This would be the last of the races for the trophy. The challenger was again the Gertrude L. Thebaud and Captain Ben Pine. The government of Nova Scotia helped to outfit the noticeably aging, worn out Bluenose for the race, and the Americans put up the prize money. It would be best out of five races in Gloucester, starting on October 9, 1938. This was the only race in the series that was best three out of five. The previous races had been two out of three.
Once again, the races were not without controversy and quarrelling. Captain Ben Pine complained that the races were run in unsuitably heavy weather. The Americans also claimed that Bluenose had a lengthened water line, meaning that they thought it was carrying more ballast than the rules allowed. This turned out to be true, so weight had to be taken out. Nonetheless, amazingly at its advanced age and long service, and even though one race was declared void and had to be rerun, Bluenose won three of the five races to take the trophy again.
But the controversy was not over. Walters had won eight thousand dollars, but he never received the full amount and had to take legal action to get even five thousand dollars of it. The sour taste left by all this fighting was offset by the fact that Angus Walters and his ship could retire from competition as the unbeatable champions they were.
Bluenose was worn out after many years on the sea. Before the 1938 race, the ship was repainted and fitted with new sails. The Halifax Herald paper said that when considering the condition of the ship, “you will begin to understand just how splendid this latest Bluenose win actually proves to be.”
Angus Walters, who had a strong sense of honour, was upset because he felt all the sportsmanship had gone out of the competition:
“We had proved that the Lunenburg Dutchmen could outsail the American windbags, and then we had to fight for our winnings as well.” He also said “the Bluenose, as long as I am master, will never race again in the United States.” He was correct.
