Musing from long time sea sprite owner and SSA member Dick Rath:
I’ve just paid my 2021 dues and am happy to be back aboard. I sold my last Sea Sprite 23 about 4 or 5 years ago and realized just recently how much I missed the little jewel that I fully restored and had so many delightful days sailing the waters of the Indian River Lagoon and exploring the many small island an creek that are part of the Indian River here on the middle east coast of Florida in the Vero Beach / Sebastian area.
While my email address has not changed since I was last a member, my address has; it is now: Dick Rath 1145 West Lakeview Drive Sebastian, FL 32958
The 23 that I sold was purchased from Jim Krogen, CEO of Kadey Krogen Yachts. The builder of the magnificent Kadey Krogen Trawlers amongst many other sailing and power vessels. I knew Jim from my 35 year career as Director of Sales for Lewmar ( as well as Barient when we purchased the company in a deal that included Barlow, the Australian winch maker. I retired from the marine industry in 2003. The 23 that I bought from Jim attracted me because he had replaced it’s original straight mast with its jumpers with a beautiful custom built tapered mast which truly added to the boats performance going to weather. Jim, who was rarely in the states since his operation was in Costa Rico, kept a condo in North Miami and made a point of being home so he could participate in the incredible social and sailing event known as the Columbus Day Regatta on Biscayne Bay – usually attracting between 350 and 400 sailboats racing down the Bay to Elliot Key and an evening of partying, drinking, and debauchery. Beyond that, the little Sea Sprite sat at his dock at his Condo awaiting another go at the C.D. Regatta.
I finally sold the boat to a new-to-sailing young fellow who had it trailered up to New York and was to keep in on mooring on Flushing Bay in Queens, NY. The 23 I had prior to this one was sold to a New Englander who planned on keeping her in Fort Meyers, Florida. He was a marine photographer who specialized in marine advertising. His most memorable photo, for me at least, was one that Hinckley used in their first ad for their “new” 36′ Picnic boat. It showed the boat floating in about 10″ of water off a sandy beach with the owner and his Golden Retriever standing next to the boat and the owner with hisNantucket “reds” roller up to just below his knees. A very effective ad that showed off the Picnic boats extremely shallow draft made possible with the development of new Hamilton Jet Drive.
My other involvement with the Sea Sprite was between 1965 and 1973 when I managed yacht sales for Port Jefferson Maine on Long Island. We were dealers for the Herm Wiss 23 and later for Sailstar/Bristo’sl version of the boat. Later in my career at Lewmar one of my salesman was thinking about buying a little sailboat for round-the-buoy racing in Gardiners Bay and I suggested a 23 would be a perfect choice for him. A week later he visited Clarke Ryder Bristol, RI and ordered a 23 for Spring delivery. He raced the 23 very successfully for a few years with the Shelter Island Yacht Club.
While at Port Jefferson Marine I sold a 23 to an airline pilot who raced it very successfully in the MORC fleet at the Setauket Yacht Club in Port Jefferson. The Pilots name was Holland (Dutch) Redfield who was soon to be come Pan American Airlines Chief Training Pilot and the first commercial pilot to ever fly a Boeing 747 and trained every 747 pilot at PanAM until his retirement. He later was the owner of two more Carl Alberg designs: an Alberg-30 and then an Alberg 37 Yawl, both built in Canada by Whitby Boat Works. He cruised both boat extensively between the Chesapeake, Maine, and Nova Scotia.
Looking forward to being allowed back onto the Sea Sprite website and perhaps being tempted to purchase one of the 23’s listed for sale by fellow member.
Dick RathTime Machines, Ltd.timemachineslimited.com