Laurie Davidson (1926 - 2021)

New Zealand and the wider sailing world lost one of its great yacht designing talents, Laurie Davidson, this week (4 October 2021). Davidson was a major force in leading edge IOR design in the 1970s and 80s, starting off with his breakthrough Quarter Tonner Fun before going on to find further international success with winning designs in Half Ton, Three-Quarter Ton and One Ton world championships in the 1970s and was a key part of New Zealand's success in international yacht design through into the 1980s and 1990s. He will of course be best remembered for his breakthrough designs for Team New Zealand in their successful 1995 America's Cup challenge and 2000 defence, but created fast and beautiful looking yachts across the whole design spectrum.

Fun - fifth at the 1976 Quarter Ton Cup in Corpus Christi (and fifth again in Helsinki in 1977)

A tribute article can be found on the Yachting New Zealand website here, and some of his famous designs from the IOR era are presented in the gallery below.

Waverider - fourth in the Half Ton Cup in 1977 but went on to win in 1978 and 1979

Laurie inspecting the hull of Pendragon at the 1978 Three-Quarter Ton Cup in 1978 (photo Doug Wardrop)

Pendragon on her way to winning the 1978 Three Quarter Ton Cup

Laurie seen here checking in with the crew of Pendragon following her conversion to a One Tonner and winning the 1979 One Ton Cup (photo Paul Mello)

Pendragon winning the 1979 One Ton Cup (photo Paul Mello)

Stu Brentnall's 46-footer Shockwave at the 1980 Clipper Cup

Quarter Tonner Hellaby, racing at the 1980 Quarter Ton Cup in Auckland

The 38-foot Southern Raider at the 1982 Clipper Cup (photo John Malitte)

Graeme Woodroffe's 50-footer Jumpin' Jack Flash - although not designed to the IOR (and carrying a high 48.3ft rating), she was New Zealand's top yacht in the 1982 Clipper Cup

Digby Taylor's 51-foot Whitbread yacht Outward Bound during the 1981 New Zealand Admiral's Cup selection trials

Bernard Clay's 50-foot Great Fun during the 1982 Clipper Cup (photo Phil Uhl/Facebook)

Australian 39-footer Szechwan 

The One Tonner Canterbury Export formed part of the New Zealand team for the 1985 Admiral's Cup

The 44-footer Pendragon II (1981)

Mad Max (also known as Goldcorp) seen here during the 1985 Southern Cross Cup

One Tonner Swuzzlebubble VIII (ex-Beyond Thunderdome) at the start of the ill-fated 1994 Sydney to Hobart yacht race

Feltex Roperunner (Farr 40)

Feltex Roperunner (photo Farr Yacht Design)

Feltex Roperunner was designed by Bruce Farr for a syndicate headed by Don Lidgard to contest the New Zealand trials for the 1981 Admiral's Cup. Design #82 was, as noted by Farr, conceived as an all-out Admiral's Cup yacht with no concession to any other style of racing or unnecessary creature comforts. The minimum Admiral's Cup rating of 30.0ft IOR was decided on not only for minimum capital outlay, ease of handling and a size of boat where optimum performance can be gained very easily in a light-ish displacement yacht, but also because over the years minimum rating appeared to have offered the best chance of producing the top all-round performance in typical conditions experienced in the Admiral's Cup (the top individual yacht in the previous regatta was another minimum-rater, the Peterson designed Eclipse).

Feltex Roperunner came up against a range of new boats for the hotly contested trials, but notwithstanding the world championship victories of Farr's yachts in 1977, new rule penalties against light displacement designs had seen something of a change in designer preference amongst New Zealand skippers by 1980. Feltex Roperunner was the only Farr design in the trials, and Ron Holland designs had come to the fore, represented by the minimum raters Swuzzlebubble III, Epiglass New Zealand and Spritzer, and the larger Monique. These yachts came up against the S&S 46 footers Marac and Ngaruru, and the Davidson 50-footer Outward Bound (designed for the Whitbread round the world race).

Feltex Roperunner was built at the Marten Marine yard in a hi-tech Kevlar and Klegecell layup

Feltex Roperunner on launching day at Half Moon Bay, Auckland (photo Murray Buckman)

The design and deck layout for Feltex Roperunner by Farr Design (the boat was finished with a straight stem profile rather than the slight concavity shown in this drawing)

Despite the changes to the IOR, Feltex Roperunner's hull form remained typically Farr with powerful stern sections (although more conservative than Farr's earlier efforts), moderate beam and a fine bow to handle a short chop to windward, and as light in displacement as the new displacement/length factor of the IOR Rule would allow, consistent with all-round performance objectives. Indeed, Feltex Roperunner was significantly lighter than the Holland designs (12,000lbs compared to 13-14,000lbs), but in broad terms appeared to have traded this for length, being about a foot shorter. The boat featured a large fractional rig, designed to enhance her light weather performance and to give more power out of crowded start-line situations.

Feltex Roperunner on launching day at Half Moon Bay, Auckland (photo Murray Buckman)

Feltex Roperunner on launching day at Half Moon Bay, Auckland (photo Murray Buckman)

Feltex Roperunner (closest to camera) during the start of the 1981 Auckland Anniversary Regatta (photo Sea Spray magazine)

Feltex Roperunner sailing downwind in light airs during the 1981 Auckland Anniversary Day regatta (photo Sea Spray magazine)

Feltex Roperunner preparing for a race start off Auckland's Orakei Wharf (photo Doug Elder)

In response to some initial observations that the hull of Feltex Roperunner looked more distorted than that of the Holland boats, Farr commented at the time that “Our boats look bumpier because they’re wider aft, but really they are fairer than the competition. In fact, the boat is quite sweet at the aft end, the only unfairness being in the topsides where we have rounds and hollows adjacent to each other".

Feltex Roperunner on the wind and approaching a windward mark and displaying reasonably undistorted stern buttock lines (photo Farr Facebook page)

Feltex Roperunner (right) leads Swuzzlebubble III into Auckland Harbour on a tight reach during the 1981 Admiral's Cup trials. Spritzer can be seen to leeward, and Marac ahead

Feltex Roperunner's initial performance looked promising, and she, along with Swuzzlebubble III and Epiglass New Zealand, proved the most consistent in the observation trials. However, in the subsequent selection trials she faltered, and her series results of 3/4=/7/1=/5/4, for fourth overall, were not as consistent as the trio of Swuzzlebubble III, Epiglass New Zealand and Marac that clinched selection. At times Roperunner went like a champion, as in the short offshore race when she tied for first place with Swuzzlebubble III, but on other occasions she didn't seem to handle the chop as well as the finer-sterned Holland yachts. Her campaign was not helped when she hit the rocks off Rangitoto in the second harbour race while she was leading the group of minimum raters.

Feltex Roperunner is set up well to windward of Spritzer and Swuzzlebubble III in a harbour race start off Westhaven (above), but Swuzzlebubble III has soon slipped ahead (below)

Above and below - Feltex Roperunner sails past Motuhie Island during the 1981 Admiral's Cup trials (photo Maritime Museum)

Gibbs’ faith in Holland was well rewarded with Swuzzlebubble III finishing as the top individual boat in the Admiral’s Cup, although the team itself finished a disappointing fifth overall. 

The Roperunner in a fresh southerly off Evans Bay in Wellington, with Southern Raider (KZ-4666) and Red Herring II to weather (photo Rip magazine)

Feltex Roperunner went on to compete in the Southern Cross Cup trials, held in typically fresh conditions in Wellington in October 1981. She was by then owned by a syndicate headed by Geoff Thorpe and renamed The Roperunner. She was selected for the New Zealand team alongside the S&S 46-footer Ngaruru and a new Davidson yacht, the 38-foot Southern Raider. 

The Roperunner to windward of the Davidson-designed Szechwan during the 1981 Southern Cross Cup series (photo Seahorse)

The team appeared sound enough, but in the light breezes and sloppy seas off Sydney it was a failure. The team were further handicapped when Southern Raider was forced to retire from the Sydney-Hobart race following structural problems after heavy squalls on the first night. The Roperunner salvaged what she could, finishing 13th in the Cup fleet (following placings of 12/7/20 in the earlier races), but Ngaruru could do no better than 28th, of 30 boats.

The Roperunner during the 1981 Southern Cross Cup series

The Roperunner did not return to New Zealand, and went on to race in Australian offshore regattas for some years. She displayed some longevity and perhaps improvement following further tuning, and The Roperunner finished a creditable 15th overall in the 1983 Sydney to Hobart race (of 158 finishers), the year that the new generation Farr 40's like Pacific Sundance came to the fore to win the Southern Cross Cup for New Zealand. This effort was no doubt a significant factor that led to The Roperunner being crowned the Blue Water Champion by the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia for the 1983-84 season.

The crew of The Roperunner after the finish of the 1983 Sydney to Hobart race (photo Facebook)

The Roperunner was understood to be based at the Lake Macquarie Yacht Club in about 2016, she now (as of December 2023) sits somewhat forlornly on a mooring at Belmont Bay in New South Wales, with an unpainted extension to her cabin top (and much reduced cockpit) and the addition of a steering wheel.

The Roperunner as seen in December 2023 in Belmont Bay (photo Facebook) 

Update - May 2025: The Roperunner has been rescued (now based in Lake Macquarie) and is undergoing restoration.

The Roperunner being lifted from the water ahead of her restoration, May 2025 (photo Facebook)

The Roperunner has been reverted to her original name and now has her own Facebook page, so you can follow progress on her restoration here.

Article updated July 2026

Clipper Cup 1982

The third Hawaii IOR Series held in 1982 featured 80 boats from eight countries (Australia, Bermuda, Canada, Hong Kong, Japan, New Zealand, South Africa and the USA). The Maxi fleet would feature eight yachts including Condor and Condor of Bermuda, Kialoa IV and Windward Passage. The series was modified for 1982 by substituting a new 150-mile middle distance race from Oahu to Maui along the north shore of Molokai Island, and the Clipper Cup Trophy would become the principal trophy for international team competition.  

Japanese yacht Super Witch (photo Phil Uhl/Facebook)

The 1982 series was a particularly windy regatta and affected by the remnants of two hurricanes that passes to the south of the Hawaiian Islands, and made the regatta one of the most memorable and exciting events of the decade. Winds gusting 45 knots created big seas but the brilliant sunshine of Hawaii prevailed throughout. Gear failure was rampant and the new IOR designs were pushed to the limit. By the end of the series there were seven broken masts strewn about Ala Wai Harbour, a few broken bones and contusions, and various fractured equipment.

The Japanese yacht Tobiume was the top boat of the series and winner of Class E (photo Guy Gurney)

The Davidson 50 yacht Great Fun (photo Sea Spray)

The Olympic Triangle courses provided excitement never before dreamed of in offshore racing, with Maxi yachts surfing like One Tonners. The wild surfing conditions and severe broaches experienced by many of the yachts made the Olympic races a bonanza for the photographers. 

The Davidson 40 Libalia Too (ex-Brother Dominic) (photo Phil Uhl/Facebook)

Australia's Margaret Rintoul III finished in 7th place overall and 2nd in Class B, and part of the second placed Australian team (photo Bruce Brown/Yacht Racing/Cruising)

The Farr 48-footer Sangvind (photo Phil Uhl)

Kialoa IV on port tack approaches Condor on starboard

Condor of Bermuda and Windward Passage arrive at a windward mark during the 1982 Clipper Cup (photo Phil Uhl/Facebook)

Windward Passage runs downwind with her spinnaker and blooper in perfect trim (photo Phil Uhl)

The first sailing of the Molokai Race was postponed for 24 hours due to the forecast for 45 knot winds and 24 foot seas. When the fleet finally set out the winds had abated to 35 knots and the seas were running at 18 feet, with a forecast for both wind and seas to reduce during the race. One of the most notable incidents was Kialoa IV's broach while running downwind at 22 knots, which resulted in a broken boom and the loss of all the masthead electronic gear as the top of the mast was dragged through the water. Windward Passage took line honours, setting a fast time of 15 hours and 32 minutes for the race, while the Davidson 50 Great Fun was the overall winner on handicap.

Great Fun rounds a leeward mark during the 1982 Clipper Cup

US yacht Bravura in tight reaching conditions, ahead of Australia's Sweet Caroline (to leeward) and New Zealand's Bad Habits (photo Phil Uhl)

The Around the State Race was not subject to the same extremes of wind and sea conditions that had prevailed for the first part of the series, but there was enough wind to allow Kialoa IV to set a new course record of 3 days, 23 hours and 40 minutes, the first yacht to ever sail the course in under four days. 

The ageing Condor of Bermuda wasn't able to compete with her newer namesake Condor, nor Kialoa IV (photo Phil Uhl)

Scarlett O'Hara and Challenge III run downwind in close company in typically fresh conditions during the 1982 Clipper Cup - Scarlett O'Hara would later lose her mast during the Molokai Race (photo Facebook)

1982 turned out to be the year for Japan to make its mark on offshore racing, as the Takai 39 Tobiume, with its short, powerful rig and low rating of 29.4ft (albeit that this rating was subject to a protest during the series), was able to withstand the extreme conditions of Hawaii to win the coveted position of top individual boat and the King Kamehameha Trophy. The USA Blue Team of Bullfrog, Great Fun and Kialoa IV captured the Clipper Cup.

Condor, seen here off the North Shore of Molokai (photo Phil Uhl)

Tobiume and Shenandoah (to windward) after the start of the Molokai Race (photo Phil Uhl)

Japan's Tobiume with Australia's Seaulater to the left (photo Alastair Black/Seahorse)

Both New Zealand teams found themselves off the pace in the prevailing conditions (even though Southern Raider had won the pre-series Lahaina Sauza Cup), and unfortunately the top New Zealand yacht, 15th placed Jumpin' Jack Flash, was an individual entry. Jumpin' Jack Flash was a Davidson 52-footer, designed with barely a nod to the IOR, featured a long easily driven hull with a relatively short rig, and carried a hefty 49.0ft rating.

Jumpin Jack Flash surfs in towards a leeward mark (photo Charles P LeMieux III/Yacht Racing/Cruising)

Jumpin' Jack Flash climbs a big swell during the 1982 Clipper Cup (photo Phil Uhl/Facebook)

US yacht Irrational (ex-Forte) heads downwind, with New Zealand's Solara  heading off on port (photo Doug Peterson Tribute page)

Brooke Ann, a Nelson-Marek 42-footer (USA), seen here about to deploy her blooper (photo Phil Uhl)

Checkmate sails out from Hanauma Bay followed by Great Fun and Jumpin' Jack Flash (photo Phil Uhl) 

Australian team yacht Hitchhiker

The bowman calls the startline aboard Condor of Bermuda (photo Phil Uhl)

The Davidson 38-footer Szechwan from Australia (sistership to Southern Raider), finished in third place overall in Class E

Anticipation (NZ), finished 17th overall and 6th in class (photo Phil Uhl)

Uin-na-Mara, well reefed down, crosses Australia's Challenge III as the fleet works up the Hawaiian coast just off the surf break

Maxi yacht Apollo (Australia), designed by Ben Lexcen and rating 67.0ft, passes South Point during the Round the State race - she went on to finish third in Class A (photo Phil Uhl)

US yacht Bravura - top yacht in Class C and third yacht overall, and member of the third-placed 'US White' team (photo Phil Uhl)

Moonshadow (Holland 42, USA) takes evasive action near Libalia Too (photo Phil Uhl)

The Holland 41-footer Tomahawk (with Leading Lady coming downwind) battles an errant spinnaker at a leeward mark. She was third overall in Class D and was a member of the third placed USA White team (photo Phil Uhl)

Japanese yacht Kazu, a Peterson 43, rounds a leeward mark (photo Phil Uhl)

Tomahawk, seen here at another leeward mark but with a more controlled spinnaker take-down than in the photo above (photo Phil Uhl)

Superwitch (photo Phil Uhl)

The Holland 44 Big Apple, sailing for Japan (34.5ft IOR) (photo Guy Gurney)

Big Apple - seen here in pre-start action ahead of the Soverel-design Zingara (32.2ft IOR) (photo Phil Uhl)

Bravura (photo Facebook)

US yacht Swiftsure, a Frers 58-footer, loses control of her spinnaker (photo Phil Uhl)

Cadillac Snapper from the US, a 44-foot version of the Davidson 46 Shockwave from 1980, with the Lidgard-designed Kalimera in the background (photo Phil Uhl)

US yacht Bullfrog, a Peterson 55, lead the series with a 2/2/5/2 series, until the final Round the State race, when she lost time with a man overboard and a damaged forestay toggle. She finished fourth in Class B (photo Alastair Black/Seahorse)

US yacht Bravura (first in Class C) leads Australian yacht Sweet Caroline downwind

The Britton Chance designed Glory from the US (photo John Malitte/Sea Spray)

This is the official documentary from the 1982 Clipper Cup, and includes some great sailing footage from this fantastic venue, featuring yachts such as Condor and Windward Passage slugging it out in the Maxi class, as well as many other top yachts of the time such as Great Fun (Davidson 50 shown in the video thumbnail), Police Car, Hitchhiker, Bravura, and Super Witch. The second race in particular was held in very fresh conditions - look out for some nice rolling downwind, broaches, errant bloopers, split spinnakers and broken masts (unfortunately YouTube has removed the sound).

The scene during one of the triangle races (photo Phil Uhl)

Article updated December 2025