Ole Ulstein: A Bin Tang Of Boat Building

It wouldn't make sense to scatter Ole Ulstein's ashes anywhere else but the sea. He was a sailor to the end. In tribute, his family someday soon plans to sprinkle his ashes in a spot just off the mouth of the Duwamish River.

It's a spot Mr. Ulstein crossed countless times in his 30-foot sailboat, the Bin Tang, which means "bright star" in Indonesian. Mr. Ulstein worked in Indonesia, Japan, Canada and the United States as a designer and builder of boats and cargo ships. More than a few ships on the water today have his initials inscribed on their keels.

His passion for all things related to the sea drove and defined him for most of his 80 years of life. Mr. Ulstein died in his Bellevue home Saturday (Dec. 18) from myeloma, a rare form of bone cancer.

He was a compact, immensely strong man with a quirky sense of humor, a hungry mind and unceasing energy. He was essentially self-taught in all his skills, having a high-school diploma as his highest credential.

"He'd get books and figure things out on his own," said his partner of the past 10 years, Carolyn Carlson of Bellevue. "When you see his drawings and you realize this man designed huge tankers, you just don't know how he did it on his own."

Mr. Ulstein was born in 1919 in a Norwegian town bearing his family name, Ulsteinvik. When he was 4, his family immigrated to Vancouver, B.C., where his father managed a shipyard. The younger Ulstein apprenticed as a boatbuilder before enlisting in the Royal Canadian Navy during World War II.

After the war, he married and eventually became a naval architect, designing and building container ships from Seattle to Sumatra. In 1963, he moved his family from Vancouver to Bellevue, where he would spend most of the rest of his life. He divorced in 1970 but remained close to his five children.

He hit a major milestone when he bought the 30-foot fiberglass sloop in 1979 that would be named the Bin Tang.

"That boat was his life," Carlson said. "He did all the work himself, and he loved keeping it in perfect shape."

Eldest son Stefan Ulstein paraphrased local author Jonathan Raban in describing his father: "Raban talks about how nobody really loves the sea. If you know the sea, it scares you. But some people can't be happy anywhere else. My dad was very much like that. He wasn't happy unless he was standing on the deck of his ship."

Mr. Ulstein volunteered at the Center for Wooden Boats on Lake Union and was a co-founder of the Riggers sailing club. His favorite local spots to sail to were Winslow and a quiet cove just north of Port Ludlow. He also liked to sail the Gulf Islands and Desolation Sound off the coast of British Columbia.

Mr. Ulstein is survived by sisters Evelyn of Gig Harbor and Alma and Bodel of Nanaimo, B.C.; his sons, Stefan, Hans, Martin and Anders; and his daughter, Lise Lindfors of Bellevue; and four grandchildren.

Remembrances may be sent to the International Myeloma Foundation, 2129 Stanley Hills Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90046.

Alex Tizon's phone message number is 206-464-2216. His e-mail address is atizon@seattletimes.co.