Laverne is an elliptical-sterned racing yole built by John Renton Baikie (1872-1947) in 1932 at No. 2 South End, Stromness, Orkney. The elliptic stern identifies Laverne as a yole built for racing and leisure use rather than as a working yole which were traditionally double-ended.
Although John Renton Baikie grew up in a boat building family in Stromness he spent a lot of his working life as Stromness Burgh Surveyor and Sanitary Inspector. Despite this he was a gifted boat builder and is thought to have built three boats in his spare time, Laverne being one of these boats. Laverne was a very successful racing boat in the 1930-40s often duelling for honours with her arch rival Skua. Rumour has it that at times some unorthodox approaches were employed by the Baikie’s to improve Laverne’s racing performance. It is reputed that the day before a regatta, late at night, noisy activity on the foreshore adjacent to their house was apparent. If the conditions allowed the Baikies would bolt extra weights to the keel of the yole increasing her stiffness (stability) in turn enabling her to carry more sail and therefore sail faster. For this belief, of course, there is no substantial evidence, and it may be based on mere jealousy.
Laverne was raced by the Baikies until the early 1950s when she was acquired by Walter Dunnet of Longhope, South Walls. Laverne continued to be raced very successfully by Walter into the 1960s.
Jackie Grieve (J M F Groat, junior) used to crew with Walter in the regattas in Longhope and he developed a love for the boat, eventually asking Walter if he could buy the Laverne so he could share the racing experience with his family. Walter agreed to sell her, making a pact with Jackie that when he was ready to sell her on she should be sold back to Walter. Walter died during this time but Jackie kept his promise and sold her to back to Walter’s son, Andy, in the late 1970s.
Andy Dunnet took over Laverne and moved her back to Stromness, where he raced her though to the mid-1980s.
After Andy’s death in 2008, Laverne lay in the noust at South End near where she was originally built. Around 2015, Laverne was sold south as a restoration project, and went into storage at Cullen on the Moray Firth. In October 2020, however, she returned to Orkney and is now looked after by the Orkney Historic Boat Society.
Laverne returns to Orkney (October 2020)
