Early Types of Yacht

Much of the finest racing in the whole history of yachting took place from 1908 until 1914. The International Yacht Racing Union was established under the chairmanship of the British Yacht Racing Association and consisted of all the European nations and the Argentine Republic. British yacht building was flourishing, German yachting was at its zenith under the Kaiser. International regattas on a big scale were held at Spithead in 1911, at Kiel in 1912, at Le Havre in 1913, and in the Oslo fjord in 1914. America was attracted to European yachting, and in 1910 an American racing schooner came to Europe, the "Westward," 323 tons, designed and built by Herreshoff. She started in races and won them all. Sir Thomas Lipton's 23-metre cutter "Shamrock" remained the best British cutter during these seasons.

The End of the First International Rule.

The yachting season of 1912 was notable for the appearance of a new 5-metre yacht, the "Istria," designed on novel lines by C. Nicholson for Sir Charles Allom, and the first of a series of yachts by the same clever designer which quickly began to defeat the purpose of the international racing rule. In 1912 and 1913 his great schooner "Margherita" and the cutters "Istria," "Pamela," "Paula III." and others were of most undesirable type, but so efficient as racers that they outsailed the yachts of all other designers.

The Second International Rule.

The Present Rules 1920 28.—On the eve of Cowes week, 1914, the war put an end to all yacht racing. The pastime was only revived in 1919-20, after much difficulty, by the Yacht Racing Association. At the end of the war the Scandinavian nations purchased nearly all the best British racing yachts. The cost of building new yachts was pro hibitive and the high wages of sailors raised the running expenses to nearly treble the pre-war rate. At the instance of the Y.R.A. the International Yacht Racing Union was reformed and a new rating rule was adopted in 1920. It was essential, in framing the second or present international rule, (I) to keep in view Froude's ideals of combining "habitability and speed" in the new racing yachts, and (2) to keep in view the economy of labour in working the yachts, i.e., to reduce the area of canvas utilized to propel the hull. The object was to try to produce a habitable vessel of say 20 to 25 tons displacement, which, instead of requiring enormous sails to drive the hull, and which would thus need a crew of say eight men to work her, to produce a racing yacht with a hull that could be driven with one-third less canvas and a crew of only four men. The international conferences of 1919, 1924 and 1926

framed two separate rules, one for yachts up to 12-metres and another for yachts above 12-metres. These are as follows:— Part I. For classes of 6-, 8-, 1 o- and 12-metres: L= the "sailing length" being the length L.W.L. (length on water line) with certain additions, including measurements of the length of the overhangs at the bow and stern, and also the fullness or girth of the said overhangs.

G=

the chain girth.

d=

the difference between the skin and chain girths, but not taken round the bottom of the keel.

S= the sail area.

F=

the freeboard.

A limit in each rule was placed upon draught of water and height of masts or sail plans.

By far the most important innovation, however, in both rules was a limit upon the displacement of the yacht in proportion to her length. For many years there had been a "limit" or "penalty" upon the displacement of yachts in America. In 1919-20 the International Yacht Racing Union of Europe adopted the Ameri can limit upon displacement. Under sec. 8 it is explained how, in the year 1895, the lack of displacement of the skimming dish fin and bulb raters killed the original English length and sail area rule, there being, of course, no limit upon the minimum displace ment then permitted. These new international rules are, in effect, nothing more nor less than length and sail area rules plus the all important addition of a limit upon the minimum displacement. This is an actual fact, because L and S are the predominant factors of the rules, and the G, d and F amount to a very trifling per centage of the total. Now the minimum limit placed upon dis placement in both Parts I. and II. of the present international rule is : It will be found this gives a minimum weight or displacement of about 31 tons to a 6-metre yacht of about 22 ft.; a weight of about 21 to a 12-metre yacht of 42 ft. and about 107 tons to a 23-metre yacht of 75 feet.

All the yachts below 12 metres have to be classed for scantlings R at Lloyd's and all those above 12 metres Ai at Lloyd's.

The Bermudian Rig.—A direct outcome of the new inter national rule has been the evolution of the Bermudian rig (q.v.).