Tuna and Stork relaxing in Antigua.

The first time I ran across Arthur “Tuna” Wullschleger was at the Heineken Regatta in Puerto Rico. This would have been in the early 90’s and Tuna was the chief judge. He had the look of a grumpy old man and the reputation of putting up with no nonsense. There was no way I wanted to face him in the jury room. As the years have passed, our paths have crossed numerous times and I now know that although Tuna, given the right set of circumstances, can be a grumpy old man, he also is charming, witty, gracious and an incredible specimen for his eighty five years.

While sharing race committee duties with Diana “Stork”, Tuna’s wife of 42 years, I asked permission to interview the two of them. Without any hesitation, Stork agreed. She is as gracious as Tuna and never appears to be grumpy. She has helped numerous committees with race management providing a calming influence with a smile and a wonderful sense of humor.

Through most of their lives, Stork and Tuna have shared their love of the sea, sailing and the people who make it fun. Stork began sailing in her teens. As she explains it, all of her friends in the Long Island community of Larchmont sailed and many had their own boats. It was through the sport that she and Tuna met. At the time, Stork was making herself available to crew on the weekends for the Frost Bite Dinghy Fleet. Tuna called out, “Hey you, do you want to crew this weekend.” According to Stork, and verified by Tuna, he thought she was someone else but he was then committed to the weekend. One thing led to another and a few months later, Tuna decided to make a major life style change and marry Stork.

Tuna’s entree into the world of boat racing did not start with sailing. He originally was involved in the intercollegiate sport of outboard racing. At the height of his outboard racing career, Tuna was considered the top amateur and had four hulls and twelve motors. He traveled across the country racing and maintaining a machine shop in Kansas City. At the time, a number of universities including, Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Cornell, University of Tulsa, Williams and University of Michigan all supported teams. After World War II, the powerboat racing class died and was never revived and thus began Tuna’s sailing career at the Larchmont Yacht Club competing in the Frostbite Dinghies series. He sailed the one designs in the winter and big boats in the summer.

It was the through Frostbite Dinghy sailing that Arthur became known as “Tuna”. According to Stork, Arthur used to complain constantly that it was too cold to race and he wasn’t going out. He always went out but the nickname “Tuna, Chicken of the Sea” stuck. Tuna is not the only one with a nickname. It was one of the children who christened Diana after a skiing injury to her ankle. She was standing in the kitchen on one slender leg when one of the kid’s remarked, “Mom looks like a bird.” Another piped up, “Yah, just like a stork”. Tuna, as well as many others, still refers to Diana as Stork.

It was in 1967 that Tuna and Stork took delivery in Denmark of a Sparkman and Stevens custom 48’ yawl. The boat was double planked varnished wood and a beauty, built to withstand the sea and last forever. They sailed the boat from Denmark to England. While cruising around England, they happened to cross paths with Prince Philip. Having been instructed that proper etiquette dictated that they not to speak to the prince unless spoken to, it was the prince who opened the conversation with, “Elske is the most beautiful yacht that I have ever seen.” Stork and Tuna raced the boat for a number of years but the truth was that although it was a stunner to look at, it was not fast. Stork remembers the Bermuda race of 1972 when many of the boats ended up in Bermuda damaged. Elske sustained no damage but finished the race with the remains of mash potatoes and beef stuck to the ceiling of the main saloon. As the food was good and the crew hungry, the dinner was scraped off and consumed with enthusiasm. Several years later Tuna bought a true racing boat followed by several more. He did quite well and on a number of occasions, while he raced one of his “racing machines”, Stork competed in Elske. They were teased about having “His and Hers” racers. As Stork tells it, Tuna must have been insufferable as he won many regattas and she struggled to move her beautiful beast around the racecourse. There was only one race in which Stork won her class and she made sure that Tuna gave both her and her yacht the respect they deserved.

It was not until the early 1970’s that the Wullschleger’s moved into race management and it all started in the Caribbean at Antigua Sailing Week and then St. Thomas Rolex Regatta. The pair had been constant features at these regattas for years and have, a number of years ago, celebrated their twenty fifth anniversary with Antigua Sailing Week. Stork has continued to work in the area of race management while Tuna has moved from race management to judging. Years ago he was asked to serve on a jury and this required him to, as Stork tells it, memorize the rulebook. Tuna has been involved with juries for a long time and has developed an incredible wealth of experience, routinely applying he own brand of common sense. His no nonsense approach, paired with the “Grumpy Old Man” persona he chooses to portray when the situations calls for it, may keep some frivolous protests out of the jury room.

Tuna is a graduate of Cornell University School of Engineering and has a very practical approach to problem solving. He says that the only course he ever failed was Logic and that was because it was too rule-bound. So, although Tuna may have memorized the rulebook, he has little patience for those who are nit picky about its interpretation. “You need both sides of the story and to apply a prudent businessman’s approach rather than a pedantic approach.”

Since 1980, Tuna and Stork have been involved with a number of America’s Cup Challenges. It started when Ted Turner used their 53’Hatteras Sports Fish as a mothership. When he was eliminated, the Australian syndicate led by skipper Jim Hardy approached Arthur. Their mothership was a maintenance nightmare and the Austrailians needed something more reliable. For $1.00 US, Tuna chartered Fire III with the stipulation that he and Stork become part of the Australian contingent.

Tuna with the flag for the Le Mans workboat start in Grenada.

Through the years, Tuna has given an incredible amount of time, energy and financial support to the sport of sailing. His contributions have not gone unnoticed. Gary Jobson describes him as, “One of the best judges in the world and the secret behind the resurgence of the SORC (Southern Ocean Racing Circuit).” When asked about this Tuna explains that the death of the “Circuit” was a result of a format that had not changed when the times had changed. The races were too long and too spread out to be logistically and financially practical for all but a few. With a new format, SORC was given a second change.

In October 1998 Tuna received the Nathanael G. Herreshoff Trophy. This is US SAILINGS most prestigious award and is given annually to an individual that has made an outstanding contribution to the sport of sailing. Also in 1998, he was awarded ISAF Silver Medal, which is awarded to individuals who have contributed to the success of the Federation in a significant way or have served on ISAF Committees for a very long time. That same year ISAF also awarded Tuna their Gold Medal. This award is reserved for those individuals deemed to have made a significant contribution to the work of the Federation and who have contributed to the development of the Federation in a remarkable way.

When asked what he was most proud of, Tuna’s reply did not refer to one of his many recognized contributions in the world of sailing. Instead, he shared, “The day my old man handed the family business to me (1953) and then again, the day I handed the business to my oldest kids (1987).” The family business was a Swiss company involved in the dying, printing and finishing of textiles. Tuna ran the business from 1953 until 1984 when he left for Australia to work with the America’s Cup campaign. In 1987, when he returned, “The kids had done such a good job running the company, I turned it over to them.” Eleven years later, the company was later sold for cash.

1998 was a big year for Tuna. The family business was sold at a healthy profit and he was the recipient of prestigious awards from both ISAF and U S Sailing. It was in November of that year that the following appeared in Scuttlebutt #210, “As an international juror, Wullschleger is known for the high standards he has achieved in judging regattas around the world. In 1998, New York Times sportswriter Barbara Lloyd wrote, ‘Any regatta is as good as the judge who enforces the rules, which may explain the prestige attached to competitions in which Arthur J. Wullschleger is present.’ He has judged more than 250 events in the past decade. In the past four years alone, he has spent over 600 hours in protest hearings and deliberations, in 25 countries.”

We, in the Caribbean, are very lucky to have Tuna and Stork sharing their years of experience, good nature, and humour with us. Not only are they a wonderful asset to race organization and management but their commitment to racing in the Caribbean cannot be questioned when, on lay day of Antigua Sailing Week, rather than attend the wet t-shirt contest, Tuna goes to one of the bi-annual general membership meetings of the organization that oversees most of the racing and our measurement rule (CSA, Caribbean Sailing Association). Tuna and Stork’s high standards and reputation help to raise the level of professionalism of our events and provide a model for many to follow.

© Copyright 2001/2002 caribbeanracing.com

Top of Page

A seriously dry dry-bag. Throw it in and swim ashore with it	Here's an excellent watch - proven as a startline winner in the BVI IC24 fleet.	Another must-have for small boat racing.	Gloves for the weekend warrior.