In 1945, the ferry Kalakala stages an impromptu race with the ferry City of Sacramento.
Both ferries were leaving the Seattle dock at the same time. An ongoing rivalry between the two ships prompted Captain Ole Rindal (d. 1979) of the Kalakala to urge his chief engineer for more power. The race was on.
The ships were neck and neck as they approached Rich Passage near Bremerton. The Kalakala appeared to have the inside track. At that point the Captain asked his First Mate to check the tide, which was high. Not wanting to risk the ship on Orchard Rocks, he allowed the City of Sacramento inside.
Amazingly, the captain of the City of Sacramento was the one to be chastised -- for winning the race. The Kalakala was the flagship of the fleet and the Black Ball Ferry Line didn't want her to appear weaker than the other ships.
Sources:
Wayne Jacobi, "Kalakala Ferry Skipper Ole Rindal Dies at 81," Seattle Post-Intelligencer, September 30, 1979, A12.
Licensing: This essay is licensed under a Creative Commons license that
encourages reproduction with attribution. Credit should be given to both
HistoryLink.org and to the author, and sources must be included with any
reproduction. Click the icon for more info. Please note that this
Creative Commons license applies to text only, and not to images. For
more information regarding individual photos or images, please contact
the source noted in the image credit.
Major Support for HistoryLink.org Provided
By:
The State of Washington | Patsy Bullitt Collins
| Paul G. Allen Family Foundation | Museum Of History & Industry
| 4Culture (King County Lodging Tax Revenue) | City of Seattle
| City of Bellevue | City of Tacoma | King County | The Peach
Foundation | Microsoft Corporation, Other Public and Private
Sponsors and Visitors Like You