Francis Crittenden Currie

On Christmas Eve in 1972 I pursued Crit for his 1959 Benz convertible, which I restored and enjoyed for many years. Crit and Eleanor were the finest people who I held in high esteem.

My fondest memory of Crit was his gracious hosting of me and my crew as we passed through Memphis on our way to some regatta (probably the West Coast). I remember particularly the liesurely southern breakfast on the veranda. Crit was a great friend of the Lightning Class and a great competitor. I'm sure he is smiling down on the Bluenose this weekend. With warmest regards to Crit's family and fond memories including the "Currie Knot" we still use.

We are really sorry to hear about big Crit. When we first moved to Memphis I got his name and number and called him to talk about buying some kind of sailboat. I said we weren't interested in racing, we just needed a boat big enough for 2 adults and 2 little girls. He said "honey, any time two sailboats are on the water at the same time, they're racing." And he was right. Because of him we're still racing a Lightning more than 40 years later! For us, he was Mr. Lightning. Eleanor, Crit...

Miss Eleanor, Bradford, Little Crit:
I am so sorry to hear this. Big Crit was the first skipper I sailed with besides my dad, and he set the bar very high for how skippers should behave. A true southern gentle man. Too many great memories to list here. I hope you are all coping as well as possible. You're all in my thoughts and prayers.

I was saddened today to hear about Crit. As a young boy growing up in Connecticut I recall reading stories in the Lightning yearbooks and Flashes about the exploits of the Currie clan, led by Crit. Over the years, as my involvement in the ILCA grew, I came to know more about Crit and his devotion to the ILCA and sailing as well as his generous spirit. The ILCA has lost one of our legends and he will be remembered fondly.

Our thoughts and prayers are with Currie family and...

Crit and I ran neck and neck in the Ugly Boat Contest in Memphis about ten years ago, he with a purple metalflake boat named" The Plumbers" and I with a faded orange/red/brown boat named "Malcolm X" . He gave me top honors, an extraordinarily generous gesture in my opinion. We will miss him.

My fondest memory of Crit is from the Lightning Districts in Decatur. We were drifting around near the weather mark in a big cluster and Crit, brandishing a paddle, challenged any competitor to "touch" his boat. I had no idea sailing was a close, hand-to-hand combat sport! As a lover of small boat sailing, I owe a lot to Crit. His devotion to the sport made sailing better for all of us. We have missed him on the race course of late and will remember him each time we go sailing.

We are so sorry that Crit passed. He was one of a kind. He left a lot of people with a lot of good memories.

With lots of love,
Frank & Gail Bermel

A sailing legend in the Lightning class. He will be sorely missed.
My thoughts and prayers go out to his family.
Sincerely,
Mandy Hofmeister