It all started with my post about vintage wooden boards and specificaly this 1984 piece by the Greek magazine Surf & Ski, about the division II racer of great beauty.
As I wrote in my post, it was an entry to the international regatta that took place in Porto Carras in Greece, but although they took photos and provided the info that was made by a Greek in BRAZIL, they failed to record THE NAME of the guy. The bottom photo shows Greek athlete George Giagoulakis who raced the beautiful board.
This Is the translation of the article:
GREEK BOARD MADE IN BRAZIL
Among the various boards we saw during the European windsurfing championship in Porto Carras (Halkidiki area-northern Greece), there were 2-3 that attracted us.
The first one was the self-made board of the French Ossedat, which as seeing it on the beach, it was giving the impression of something abandoned & obsolete. When later managed to be placed 5th on the final classification, we got really astonished. It was full of tar & patches – a good example that a nice finish is not necessary for a competitive design.
The second was a very expensive all-aluminium board designed & sailed by Hervé Borde, French champion and official designer of the Division II boards of Dufour.
The third board was a wooden one from Brazil, built by a Greek who lives there. We had the chance to discuss with him about the board, the materials and the construction in general.
So here are some of its secrets.
We start from the selection of light cedar wood, which is cut in thin stripes, with opposite direction (90deg angle). That way we get the needed strength, because as wood has only longitudinal strength and not lateral. this is the only right combination (top photo).
After the building of the hull, reinforcements are done to the inside, together with the dagger board case. Then a narrow diameter band is made, that will be used to join the deck to the hull.
The deck is made the same way and when bonded to the hull, starts the finishing procedure (top photo). After the sanding, epoxy resin is applied, which accounts to the
70% of the total weight. The shaper prefers epoxy than polyester resin, because it is less hydrophilic. He also noted that if there were no minimum D2 weight regulations, the board would weight ~ 15,5kg.
When epoxy dries, comes the varnishing, which will protect the surface from the sun radiation. (bottom photo).
Everything fine so far, but what about damage repairs? Thanks to the robust construction, it is difficult to have damages, but in the unlucky case, the repair is done easily by cutting out the broken wood stripes and replacing them with new ones, which if glued with polyester will regain 25% of the original rigidity, while using epoxy will improve the figure to 80%. As the hull has the natural curvatures that wood stripes can follow without the need of any pressure, repairs present no difficulty.
The representation of the boards in Greece was appointed to the athlete Giagoulakis who may also service a board if needed.
In SEPTEMBER 2012, Thanks to Argentinean friend ARG425, I got the info that the“Gregos” were built by the naval architect Leonidas Zerboulis, and that Grego means Greek in Portuguese.
In JANUARY 2013, Rainer Frohböse from Germany GER 239, send me this message:
Hi Dimitri,
I have one of those legendary Gregos which I bought in 1985 after the Europeans in Travemünde. It has been restored and it is in excellent condition. Has anyone else such a fine board?
Having the name of the designer/builder of the GREGO, plus a proud owner of a well-kept & restored board, I could not help but try to get things together and maybe come up with a nice story with memories & photos hopefully provided by the persons involved.
Rainer gave me both a story & some great photos which I happily share with you:
Hi Dimitri,
Here is my story:
I bought the Grego in 1985 after the European Championships in Travemünde / Germany where we had the pleasure to meet two competitors from Brazil which were Cinthia Knoth and a guy whose name I forgot. They both sailed the Grego in Travemünde and in the DIV II World Championships in the same year. Right after the Europeans they had to go back to Brazil. Because of the expensive freight cost they sold the Grego. As former president of the German DIV II Class organisation, I had been working as press officer during the Championships. So I took the chance and became lucky owner of this wooden beauty on the spur of the moment.
I have been sailing the board until 1988 in many Div II regattas in Germany. Since the collapse of the DIV II class, I used to sail the board just for fun and in several open class races.
A couple of weeks later the mast foot had broken which was a severe problem for me. Where would I buy a spare part? Luckily, a friend helped me to reconstruct it in his workshop. This has been the only problem I have had with my Grego. There has never been any water inside it, as I have managed to avoid any collision. Some years ago I finally invested in a new epoxy lacquer coat. The board is like new since that time. Now and then I take it out of its handmade board bag made by Josef König. In light wind it is still a pleasure to sail a displacement board!
Attached please find some photos and a copy of a sticker which I got in 1985 when I bought the Grego.
Best regards,
Rainer
Although the start with Rainer was very easy & productive, unfortunately, I did not manage to trigger more response from the people involved:
1. Leonidas Zerboulis – Some months ago, I tried to contact him through a postage address – as it was impossible to find his e-mail, but unfortunately he has not responded to my letter.
2. Cintia Knoth – I found the information below, but she never replied to the e-mails I send her to the 2 sailing schools she coaches.
Cintia Knoth, experienced yachtsman, has dedicated her life to nautical sports. Degree in Physical Education from UFRJ.
Her main achievements: Brazilian Champion and twice champion of European Windsurfing Sail and 4 times Brazilian and South American Champion 470. Furthermore, represented Brazil at the Olympics in Seoul.
She is currently a professor at the Gloria Marina and Yacht Club of Rio de Janeiro. http://www.clvela.com.br/clquemsomos.htm
3. George Giagoulakis – I spoke with him on the phone, but you must realize that nowadays, many people in Greece are struggling to survive, so maybe my request is out of time… The contact details were given to me by Stratos Efthyvoulidis, who organizes the annual Div.II regatta in Greece
As you may notice, Nicolas Patroni wrote in the Windsurfing SPECIAL comments section, that he also owns a similar board, so maybe we will have some more material in the future…
DECEMBER 2013
Stratos Efthyvoulidis send me some interesting photos:
A wooden Grego COPY – as I understand from the comments of Leonidas Zerboulis, which looks like a Dobbelman replica in wood – as Stratos Efthyvoulidis points out…Complicated case indeed.
A Grego waiting restoration, found in North Greece, which Stratos describes as similar to Mistral M1.
Vintage D II training of himself & his pal Cyrus on a Grego.
Ο Στάτος Ευθυβουλίδης, μου έστειλε τις πιό πάνω φωτο, με τα εξής σχόλια:
Δημήτρη γειά, σου στέλνω ένα σετ φωτογραφίες από το ξύλινο σκάφος που ανέβασε στον τοίχο της ομάδας division 2 ο Nicolas Patroni . Επίσης σου στέλνω μερικές φωτο από το δικό μας ξύλινο Grego εδω στη Χαλκιδική. Αυτό βέβαια θέλει κάποια δουλειά για να επανέλθει.
Το σκάφος που έχουμε εμείς μοιάζει με το Μ1 της Mistral, ενώ αν πρόσεξες του Patroni είναι αντίγραφο του Dobbelman. Από φωτογραφίες σου στέλνω κάποιες παλιές από το 1988 όπου κάνουμε προπόνηση με τον Κύρο με το ξύλινο.
Thank you for remembering my work. It all started because I was challenged by a friend who told me that the wood was not for small boats because it is heavy. At the time I was making sailboats up to 40′. It’s very simple, fiberglass weighs 1150kg m³ and cedar used 350kg m³. This results in hull stiffer, lighter and of course, more performance. The internal structure I copied the idea of airplane wings. Everything is very simple and the result is low cost for a good product.
I am available for more details.
Best regards
Leônidas
Welcome at last Mr Zerboulis!
Now we are in contact, I will ask you for more material, like action photos & competition results of the GREGOs
Best Regards
Dimitris
Hello Leonidas,
could you please tell us how many GREGO boards have been produced? Did you ever change the shape? And do you know any person (except me) that still has such a fine board?
Best regrads,
Rainer
Hi Rainer,
Thank you for keeping the board in good condition. This is a great satisfaction for me.
I built 285 boards and changed the shape 12 times. Everything has to evolve and I tried to be on top. Here in Latin America manufacturers of that era were spying on my work and I had to be quick on the changes. I talked a lot with those who used my boards and spent hours watching the performance in races. This helped me to improve them. They were fast in strong winds because of the stiffness of the hull. Were lighter and carried ballast in the center to be in the rules. This causes the bow to stay above the waves. Like a high performance sailboat.
61% were sold outside Brazil, particularly Argentina, I believe there are some there. Here I know two well-preserved. One in São Paulo, in a sports store, and another in a museum of old surf boards.
I will send photos to Dimitri in the next days.
Best regards,
Leônidas
Hi Leonidas,
thank you very much for your very interesting answer.
From the moment when I saw the board the first time, I was amazed of the aesthetic appeal and of the shape which looks a little bit like the Mistral M1. Can you confirm this impression? Can you please give me some more details about the 12 different shapes? The series no. of my board is 6538 and the year when I bought it was 1985.
Looking forward to your photos with best regards,
Rainer Frohböse
Hi Rainer,
Your board was made June 85 and is number 38 of the year.
The differences in the appearance of the various boards are small. I changed only bow, stern, deck and bottom, to adjust measurements and stay within the rules limit major changes. 22cm high and 73 wide, max.
I did some boards with a bow like that of a boat. Excellent in upwind, lost in downwind.
Flat bottom at the rear, is better for control and glide easier in downwind.
More curved deck facilitates sailor to keep it upright in upwind, by giving a better position for the feet.
Always looking for the best combination of these factors.
I never made the wooden boards because of the beautiful appearance. I am very practical. Wood offers many advantages because of its weight & its wide range of features. Studying the wood, you discover numerous applications, particularly in structures. The stiffness and the weight of the hull is a major factor for speed. The lighter board that I did weighted 12.300 kilograms. The lightest non-wood I know of, was done in honeycomb aluminum and weighed 13.100 kilograms. Four times more expensive and lasted eight races. The wooden won several championship, lasted for over a year and with the same weight.
I could talk a lot about the qualities of the wood, but the results are further proof that the material is a great choice.
I hope it was useful
Best regards,
Leônidas
Hi Leonidas, thank you for your explanations. In one point I have to disagree: My Grego has survived not only one but (up to now) more than 28 years. Although I have been racing on it until 1987, I always took care of it because of its beauty appearance. I had not a single crash with it, and no drop of water was in the board ever.
I had to replace the mast base and the centreboard only. And since it got a new painting, it looks like new. Thanks a lot for building such a fine board!
Best regards, Rainer
Hi Rainer,sorry I was not clear. The lighter board that I mentioned was special, made for only one championship. I used less material in the structure and also less internally epoxy to waterproof it. The standard weight was around 15 kilograms, and last long. Undoubtedly not resist the sledgehammer but had some that fell off cars on the road and had only scratches.
It’s quite satisfying to be watertight. Just as a curiosity, the construction requires the use of staples for bonding the veneers of wood. 5000-5500 staples and this makes 10000-11000 holes on the board. Moistening with a little water the wood pores close again. The use of epoxy resin and wood powder on the surface closes any gaps that remain open. In the photos you will see how it is done. These were some secrets that my opponents did not discover. The black spots on the wood that may appear, are staples which unfortunately remained, oxidize and stain. Today there are stainless staples good quality.
Thank you,
Leônidas
Hi Rainer,
Do you have any information about when Leonidas started and ended his boards production?
Do you know how many of ¨boards with a bow like that of a boat¨ he made? Like this one:
Looks like Sodim AX-2
Best Regards
Gastón Barouille
Funny thing is I am from Argentina and back in those days there were a lot of Gregos in the races. I sailed one for a while. They were light and compared to fiber boards they pivoted from the center of the board which in turn made them very good in the Rio de la Plata choppy conditions. Also they were more affordable. Not to mention the beauty of them. I could probably look and see if I find one in my next trip.
Looking forward to seeing and exploring more your blog.
Best from the Cotê d’Azur.
P
Pablo,
Grego’s creator Leonidas Zerboulis is almost sure that some of the many boards sold to Argentina should still be around, hopefully in good condition.
It will be nice to have some more photos, apart from Reiner’s Grego #6538.
Your comments about the board’s excellent seaworthiness fit perfectly to the description we have so far. The beauty is something much easier to appreciate – you don’t need to windsurf…
Hello Rainer and Leonidas.
Here in Greece Halkidiki we wave an other wooden Grego board.
We organize also annual division 2 regatta end of August-begin of September.You can see the video here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VWVv4rVrsG0&feature=youtu.be. Last 3 years there is a movement to regenerate the class internationally and we created a group in the facebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/OpenDiv2/with almost 700 members So there is 5-6 regattas per year in France and in Greece and next year I hope in Italy. If you want to participate in our regattas it will be nice and if you have a facebook account I can invite you in the group. You can also see restorations of old division 2 boards in this blog http://pavdivision2.blogspot.gr/search?updated-min=2013-01-01T00:00:00%2B01:00&updated-max=2014-01-01T00:00:00%2B01:00&max-results=28
Hello Stavro,
I am very surprised with the revival of DII. Here in Brazil I have no knowledge of events with these boards. Brazilian is very fond of innovations and quickly forget the people and their deeds. It is a young people. Now is changing a bit.
This board is one of the five who were with Giakoulakis in 1983. It’s easy to renew it. Lightly machine sanding – do not wear away wood. Soak up with low viscosity epoxy in thin layers with blades, not with brush. Sanding with fine sandpaper manually. Varnish of good quality, usually applied in several layers.
Leonidas and Dimitri
I posted the construction of this prototype in order to show my joy because of the beginning of a tendency for reproduction of real div 2 boards, and I mean real div 2 not raceboards with flat stern witch are easier in strong winds but not so performing in sub planning conditions and in windward legs. In this moment we, the lovers of this wonderful class, we are looking for old boards, usually in bad condition, and we try to renew them. The question of the materials and the cost must be investigated.
Strato
Your point of view is right, keep the originality. But in using advanced materials and methods with the same design seems to be missing something. I think a more advanced DII with the advantages of both types. For example 2/3 of the hull with the characteristics of the original and the back third flattening, with two keels. The sides of the rear part with right angle. With that will perform well both upwind and downwind. Always base myself in high performance hulls of sailboats. Are much more advanced. Despite my age I am not nostalgic and would like to see improve in everything. It renews us.Please give xeretismata to Giakoulaki. I’m sending a picture of a boat with the features mentioned.
Hello Stratos,
Its amazing that in some countries there are still DIV II regattas, which we do not have in Germany. But I know several old DIV II guys here who are still racing in the Raceboard Class. But as far as I know they all sold their DIV II equipment.
What kind of sails are allowed in France or Greece actually?
Hello Leonidas and Rainer
Thank you for the advices. I will start the job in spring because now the temperature is low and that is not good for the epoxy setting. Giorgos Giangoulakis is a friend and we were in the same sailing club.
In the regattas now we have 3 classes of sails 1. Rig type A with the classic triangular sail surface 6.3m2 2. Rig type B with the sail 7.4 m2 (The former Olympic sail) and 3. super open with free shape and surface. In the regatta of Halkidiki , because of the small number of participants, there were no restrictions to the rigs.
An interesting new is that now some gays in France constructed a full carbon prototype div2 board and I hope soon it will be in the commerce. You can see their job here http://teamtregor.wordpress.com/2013/12/02/fabrication-du-1er-proto/ .
Strato, I checked the French prototype & I was not at all impressed. It is not a full carbon construction and as Leonidas will surely tell you, even if it was, it would not outperform a board made mostly of wood…
Dimitri and Strato,
It is a job well done but it really is not all carbon. I see no reason to use carbon in places like the stern. In my opinion the use of carbon should be better exploited because the use of glass fiber is actually much greater and that increases the weight.
Also uses Divinycell which is good. Best of all is the infusion system that ensures rigidity and lightness.
It’s an expensive board to an old design. I liked the bow but the stern should be flat for less drag in the water. I would add a structure between the deck and hull for increased rigidity.
This is my opinion but would like to see reviews.
Hi Stratos,
Hole you are doing well.
Where do you get the pictures ?
Looks like they are from Argentina.
Best
Gaston Barouille
Hello Mr Leonidas,
I am Nicolas from Ushuaia, Argentina: I have one light Grego with the hole in the center; its condition is not so good, it needs replacement of the bow and fixing some little holes in the deck and the hull.
I tried to find the correct person to repair it. I used this board in the 85’s and this year I found it again, drop in a garden under the rain for 20 years.
I think next summer it will be on the water again and if you want I would like to send some photographs of it to hear your opinion.
Thank you for this great art object!!!!
Ola Nicola,
You are in a place I want to know. Despite the cold.
Wood does not resist in the sun and rain for more than a year without treatment. Cedar is very sensitive. There are hundreds of wood types that would be more resistant, but are heavier and besides the weight disadvantage, contain natural resin that keeps alive. They are not suitable for bonding because the glue does not penetrate.
I saw wood sunk for 135 years and was still in good condition. It was an English frigate ” Thetis” cannon wheel, very hard wood. Iron lasts 50 years in salt water.
I think it will be too hard to renew this board. If you want, send photos so I’ll see better. I do not recognize the numbering of the other board. What is its origin? Looks very new. Had two carpenters who made replicas of the ” grego” may be it is one of them. The internal structure was different and was heavier.
Hola Nicolás,
Todavía tenés la tabla? Me podés pasar fotos?
Saludos
Gastón
Hola tengo una Grego (ID 12.566) en Formosa (Argentina). Está en etapa final de restauración, falta barnizar. En unos días estará nuevamente en el agua si el clima permite el proceso de barnizado y colocación de antideslizante. Tengo la orza original y desde Buenos Aires está llegando el pie de mástil, que compré vía Internet.
Hi Dany,
Nice to hear one more wooden board is ready to hit the water. If you send us some photos, we will be able to comment about it. From the 5 digit serial number, I have the feeling it is one more copy. Original Gregos had 4 digit numbers as far as I know. Rainer & Stratos will assist for the certification.
Hola Danny,
Todavía tenés la Grego?
Leonidas, tenho uma prancha Grego necessitando de raparos. Você ainda tem estaleiro / oficina em região próxima ao Rio de Janeiro?
SORRY…
Zaosan, thank you for your information, although it is a sad new. I hope that Mr. Leonidas is resting in peace. His art will remain among us in the form of fantastic objects built by him. We now have a special reason to preserve them.
I plan to restore my board and if you can suggest a good naval carpenter, will detail all the steps in pictures. In my Facebook profile I uploaded a few photos, taken yesterday. If you are interested, I can send them to your page.
Thank you.
Hi (Paulo?),
I understand you are one of the lucky ones to own one of Leonidas fine creations.
If I also understand correctly, you are in Rio area, so I would suggest to contact through Facebook the young Nicholas Zerboulis – son of Leonidas (although his response is relative to his age) and get the contact details of someone of the persons that actually were helping Leonidas in his shipyard when he was producing the “Gregos”.
Any photos you would like to share, are mostly welcome.You may send them to my mail (ddsavidis@yahoo.com), together with brief comments.
Dimitris (zaosan)
Dimitris, thank you once again.
I found a shipwright who started the restoration work of the board. I published a book with the first pictures of the work in my facebook page (search for Paulo Marcos Valiante). It is freely accessible. If any photos interest you can feel free to download it.
https://www.facebook.com/paulo.valiante/media_set?set=a.985090734883147.1073741851.100001466895812&type=3
Paulo, it is my pleasure to add material about Leonidas!
I saw the photos visiting your page, and I feel the board is in quite good condition – without any structural damage, so it should not be hard to refresh.
If you don’t have the photos in better resolution, I may download them from FB, but again I would suggest you send me some comments.
Dimitris, the serial number appeared during the restoration process. I think is 8376, which corresponds to construction in August 1983, board number 76 of that year. But the first number has not yet been fully recovered and appears to “0”. I need an email address to send you the pictures in high resolution. Bring it on facebook inbox.
GREAT Paulo!
Congratulations for this nice & important restauration.
I’m sure Leonidas is smiling up There..
Happy sailings & thanks for sharing.
Hi dimitri my Name is Andres Anderson from Argentina. I am the owner of one greggo board. Your article was very interesting and usefull. I can send you some pictures. My e mail is andersonandres@hotmail.com
Regards
ARG-119
Hi Andres,
Nice to have you contribution about these wooden pieces of boat-building art.
Send me anything you want to ddsavidis@yahoo.com and I will revert for details 🙂
[…] research on this woodie picked up a post from Hit the Wave blog, that pointed to this beauty as possibly having a 1984 Brazilian origin from a Greek boatbuilder, […]
Someone should contact Wooden Boat Magazine in the USA, to do a story on these craft, maybe in their SmallCraft Monthly edition. The magazine has a very large circulation and many of the techniques of construction are well-known to professional and amateur wooden watercraft builders and restorers. I imagine some folks would like to build new ones if they had the dimensions and other important details. At first, I thought this was a cold-molded wooden paddleboard. It’s beautiful. Thanks for the video as well.
That would be a good idea, but unfortunately, Leo Zerboulis passed away in2014, so first-hand building information is no longer available…