The H-Boat is a strict

one-design One-design racing is a racing method which may be adopted in sports using complex equipment, whereby all vehicles have identical or very similar designs or models, avoiding the need for a Handicapping, handicap system. Motorsport One-make racing ...

keelboat A keelboat is a riverine cargo-capable working boat, or a small- to mid-sized recreational sailing yacht. The boats in the first category have shallow structural keels, and are nearly flat-bottomed and often used leeboards if forced in open w ...

Hans Groop Hans Groop (born 1932) is a Finnish yacht designer based in Helsinki. Groop was born in Vaasa. He has designed more than a hundred yachts and motorboats, the most famous being the H-boat, one of the most popular yacht classes in the world. Groop ...

in 1967, with some minor modifications by

Paul Elvstrøm Paul Bert Elvstrøm (25 February 1928 – 7 December 2016) was a Danish yachtsman and the founder of Elvstrøm Sails. He won four Olympic gold medals and thirteen world titles in a range of classes including Snipe, Soling, Star, Flying Du ...

in 1971. The boat gained international status in 1977. Since 1967 over 5000 hulls have been made, making it one of the most popular yacht classes in the world. The boat is mostly sailed and raced in

Nordic countries The Nordic countries (also known as the Nordics or ''Norden''; ) are a geographical and cultural region in Northern Europe, as well as the Arctic Ocean, Arctic and Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic oceans. It includes the sovereign states of Denm ...

and Central Europe, although there are a few boats in the UK and the US. The official race crew consists of three persons. Women and juniors are allowed to have a fourth crew member in competitions. The H-boat has sleeping bunks for up to four persons. As a cruising yacht, the boat is suitable for 2-5 persons. Major manufacturers of H-Boats have been Eagle Marine (Finland), Elvstrøm (Denmark), Scanboat (Åland), Hydrospeed (Finland), Artekno (Finland), Botnia Marin (Finland), O.L. Boats (Denmark), Ott Yacht (Germany) and Frauscher (Austria).

History

The Hans Groop-designed H-boat won a Finnish design competition for a GRP one-design fleet racer with spinnaker in 1967 and production started in 1970 by the Finnish builder Artekno. The ''H'' in the name H-boat came from the

Greek mythology Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the Ancient Greece, ancient Greeks, and a genre of ancient Greek folklore, today absorbed alongside Roman mythology into the broader designation of classical mythology. These stories conc ...

goddess

Hestia In ancient Greek religion and mythology, Hestia (; ) is the virgin goddess of the hearth and the home. In myth, she is the firstborn child of the Titans Cronus and Rhea, and one of the Twelve Olympians. In Greek mythology, newborn Hestia, alo ...

. During the first three years, 500 boats were sold. In 1971, Elvstrøm started production of the H-boat with some modifications on rudder and mast and in 1977

Botnia The Gulf of Bothnia (; ; ) is divided into the Bothnian Bay and the Bothnian Sea, and it is the northernmost arm of the Baltic Sea, between Finland's west coast ( East Bothnia) and the northern part of Sweden's east coast ( West Bothnia and ...

Events

World Championships

The H-boat World Championships has been sailed since 1980.

References

External links

Official Eagle Marine webpage
Keelboats 1960s sailboat type designs Sailboat types built in Denmark Sailboat types built in Finland Sailboat types built in Austria Sailboat types built in Germany Sailboat type designs by Finnish designers {{ship-type-stub