12 Meter Racing Yachts
The 12 Metre Class – America’s Cup contenders 1958-1987
In 1958, after a twenty-one year halt of America’s Cup competition, racing continued with a new class of racers, the 12 Metre Class. These 60 to 70 foot sloops were smaller in size, easier to crew, and more manageable on a race course than the previous 135 foot America’s Cup racing class, J boats. However, the 12 Metre class, like the J boats, were designed based on a formula. This meant that 12 Metre Class yachts could vary in sail area, length, and other speed production aspects. The following is the mathematical formula by which all 12 Metre yachts are measured.
This formula inputs speed producing factors (length (L), sail area (Sa), freeboard (F), and a girth measurement (2D)) through a simple mathematical formula. In order for a yacht to be a Twelve Metre the results of this formula must not exceed 12 Metres. To limit the likelihood that one 12 Metre design would be vastly superior than another and promote fair and competitive racing there are other restrictions on design measurements of 12 Metre racing yachts. Maximum and minimum parameters on mast height, draft, beam and headsail height are applied to 12 Metre racing yachts to ensure that there is not too much diversity among boats.
Twelve Metre yachts are quite possibly the most fascinating racing sailboats ever built. They have a beauty and size that, along with their America’s Cup history, has attracted and intrigued yachtsmen since their debut. The horsepower used to drive these 65,000 pound racing beauties to speeds as high as twelve knots lies in their massive sail area. Their mainsails are usually about 1200 square feet in size and their jibs, which can only have a height that is seventy-five percent of the mast in height, range from 500 square feet to over 1200 square feet in size. Twelve Metre yachts were not raced in the America’s Cup until 1958. However, the six, eight, and twelve metre rules were developed over five decades earlier. In 1906 William Froude and the Royal Yachting Association in England helped develop the International Rules for metre class boats. Before their America’s Cup debut metre boats had considerable racing success and were used in the 1908, 1912, and 1920 Olympic games.
The 12 Metre Class was taken up by American yachtsmen in 1928 when several New York Yacht Club members ordered six virtually identical 12 Metre boats from renowned boat designer Starling Burgess. In 1939 American 12 Metre racing was taken to a new level when Harold Vanderbilt, an accomplished America’s Cup sailor, J boat skipper, and winner of the 1930, 1934, and 1937 America’s Cup, took his new 12 Metre, Vim (12 Metre US-15) to England to race against the prestigious Royal Yacht Squadron. While in England, Vim won 21 of her 27 races against the British 12 Metres, leaving the Royal Yacht Squadron in awe. Vim continued to be the standard by which all other 12 Metre yachts were gauged for the next two decades until 1958 when Columbia (12 Metre US-16) defeated her by only 12 seconds in the tie breaking race of the America’s Cup defense trials. The 12 Metre Class would remain the design standard for America’s Cup racing yachts until being retired after the 1987 America’s Cup.
America’s Cup 12 Metres were designed to do one thing – win America’s Cup races off the coast of Newport, Rhode Island. Therefore, every aspect of their design reflects this. When the twelves campaigned in the America’s Cup there was no room for the unneeded weight of an engine, anything below decks, or even a toilet. Set up for optimal sail performance, deck layouts of the America’s Cup twelves also reflect their need for speed. The sails are the engines of the boat during racing and therefore, in order to win, it was imperative that they were trimmed correctly and quickly. Even the America’s Cup twelve metre crew were trained to be as efficient as possible. They had intensive training and practice so that they would be flawless at sail handling and the best yacht racers in the world when it was their turn to race in the famous America’s Cup.
Today the America’s Cup 12 Metre boats remain a premier racing class and a prestigious part of America’s Cup history. After their America’s Cup adventures, many twelves went on to have successful careers in ocean racing. Newport, Rhode Island, where over 50 years of America’s Cup racing took place and all but two America’s Cup 12 Metre races took place, has rightfully become the home of the largest fleet of 12 Metre yachts in the world. Over a dozen America’s Cup 12 Metres are home ported in Newport, RI and are available for charter through 12 Meter Charters. These sleek racing beauties were designed to sail off the coast of Newport, RI – come sail with us on a piece of America’s Cup racing history!
For more information about chartering our America’s Cup 12 Meters please contact our office at 401-851-1216 or email us sail@12meteryachtcharters.com
AMERICAN 12 METRE YACHTS:
At the top of the main sail of a 12 Meter is 12, the 12 Meter class insignia. Below the 12, is a letter or letters that indicate the country where the boat is registered for racing. Following the letters is a number that is the boats racing number. Each countries 12 Meter racing numbers were assigned sequentially in the order that the yachts were built. For example, Columbia (12 US-16) was built in 1958 and American Eagle (12 US-21) was built in 1964. The following lists all American 12 Meters ever built.
12 Metre US-1 Waiandance – Built 1928.
12 Metre US-2 Isolde – Built 1928.
12 Metre US-3 Tycoon – Built 1928.
12 Metre US-4 Iris – Built 1928.
12 Metre US-5 Anitra – Built 1928.
12 Metre US-6 Onawa – Built 1928, currently sailing in Newport, RI.
12 Metre US-7 Magda XI – Built 1912, Norwegian sailed 1912 Stockholm Olympics Gold medal in the 12 Metre event.
12 Metre US-9 Seven Seas of Porto – Built 1935.
12 Metre US-10 Mitena – Built 1935.
12 Metre US-11 Gleam – Built 1937, currently sailing in Newport, RI.
12 Metre US-12 Nyala – Built 1938, currently sailing in Italy with the Prada America’s Cup team.
12 Metre US-14 Northern Light – Built 1938, currently sailing in Newport, RI.
12 Metre US-15 Vim – Built 1939, America’s Cup Contender 1958, currently sailing in the Mediterranean.
12 Metre US-16 Columbia – Built 1958, First 12 Meter America’s Cup Winner 1958, America’s Cup Contender 1962, currently sailing in Newport, RI.
12 Metre US-17 Weatherly – Built 1958, America’s Cup Winner 1962, currently sailing in Newport, RI.
12 Metre US-18 Easterner – Built 1958, America’s Cup Contender 1958, 1962 & 1964, currently sailing in Newport, RI.
12 Metre US-19 Nefertiti – Built 1962, America’s Cup Contender 1962, currently sailing in Newport, RI.
12 Metre US-20 Constellation – Built 1964, America’s Cup Winner 1964.
12 Metre US-21 American Eagle – Built 1964, America’s Cup Contender 1964, currently sailing in Newport, RI.
12 Metre US-22 Intrepid – Built 1967, America’s Cup Winner 1967 & 1970, currently sailing in Newport, RI.
12 Metre US-23 Heritage – Built 1970, America’s Cup Contender 1970, currently sailing in Newport, RI.
12 Metre US-24 Valiant – Built 1970, America’s Cup Contender 1970 & 1974, currently sailing in Marblehead, MA.
12 Metre US-25 Mariner – Built 1974, America’s Cup Contender 1974.
12 Metre US-26 Courageous – Built 1974, America’s Cup Winner 1974 & 1977, currently sailing in Newport, RI.
12 Metre US-27 Enterprise – Built 1977, America’s Cup Contender 1977.
12 Metre US-28 Independence – Built 1976, America’s Cup Contender 1977.
12 Metre US-29 Clipper – Built 1980, America’s Cup Contender 1980.
12 Metre US-30 Freedom – Built 1979, America’s Cup Winner 1980, currently sailing in Newport, RI.
12 Metre US-32 Clipper – Built 1980, America’s Cup Contender 1980.
12 Metre US-33 Defender – Built 1982, 1983 America’s Cup contender built at Newport Onshore, Newport, RI.
12 Metre US-34 Spirit of America – Built 1982, later rebuilt as Stars & Stripes ‘83.
12 Metre US-38 Magic – Built 1982.
12 Metre US-40 Liberty – Built 1983, America’s Cup Defender 1983. Liberty lost the Cup defense to Australia II (12 Metre KA-6), thus ending the New York Yacht Club’s 132 year domination of the America’s Cup. To this day it remains the longest winning streak in the history of organized sports.
12 Metre US-42 America II – Built 1984, all three of the America II boats were built for the New York Yacht Club’s 1987 campaign to win the America’s Cup back.
12 Meter US-44 America II – Built 1985.
12 Metre US-46 America II – Built 1986, currently owned by Manhattan Sailing Club Syndicate of New York Harbor, North Cove, New York, NY under the name America II
12 Metre US-49 USA 1 – Built 1985, San Francisco syndicate for 1987 America’s Cup.
12 Metre US-50 USA 2 – Built 1987, San Francisco syndicate for 1987 America’s Cup.
12 Metre US-51 Heart Of America – Built 1986, Chicago Yacht Club syndicate for 1987 America’s Cup.
12 Metre US-53 Stars & Stripes ‘83 – Built 1985. Stars & Stripes ’83 was actually a rebuilt and redesigned Spirit Of America (US-34). She was modified for use as a 1987 America’s Cup challenger candidate by the San Diego Yacht Club, but passed over for her sister boat, US-55.
12 Metre US-54 Stars & Stripes ‘85 – Built 1986.
12 Metre US-55 Stars & Stripes ‘87 – Built 1986, America’s Cup Winner 1987. After losing the Cup in 1983 on the New York Yacht Club’s Liberty (12 Metre US-40), Dennis Conner set up his own team backed by the San Diego Yacht Club. It was on Stars & Stripes ‘87 that Conner won back the cup for the United States, beating the Australian defender Kookaburra III (12 Metre KA-15). In doing so, Conner became the only skipper in America’s Cup history to lose the Cup and then win it back again. 1987 would be the last year that the 12 Metre design would be used for America’s Cup racing. Stars & Stripes ‘87 is currently sailing in St. Maarten.
12 Metre US-56 Stars & Stripes ‘86 – Built 1986. Another sister boat of Stars & Stripes ’87 (US-55). The trials between US-56 and US-55 were so close that Dennis Conner did not make his decision to race US-55 until a few days before the America’s Cup races were to begin.)
12 Metre US-60 Eagle – Built 1986, Newport Beach, California Yacht club syndicate for 1987 America’s Cup.
12 Metre US-61 USA – Built 1986, America’s Cup Contender 1987. Renamed Ecosse, currently sailing in the Mediterranean.