Coutts
Quarter Tonners
Fiona Brown reports on one of Cowes’ most competitive classes. Photography ©
www.fi onabrown.com
T
he Quarter Ton Class came into being in the mid 1960s and was initially designed to the Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) Rule rating 15ft.
An entry level boat, the class attracted many of the great young sailors and designers of the day and such was its popularity that by 1967 the fi rst world championship was held in La Rochelle with the Belgian entry Defender winning the inaugural Quarter Ton Cup. Over the next 30 years the class adapted as
the rating rules changed around it. In 1971 the new IOR Rating system was adopted with the boats rating 18ft, and then in 1979 the IOR rating was increased to 18.55ft. As a result three very different types of boat rated as Quarter Tonners over the years. Until the mid 1990s the vast majority of up and coming young sailors and designer cut their teeth in the Quarter Ton Class. These tiny little boats offered an unrivalled proving ground and many stars of the fl eet went onto Olympic, Admiral’s and America’s Cup success. The boats may have been small but that didn’t stop their crews from taking them offshore in any weather with Quarter Tonners even competing in the 600 mile Fastnet Race. The introduction of IMS and CHS in the 1990s
fi nally brought about the demise of the Quarter Ton Class. Many of the boats went on racing under CHS, a lot ended up mothballed and a number sadly just rotted away unloved and forgotten. And that would have been the end of the story if it hadn’t been for the enthusiasm of a handful of sailors whose love affair with the Quarter Tonners never really died. In 2004 Peter “Morty” Morton found himself reminiscing about the good old Quarter Ton days with old
48 cywinter 2011
friend and sailing opponent Tony Dodd. A couple of hours and several rounds later and the revived Quarter Ton Class was born.
In the coming weeks and
months Tony and Peter made contact with people who still owned Quarter Tonners and began the job of fi nding old neglected boats and pairing them up with potential owners keen to undertake restoration. Initially the majority of interest came from those who had sailed the boats in the their heyday, looking to relive their glory days and enjoy some light hearted but challenging racing with old friends. In 2005 the fi rst revival Quarter Ton Cup was hosted by the Royal Corinthian Yacht Club, Cowes, with fourteen boats coming to the line to race under IRC and Tony Dodd’s beautifully restored Purple Haze claiming victory. This initial event caught the imagination of sailors around the globe and suddenly everyone wanted to know more about the boats and how they could get involved. Like vintage car enthusiasts Quarter Ton sailors have an infectious enthusiasm for their beloved boats. Before long it wasn’t just those old enough to have been there fi rst time around who were asking for help in fi nding boats to restore. Today there are many young sailors joining the class keen to sail these challenging boats and test their metal against their yachting heroes. Many of the designers including Ron Holland, Stephen Jones, Ed Dubois, Rob Humphries, David
Going from Strength to Strength
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