Ian Gibbs, Admiral's Cup champion dies at 87

Gibbs's standout performer Swuzzlebubble III - seen here on her way to being the top yacht in the New Zealand Admiral's Cup trials in 1981, and went on to take individual honours in the Cup itself (photo P Montgomery/Sail-world)

Sail-World reports today that Ian Gibbs, one of New Zealand's top offshore owner/skippers, has died at the age of 87 years. 
 
In a 20 year period Gibbs competed very actively and with considerable success in major international regattas in the offshore rating classes - principally in Half-Tonners, and then in the Admiral's Cup, sailed from Cowes, Isle of Wight. The now defunct Admiral's Cup was widely regarded as the World Championship of offshore racing. 

Gibbs' Swuzzlebubble IV during the 1983 Admiral's Cup

Gibbs skippered his yacht Swuzzlebubble III to be the top individual boat in the 1981 event, and sailing a chartered sistership was the top New Zealand competitor in the 1983 Admiral's Cup. He was well performed in four Half Ton Cups, most notably with Swuzzlebubble I/II in the 1977 and 1979 events. 

Previous articles and tributes to Gibbs' many campaigns during the heyday of New Zealand offshore yachting can be found by clicking on the "Ian Gibbs" label below.

Gibbs' last offshore racing yacht, his Mumm 36 Swuzzlebubble 9, seen here during the 1994 Kenwood Cup in Hawaii (Gibbs can be seen on the leeward side of the cockpit aft)

45 South and the Farr 727 (Farr Quarter Tonner)

Farr 727 profile (Farr Yacht Design)

To mark my 100th post on this blog I decided to feature a very special yacht from the IOR days, the Farr 727, and the most famous from that class, 45 South, the winner of the 1975 Quarter Ton Cup - a significant win as the first in international competition by a New Zealand designer.

The 727 was a development of Bruce Farr's earlier Quarter Ton prototype, Fantzipantz (1972), which itself was a progression of Farr's Half Tonner of the era Titus Canby. Fantzipantz had displayed such superiority in boat speed and comfort for a boat of 24ft that Alpha Marine was formed to build a production version that would be capable of winning the Quarter Ton Cup, and the result was the Farr 727. 

45 South (2402) in gybe mark action during the 1975 New Zealand Quarter Ton championship (photo Jenny Green/Sea Spray)

The boat had a more raked stem and transom profile for improved aesthetics, as well as improving her rated length measurement while also allowing for more width in her aft sections. The 727's longer length was offset by less sail area, supported on a dinghy-like fractional rig with fixed swept spreaders.

Bruce Farr sailing 727 to victory in the 1975 New Zealand Quarter Ton championships (photo Sea Spray)

The first boat to the design, Genie, was instantly successful, winning the 1974 Feltex regatta, and was soon joined by 727, the latter sailed by Farr himself and which won the 1975 New Zealand Quarter Ton championship against a fleet of 31 boats. The yacht was seen to have great potential and a decision was made by the Royal Akarana Yacht Club to challenge for the Quarter Ton Cup (to be held in Deauville, France), with 727 nominated as the challenging yacht.  A new crew had to be brought together as Farr was committed to the Gerontius campaign for the 1975 Admiral's Cup, with Roy Dickson and Graeme Woodroffe joining Rob Martin and the yacht's builder Murray Crockett. The owner of Genie decided that he too would join the challenge.

45 South and Genie in the marina at Deauville for the 1975 Quarter Ton Cup

45 South in France 1975 - note the bumpkin strut which was added after the boom was lengthened to add more sail area

727 was renamed 45 South before she was shipped to France, and some rating optimisation was carried out in response to the expectation of light winds and choppy sea conditions at the Cup venue (well founded as it turned out), with increased bow down trim and more sail area. 45 South still had the smallest sail plan in Deauville, at just 246 square feet, the consequence of having the longest rated length 21.8ft, and almost the lightest rated displacement at 2,600lbs. By way of comparison, the pre-contest favourite, the Peterson design Hobnail, with a shorter measured length and 4,500lbs displacement, was able to carry some 347 square feet of sail.

45 South reaches through the fleet to win the first race of the 1975 Quarter Ton Cup (photo Farr Yacht Design)

The small size and basic fitout of 45 South was met with some mirth by observers in France, but the boat soon showed her abilities on the race track, with 45 South winning the pre-contest event, the Coupe de France, with Genie finishing fourth. 

The first race of the Quarter Ton Cup was a nerve-wracking affair, with a dropping breeze seeing the New Zealand yachts fall back through the fleet. But the arrival of more wind for the final reach home saw them rocket around their competitors to take first and second. 45 South went on to post consistent places at the top of the fleet, apart from a 13th in the medium distance race. She proved herself as a worthy champion when she won the final long distance race by 26 minutes, and with it the Cup. 

Quarter Ton racing in Cowes Week circa 1976, with what is thought to be Genie in the foreground

Interest was riveted on 45 South after her first two wins, and it had been sold to a French yachtsman before the final race. She is understood to still have a French owner and has competed in the re-established Quarter Ton Cup since 2005 (sailed under IRC). Genie was also sold in England where the boat went on to record 27 firsts from 37 starts in the English season (in the mid-1970s), with series wins including the Solent points championship, the English level rating open national championship and Cowes Week. Further export opportunities were pursued - the style of the 727 was attractive from a production point of view, being about as simple in layout, rig and handling as anything one could devise. 

Hull profile and interior layout of the Farr 727 (Farr Yacht Design)

45 South in more recent times

The 727 Farr Out racing on Pearl Harbour in Hawaii in 1977 (photo Phil Uhl)

In the end, more 727s were sold overseas than in New Zealand, with 60 sold in France, 40 in Canada, 15 in Japan, and six in Western Australia, with impressive results in the respective national Quarter Ton championships of various countries (including Why Why, winner of the North American Quarter Ton championship in 1976). Still, it should have been a bigger success from a production perspective, being fast, easy and exciting to sail and able to plane downwind in fresh breezes, and arguably a better boat than the hugely successful J24 class. But the J24 enjoyed better marketing and promotion and became 'the' international class in this size of boat.

Waikikamukau being prepared for transport to the 1975 Australian Quarter Ton championships (photo Chris Furey)

Another notable 727 yacht, the Australian Waikikamukau (her name a play on her New Zealand origins) was the Australian national champion Quarter Tonner after a runaway win in the 1975 series held on Port Phillip Bay (Melbourne). The boat was crewed by Hugh and Ian Trehane, Bill Lawler and Rob Mundle. Hugh Treharne made the sails and so fast was the boat that they often finished their races half way through the fleet of Half Tonners that had started ten minutes earlier. She was built at Performance Sailcraft Australia and finished with Laser beige gelcoat, and was towed to Melbourne from Sydney using the truck and trailer unit usually used to tow shipments of Lasers. Waikikamukau was also successful as a JOG racer but years after her Quarter Ton days and with a different crew) she met an untimely end in a gale of Sydney Heads when she went down with a tragic loss of life due to the crew being harnessed on with old fashioned harnesses that only had a release clip at the boat end of the tethers. 

Waikikamukau, an Australian Quarter Ton champion (photo Chris Furey)

45 South - Quarter Ton Cup 2005

Close quarter racing in Auckland (photo Sail-world)

A French 727 Farr Niente racing in European Quarter Ton events

Glass Slipper seen here mid-broach during the 1982 Feltex Regatta in Auckland

The class is still active in New Zealand (see 727 website), although class national championship numbers have dwindled of late, and one or two yachts are now sporting some modifications such as spinnaker prods for mixed fleet sailing. Nevertheless, the yacht remains one of the fastest racer-cruisers on the water for its size, and a very capable cruiser. 

Overdraft during the 2011 SSANZ Two-handed series off Auckland (photo Scott Blakey)

Quarter Pint on a slog to Navy Buoy off Whangaparaoa during the 2012 SSANZ series (photo rbsailing)

An interesting cockpit modification to a 727

Article updated October 2025

Candu II (Whiting Half Tonner)

Ian Gibbs' mounted a series of campaigns to lift the Half Ton Cup in the course of his offshore racing career, commencing in 1974 with Tohe Candu (the former Titus Canby), and ending with Swuzzlebubble in 1979. The Tohe Candu effort was the first international effort with a New Zealand design (by Bruce Farr). 

After a disappointing result in the 1975 Cup with his Ron Holland design Measure for Measure, Gibbs decided to return to the light displacement route for the 1976 series with a new design by Paul Whiting, being a Half Ton version of the 1975 Quarter Ton Cup winner Magic Bus, and a near sistership and forerunner to the New Zealand Half Ton champion, Newspaper Taxi.

Candu II on launching day, note the hollow for'ard sections, long and wide stern and pronounced skeg

Candu II was conceived in the midst of preparations for the Magic Bus Quarter Ton Cup campaign (held in Corpus Christi, Texas), and followed the Whiting template established with his smaller Quarter Tonner, with a pronounced maximum beam, hollow waterline for'ard, offset with deep bow sections at the forward depth (FD) station and a long flat transom. The design also continued the use of a long shallow skeg extending beyond the after inner girth station (AIGS), as a method to shorten the rated distance between this measurement point and the after girth station (AGS). 

This view of Candu II shows her broad and tapered stern

The rig details and deck layout were a scaled up version of the approach used in Magic Bus, with a 102mm tapered tube section, stepped well for'ard and designed to be equally as bendy as the mast on the smaller Quarter Tonner. The rig featured the same big mainsail and small foretriangle ratio as Magic Bus, except that the foretriangle was even smaller on Candu II. In place of the normal inboard engine, Candu II carried an outboard weighing around 120lbs. This was because the increase in weight and drag from a shaft and propeller unit available through the engine propeller factor (EPF) measurement was considered by Whiting to outweigh the sail area advantage on this size and concept of boat.

Candu II was built in nine weeks on a crash schedule to be launched in mid-winter 1976 and in time for the Half Ton Cup series to be held in Trieste, Italy. Gibbs still owned Tohe Candu, and two days after her launching, Candu II was to compete against Tohe Candu to decide which yacht Gibbs would take to Trieste. Candu II was victorious and left soon after for the Half Ton Cup.

The outboard auxiliary solution was put to the test during the pre-contest measurement process. This involved boats having to motor a measured mile and recording their speed against their rated length. Many crews spent a great deal of valuable tuning time on engines - ten boats failed the first test, and three were barred from starting the series. Candu II, with the longest rated length, had to achieve the highest speed, and after a week of work on the engine she passed by just 0.2 of a knot. 

Candu II slipping along in light air during the 1976 Half Ton Cup (photo Bateaux magazine)

Candu II works out to weather of Idro

Whiting had to pay for Candu II's long length by trading off sail area, and the yacht was the outlier on both measurements in the 70 boat fleet. One of the more interesting boats to arrive in Trieste was Tuscany B, a former Quarter Tonner which had been cut in half and 'patchworked' together to give her the additional length necessary to achieve a Half Ton rating (21.7ft, instead of 18.0ft). The weird looking Half Tonner was nicknamed "The Italian Job", and was one of the few boats in Trieste to be lighter than Candu II, although this light displacement had to be traded for both length and sail area. Tuscany B finished tenth overall.

The converted Quarter Tonner Tuscany B, with bowsprit and a style of stern scoop not unlike that of the last of the America's Cup IACC yachts.

Unfortunately the regatta itself was plagued by very light winds and short, choppy seas which proved frustrating for the crew aboard Candu II. Prevailing calms wreaked havoc with the scheduled start time of 10am, and the earliest any race got underway was just after midday. The light weather was a disappointment for all 70 crews, particularly since good day breezes had prevailed before the contest began.

Another light air start in the 1976 Half Ton Cup series - Candu II visible in the middle of the photo to windward (photo Bateaux magazine)

Another light air start in the 1976 Half Ton Cup series

The series was won by the Holland design, the first of a series of yachts named Silver Shamrock, skippered by Harold Cudmore. She was a specially prepared production hull, with 500lbs less weight in her lay-up and a slightly bigger rig, although she was still one of the heaviest yachts, and with the largest sail plan she was undoubtedly the best prepared boat for the light conditions that prevailed, but some doubted that she would have been the fastest boat if the wind had blown. Defending Half Ton champion, Tom Stephenson, from Australia, sailed a sistership named Southern Shamrock, and finished fifth overall.

1976 Half Ton Cup winner Silver Shamrock - her stern sections contrast markedly with those of Candu II below

Candu II was by far the best reaching boat of the series, and no other boat could even begin to match her on that point of sail. Although not fully tuned, Candu II also proved fast on the wind over about 10 knots, with good pointing ability and boat speed. In 5-10 knots she could hold her own but sailed dismally under 5 knots and in the peculiar chop in the area. The light air and flat running conditions that prevailed in both ocean races were thus not Candu II's forte, and Gibbs and his crew did well to finish sixth overall in the 70 boat fleet.

Candu II on a reaching leg in Trieste, her favoured point of sail

The speed of Candu II was acknowledged at the prizegiving when title-winner Cudmore remarked on the untapped potential of the New Zealand yacht in a breeze, suggesting that the experience of sailing Candu II in the light air series "must have been very frustrating, much like sitting on a rocket but unable to light it."

Candu II, likely as Vice Squad, cruising off Torrent Bay (Abel Tasman National Park, New Zealand) in early 1982 (photo Rip magazine)

Candu II as Vice Squad, circa early 1990s (est)

 Candu II returned to New Zealand and was the benchmark for Gibbs' new Half Tonner Swuzzlebubble, designed and built for the 1977 Half Ton Cup. She was raced in Auckland and later sold to a Wellington sailor and named Vice Squad, then Can Do Too in the mid-1990s. Extensive modifications in 2000 included a bigger rig, which was moved aft, and a longer keel with a bulb providing improved stability. A Brett Bakewell-White designed rudder was added in 2001 which made the yacht more responsive on the helm. She was renamed Candu II in 2004.

Candu II racing in fresh Wellington conditions in November 2005

Candu II, as seen in July 2024 (photo Facebook)

Article updated August 2025

2013 New Zealand IRC and PHRF Nationals

After three days of superb sailing in the Port Nicholson Regatta on Wellington Harbour the 2013 New Zealand IRC and PHRF keelboat champions have been crowned. Jim Farmer's Georgia took a clean sweep of the A Division, winning both the IRC and A Division PHRF national titles, while Real Deal won the B Division PHRF national title.

Georgia - 2013 IRC and PHRF National Champion - A Division (photo Chris Coad)

Georgia sailed a flawless regatta winning every race on line and taking five wins on IRC handicap and seven wins on PHRF. This record not only gave Georgia two national champion crowns but also earned her the Ross Telford Memorial Trophy for the most outstanding yacht at the regatta. Real Deal was almost as dominant in B Division winning three races on PHRF and placing second in a further three races. 

Close competition between Georgia and Kia Kaha was a feature of the series (photo John Hardie)

Conditions were quite fresh at times, especially on the first day, providing plenty of thrills and spills.

Prime Mover (Farr 1104) struggles with an errant spinnaker on Day 1 (photo John Hardie)

Flying Boat (Young 11) tries to catch up with her spinnaker on Day 1. Flying Boat finished 3rd in IRC Division 1 (photo John Hardie)

Prime Mover on Day 3, finished 5th in IRC Division 1 (photo John Hardie)

Amongst the B Division fleet were a couple of famous campaigners, with 1972 One Ton Cup winner Wai Aniwa (Carter 40) mixing it up with three-time national Half Ton champion Titus Canby (Farr 27).  

Titus Canby on Day 2 - 4th overall PHRF Division B (photo Chris Coad)

Wai Aniwa on Day 2 - 8th overall PHRF Division B (photo Chris Coad)

Results and more photos are here: http://www.rpnyc.org.nz/club/regattas/port-nicholson-regatta/news

Titus Canby (Farr Half Tonner)

Back to the boat that signalled the start of a new era - Bruce Farr's first keelboat, the Half Ton design Titus Canby. This yacht was designed in the early 1970s for Auckland sailor Rob Blackburn - he required a yacht around 8m in length that would have a low building cost. The basic design concept heralded something quite new - light displacement married to broad aft sections, and fine for'ard sections for cutting through the Hauraki Gulf chop. A modest length of 8.1m allowed a fair and easily driven hull that would not require a large sail plan. The idea was to achieve a boat that would have enough weight for stability but still be light enough to plane and surf downwind.Titus Canby looked very different to the types of boat popular at the time, and was relatively high wooded and blocky looking, with a long cabin almost equal in height to the yacht's freeboard.

Farr designed a fractional 7/8th rig for Titus Canby with a small headsail and, for the times, a relatively large main. At the time that the design was being conceived the RORC rule was being phased out in deference to the new IOR. Small adjustments were made to the design of the yacht so that it could be made into a Half Tonner. This led to a little more beam amidships and more depth in the midship area. A careful arrangement of the for'ard girth stations around the stem knuckle allowed the FIGS measurement point to be pushed slightly aft relative to FGS which helped the Forward Overhang Correction measurement. 

Titus Canby in her original white colour scheme in 1972 (photo DB Yachting Annual)

The stern of Titus Canby was cut off almost vertically to achieve a lower rated length. But to achieve a Half Ton rating Blackburn had to cut some lead out of the trailing area of the keel and replace the missing area with wood, and place 8kg of lead under the foredeck.

Tohe Candu on her way to winning the 97-mile short ocean race during the South Pacific Half Ton Trophy series  (DB Yachting Annual)

The formula worked and the performance of Titus Canby in the 1972 South Pacific Half Ton Championship exceeded all expectations, and a five minute win in the opening 40-miler was a stunning first effort by a crew that were still learning the yacht's idiosyncracies. A 14 minute win in the 180 mile ocean race cemented an overall victory. She was later bought by Ian Gibbs, who renamed the yacht Tohe Candu (the name meaning "I try harder"). He campaigned Tohe Candu in the 1974 South Pacific Half Ton Trophy series in a fleet of 33 boats, clinching victory with a nail-biting fifth place in the light airs of the long offshore final race to win the Trophy (series places of 1/1/3/5).

Titus Canby as Tohe Candu (Farr Yacht Design website)

Tohe Candu sails to weather on the Hauraki Gulf

Gibbs had set himself and his crew a target in the series that if they could win the South Pacific Trophy he would take steps to have the boat shipped to La Rochelle for the world Half Ton Cup in August and September 1974. Having indeed won the series, Gibbs had her shipped Tohe Candu to Europe. Although Tohe Candu was dominant in a warm-up series in Cowes against some forty English Half Tonners, she finished eighth overall in the Cup itself which was held in generally light conditions. However, the campaign was significant in that it represented the first New Zealand design to compete in international competition. 

Tohe Candu competing in the 1974 Half Ton Cup (photo Beken | Farr Yacht Design website)

Tohe Candu returned to New Zealand and survived several rule changes to remain extremely competitive in local racing even five years after the lines were first put to paper. This was helped by a new taller 3/4 rig for the 1976 Half Ton Championship, which extracted a little more potential from the boat. Tohe Candu almost won the series, initially finishing just over one point ahead of Peter Spencer's S&S design Cotton Blossom, but was relegated to runner up after a controversial points award by the race committee that went in favour of Cotton Blossom.

Tohe Candu with her larger 3/4 rig during the 1976 Half Ton Championships (photo DB Yachting Annual)

Another photo of Tohe Candu during the 1976 Nationals (photo Maritime Museum)

Titus Canby in early 2010s (Farr Yacht Design)

The yacht has now reverted to her original name and until recently was sailed out of the Royal Port Nicholson Yacht Club in Wellington (with a PHRF of 0.685).

Titus Canby during the March 2017 Port Nicholson Line 7 Regatta (photo Chris Coad/SailWorld)

Titus Canby in recent times (photo Facebook)

Titus Canby has recently returned to Auckland, and since early 2022 was undergoing a thorough restoration at The Landing in Okahu Bay.

Titus Canby (July 2022) sporting newly painted topsides and antifouling, with a new more balanced rudder

Titus Canby has been relaunched and is currently berthed at Westhaven Marina (photo below).

Seen here at Westhaven, May 2023

Interior photo (as viewed by the author during the 2026 Wooden Boat Festival)

Titus Canby during a Wednesday night race on the Waitemata Harbour (15 November 2023, photo Richmond Yacht Club)

Titus Canby (and Pacific Sundance) during a Wednesday night race on the Waitemata Harbour (15 November 2023, photo Richmond Yacht Club)

Titus Canby seen here during a Wednesday Night Race (24 January 2024, photo Richmond Yacht Club)

More photographs and information on Titus Canby can be viewed on a dedicated webpage here.

Article updated April 2026