Walter J. Macfarlane Memorial Regatta
Recipient: Winning Senior Women
Inscription
Muriel Macfarlane Flanders Cup
Walter J. Macfarlane
4th of July
Senior Women Champions
Description
First Awarded: July 4, 1984
Sponsor: Muriel Macfarlane Flanders
Size:
Bowl: 10″ wide, 4″ high
Pedestal: 23″ high, 28″ wide and 11.5″ high
Material:
Bowl: Silver
Pededstal: Koa
Name Plates: chrome plated brass
Type: Perpetual
Status: Active
Although women competed in the Macfarlane Regatta since its inception in 1943, they did not have a perpetual trophy until 1984 when Mrs. Muriel Macfarlane Flanders donated a sterling silver bowl for the winner of the Senior Women’s Race.
The trophy was named for Mrs. Flanders and is a fitting tribute. The trophy for the winner of the senior men’s race is named for her brother, Walter J. Macfarlane, and now the trophy for the winner of the senior women’s race is named for her.
On the original 1984 trophy the silver cup was attached to the base. As silver plates for the winner’s names were added, the base was expanded twice more, each new disk slightly larger than the one above. When the third layer was added, the pedestal became unwieldy and too heavy for the champagne-drinking ceremony. In 1999 the Canoe Racing Committee decided to create an entirely new trophy and Mrs Flanders donated a very ornate Mexican sterling silver bowl (seen above) that would not be attached but would rest upon a wooden column made by McDee Philpottts. The column of curly koa was too small for name plates, so Domie Gose designed and built a pedestal for the column to sit on, similar in appearance to the pedestal of the Senior Men’s trophy.
The winning women’s crew is invited to share a champagne toast from the bowl with the second place crew after the race.
The trophy contains the names of all winning crew members of the race.