Adorable Story #1: Racing with Ondine
From French Folklore to Ocean Races and Haute Cuisine
Racing with Ondine
Charles Masson (right), proprietor of New York restaurant La Grenouille, prepares a meal on the deck of the yacht 'Ondine', owned by Sumner Long (centre), Bermuda, June 1970. That year, Masson was the yacht's official cook for the biennial Newport to Bermuda race.
Ondine
Ondine was built in 1967 for one of the most revered racers of his time, Sumner “Huey” Long. She was an all-aluminum Abeking & Rasmussen go-fast that was built to win offshore races against the world’s best.
In French folklore, Ondine was a water goddess and nymph of legendary beauty who, betrayed by her unfaithful husband, Palemon, placed a curse on him, allowing him to breathe only so long as he was awake. He never slept again.
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Mr Sumner Long
Creating a succession of hi-tech racing sailboats named "Ondine", and spanning the decades from the 1960s to the 1990s, Mr. Long won every major ocean race in the world, including the Transatlantic Race on four occasions (a record), the Bermuda Race (establishing a course record), the Sydney-Hobart Race (establishing a course record), the Fastnet Race, and the Buenos Aires-Rio Race (also establishing a course record).
We can see a glimpse of Ondine in 1962 in the quick video below:
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Ondine II was the first all-aluminum ocean racer ever built. A 57-foot yawl designed by Bill Tripp, she went on to win races against much larger opponents, sometimes due to clever innovations by Mr. Long.
One of these, an ultra-heavy spinnaker, almost caused a mutiny when in a 50-knot Atlantic gale, Mr. Long fought with his crew to get it raised, earning him the title of “a modern day Captain Bligh” by Sports Illustrated.
A subsequent yacht, Ondine VII was designed, somewhat ironically, by a first cousin of Ernesto Che Guevara named German Frers, a renowned designer from Brazil. That yacht won the first Maxi Yacht World Championship in 1985, held at Newport, Rhode Island. In that event, Ondine VII was victorious in the first on-the-water protest hearing ever held, a practice that is now standard in world-class match racing events.
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Mr. Long helped boost the careers of many aspiring world-class skippers who crewed for him, including Ted Turner, who went on to win the America’s Cup in 1977 aboard “Courageous”, Bill Koch, the brother of David and Charles Koch, who won the Cup in 1992, and Mr. Long’s son Russell, who, under his father’s guidance, introduced corporate sponsorship to Cup competition and became the youngest American skipper in Cup history.
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Long, the son of Lithuanian immigrants, was raised in Boston, where his family started a jewelry business. He graduated from Brookline High School, received an appointment to the Annapolis Naval Academy, and after serving as acting chief officer on a merchant marine vessel in World War II, received degrees from Kings Point Merchant Marine Academy and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
This led to a career in shipping and ultimately established Mr. Long as one of the most successful tanker brokers in the world. Among his clients and friends were Aristotle Onassis and many other prominent ship owners.
Mr. Long, who also had a reputation as something of a bon vivant, would often entertain celebrity guests on his yachts, some of whom crewed for him in major ocean races.
These included HRH King Harald of Norway (who was addressed by the crew as “Harry the Hat” for the wide brims he wore to protect his pale skin), HRH King Olav of Norway, HRH Prince Albert II of Monaco, HRH King Juan Carlos of Spain, the Aga Khan, Teddy Kennedy Sr. and Jr., and beauty queens such as Miss Australia and Miss Sweden.
Mr. Long’s last boat, a 105-footer named Ondine VIII, built in 1988, was considered at the time one of the world’s most elegant sailing yachts, was co-owned with Charles Evans, founder of Evans-Piccone and the producer of Academy Award winning film, Tootsie.
One more thing…
La Grenouille in New York
In 1970, Charles Masson Sr. — the proprietor of New York restaurant La Grenouille — was the official cook aboard Ondine for the biennial Newport to Bermuda race.
The restaurant was founded in 1962 by Charles Masson, Sr. and his wife Gisèle. After the passing of Charles Sr. in 1975, Gisele continued to manage the restaurant until 2010. Charles Jr. assisted Gisele with her management duties from 1975 until 1994, when Charles Jr. left the restaurant. La Grenouille is currently operated by Philippe Masson, and has been since 2014.
La Grenouille is the last operating New York French haute cuisine restaurant from the 1960s, having outlasted other well-known French restaurants like Lutèce, which closed in 2004.