International One Design - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The 'International One Design' (IOD, International) is a class of sail boat developed for yacht racing

Yacht racing

Yacht racing is the sport of competitive yachting.While sailing groups organize the most active and popular competitive yachting, other boating events are also held world-wide: speed motorboat racing; competitive canoeing, kayaking, and rowing; model yachting; and navigational contests Yacht racing...

. It is a 33-foot open cockpit day sailer used for day racing, rather than for overnight, or ocean races, such as the Newport–Bermuda Yacht Race

Bermuda Race

The Bermuda Race, or Newport Bermuda Race, is a biennial yacht race from Newport, Rhode Island to the island of Bermuda, a distance of 635 nautical miles across open ocean. The first Bermuda Race started in 1906 from Gravesend Bay, N.Y. with three entries. The race was held several times in the...

. Popularised prior to the Second World War, the International One Design class is considered a classic one today.

Origin

The International class sloop was created by the legendary American yachtsman, Cornelius Shields as he sought to create a new one design yacht for the Amorita Cup series of team races between Bermuda

Bermuda

Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...

and Long Island Sound

Long Island Sound

Long Island Sound is an estuary of the Atlantic Ocean, located in the United States between Connecticut to the north and Long Island, New York to the south. The mouth of the Connecticut River at Old Saybrook, Connecticut, empties into the sound. On its western end the sound is bounded by the Bronx...

. While in Bermuda one spring, he looked out at the beautiful Bermudian 6-Meter, Saga, owned by Eldon and Kenneth Trimingham, and knew instantly that he had seen the prototype of a beautiful racing class that would stand the test of time.

Inspired by the beauty of this Six Metre

6 Metre (keelboat)

The International Six Metre Class is a class of racing yachts. Six Metre boats are a construction class, meaning that the boats are not identical but are all designed to meet specific measurement formula, in this case International Rule...

yacht, and its performance, Shields envisioned using it as the basis of a one design racing class that would have the advantages of both limiting the upwardly-spiraling costs of yacht racing, and putting competing crews on an equal footing as far as equipment was concerned.

Shields commissioned Saga's designer-builder, Bjarne Aas of Fredrikstad

Fredrikstad

is a city and municipality in Østfold county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Fredrikstad....

, Norway

Norway

Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

, to develop plans for a one-design version of Saga. He negotiated with Aas to reduce the size of the Saga's design to produce a 33 foot (10 m) racer. The resulting design was smaller than the Saga, with less displacement, but greater beam of 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m). It measured 21 ft 5 in (6.53 m) in at the waterline, and had a draft of 5 ft 4 in (1.63 m), and displaced 7,120 lb (3,230 kg). The mast was 45 ft (13.72 m), carrying 426 square feet (40 m²) of sail. The design of the boat is what is known as a Bermuda sloop
Sloop
A sloop is a sail boat with a fore-and-aft rig and a single mast farther forward than the mast of a cutter....

, or a Marconi sloop, being single-masted, and Bermuda rig

Bermuda rig

The term Bermuda rig refers to a configuration of mast and rigging for a type of sailboat and is also known as a Marconi rig; this is the typical configuration for most modern sailboats...

ged. The result is a beautiful reminder of yachting's "golden age" with the traditional metre-boat's long overhangs, graceful sheer, deep, narrow hull and lofty rig.
The cost of an IOD in 1936 was $2,670. Sails, spars, running rigging, cradle, insurance, and shipping charges from Norway were included in the price. With the backing of the enthusiastic Shields, the boat was quickly adopted by the top racers on Long Island Sound. The first of the initial order of 25 yachts was delivered at City Island

City Island, Bronx

City Island is a small island approximately 1.5 mi long by .5 mi wide. At one time attached to the town of Pelham, Westchester County, it is now part of the New York City borough of the Bronx. As of the 2000 census the island had a population of 4,520. Its land area is 1.023 km²...

, New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

in December 1936. "I finally arranged to sail her the week after Christmas...the first time anyone had sailed an International,” recalled Shields, many years later. “I don't think I've ever had a more joyous day on the water. The wind was from the northeast, light in the morning and then stronger at mid-day, so we had a chance to try her out under a variety of conditions. The boat was a delight to handle, and balanced perfectly. I felt great satisfaction at this -- the planning and hope and care hadn't been in vain."

The Internationals quickly spread. Bermuda took delivery of seven in January 1937. The next year fleets were established in Marblehead, Massachusetts

Marblehead, Massachusetts

Marblehead is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 19,808 at the 2010 census. It is home to the Marblehead Neck Wildlife Sanctuary and Devereux Beach...

and Northeast Harbor, Maine

Northeast Harbor, Maine

Northeast Harbor is a village on Mount Desert Island, located in the town of Mount Desert in Hancock County, Maine, United States. The village has a significant summer population, and has long been a quiet enclave of the rich and famous. Summer residents include the Rockefeller family, as well as...

, followed by fleets in Norway and Cowes

Cowes

Cowes is an English seaport town and civil parish on the Isle of Wight. Cowes is located on the west bank of the estuary of the River Medina facing the smaller town of East Cowes on the east Bank...

. During the war, legend says that Aas buried the construction jigs to protect them during the Nazi occupation. After the liberation of Norway, construction resumed at Fredrikstad with boats going to San Francisco, Sweden

Sweden

Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....

, France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

, Oyster Bay

Oyster Bay

- Place names :In Australia* Oyster Bay, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney, Australia* Great Oyster Bay, a bay on the east coast of Tasmania, AustraliaIn South Africa...

, and Cowes. Fiberglass construction was introduced in the 1960s with great care taken by the class to ensure that the wood and glass yachts could race on an equal basis. Today, there are ten fleets racing around the world -- Bermuda, Norway (combined fleets -- Oslo

Oslo

Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...

& Tønsberg

Tønsberg

is a city and municipality in Vestfold county, southern Norway, located around north-east of Sandefjord. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Tønsberg....

), the United Kingdom (St. Mawes, Falmouth

Falmouth, Cornwall

Falmouth is a town, civil parish and port on the River Fal on the south coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It has a total resident population of 21,635.Falmouth is the terminus of the A39, which begins some 200 miles away in Bath, Somerset....

), Sweden (Stenungsund

Stenungsund

Stenungsund is a locality and the seat of Stenungsund Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden with 10,067 inhabitants in 2005.-Overview:Stenungsund was once only an idyllic bathing and vacation location on the Swedish west coast...

), New York (two fleets -- Larchmont and Fishers Island

Fishers Island

Fishers Island, approximately 9 miles long and 1 mile wide, is located at the eastern end of Long Island Sound, 2 miles off the southeastern coast of Connecticut across Fishers Island Sound...

), Maine

Maine

Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...

(Northeast Harbor), Massachusetts

Massachusetts

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...

(two fleets -- Marblehead

Marblehead, Massachusetts

Marblehead is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 19,808 at the 2010 census. It is home to the Marblehead Neck Wildlife Sanctuary and Devereux Beach...

and Nantucket) and California (San Francisco Bay

San Francisco Bay

San Francisco Bay is a shallow, productive estuary through which water draining from approximately forty percent of California, flowing in the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers from the Sierra Nevada mountains, enters the Pacific Ocean...

). The newest IOD fleet is in Chester, Nova Scotia.

Most recently, IODs were the first class awarded International Classic Yacht status by the International Sailing Federation

International Sailing Federation

The International Sailing Federation is recognised by the International Olympic Committee as the world governing body for the sport of sailing....

(ISAF).

Racing

IOD Racing commenced on Long Island Sound during the summer of 1937. The very first trophy awarded for and IOD race was won by Allegra Knapp, sister to famed American sailor Arthur Knapp. Shields' determination to keep the competition on a man-to-man basis maintained the high quality of racing from the beginning. Soon there were thirty five IODs racing in Long Island Sound. The class took hold in and was used for the first ever competition for the Amorita Cup. In the next 28 matches, from then to 1964, held to compete for the cup (21 in Bermuda, and 8 on Long Island Sound), the Americans won 13 times, and the Bermudians 16.

Today IODs are actively raced in ten local fleets in America and Europe. Representatives of those fleets annually compete in a World Championship (the venue of which rotates between the fleets), a North American Championship, Bermuda Race Week, the Nantucket Invitational, a European Championship and occasional Team-racing championships hosted by individual fleets. Yachts from the International One Design class are used for the annual Bermuda Gold Cup as part of the professional World Match Racing Circuit.

One Design Principles

Since its founding, the International Class has remained committed to the tradition of testing sailing skills in equally equipped yachts. The Class' extensive one-design rules endeavor to ensure that the hulls, rigs and sails of the racing yachts are near equal as possible. All International owners agree to honor this Class principle.

With any racing yacht, the largest contributor to variable costs are the sails. A boat with newer sails will almost always have a greater speed potential than a boat with older sails of the same design. To keep costs low and ensure that each boat is racing with the most equal sails possible, the IOD class has evolved a very specific sail purchase program that is required to be implemented by each local fleet. The Class encourages each local fleet to develop sails for their boats that suit the specific characteristics of their local sailing area.

Unlike many other one-design fleets, however, individual boats, are not granted free license on how frequently they replace their sails. Instead, each local fleet votes each year on what sail, if any, will be purchased before a given season. The chosen sail (mainsail, jib or spinnaker) is ordered in a single lot from the local fleet's official sailmaker, who pledges to make them as near equal as possible. No recutting, or use of alternate sails is permitted. Usually fleets adopt a sail purchase schedule that only requires the purchase of one sail per year. The result of this unique sail purchase program is a racing fleet of equally equipped boats that are maintained at a low cost to the individual owners.

To further equalize the playing field during International and Interfleet regattas, a change-boat series is presented by the host fleet. Competitors do not bring their own boats to such an event, rather they are invited to sail in the boats of the host fleet. Boats are rotated after every race, or at some events, each day. To make sure that no competing team gain an advantage through this process, the boats are distributed by random drawing and any local representative is prohibited, by rule, from sailing their own boat.

Class Organization

In 1946, Bill John, William S. Cox, George Hinman, Arthur Knapp Jr., A.E. "Bill" Luders Jr.

Bill Luders

Alfred Edward "Bill" Luders, Jr. was an American naval architect, who designed all but one of the Sea Sprite Sailing Yachts....

, Emil Mosbacher Jr. and Roderick Stephens Jr. codified the ethos of the class to prevent it moving away from its intended single design nature. This was achieved partly by ensuring only the original builder could produce boats for the class. Today, there are two authorised builders of boats for this class: Tjorns Yacht Service, in Sweden, and C.W.Hood Yachts

CW Hood Yachts

CW Hood Yachts is a boat builder, designer, and broker in Marblehead, Massachusetts. They produce a range of power and sailing vessels, from the 26 foot Wasque 26 through to the larger Hood 43, along with custom designs.-History:...

, in Marblehead

Marblehead, Massachusetts

Marblehead is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 19,808 at the 2010 census. It is home to the Marblehead Neck Wildlife Sanctuary and Devereux Beach...

, Massachusetts

Massachusetts

. The most recent all wooden IOD, built from the original 1936 drawings, was constructed in 2009 by Tern Boatworks, in Chester, Nova Scotia. The class was overseen by a five man class committee (headed by Shields until 1960). The committee was as responsible for publicizing the class as regulating it.

IODs were the first class awarded International Classic Yacht status by the International Sailing Federation
International Sailing Federation
The International Sailing Federation is recognised by the International Olympic Committee as the world governing body for the sport of sailing....

(ISAF).

External links

Tern Boatworks

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