The grand matriarch of the Maine Windjammer fleet, the schooner Victory Chimes, will soon have new owners at the helm. Captain Sam Sikkema will be taking over from Captains Kip Files and Paul DeGaeta, who for the last 29 years, have been in command of the only three-masted schooner in the Maine fleet. From a statement by Captain Kip Files:
After 29 years of operating the schooner Victory Chimes, Paul and I have found the right person to take the helm and become her next caretaker.
Sam Sikkema who sailed as mate last Fall has stepped up to be the new face of Victory Chimes. Captain Sikkema has great credentials. He has sailed around the world on a square rigged vessel and has been Captain of a number of large traditional vessels. He is the perfect fit. Captain Sikkema will be taking over the reins of the vessel at the end of the season.
This will be Paul and my last season at the helm.
Although long associated with Maine, the Victory Chimes began her life in the Chesapeake. She was built in 1900 as the Edwin and Maude and carried cargo in the Chesapeake Bay until 1945. She is the last surviving Chesapeake Ram schooner, a flat-bottomed, shallow-draft vessel designed to pass through narrow canal locks. She is also one of only three surviving three-masted schooners in the United States. At 132 feet long, she is the largest vessel in the Maine passenger windjammer fleet. A representation of the Victory Chimes appears on the Maine State quarter.
Our admiration and thanks to Captains Files and DeGaeta for their wonderful stewardship of the classic schooner and best wishes to Captain Sikkema on the voyage ahead.
Congratulations to Sam Sikkema for keeping this marvelous piece of history alive. I clearly remember looking at it in the early 50s and marveling at the idea that a 50 year old wooden ship was still plying the seas and was still so beautiful. Now ,68 years later, and still beautiful, this masterpiece of the days of old will continue sail the seas, keeping us in touch with the better years of long ago.
I wish great success to Sam and know that great success with this venture will be his.
Fair Winds to Sam Sikkema
Congratulations on your new boat. Bigger than Watermelon.
We wish you all the best and have great sails this next season.
Marilyn, Friends Good Will