International Catamaran Challenge Trophy
Encyclopedia
The International Catamaran Challenge Trophy is the formal name for the more familiarly known Little Americas Cup modeled loosely on the Americas Cup series for yachts, and started in 1961 as a match racing series between two catamarans. Rod McAlpine-Downey, a catamaran designer in the UK became aware of a challenge from America that claimed they had "the fastest sailboat" Rod answered the challenge and simple rules were agreed.
The challenge had to come from a recognized yacht club and consequently was taken up by John Fisk on behalf of the Chapman Sands Yacht Club of which he was Commodore and friend of Rod. The challenge was successful and the trophy went to the UK where it stayed for 8 years.The simple design rules were formalised, overall length of 25 feet (7.6 m), beam of 14 feet (4.3 m) and total sail area of 300 square feet (27.9 m²) to be sailed by a two man crew.These were then adopted and became the rules for the International C-Class Catamaran.
which was adopted as an Olympic class for competition. His most radical contribution at that time was a wing mast/soft sail combination una-rig which was untouchable particularly in light airs. Further development of this concept led to the solid "Wing" mast as used by "Oracle" in the recent 2010 America's Cup
successful challenge.
Interest in the Cup waned in the UK when "Thunder" failed to gain the right to defend the challenge against the Australian, "Quest" in 1965. The decision to continue with the aging "Emma Hamilton" and Reg White, sponsored by A.R.(Bertie) Holloway almost cost the UK the Cup then. Only the brilliance of Reg White kept him level with Quest and in the final decider, with the Australian challenger in the lead a strong squall caught Quest on a broad reach and she capsized.
White and Holloway went on to develop the wing and soft sail combo for Lady Helmsman, sponsored by the paint company but by now the "amateurs" had dropped out. The best thing to happen to the Cup was loss to Denmark and then their subsequent loss to Australia. Challenges between Australia and America continued for several years and during this time the solid Wing mast gained supremacy.
However costs were escalating and the America's Cup was swallowing sponsorship funding. Attempts in America to revive the event finally killed it. The proposed commercialization of the event together with the removal of any design development together with the particular design chosen for the event F-18HT Beach Catamaran guaranteed that anyone who had had earlier participation and motivation would walk away. There has been no racing since. The Little America's Cup has joined the Dodo. However, a reborn event with similar philosophy may take the "name" to a renewed interest. ,
While the ICCT has changed in format, C Class match racing continues on with the International C-Class Catamaran Championship
, and the race results continue there.
The challenge had to come from a recognized yacht club and consequently was taken up by John Fisk on behalf of the Chapman Sands Yacht Club of which he was Commodore and friend of Rod. The challenge was successful and the trophy went to the UK where it stayed for 8 years.The simple design rules were formalised, overall length of 25 feet (7.6 m), beam of 14 feet (4.3 m) and total sail area of 300 square feet (27.9 m²) to be sailed by a two man crew.These were then adopted and became the rules for the International C-Class Catamaran.
History
The early years saw major participation from amateur designers including Rodney March, who went on to design the TornadoTornado (sailboat)
The Tornado is an two person multihull class recognised as an International Class by the International Sailing Federation. It was used for the Olympic Catamaran discpline for over 30 years.-Background:...
which was adopted as an Olympic class for competition. His most radical contribution at that time was a wing mast/soft sail combination una-rig which was untouchable particularly in light airs. Further development of this concept led to the solid "Wing" mast as used by "Oracle" in the recent 2010 America's Cup
America's Cup
The America’s Cup is a trophy awarded to the winner of the America's Cup match races between two yachts. One yacht, known as the defender, represents the yacht club that currently holds the America's Cup and the second yacht, known as the challenger, represents the yacht club that is challenging...
successful challenge.
Interest in the Cup waned in the UK when "Thunder" failed to gain the right to defend the challenge against the Australian, "Quest" in 1965. The decision to continue with the aging "Emma Hamilton" and Reg White, sponsored by A.R.(Bertie) Holloway almost cost the UK the Cup then. Only the brilliance of Reg White kept him level with Quest and in the final decider, with the Australian challenger in the lead a strong squall caught Quest on a broad reach and she capsized.
White and Holloway went on to develop the wing and soft sail combo for Lady Helmsman, sponsored by the paint company but by now the "amateurs" had dropped out. The best thing to happen to the Cup was loss to Denmark and then their subsequent loss to Australia. Challenges between Australia and America continued for several years and during this time the solid Wing mast gained supremacy.
However costs were escalating and the America's Cup was swallowing sponsorship funding. Attempts in America to revive the event finally killed it. The proposed commercialization of the event together with the removal of any design development together with the particular design chosen for the event F-18HT Beach Catamaran guaranteed that anyone who had had earlier participation and motivation would walk away. There has been no racing since. The Little America's Cup has joined the Dodo. However, a reborn event with similar philosophy may take the "name" to a renewed interest. ,
Race results of the original series
Races dwindled. They were held 12 times between 1961-1973, eight times between 1974-1989 and only twice in the old C Class format since 1989.| Year | Winner, Crew and Nation | Opponent, Crew and Nation | Match score | Match Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1961 | Hellcat II, John Fisk, Rod McAlpine-Downey UK | Wildcat, John Beery & John Hickok, USA | 4:1 | Long Island Sound, MA (USA) |
| 1962 | Hellcat, Ian Norris & Nocky Pope, UK | Beverly, Billy Saltonstall & Van Alan Clark, USA | 4:1 | Seacliff YC, USA |
| 1963 | Hellcat III S, Reg White & Rod Mac Alpine Downie, UK | Quest, John Munns & Graeme Anderson | 4:0 | |
| 1964 | Emma Hamilton, A. R. Holloway & Reg White, Chapman Sands SC, UK | Sea Lion,Bob Smith & Jerry Hubbard, Eastern Multihull Association, USA | 4:1 | Thorpe Bay Yacht Club, UK |
| 1965 | Emma Hamilton, Reg White, UK | Quest II, Australia | 4:3 | Thorpe Bay Yacht Club, UK; |
| 1966 | Lady Helmsman, UK | Gamecock, Bob Shiels & Jim Bonney, USA | 4:2 | |
| 1967 | Lady Helmsman, UK | Quest III, Australia | 4:1 | |
| 1968 | Lady Helmsman, UK | Yankee Flyer, USA | ||
| 1969 | Opus III, Denmark | Ocelot, UK | 4:3 | |
| 1970 | Quest III, Australia | Sleipner, Denmark | 4:3 | |
| 1971 | ||||
| 1972 | Quest III, Australia | USA | 4:0 | |
| 1974 | Miss Nylex, Australia | Miss New Zealand | 4:0 | |
| 1976 | Aquarius V, Alex Kosloff and crew Robbie Harvey Cabrillo Beach YC, CA, USA | Miss Nylex, Sorrento Yacht Club in Australia | 4:3 | Australia |
| 1977 | Patient Lady III, USA | Quest, Australia | 4:0 | USA |
| 1978 | Patient Lady IV, USA | Miss Lancia, Italy | 4:0 | USA |
| 1980 | Patient Lady V, USA | Signor G (for Signor Gividi), Italy | 4:0 | USA |
| 1982 | Patient Lady V, USA | Signor G | 4:0 | USA |
| 1985 | Victoria 150, Australia | Patient Lady VI, USA | USA | |
| 1987 | The Edge, Australia | The Hinge, UK | Australia | |
| 1989 | The Edge II, Simon McKeon & David Churcher, Australia | Wingmill, USA | Australia | |
| 1991 | The Edge III, Simon McKeon & David Churcher, Australia | Freedom's Wing, USA | Australia | |
| 1996 | Cogito, Duncan MacLane USA | Yellow Pages The Edge III, Australia | 4:0 | McCrae YC, Australia |
| 1997 onwards | No races held in this format under this name. Please see ICCC International C-Class Catamaran Championship The International C-Class Catamaran Championship, or ICCCC or I4C has taken over from the International Catamaran Challenge Trophy for the International C-Class Catamaran match racing of highly innovative catamarans, predominantly with a wing rig instead of a conventional sail plan.The prior racing... from this point forward | |||
While the ICCT has changed in format, C Class match racing continues on with the International C-Class Catamaran Championship
International C-Class Catamaran Championship
The International C-Class Catamaran Championship, or ICCCC or I4C has taken over from the International Catamaran Challenge Trophy for the International C-Class Catamaran match racing of highly innovative catamarans, predominantly with a wing rig instead of a conventional sail plan.The prior racing...
, and the race results continue there.
Race results of the current series
| Year | Winner, Crew and Nation | Opponent, Crew and Nation | Match score | Match Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | ||||
See also
- Americas Cup
- “New” Little Americas CupInternational C-Class Catamaran ChampionshipThe International C-Class Catamaran Championship, or ICCCC or I4C has taken over from the International Catamaran Challenge Trophy for the International C-Class Catamaran match racing of highly innovative catamarans, predominantly with a wing rig instead of a conventional sail plan.The prior racing...