12 One-Design Class Sailboat Handbook 



however, an owner's individual requirements, the amount of gear placed 

 aboard and his choice of sails make it more difficult to maintain one- 

 design principles as a basis to even-up racing. Most boats of this style 

 (Chapter 8 contains more information on one-design cruising boats) 

 are raced in handicap events (see Chapter 5). 



Earlier it was stated that all boats in a given class are built as close to 

 each other as possible. With the possible exception of fiberglass hulls, 

 it is almost impossible to build two boats absolutely alike, no matter how 

 hard you try. But they are one design. Measurements are held to within 

 strict tolerances. These tolerances can be a help to the amateur, but they 

 can also be used by professional builders, following one extreme or an- 

 other of the allowable tolerances, to create slightly different boats. This 

 has been the cause of controversy in some classes, and to overcome this 

 some associations kept the building to tolerances known only to the boat's 

 designer and the association's chief measurer. Cheating or chiseling on 

 such points is kept to a minimum by the refusal of a measurement cer- 

 tificate. Some classes are the exclusive property of a single builder and 

 can then be built similar in every detail. 



In addition to construction changes, there are sometimes varied ways 

 to change the rig or fittings of a one-design boat to make it go a bit faster 

 than the other craft of the same class. For example, bronze centerboards, 

 streamlined and slotted masts, greater number and lighter frames, varia- 

 ble area rudders and hosts of other seemingly minor changes will un- 

 doubtedly increase the speed of one that has these improvements over 

 one that doesn't. Actually, one of the most difficult problems in any one- 

 design class is just that; to remain one-design. Many classes start with 

 that ideal, and slowly little deviations and changes creep in, none ap- 

 parently large enough to matter, but in the aggregate appreciable. Then 

 the fight for "improvements" begins, and holding the line becomes in- 

 creasingly difficult. Eventually it is found that the top-notchers of the 

 class have incorporated numbers of variations which the rank and file feel 

 they must copy if they are to stay in the running. A person, product or 

 organization blind to change is doomed, since change is inherent in, 

 indeed almost synonymous with, life. Any knowledgeable and under- 

 standing sailor, on having a reasonable experience with almost any boat 

 ever built, could suggest improvements. The object of the class is, how- 



