Sorona

The 20th boat in the fleet, Sorona, was one of the first masthead-rigged boats and was commissioned by J.E Maxwell (Teddy), of Bangor, in 1963. His previous boat was the 'cruiserfied' 31ft Belfast Lough Star Class 'Corona'. This boat was wrecked from it's moorings in a nor'easter, hence the new boat and name. Sorona's finished price was £3,000, enough to buy a three bedroom semi-detached house in Bangor at the time.

Ed Wheeler (Vice Commodore of RUYC) writes: “My uncle Teddy joined the RN as a rating on the outbreak of war. He was bombed out of his ship and then commissioned on foot of his prewar hobby of radio amateur (Ham). He spent the rest of the war in radar research and training. It stood him in good stead, for he got a lectureship in electronics in Belfast Tech, where he spent the rest of his working life. He built one of the first TVs in Bangor in 1951/52 in his radio shack in our barn. We all lived together in an old Georgian house. The TV is preserved in the tech museum”

Construction & First Launch

List Of Owners

Teddy Maxwell: 1963 - 1974

During the Maxwell years, Sorona was sailed exclusively in the waters of the North Coast and Belfast Lough. The corresponding photo (left to right) shows Peggy Wheeler (nee Maxwell) along with Dennis Wheeler and Teddy Maxwell.

A copy of the first Lloyds Registry entry from 1964

Lucy Maxwell sitting on Sorona's forward hatch whilst under passage

To play, press and hold the enter key. To stop, release the enter key.

Charles O'Rourke: 1974 - 1979

Charles purchased Sorona from Teddy Maxwell in 1974. He writes:

“I purchased Sorona in the early 1970s up north while she was on the hard. I underestimated the level of work required in looking after a wooden boat but I had two young sons at the time who I got to do most of the varnishing and maintenance. She gleamed every year when being launched. I kept her on a mooring here in Dun Laoghaire at the National Yacht Club, where I am still a member. I sold her to a gentleman from Co. Meath but I’m afraid I don’t remember his name. My memory is a little fuzzy as I am currently ninety-two. I was very surprised to hear about the boat after all this time as I was told that she was sunk in the Irish Sea shortly after I sold her.”

Brian Bassett: 1979-1987

Little is known about the Bassett Family's ownership of Sorona, other than her owner Brian (of Ashbourne, Co. Meath) was a member of Skerries Sailing Club. He kept the boat on a mooring in the harbour just off the club. In his later years, he owned a Lochan and kept it at Poolbeg Yacht Club on the Liffey, Dublin. The corresponding photo is the family onboard circa 1979.

Geoffrey & Ken Wilde + Kevin Coogan: 1987-2008

Sorona was purchased by two brothers, Geoff and Ken Wilde alongside Kevin Coogan, from Skerries Sailing Club. They kept the boat on a swinging mooring on the Boyne, and was registered to the now closed, Boyne Yacht Club. Sorona was sailed regularly on trips up and down the coast to Clogherhead and Carlingford, and further afield to places such as Isle of Man and Portpatrick in Scotland. Sorona last came out of the water in 1993 and sat behind the family home in Collon, until 2008 when she was sold to a family friend Eanan O’Doherty.

The Wilde Family

Stepping The Mast

Game of cards anyone?

Sorona & Seaquester Circa 1989

Sprung A Leak!

Last Lift Out 1993

2005

Eanan O'Doherty: 2008-2015

Eanan purchased Sorona in 2008 with some friends as a quick restoration project but found the project too much to take on. This paired with a fallout amongst the group meant that no work was done on the boat during their ownership.

Gerry Brennan: 2015-2024

Gerry Brennan purchased Sorona in 2015 from Eanan and had the intentions of restoring her. Gerry was the head of the Silvery Light Sailing charity. No work was ever completed during these years. During this time, Sorona lay abandoned in Greenbank Industrial Estate, Newry and subsequently had her fittings stolen and was used as a fly-tip for old car tyres

Colla McParland: 2024-Present

“I found the boat in July 2024 and purchased it from Gerry Brennan in October, the week of my twenty-fifth birthday no less. I first saw Sorona when my family's demolition company went to take down a burnt warehouse in an industrial estate beside where we live. The boat was sitting on its trailer against the gable wall of one of the torched buildings. Astonishingly, the boat was the only thing on site completely untouched by the fire, and it's also amazing that the crumbling brick wall didn't fall on top of it either. We moved the boat from the immediate danger and after a few of months of searching for the owner, I done a deal with him for the boat and trailer including an aluminium mast (saying as the original wooden mast was long gone)...

With the paperwork sorted, the boat came home, and I could finally get started on the work. Sorona was in a sorry state, the boat had lay outside for almost ten years at this point and was used as a rubbish tip. However, I have the feeling that I bought a diamond in the rough as it turns out that the keel, frames and hull planks are all solid. The only rot existing in the coach roof and the coach roof beams (which will have to be completely replaced). After a day of cleaning, I found the boat's interior to be entirely intact and in very good condition along with the original cushions, which can be used as a template for new upholstery. Cold war nav equipment aside, Sorona came with a hand crank Volvo Penta MD2B Diesel, which I plan on replacing with a twin cylinder Beta B14 with a three-blade prop. I am working towards the goal of doing my yachtmaster offshore and the timing of finding and purchasing this boat was serendipitous. I was growing frustrated of relying on expensive milebuilders and courses to try and get experience.

Now, with the boat tucked away in its own shed, I have the motivation and resources to get this project finished."