Sailing in the Mediterranean Episode 110 Hugh Morrison s/y Savannah and the Corsica Classic

In this episode. It's my delightful pleasure to interview Hugh Morrison. Hugh Morrison is the owner of the sailing yacht Savanna. Savanna is a classic 90 foot yacht built in 1997, the inspiration for this boat was from the classic J Sloops. Savannah participated in the Corsica classic Regatta this year.

I talk to Hugh about the boat, his experiences sailing and his background. Hugh is a member of the Royal Yacht Squadron, which was founded in 1815 in the Thatched House Tavern in St James’s, London. Today the clubhouse is located in Cowes Castle on the Isle of Wight in the United Kingdom, the club’s patron is Queen Elizabeth II and the club’s Admiral is Prince Philip.

The sailing yacht Savanna has its own website http://www.sysavannah.com/

I'm going to take some information from the website and place it below.

In 1995, an American yachtsman hired Elizabeth Meyer’s J Class management to help him create a modern classic. He was inspired by the J Class sloops, William Fife and a number of other beautiful old yachts, but wanted a boat under 100' long. J Class selected Pedrick Yacht Designs in Newport, Rhode Island for hull and rig design, and John Munford Design in Southampton, England for interior styling. J Class, Pedrick, and Munford worked as a team to create Savannah. The result is a strikingly beautiful yacht that represents the paragon of 20th Century yacht design.

Shortly after her launch in 1997 Savannah was awarded ‘Best Sailing Yacht’ by both Showboats International and the Super Yacht Society. Savannah has sailed and triumphed in many regattas around the world.

In the words of her designer

“Savannah’s long overhangs and high freeboard were inspired by the magnificent racing yachts of the 1930s. Her flush deck is accented by varnished teak skylights and coamings. Her beauty carries through a luxurious interior, with finely detailed, panelled mahogany joinery centred on a large and well-appointed saloon. With extensive day sailing and racing planned, there are staterooms for the owner, one guest couple and crew. Below the waterline, Savannah has an efficient cruising hullform, deep Pedrick Whale-Tail fin keel, and separate rudder. Engineered to last more than a century, her construction uses carbon fibre, Kevlar and PVC foam to be relatively lightweight but extremely robust. The tall, fractional rig, also in carbon fibre, drives Savannah to exhilarating speeds. In her creation, Pedrick has embodied the finest of classic style with the best of modern engineering and performance design.”

I was introduced to Hugh Morrison by Sir Nigel Southward who I met while sailing in Italy and Croatia. several years ago. When I met Nigel. He was flying a white British Ensign. This is the first British boat that I had seen flying this Ensign so he educated me on the three different British ensigns. The only yacht club in Britain, which is allowed to fly the white Ensign is the Royal yacht squadron. Some information on the ensigns below. It was taken from Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_ensign

White

Today's white ensign, as used by Royal Navy ships, incorporates the St George's Cross (St George's Ensign). British yachts owned by members of the Royal Yacht Squadron are authorised to apply for a permit to wear this ensign. Defaced white ensigns include that of the British Antarctic Territory.

Blue