a b m 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
FOREST AND STREAM DESIGNING COMPETITION HONORABLE MENTION DESIGN. 
Submitted by "A. B. C." (A. B. Cassidy), Quincy, Mass. 
FOREST AND STREAM DESIGNING COMPETITION HONORABLE MENTION DESIGN- 
Submitted by "A. B. C." (A. B. Cassidy), Quincy, Mass. 
-CABIN PLAN. 
Yacht Racing in the Open Classes 
in British Waters. 
British yacht racing to "ye dogges" is quickly passing. 
The big class is almost defunct, and is only electrified 
Into spasmodic vitality by such an exceptional event as 
the Glasgow exhibition of 1901 ; or by the presence of 
emperors or kings on the Solent for a brief period of 
society excitement, as will occur this summer. Even then 
the boats are not raced for the sake of the racing, but to 
adorn the society meetings, like vases of flowers on a 
dining table. If racing were the real object, the large 
boats would go the round of the regattas, which we know 
only too well is not done. 
The clubs are not to blame. They offer prizes, arrange 
dates for their programmes, collect. victuals and drinks at 
their houses, hoist flags, charter steamers and fire guns. 
But the races are a failure, a racing yacht having, like the 
"black swan," become "rara in terris," et in mare. 
What will the large class be this year in British waters? 
Meteor II. has gone, never in all probability to return. 
Meteor III. is a large cruising schooner and can scarcely 
be regarded as a racing yacht, except for a handicap. 
Britannia is now antique, and not likely to race against 
more modern craft, except in a handicap. Sybarita ap- 
pears to be no longer tuned up to that pitch of excellence 
necessary for winning in open class races, thus leaving 
Kariad to win the first class prizes this year round the 
British coasts, as she has recently on the Mediterranean. 
Shamrock I. is a Cup challenger, built to fit the American 
rule, and is consequently quite unsuited to compete here 
under the Y. R. A. rule. Indeed, her great draft alone 
would be too severe a handicap on many of the inside 
courses. Bona is converting to a yawl, with a view to 
racing in the handicap class. 
The big class may therefore be regarded as practically 
extinct — a nice prospect for clubs which, with some diffi- 
culty, collect funds and offer fifty to a hundred guinea 
prizes for racing in this class. 
The 65 linear rating class, the best class we have seen 
of late years, has gone, too, and for other reasons. Owners 
appeared to tire of the sport, and many of them sold their 
boats in 1900 principally to our American cousins, and 
the boats are now on the western side of the Atlantic. 
Last year two boats only (Tutty and Nevada) competed 
in this class. A duet is not an opera, and a pair of badly 
balanced boats cannot be regarded as a class. This par- 
ticular match racing was one-sided, according to the 
weather. Nevada is now for sale, and for 1902 the class 
is dead. 
The 52-linear-raters made a good class for some time, 
but the boats have been sold for handicap racing on the 
east coast, and many of them will now be nicely fitted and 
perhaps strengthened for cruising. But the open class, as 
in 1901, will be limited to the match racing of two com- 
petitors. As for the smaller classes, it is only too. well 
known that open class racing has for many years been 
confined to the Solent. There must be some very real 
reasons for this decay in open class racing. No. doubt the 
war has a certain curbing effect on sport in general, but 
ether forms of sport are not suffering like yacht racing, 
therefore the war cannot be the reason. Perhaps the 
principal reason for the fall of the large class is the in- 
creased facility of locomotion obtained by steam. The 
maximum of comfort remains with the sailing yacht, as 
exemplified in Meteor III. and other of the large cruising 
schooners and yawls, where all the interior space is avail-^ 
able for the accommodation and comfort of those living 
on board. In the steam yacht, on the contrary, a large 
portion of the cubical content is required for her engines, 
boilers and coal bunkers. The yacht must perforce be 
periodically coaled, at which times everything and every- 
body on board become smothered with coal dust, and at 
all times a certain amount of cinder dust falls on the 
decks from the funnel tops. Moreover, the throb of the 
engines and the vibration of the hull, especially when 
going at speed, form a constant source of discomfort. 
Last, but not least, the cost of a steam yacht's main- 
tenance is enormous. Yet, with all'these drawbacks, the 
steamer has practically replaced the sailing vessel for 
3-achting purposes, partly because business men must 
often limit their recreation to the hour, and a sailing 
yacht in a calm scarcely conforms with this requirement, 
and partly because it is the fashion, and when that is so 
no more need be said. 
The modern man, woman or child must get about in a 
hurry. He cannot wait for the next train, and he cer- 
tainly cannot permit himself to get hung up in a calm. 
Possibly the oil motor as an auxiliary on the sailing 
cruiser may bring about a change in fashion; but at 
present the sailing cruiser is at a discount, and outclassed 
racers are consequently most difficult to sell at prices but 
little higher than their breaking-up* value. Were it other- 
wise, some of the racing boats would, after a few altera- 
tions and strengthening at no great cost, be converted 
into cruisers and command a market. Above a certain 
tonnage the shallow section is no detriment. If 6ft. 6in. 
of clear headroom be obtained, what more do you want? 
The deep keel can generally be reduced concurrently with 
the sail area, and the ex-racer becomes a fast, comfort- 
able and seaworthy cruiser. Moreover, the shallow sec- 
tion gives more accommodation per ton, owing to the 
yacht's large beam. But this is only true at and above 
the size which gives the requisite headroom. 
In the smaller classes the same remarks do not apply. 
There the ex-racer should be a comfortable day boat with 
very little alteration at all, except a reduction in sail. 
