Maritime Wood

Unlike the Abeking & Rasmussen boats, Cantitoe appears to have been of all-wood construction. Mouette was the only other foreign-designed and -built 12-meter to be raced in the United States until the America’s Cup competition of 1958. A Charles Nicholson design, she was built in England by Camper and Nicholson, Ltd., in 1928, also with partial steel framing and an overall length of 67’7” and waterline length of 45’3”. Horace Havermeyer, a well- known yacht racer of the ‘20s and ‘30s, bought Mouette in Europe in 1929, believing he could use her relatively long waterline length to compete successfully in the burgeoning class in the States. His hope was not ill-found, for Mouette had won the class championship in Great Britain in 1928 and 1929.

The class certainly had a strong start in the United States; these new boats were included by the Yacht Racing Association of Long Island Sound (Western Part) in its annual series of races.

This series, which would continue with few exceptions through the onset of World War II, provided competition both within the class and amongst other classes. Six-meters, Snipes, and even J-boats competed occasionally during this series. When the 12s first appeared at Larchmont in 1928, they were noticeable for their small size, a significant commentary on the size of racing yachts during this period. Tycoon won the initial (1928) Yralis series for 12-meters.

This sudden relative popularity of 12-meters in the United States may have added impetus to the Iyru decision to modify further the International Rule commencing in 1936. This third rule, which was only a modification of the second rule and was designed to further increase seaworthiness and longevity, effectively resulted in phase-out of the masthead rig (modern 12s are three-quarter rigs), further reduction of sail area (to around 1,800 sq ft), and the elimination of the double-headsail rig. With the addition of large Genoa jibs aboard these boats, they became the forerunners of today’s high-aspect ratio, large-headsail racing boats.

Subsequently two United States 12s were designed and built in 1935. Clinton Crane designed Seven Seas for Van Merle-Smith, and L. Francis Herreshoff designed Mitena for William Strawbridge. Seven Seas was Crane’s first 12 (though he had done some previous International Rule work on 8- and 6-meters), and she was extremely successful, winning the 1936 and 1937 Yralis series.

Mitena, however, was not so fortunate. Her extreme 72’ length was attributable in part to her canoe-shaped stern, a Herreshoff trademark and an iconoclasm among 12-meters. Mitena was built at the Herreshoff yard in Bristol, Rhode Island. Whether her great length or peculiar shape was her downfall may never be known, but she was simply unable to win. Strawbridge stuck by this boat and raced her in the Yralis series through 1939 despite her inability to win anything. Like many other early 12-meter sailors, Straw-bridge remained active with the boats once America’s Cup competition began in them. He served “in the background” of one 12-meter campaign and eventually became syndicate head for Intrepid in 1967, though he never actually raced in the America’s Cup 12-meters.

Harold Vanderbilt, having defended the America’s Cup in J-boats in 1934 and 1937, was invited to skipper Seven Seas for the 1938 season. Though some thought he would not do well in these “little” boats, he finished impressively and was so pleased, apparently, with l2-meter racing that he commissioned Olin Stephens to design a 12-meter for him for the 1939 season the 12-meter Vim.

In the interim Crane designed another 12, at Merle-Smith’s urging, for himself. The boat was Gleam, a notoriously fast and now legendary yacht. Gleam was designed using the innovative (for 1937) concept of tank testing. Crane, wanting to ensure progress, tested Gleam’s design against a model of Seven Seas to prove that the hull was faster than his old design.

Crane was interested not only in personal development through such design work, but also in that of the class. He offered to make his 12-meter designs available to both Stephens and Herreshoff; Stephens accepted, Herreshoff declined. Whether using Crane’s work helped make Stephens’s boats winners while Herreshoff’s failed is a matter for conjecture.