursuit, Tuna was a founding member of the Storm Trysail Club and was instrumental in organizing their biannual Block Island Race Week. After serving as Commodore of the STC, Tuna was a key figure as well in the America’s Cup where he participated in several New York Yacht Club Defender syndicates in the 70’s and on into the 80’s where he led their America II Syndicate to Perth Australia in an attempt to win back the America’s Cup from the Australians.
During these years, Tuna developed a passion for judging and upon his return from Australia, became active in both the maxi Circuit as well as the Fifties series where he was a fixture in overseeing the jury at all of their events as Chief Judge. Not content with protests and hearings as the most efficient way of resolving boat on boat issues for America’s Cup type match racing, Tuna was a part of the original group which included ISAF president Goran Petersson, and Tom Ehman who pioneered the concept of on the water umpiring in Newport, RI at the 1987 Maxi Series and used initially at the 1988 Congressional Cup. This system has developed into what we now regularly see at umpired match and Team Races internationally.
Although he has retired from umpiring, Tuna continues to judge actively to this date, participating annually in Key West Race Week, the Etchells Jaguar Series, the International Rolex Regatta, Antigua Race Week and the Newport Bermuda Race, to name just a few of his favorite events.
Among the awards Tuna has received, the races he has sailed and the clubs he has contributed to are the following:
• Awarded the Nathanael Herreshoff Trophy in 1998
• Awarded ISAF's Gold Medal in 1998
• Raced Interclub frostbite dinghies for 35 years at the Larchmont Yacht Club
• Sailed six transatlantic races, two as skipper and navigator, at least 4 Cowes Weeks, 5 Fastnet races, 2 as skipper and navigator, 18 Newport to Bermuda races, 6 as skipper and navigator, and 20 SORCs.
• Storm Trysail Club, past Commodore
• Larchmont YC since 1948, past Commodore, and now Honorary member
• New York Yacht Club
• Cruising Club of America
• Royal Ocean Racing Club
Tuna currently resides in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, is active as a member and judge at the Lauderdale Yacht Club and recently attended a US Sailing Judges workshop where he led a roundtable discussion on Arbitration, one of his favorite duties at most regattas.
The Trophy is named after Harman Hawkins (1919-2002), whose extraordinary involvement in sailing and numerous chairmanships of the Appeals, Judges, and Legal Committees brought him many honors and awards, including US SAILING's prestigious Nathanael G. Herreshoff Trophy. In his lifetime, Hawkins served as a President of US SAILING, Commodore of Manhasset Bay Yacht Club and Storm Trysail Club and President of the Yacht Racing Association of Long Island Sound.
Harman Hawkins (1919-2002)
Harman Hawkins (1919-2002) was a past president of the United States Yacht Racing Union (now United States Sailing Association), a commodore of Manhasset Bay Yacht Club, a president of the YRA of Long Island Sound, and a commodore of the Storm Trysail Club. His extraordinary involvement in sailing and his numerous chairmanships of the Appeals, Judges and Legal Committees brought him many honors and awards including the Nathanael H. Herreshoff Trophy, US SAILING's highest award. It is most fitting that this award be named after Harman, a man that gave back so much to the sport he loved.
First USYRU Committee on Judges
Harman Hawkins, Chairman
Mark H. Baxter
Jack H. Feller, Jr.
Evans M. Harrell
George I. Rockwood, Jr.
Richard M. Rose
Glenn V. Russell
Frank R. Shumway, Jr.
Ronald L. Ward
The following comments were made by the Race Administration Chair, Jim Capron, for the initial presentation of the Harman Hawkins Trophy to Ron Ward, of Annapolis Maryland, at the Spring Meeting in Newport, RI, April 2, 2005.
The Mystic Seaport Museum remembers Harman Hawkins as the "consummate yachtsman". Many of you may remember Harman as a past president of the United States Yacht Racing Union in the early 1980's (from 1980 to 1982) before the USYRU changed its name to US SAILING. I remember Harman from the first time I met him. Mary Savage invited me to judge at Shelter Island with the "venerable" one. Venerable indeed.
Harman Hawkins was an active sailor, cruising with his family all over the world, and competing in one designs and offshore events, including 8 Bermuda races and 3 Halifax races. Harman lent his professional skills as a legal advisor to several Americas Cup syndicates and to various yacht clubs running the Cup around the world.
But it was Harman's extraordinary contributions to the sport in the area of race administration that is our focus tonight.
- Member of the IYRU Board of Review, Racing Rules, and Constitution Committees
- Chairman of the USYRU Racing Rules and Appeals Committees
- Chairman of the first USYRU Judges Committee
- International Judge, at the Olympic Regatta in Korea, Admirals Cup,Congressional Cup, numerous other International events around the world
- Harman was the recipient of our own Herreshoff Award and received ISAF's Silver Medal for service to the sport
Last year, Harman's family, his wife Janet and sons Christopher and Jonathan, donated a beautiful trophy in Harman's name, in honor of his huge contribution to the sport. The Harman Hawkins Trophy is presented to an individual who has made outstanding contributions to the sport of sailing in the field of Race Administration - Judging, Race Management, Appeals and the Racing Rules.
A few words about how we decide the winner -
"The US SAILING Race Administration Committee - the committee that coordinates the appeals, judges, race officers and racing rules committees - selects the winner of the Harman Hawkins Trophy. Throughout the year, we receive nominations from US SAILING members. The Race Administration Committee then appoints a working party of experienced racers and race officials from around the country to pick the most deserving nominee.
This year, we asked Mary Savage, a US SAILING and International Judge from Larchmont, NY and a long time friend of the Hawkins family, to chair the selection working party, which also included Ann Newton from Florida and Tom Lewick from California. After reviewing the nominations, the working party recommendation was unanimous, and it was particularly fitting that they selected a person who worked alongside Harman on the first USYRU Committee on Judges." - Jim Capron, Newport, RI, April 2, 2005