Quarter Ton Cup 1989

The 1989 Quarter Ton Cup was held in Falmouth, and ended in a close tussle between two rival Italian crews, with Pompero Busnello taking the honours in his two-year old Massimo Paperini-designed Meridian, which had finished fourth in 1988. Meridian won the opening and closing Olympic races, seeing off a strong challenge from B & BV, a 1979-vintage Alain Jezequel design which had also come close to winning the 1988 series until she lost her rudder, finishing second. Meridian was well sailed, and was fast in the smooth water and medium breezes that prevailed.

Meridian - winner of the 1989 Quarter Ton Cup (photo Seahorse)

B & BV won the 120-mile offshore race, after neatly side-stepping the calms that trapped most others, but slipped to seventh in the second offshore race which let Meridian back into the reckoning for the last race, which she won.  Although old, B & BV had benefited from rule-grandfathering that allowed her to carry a lot more sail area than with which it had been originally designed. She did not enjoy light conditions however.

The 1981-vintage B & BV remained in the running for the title until the last race (photo Seahorse)

Saniflo (photo Seahorse)

Third placed Saniflo was a particularly interesting boat, but having only been launched just in time for measurement before the series she lacked the preparation time that would have given her a winning chance. The Jacques Fauroux-design, with its huge mainsail and tiny foretriangle, proved particularly fast downwind, but she also had sufficient upwind speed to beat Meridian in a 20-minute tacking duel during the 110 miler. Saniflo's rig was clearly influenced by Fauroux's experience in the Star class, with a rig supported by upper and lower checkstays, but no standing backstay. Although fast downwind, her spinnakers were very unstable due to their high aspect ratio, and this appeared to be something that would require further work if the rig concept was to be pursued further.

Meridian sails upwind in flat seas and moderate breeze, conditions that were her forte (photo 1/4 ton zeilers Facebook page)

Fourth placed Scandinavian Seaways was affected by a late building programme, and a boat that was 10cm too long, which required urgent modifications that affected her displacement and sail area. She took two wins in the inshore races in good breeze, but did not seem to show all-round speed. This Tony Castro design failed to match the progress of the Italian teams in light airs.

The fifth placed Canard (Italy) (photo 1/4 ton zeilers Facebook page)

The top English yacht, the Humphreys-designed Quest Original Knitwear, had more sail area than in her earlier 1987 guise (when she finished second) due to a favourable remeasurement. She appeared to be a good all-rounder, but lacked practice time for the 1989 series. A poor result in the short offishore race saw her finish in seventh place.

The Humphreys-designed Quest Original Knitwear (photo Seahorse)

The result of the Australian team was disappointing. They had arrived in Falmouth three weeks before the regatta, determined to win with good crews and big budgets, and to redress an 11th place by Imazulutu in 1988 at Kiel. But their two boats, Imazulutu and Imazulu, designed by Kell Steinman, were out of touch, slow and old fashioned looking in comparison to the European designs that clearly benefited from better competition. 

Australian entry Imazulutu (photo Histoiredeshalfs website)

Footnote: remarkably, B & BV went on to win the 1994 Quarter Ton Cup, contested by 19 boats in Warnemunde.

CGI (Andrieu One Tonner)

This article features two French One Tonners from the 1987 and 1989 period, designed by Daniel Andrieu and sponsored by French company CGI (Credit General Industriel). Both were built by Jeanneau Advanced Techniques. 

The first CGI (F-9213) was a development of Cifraline, featuring the signature trademark of the Andrieu IOR yachts of the period, with characteristic oval cabin windows and a gently curved sheerline that merged to an elegantly rounded transom. 

While showing promise in the early stages of the 1987 season, in light airs, she missed selection for the French Admiral's Cup team for 1987 (finishing fifth in the French trials, of 11 yachts) and was chartered by the Belgian team for the 1987 Admiral's Cup. CGI 87 finished as the best placed of that team, at 30th overall (26/24/36/32/21), but the rest of the team (Val Maubuee and Port du Crouesty) were lacklustre, and the team was well off the pace, finishing last.

The second CGI (F-8907) was less recognisable as an Andrieu yacht, with a straighter transom design that responded to the IOR rule changes to the measurement of the after girth station for the 1989 season, and with a windowless cabin top. 

CGI 89 started with a fourth in Spi Ouest France, but was a lowly 20th in the 1989 One Ton Cup held in Naples. She was selected for the French Admiral's Cup team for the 1989 Admiral's Cup, and contributed to the team's fourth place of the team (alongside Corum 89 and Xeryus de Givenchy), finishing 17th yacht overall (23/7/42/26/25/11). Her result was bolstered by strong showings in the offshore events (the Channel Race and Fastnet Race), but with average placings inshore, and a disastrous last place in the second inshore race (following a penalty). 

CGI approaching Lymington Marina during the 1989 Admiral's Cup (photo Shockwave40 blog)

CGI 89 became Argonaut and competed in the 1990 One Ton Cup in Marstrand, Sweden. 

CGI 89 now known as CGI Antheor, as seen recently (Facebook)

Quarter Ton Cup 1988

This video recently surfaced of the 1988 Quarter Ton Cup, held in Travemunde, Germany, and featuring the German yacht Polyant, which finished third overall, behind Mac Donald (the winner in 1987 as well) and B & BV. The video is narrated in German, and features some nice sailing shots both upwind and down.
 

Quarter Ton Cup 1981

The 35-boat fleet that assembled for the 1981 Quarter Ton Cup in Marseilles, France, included qualifiers from the well-attended French and Italian selection trials (a total of 70 boats competed in these two events), and several boats from other countries. The winds ranged from Force 2 to Force 11 (4 to 60 knots), and in the last race of the series, only three boats were able to reach the finish line.

Protis, winner of the 1981 Quarter Ton Cup

The pre-regatta favourites were the many custom and semi-production boats designed by Frenchman Jacques Fauroux, whose Bullit had won the previous two editions of the Cup. Fauroux sailed one of his designs, La Concorde, which, like many other of his boats in 1981, had less extreme stern sections than Bullit, in response to changes in the IOR. The best competition for the Fauroux boats promised to come from the Italian Willy Willy, designed by the Fontana/Maletto/Navone team, and from New Zealand, the Davidson-designed Hellaby that had finished second to Bullit the previous year. 

Cifraline in trouble on a downwind leg during the 1981 Quarter Ton Cup

The opening race was an Olympic triangle sailed in Marseilles’ South Bay in a 17-33 knot easterly. Hellaby took the start and kept the lead throughout the race, with a careful cover over a new custom Fauroux design, Protis which was co-skippered by Bruno Trouble (interestingly, Protis was the only boat in the fleet to carry an inboard engine, which allowed her to be a little bigger and to carry a little more sail area). As the wind freshened, Hellaby extended her lead and won by more than two minutes, with Protis second, and Petite celte, another Fauroux design third, and Willy Willy fourth. 

Adelaide - her ability to carry her spinnaker during the fourth race gave her a big advantage over the rest of the fleet

The second inshore race, sailed in similar conditions to the first, was won by Adelaide, yet another Fauroux design, owned and skippered by Dominique Caparros, who had co-skippered Bullit in 1979 and 1980 and had Adelaide built from the same mould. She led the race convincingly from Protis, while Willy Willy finished fourth and Hellaby sixth. 

The photo to the left is of Lorraine, another new Fauroux design owned by Hong Kong sailor Gilbert Ng and skippered by Helmer Pederson. The photo was taken by Beken of Cowes, on the first day of racing - another reef was needed on the second day and was too fresh for the photographers.

Due to the hard going in the first two races, only 29 entries began the 80-mile middle distance race, which started in much lighter conditions, with La Concorde taking the early lead. Protis moved up to second on the next downwind leg before passing La Concorde to move into first, a position that she would not relinquish. La Concorde was subsequently disqualified for rounding a mark incorrectly. 

Protis during typically fresh downwind conditions during the 1981 One Ton Cup

In the next race, another Olympic triangle held in West Bay, the seas were less rough but the wind was much stronger than the previous inshore races. Adelaide again showed excellent speed in these conditions, gaining the lead early and setting her spinnaker on the reaching legs and opening up a huge lead in dramatic planning conditions. Several other boats tried setting spinnakers and suffered broken masts as a result. While Protis held second place at the start of the run, she too broke her mast after setting her spinnaker. 

Protis - possibly during the first race, and before the more wild conditions of the second and fourth inshore races

The start of the third triangle race (photo Frederic Allain/Seahorse)

Only 21 boats started the 180-mile final race, and four more dropped out in the early stage. The fleet beat their way east in a moderate breeze towards St Raphael, the only mark of the course save for the requirement to stay seaward of the islands along the shore. Protis, which had been allowed to install a new and stronger mast after her fourth race mishap, took over the lead on the first leg and turned the St Raphael mark early the next morning. La Concorde, the early leader, reclaimed her position at the head of the fleet as they worked their way southwest to the islands again. 

Willy Willy

As the fleet entered the last stage of the race in the late afternoon, a mistral wind began blowing from the west at 35-60 knots. Willy Willy, built of plywood, broke some frames and retired as did a number of others, including La Concorde and the New Zealand crew on Hellaby, who professed to never having encountered winds of mistral force before. 

Protis above and below caught in the mistral wind in the fifth race

Greg Dagge from Lorraine recalls that by evening they were just holding station off the Isle de Hyeres against huge waves that were coming off the land. They were in a good position when the compression strut between the chainplates gave way and they were forced to retire, but sailed back to Hyeres under bare poles and incredibly recorded speeds of up to 18 knots.

New Zealand's Hellaby, sailed by John Lasher and which finished in fifth place overall

Another photo of Cifraline in trouble on a downwind leg

By early evening, there were only three boats left in the race. Gyptis, a Jezequel design, was anchored far to the east and would not finish for two more days. Cifraline, a steadily improving Daniel Andrieu design, was battling with Protis which, unbeknownst to the crew, now only needed to finish the race to win the series. Both boats managed to beat past the dangerous Cape Sicie, but then found it so rough that they ran back into the lee of the Cape and anchored for most of the night. They began racing again in the morning, but since Cifraline weighed anchor half an hour earlier, she made it home against the still heavy mistral ten minutes ahead of Protis.

Gyptis

Her second place in the final race gave Protis the Cup, and Fauroux his third consecutive Quarter Ton title. Cifraline finished second and Gyptis third. Willy Willy was fourth, while Hellaby finished the regatta in fifth place. 

Protis during the 1981 Quarter Ton Cup (photo Seahorse magazine)

Protis as seen in 2015

 

Protis has continued her winning ways in Cowes during the running of the modern Quarter Ton Cup series (photo Facebook)

Article updated February 2024

One Ton Cup 1990

Marstrand (Sweden) provided excellent sailing conditions for 27 One Tonners, including four new yachts, from ten different countries that competed in the 1990 One Ton Cup, with winds generally fair and up to 30 knots during the short offshore race. 

Okyalos VI - One Ton Cup winner for 1990, in reaching conditions in which she demonstrated a slight edge over her competition

The new boats included Italy's Pasquale Landolfi's new Farr designed Brava, which looked as impeccable as his previous boat (the 1989 One Ton Cup winner that had been bought by Russian yachtsmen and re-named Maestro). Peter de Ridder's latest Mean Machine VII, an impressive looking Judel/Vrolijk design, was part of the line up, along with sistership Amsterdamed. Last but not least of the new boats was the Jeppesen-designed Okyalos VI, built by X-Yachts. 

Russia's Maestro, the ex-Brava - won the first race but then slipped off the pace to finish ninth overall

The first race saw the new Mean Machine with a three-minute lead at the first weather mark, but such were the vagaries of the breeze on the first reach she was almost in last place at the second mark. Other than that first reach the breeze was steady and Mean Machine was able to claw back to seventh place. Maestro won the race in impressive style. However, both offshore races showed the talent of the Okyalos crew, who had won the previous two editions of the Three-Quarter Ton Cup. This, along with their good all-round speed, especially reaching, earned them a win in the long offshore race and third place in the short one, both of which carried a higher points loading than the three inshore courses.

Germany's Saudade soon after rounding a leeward mark chases the pack

Mean Machine was second best offshore, with a third place in the long race and a first in the short one.  Many campaigns were lost in the short offshore race - six yachts lost their rigs: Saudade's just went, Brava lost hers downwind when the runner tail broke, and ABAP/4 lost hers for no obvious reason at all, although her experimental carbon rigging had caused problems before. Fram XI damaged her mast but finished in sixth place under an unusual arrangement of trysail and spinnaker. Okyalos broke a checkstay but the crew managed to keep the rig intact. 

The near-winner of the One Ton Cup, Amsterdamed, approaches a windward mark and prepares for a spinnaker hoist

As a result of the short offshore, only 22 boats were able to make the startline for the fifth and final race, which saw Okyalos and Amsterdamed vying for the Cup, with Amsterdamed needing to finish five places ahead of Okyalos to win. Mean Machine was out of the running due to a DSQ for a premature start in the third race, but won the finale by almost a minute.  Although Amsterdamed started poorly, she came through the fleet and closed in on Okyalos. On the third beat, Okyalos's checkstay broke again. Somehow the rig stayed in the boat, and the crew tacked to effect repairs in time to tack back on the layline to the windward mark. She rounded just ahead of Amsterdamed, but there were enough boats close enough that Amsterdamed sould still take victory. 

Saudade broaches during a pre-Cup training sail

On the downwind leg, the repair team on Okyalos went up the mast once more and Amsterdamed was close enough to attack, but were too close to avoid a luff from Okyalos and their boom touched Okyalos's runner. They immediately hoisted the 'I' flag and accepted a 20% penalty. It was a big mistake as Amsterdamed was able to power up the next beat to put enough boats between them and Okyalos, if not for the 20% penalty. Okyalos were able to nurse their rig to finish in tenth place and claim the One Ton Cup. Amsterdamed took second, while Mean Machine's win in the race gave them third overall. Zurich finished fourth, and Fram XI fifth.

Japan's Ninja rounds a leeward mark behind Saudade

The top boats were all considered close in speed - Jeppesen designs took first and fourth, while Judel/Vrolijk had second and third, and their boats looked good all round with a bit extra upwind. Farr designs took fifth and sixth, and would probably have looked better if Brava had not lost her rig, as she was felt to be close to Mean Machine and Amsterdamed.  The first four boats all sported Diamond sail inventories.

Danish yacht Zurich, finished fourth overall

Okyalos was bought by French interests and became Corum Diamante, forming part of the 1991 French Admiral's Cup team. She returned to Greece after the 1993 Admiral's Cup and has since been repainted in her original scheme and was recently offered for sale by her present German owners.

Corum Diamante (ex-Okyalos VI) during the 1991 Admiral's Cup

Okyalos VI seen more recently, and still looks in race-winning condition

One Ton Revisited 2016

Here's an updated announcement for a European-based One Ton event, which is being promoted by Dutch yachtsman Vincent de Vries, the owner of the Carter design and 'Tina' type.  There are hopes for 30 One Tonners to attend, and all types of One Tonners are welcome, from cruiser/racers from the 60's to the most modern flat out racers from the 90's.

Vincent de Vries Carter-designed One Tonner l'Esprit du Morbihan - originally found as a centreboard ketch and restored to her present glory over five years

Dive dive!

Here's a great couple of photos spotted recently on the "1/4 ton zeilers" page, of the Fauroux Quarter Tonner Re.Invention (KA R 27), seen here pushing the envelope downwind in fresh conditions. The photos were taken by David Wallace and feature on the wall of the members bar at the Royal Yacht Club of Victoria in Australia. Re.Invention sailed in the 1984 Quarter Ton Cup in Nieuwpoort and finished seventh.