"The Columbia 40's forebear was the ketch Paper Tiger, designed by Charles E. Morgan, Jr. He designed the boat around a reltively novel steel pipe backbone. In 1961 Paper Tiger won the Southern Ocean Racing Circuit (SORC) and she did it again in 1962. Morgan then improved on the design and created Sabre, the boat that became the prototype for the Columbia 40.
Paper Tiger has recently resurfaced (2004). Sharon and Phil Strenger have owned her since the late 1960s and keep her in Coral Bay, somewhere in the Carribbean.
And now Sabre has been found (2005). Dick Dungan, the original owner, found her last year, purchased her and has begun a refit.
The following is from a Columbia brochure:
The Columbia 40, designed by Charles E. Morgan, Jr. after his famous Sabre is one of the most successful racer-cruisers. A real yacht designed to go to sea in comfort while giving top performance. Her 1966 Miami-Naussa win in the Southern Ocean Racing Circuit attests to her outstanding performance as does her 2nd, 3rd, and 5th in the over-all standings in Class C. She has several unusual features including a steel backbone for additional strength. Centerboard is hydraulically controlled from cockpit. Below there are berths for 7, enclosed head, unique navigator's table and a complete galley. 30 HP Universal Atomic 4 is standard equipment. Her C.C.A. rating is approximately 26.0.
The Columbia 40 may be the only model that used a steel skeleton to reinforce her hull and - more importantly - spread the load of the shrouds. Here is Columbia's explanation from the Columbia News, Spring, 1965.
According to John Broughton's notes, there were 55 C40s were built between 1964 to 1969. It is entirely possible that Sabre is included in the count so hull #54 would be the last one built.
Mark Cole, owner of Echo, C-40 #54 writes:"
