Farr Yacht Design of Annapolis, Maryland, has released the first renderings of the new Super 12 yacht that will be used in the annual San Francisco Yacht Racing Challenge (SFYRC) for the Super 12 Cup beginning in July 2017 on San Francisco Bay.

Not surprisingly, the renderings are very much in keeping with the intent of the effort, which is to restore the kind of classic, Corinthian big-boat international yacht racing that was lost when the America’s Cup turned into the fully professional event it is today.

“Above the waterline the boats are inspired by the classic meter-boat look—long bow and stern overhangs, low freeboard, sheer spring, and narrow beam,” says Farr Yacht Design vice president Britton Ward. “Below the waterline, a modern appendage package with a deep lead bulb with wings and a trim tab provide power and exceptional upwind performance.”

Ward added that the boats are being designed to sail upwind into the San Francisco tide at relatively high angles of heel and run deep downwind with fractional symmetric spinnakers, providing spectators and television audiences incredible visuals in both fleet and match-racing settings.

“With a classic look above the waterline and a modernized underbody, the Super 12s will return dignity, style and stability to yacht racing,” says SFYRC CEO Tom Ehman, summing up the intent of the modernized versions of the 12 Meter yachts that race for the America’s Cup from 1958 to 1987.

In addition to the boats—which will all have to meet strict one-design requirements to ensure parity and limit costs—crews will have to comply with rigorous nationality rules, and each 12-member crew will include a minimum of two women, two men, two people under age 22 and one person 62 or over. For more on the new series, visit sfyrc.com.

Illustration courtesy of San Francisco Yacht Racing Challenge

June 2016