Comments on: In memoriam: Captain Donald Taube (1942-2007)

By: John Weeks

John Weeks — Thu, 25 Dec 2008 00:40:40 +0000

I sure miss the guy………
so does my family.

Jess, thanks for sharing your family.

By: Jeff

Jeff — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 07:49:32 +0000

What a loss! Don was a genuine article, a crusty ol’ salt, but with an unexpected depth of knowlege & wit. He took the wheel with a calmness & unflappability that made his sails a pleasure for a novice to crew on.
Kudos to Bryan for a great article! That was Capt’n Don, alright.
OK, How many of you guys heard this before: “The cue for you to abandon ship…is when you see me waving from the lifeboat.”

By: Sails to the Sunset « Llanera Solitaria

Sails to the Sunset « Llanera Solitaria — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 13:57:29 +0000

[...] teacher with a flawlessly warped sense of humour. I found two memorial pages — here: one, [...]

By: Richard Dorfman

Richard Dorfman — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 03:46:10 +0000

I first encountered Don at South Street around ‘98 or ‘99. I was a fairly new volunteer on the Pioneer and one Saturday during winter maintenance, I was assigned to help Don while he did some welding on the midship hatch coaming.

We talked about all sorts of topics while I handed him tools and held this or that clamp or other widget for him. We talked about boats, of course, but also about dance, his daughter, the dancer (of whom he was clearly very proud), the theatre, and dozens of other subjects. I had a great time shooting the breeze with him then and for years to come.

We later sailed together many times on Pioneer and we both worked on the Wavertree as well. He was the first Captain with whom I worked as Mate, and later when I was training to drive the Pioneer as a newly licensed Captain, he gave me loads of pointers, especially about how to and how not to dock the boat.

My wife and I kibitzed with Don sitting on the float between Pioneer sails on the Saturday of the weekend he died, and feel lucky to have to had a chance to say goodbye on happy terms, not knowing it really was goodbye.

By: Jeff Cohen

Jeff Cohen — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 00:31:54 +0000

Apologies to Fast Eddie Glaser, but I’m going to put in a final word here. I met Don back around 1988 when I’d finally finished a six year reframing and replanking an old William Atkin America Junior Schooner. Don was hired on as the caulker and came all the way back and forth to the boatyard in Ossining NY from East Marion every day for about three weeks. Don was, as everyone has noted, more than a skilled ships carpenter, caulker, rigger and captain. He brought a great deal of his own organic philosophy and world-view to every task. On a technical level, he didn’t just caulk a boat. He was the final quality assurance team, sending me back to fix seams, install backing blocks, make everything ready for a good watertight job. I hadn’t seen him since he did that job for me, but he left a lasting impression as a great example for the traditional boat community.

Jeff