A Few Minutes With Eric Wind

There was a time, gentle reader, when buying vintage watches carried more than a bit of risk. I am not referring to fakes in the traditional Canal Street vein. What makes vintage watches desirable is not only the provenance (although that is certainly important), but also the stories (both known and untold) that the scuffs, dings, and patina tell about not only the watch but those who wore it. But with age comes maintenance, and maintenance sometimes means that an original part might not be available, or put more plainly, it often is more expeditious to use a "secondary market" solution. 

So in these increasingly uncertain times, it is great to know that there is at least one guy out there making sure that you not only get the vintage watch you want, but that it comes to you as advertised.  Ladies and Gentlemen, a few minutes with Eric Wind -

Courtesy of Eric Wind

Henki Time -

What was your first watch?  Was it a gift?  Is there a story behind it?

Courtesy of YoJoe.com

Eric Wind - My first watch was a G.I. Joe digital watch with a compass embedded in the green rubber strap. I loved it! My first mechanical watch was a Hamilton Neil my mom gave me in 2008 after my grandfather passed. It was a gift from my grandmother to my grandfather for their wedding in 1947 and my grandfather wore it daily his whole life. It opened up my passion for vintage watches!

HT - When you were a boy, what did you want to be when you "grew up"?

EW - I was also interested in politics and public service, so I was interested in running for office at some point in my life.


HT - You attended Georgetown as an undergraduate and then Oxford for an MBA - not necessarily a mainstream path! What did you study at Georgetown? And why Oxford for an MBA?

EW - I studied International Politics in Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service and business in the MBA program at the University of Oxford. I was always interested in studying at Oxford and I thought I would benefit from learning more about business. I loved the idea of studying business with an international cohort of students and I liked that it was a one-year program so I could return to working after a year.


HT - What got you into the world of watches in the first place?

EW - My grandfather's Hamilton Neil was given to me around the time I stumbled on HODINKEE back in 2008. HODINKEE was initially almost exclusively about vintage watches and reading about all these iconic vintage watches, from the "James Bond" Submariner to the "Steve McQueen" Monaco made me extremely interested.

HT - You then found yourself in the world of watch auctions, how did that come about?

Courtesy of Eric Wind / Wind Vintage

EW - I made a name for myself writing for HODINKEE and was recruited to Christie's by John Reardon. I joined Christie's in 2015 as Vice President, Senior Specialist of Watches and it was a whirlwind after that!

Courtesy of the Harry Truman Presidential Library

HT - You are well known as one of the top authorities on the Vulcain Cricket. What is it about this somewhat peculiar watch that attracted you?

EW - A Vulcain Cricket was one of the first vintage watches I purchased and I still have that one! Crickets have woken me up countless times. I love the history of the development of the Cricket as well as the aesthetics. I also love their presidential history.


HT - What is your take on "re-editions" / "homage" pieces? (i.e. DOXA SUB re-editions, Vulcain Cricket re-editions, etc.)

EW - I prefer the originals as a general rule!

HT - Your reputation is for not only being extremely well informed on all things vintage, but being the one person out there who can (to paraphrase the G man in Raiders of the Lost Arc) "obtain the unobtainable".  What attracts you to vintage?

EW - I prefer vintage watches to modern watches for collecting because they are all unique in terms of how they look now, the patina that many develop, and the more handmade nature of these watches compared to their modern counterparts.


HT - When you're not researching and locating rare and amazing watches, what do you like to do for fun?

EW - I love to play with my kids, whether it is dressup with my girls Adelina and Gemma or golf, soccer or basketball with my son Charlie!

HT - Of all the watches that have come and gone in your personal collection, what is the one that "got away"?

EW - Fortunately, I don't have too many regrets about watches I should not have sold! And there is always another watch just a FedEx box away around here, so there is always something new to see each day.

HT - If you weren't doing this, what would you be doing?

EW - Hard to say - I can't imagine doing anything else at this point!


HT - What advice do you have for the next Eric Wind out there?

EW - Keep learning some new things each day!

Beyond a Jacket - Rowing Blazers and Their Founder Jack Carlson

Okay, a few weeks back I had the opportunity to check out the Rowing Blazers pop-up when they came to Boston.  If the full truth be known, I went find a blazer.  As Rowing Blazers is an online company, I was a wee-bit uncertain as to how the fit, feel and finish might be.  Needless to say, I left with my marker placed on my next clothing purchase!

And as fate would have it, I was able to squeeze in a game of ping-pong between fittings ; )

But what I came to find out is that Rowing Blazers is more than just a clothing start-up.  And I had the opportunity to learn more about the back story of the brand as well as the people behind it.

What becomes clear is that this is a team effort, and it is a team that is warm, engaging, and kind enough to find a jacket to fit my favorite watch writer's less-than-Adonis like dimensions.

But what I also found was a really interesting story about a guy who also went to grad school in the UK (okay, granted, I went to Surrey, Mr. Carlson went to Oxford...), who has followed his passions (archeology, rowing and fashion), and who is devoted to helping people in need through charitable works.  And I thought to myself, this would make a pretty good interview!  I mean, how often do you meet a guy who was a world class rower, has a doctorate in archeology from Oxford, and launched a successful clothing brand?

And so now, a few minutes with (Doctor) Jack Carlson -

Tempus Fugit - How did you get started rowing?

Jack Carlson - I grew up playing little league baseball.  But in 7th grade, I went to a new school on the banks of the Charles River in Cambridge, Massachusetts.  All my friends went out for rowing, and the rowing coach - my math teacher -- persuaded me to try coxing.  (The coxswain is the member of the crew that makes the calls and steers).  He told me he thought I'd be a perfect coxswain.  He made it sound like a good thing; only later did I realize this meant he thought I was short and loud.

TF - Has it always been rowing, or were there other sports that vied for your interest?

JC - Well, I loved baseball growing up, and I've also always loved tennis.  In high school, I switched over to tennis a few times, but was always convinced by friends and coaches to come back to rowing. 

TF -  Rowing, and crew in particular have a reputation for being for rich kids, but in leafing through your book, Rowing Blazers, I was fascinated to see some of the (to me at least) unlikely locations for impassioned rowing.  Is rowing becoming a more mainstream activity?

JC - Rowing is becoming a more mainstream sport, and I think it's very important that it shed the connotation of being a sport only for boarding-school types.  My girlfriend Keziah and I are involved in a organization called Row New York.  

It's a rowing and academic program for kids in New York City - especially under-resourced communities in the city.  It's an extremely competitive program; last year, a number of their crews qualified for the Youth National Championship, which is a tremendous achievement.  Socioeconomically and ethnically, Row New York looks different from what you might imagine when you just think of a rowing team, and I think that's important.

TF -  How did rowing inform your education as a high school, university and graduate student?

JC - Rowing was a big part of my student experience, and I learned at least as much from rowing as I did in any of my classes.

TF -  What three words come to your mind when you think about rowing?

JC - Rhythm, unity, fun.

TF - Was fashion always an interest, or was the writing and publication of your book (Rowing Blazers) the catalyst to get involved?

JC - I was always interested in menswear.  I read Alan Flusser's Dressing The Man when I was a kid.  That had a lasting impact on me.  The book project Rowing Blazers brought together a number of my interests: menswear, the sport of rowing, and heraldry -- the study of coats of arms, badges, symbols, livery colors and the like.

TF - My understanding is that you have a fairly impressive collection of rowing blazers.  Apart from your own (i.e. earned through your personal membership in crews and rowing clubs), what are some of your favorites?

JC - I accumulated quite a collection while working on my book.  I have a great Oriel College blazer from the 1930s.  It must have belonged to a cox, because it is absolutely tiny.  It also has a lot of meaning to me, because I was the coach at Oriel for two years. One of my favorite blazers that I write about in my book - though I don’t have one myself - is the Hampton School Curtains Blazer. It’s a blazer given to rowers at Hampton who have won “the triple” in a single year: the Schools Head, the National Schools Regatta, and the Princess Elizabeth Cup at Henley. It’s made from curtains cut from the school’s dining hall.

TF -  Approximately how many blazers do you have in your collection?

JC - I have about fifteen or twenty that are mine personally - that I’m entitled to wear.  I have about twenty other vintage blazers I’ve collected over the years.

TF - About watches, what is your go-to timekeeper?

JC - I like traditional dive watches. Most days I wear a Rolex no-date sub from the mid-80s on a NATO strap or a Seiko with a Pepsi dial on a bracelet from the same period. 

TF - What was your first watch?  Was it a gift?  Is there a story behind it?

JC - It was actually a Ralph Lauren sporting chrono with a Jaeger LeCoultre movement. It was a gift when I finished my masters degree at Oxford. My dad gave it to me at Henley.

TF - What do you look for in a watch?

JC - I don’t care if it’s expensive. I care about the watch being well made and reliable. I care about the way it looks too; I like timeless, classic, masculine-looking watches. I also like a good story: a watch that has a history, that isn’t fresh out of the box.

TF - What watches/brands interest you the most?

JC - I like vintage Rolex, Heuer, and Seiko.

TF - For the serious rower, is a watch an essential tool, or an affectation?

JC - Well time management is very important for every rower, but the really functional thing for an oarsman, spectator or coach is a stroke rate watch; a watch to tell how many strokes per minute a crew or sculler is taking.  Seiko makes a modern digital version; Heuer made a old mechanical version earlier in the 20th century that I’d love to recreate.

TF - Having lived and studied (and rowed) on both sides of the Atlantic, what are some of the key differences between approach and "rowing culture"?  What are some of the surprising similarities?

JC - Well, rowing is a much more prominent sport in Britain. The World Championships, World Cups, Oxford-Cambridge races and Henley Royal Regatta are all televised. People who’ve never tried the sport know the big names on the British national squad. At Oxford, being on the rowing team makes you a big name on campus. In the US, it’s different. The sport is made to seem much more “niche.” It’s the football or basketball players who are the big names on campus. And while the US embraces successful athletes in less traditional “TV” sports, there’s no rowing equivalent to Michael Phelps or Tony Hawk. Rowing just has a more amateur feel here in the US. 

TF - Rowing Blazers as a brand is a very unique concept.  Did you ever have any doubts about it's potential success?

JC - I have doubts everyday, and I have moments of celebration everyday. In the end, the idea is to create a brand that’s true and meaningful. It’s not expected; it’s not just a “preppy” brand. There’s real meaning to everything we do. We make our blazers in New York City, because working one-on-one with the people sewing them is important to me. Our blazers don’t have vents and the pockets are stitched on a certain way. Why? Because that’s how the original rowing blazers were made. There’s a reason why there’s a faucet motif on our tie (it has to do with an extinct, esoteric club at Oxford). There’s a story behind the Latin proverbs cross-stitched on the underside of our jacket lapels.  The sense of story and meaning resonates with people, and that's where it all pays off.  

TF - What does Rowing Blazers have in store for us over the next few years?

JC - Rowing Blazers will continue to grow while staying focused on its core: the best, most traditionally-made blazers, Oxfords, rugbies, and accessories.

TF - What advice do you have for the next Jack Carlson out there?

JC - My advice to any kid looking to do something creative is to stick with it.  I think it would be easy to get pulled off the creative path, and it's not an easy road.  So stick with it.

Show Your Colors!

I am, at the heart of it, a Northern Youth.  I grew up in a very small college town in Ohio, and the closest I came to crewing was when a work crew was assembled to tackle a particularly labor intensive project at my after school job.  

But there were two things pulling on me.

One that was clear from the off - my imagination and the dreams that it fueled extended far beyond the realms of Oberlin.  The sartorial gas that was dumped on this fire was the film Chariots of Fire.  I was particularly taken by the clothing.  Specifically?  The blazers worn by the members of the various colleges and/or clubs.  I often pictured my future (better) self, sitting by the fireside in my rooms, enjoying a brandy and plotting my future.

The second string tugging at me?  My mother was an aspiring fashion designer who would later make that her second act.  So I guess it is fair to say that some of it is in the genes. 

A lot of time has passed since then.  I did not take up rowing, I enjoyed and benefited from a degree taken at the University of Oregon, and I found myself pursuing and completing a graduate program in the UK.  And where a lot of  my childhood flights of fancy came full-circle was living and working at the University of St. Andrews with Wendy during our summer vacations. 

So it was with no small amount of interest and curiosity that I walked the the two blocks to Newbury Street yesterday to check out the Rowing Blazers pop-up shop during my lunch break.  I have been stalking this online purveyor of niftyness for some time, but had never been able to see their wares up close and personal.  So a quick pop in, and I was able to meet the owners, set an appointment for a more in-depth follow-up (longer story coming Friday), and get my own copy of the book that helped start it all, Rowing Blazers -

 And Doctor Jack L. Carlson very kindly inscribed my copy -

 So more to come shortly, stay tuned!

Blazers

In fairness, this is not about watches.  If you are a man of a certain vintage, it is drilled into your head from a very early age that you have to have a blue blazer.  And I subscribe to that same school of thought. 

But sometimes, you want something just a bit different -

Courtesy of Rowing Blazers

And enter Rowing Blazers.  Rowing Blazers is an online alternative to help you find a blazer that offers just that extra "whats' it".

The above is described humbly enough as a Black Blazer with Black Trim.  Pretty dope!

So yes, you need a blazer!  But you WANT a Rowing Blazer!