Much of Jim Drake's work soared. During a long aeronautical career, he helped design the Air Force's X-15 "rocket plane" and worked on designs for Cold War-era bombers and the cruise missile. But his best known innovation glided at sea level. Drake developed and helped popularize modern windsurfing, which takes its name from the sailboat/surfboard hybrid he marketed with a friend in the late 1960s and early '70s.
Drake, '51, died June 19 in Pfafftown, N.C., of lung disease. He was 83.
A sailing enthusiast, Drake had discussed with surfer pal Hoyle Schweitzer how to combine the two hobbies. They patented the result in 1970 and supplied the sport's name, selling their boards as "Windsurfers." Although another man can claim credit for inventing "sailboarding" at an earlier date, Drake's independent work and engineering wizardry resulted in a simpler, sleeker design that persists, with a few modifications, in windsurfing today.
Born January 8, 1929, in Los Angeles, Drake studied mechanical engineering and aeronautics at Stanford before spending a career in the defense industry in Washington, D.C., and California. He participated in the design of land-, air- and submarine-launched missiles and multiple airplanes, including the X-15, which was the first plane to reach 62 miles of altitude, thus crossing into space.
Drake was on hand to see windsurfing make its Olympic debut in 1984 in Los Angeles, but he didn't stay in the business long after designing his board. He sold his stake in the Windsurfer International company to Schweitzer after just a few years. Drake's renown as "the father of windsurfing" endured, though. And while he sometimes found the attention he attracted at windsurfing events embarrassing, he ultimately came to appreciate the admiration of his work. "You always like to be recognized for the things you do," Drake told the Associated Press in 2003.
Drake is survived by his second wife, Phyllis; daughters Hollis Fleming and Stephanie Lees; sons Alexander, James, David and Matthew; and 15 grandchildren.
Scott Bland, '10, is a reporter at National Journal.
