(Jacksonville, FL)- Dr. Peter R Bream of Jacksonville, Florida
passed away after his battle with cancer on October 24, 2016. Peter was
born in Erie, PA on July 14, 1946. His family moved to Chapel Hill, NC
not long after, where he grew up a Tarheel fan.
He started sailing in 1963 in Cape Cod on a Sunfish while visiting his
cousins. His father purchased him a Sunfish, and Peter loved spending
time on the water any chance he could. His first regatta that he
attended was the Governors Cup in 1968, sailing a Jet 14. Peter moved to
Birmingham, AL in 1976 and found his way to Lake Logan Martin and the
Birmingham Sailing Club. At that time, he was sailing a Tanzer 16.
A local named Loy Vaughn convinced Peter to purchase a Thistle (#1658)
and join their one-design fleet. A short time later, Peter purchased a
wooden Thistle (#1321) that he raced with his wife Lynn and son Peter Jr
around the southeast. In 1980, Peter accepted a job in Jacksonville, FL
where he was active in the Thistle fleet and also the PHRF racing
scene.
He purchased a J/24 (#2502) in 1982 and began racing it on the St. Johns
River. He did very well on the J/24 in the river, but he would soon
learn that there was a long way to go to do well on a national
one-design level. Peter traveled to Key West for the 1997 Midwinters,
bringing along his Thistle buddies to crew for him. It was a shock to
see how all of the other boats were prepared compared to his. He had fun
but finished in the back of the pack.
A goal was set! Peter was
determined to build a team that could compete with the best. At that
time, his boat (2502) was named Tarheel, but Peter, being the leader he
was, renamed the new boat (5287) Team Tarheel to reflect that concept.
Team Tarheel sailed well regionally, but lacked that national level
result. It took many years, but Peter and Team Tarheel achieved Top 10
results in National, North American and World Championships, and won
consecutive Midwinter Championships in the J/24 Class.
A few of his many other sailing accomplishments were a fourth place
finish in the 1991 Thistle Nationals sailing with his wife and son, and
winning the 2003 Thistle Midwinter East regatta as a forward crew at age
57. Peter is survived by his wife Lynn, son Dr. Peter Bream Jr. (Mary)
and daughter Mary Chupp (Charlie). He has seven grandchildren, three
step-grandchildren and one great-granddaughter. His Memorial service
will be held Saturday November 5, 2016 at 10:00 am at Assumption
Catholic Church in Jacksonville, Florida.