Right around the time I took this picture, I realized that it would probably be easier to make one of these boats from scratch than it would to restore one in this type of condition. Building one from scratch, however, is not an option. The Interclub Class rules prohibit the construction of a wooden boat.
Why?
It's an interesting story and the philosophy of one-design racing lies behind it. The last "homemade" IC was built by Franny Charles, the sailing master at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Franny followed the original S&S designs--up to a point. His hull measures in to the specifications of the class, but he also made many improvements, some of which I will write in more detail later in this blog. Today, the IC he built races as #50 (confusing, I know, since it has nothing to do with the hull number, which was 740) and is considered one of the most, if not the most, competitive boats in the fleet. It has won several national championships.
After Franny finished making his boat, the class decided to ban further such efforts because it felt there was no good way to ensure that home-made wooden boats conformed to the one-design philosophy of the class, in which sailors test their sailing skills against each other in boats that are as nearly identical as possible. The idea: it shouldn't be the boat that determines the outcome, it should be the crew who sails it. The rule is different for fiberglass boats because they all can be produced in the same mold and the materials easily controlled.
The class did leave open a loophole, however, and it is the one I am exploiting: it's still okay to restore or rebuild an existing wooden boat.
There may be only a few wooden boats still actively racing (including the first one ever produced) and the existence of these affectionately-called "Woodies" is part of the charm and legacy of the class. But I wonder if the class will modify its rule after its members see what I come up with. Probably wishful thinking on my part. Ha. Ha.
No comments:
Post a Comment