Half Ton class was an offshore sailing class of the

International Offshore Rule The International Offshore Rule (IOR) was a measurement rule for racing sailboats. The IOR evolved from the Cruising Club of America (CCA) rule for racer/cruisers and the Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) rule. Rule context - past and present rating ...

racing the Half Ton Cup between 1967 and 1993.

History

In order that yachts of different types can race against each other, there are handicap rules which are applied to differect boat designs. The Half Ton Class was created by the Offshore Racing Council for boats within the racing band not exceeding 22'-0". The ORC decided that the rule should "....permit the development of seaworthy offshore racing yachts...The Council will endeavour to protect the majority of the existing IOR fleet from rapid

obsolescence Obsolescence is the process of becoming antiquated, out of date, old-fashioned, no longer in general use, or no longer useful, or the condition of being in such a state. When used in a biological sense, it means imperfect or rudimentary when comp ...

caused by ....developments which produce increased performance without corresponding changes in ratings..." When first introduced the IOR rule was perfectly adequate for rating boats in existence at that time. However

yacht A yacht () is a sail- or marine propulsion, motor-propelled watercraft made for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, though the term generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. To be termed a ...

designers naturally examined the rule to seize upon any advantage they could find, the most noticeable of which has been a reduction in displacement and a return to

fractional rig A fractional rig on a sailing vessel consists of a foresail, such as a jib or genoa sail, that does not reach all the way to the top of the mast. The forestay is a wire that secures the mast to the front of the boat. With a fractional rig, t ...

s. After 1993, when the IOR Mk.III rule reached it termination due to lack of people building new boats, the rule was replaced by the CHS (Channel) Handicap system which in turn developed into the IRC system now used. The

IRC IRC (Internet Relay Chat) is a text-based chat system for instant messaging. IRC is designed for group communication in discussion forums, called '' channels'', but also allows one-on-one communication via private messages as well as chat ...

handicap system operates by a secret formula which tries to develop boats which are 'Cruising type' of relatively heavy boats with good internal accommodation. It tends to penalise boats with excessive stability or excessive sail area.

Competitions

The most significant events for the Half Ton Class has been the annual Half Ton Cup which was sailed under the IOR rules until 1993. More recently this has been replaced with the Half Ton Classics Cup. The venue of the event moved from continent to continent with over-representation on French or British ports. In latter years the event is held Biannually. Initially it was proposed to hold events in

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

and

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

by rotation. However it was the Belgians who took the ball and ran with it. The Class is now managed from

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

. The next event will be held in Ireland for the second time in Kinsale, Co. Cork. Numerous IOR rated 1/2 tonne boats during the period this class competed also raced in classic offshore races including the world renowned Sydney to Hobart.

Half Ton Cup

The Half Ton class racing the Half Ton Cup between 1967 and 1993.

Half Ton Classics Cup

The idea of holding a Half Ton Classics Cup first arose at Cork Week in 2000 when the Crew of 'Sibelius' (FRA) including Didier Dardot and his wife and the crew of 'SpACE Odyssey' (IRL) including Shay Moran, Enda Connellan, Terry Madigan and Vincent Delany agreed that it would be a great idea to organiser a bi-annual event for Half Tonners under the IRC handicap system with the venue rotating between France, England and Ireland. In fact Didier Dardot was unable to persuade La Trinite or any other French clubs to organise the first event. However the Half Ton enthusiasts of Nieupoort organised the first event in Belgium. By 2017 it was evident that only expensively optimised boats were capable of winning the Half Ton Classics Cup. Without mentioning names- these boats were stripped down to the original hull, with new decks, deck hardware, keels, rigs and sails. Owners of boats which were not so rebuilt contented themselves with the status of the 'mid fleet club'. Thus numbers competing declined.

Criteria

Note 1. Boats must have been designed as IOR boats during the period 1967-1992. * Note 2. Boats may be modified, but the hulls must be original. * Note 3.

Keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element of a watercraft, important for stability. On some sailboats, it may have a fluid dynamics, hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose as well. The keel laying, laying of the keel is often ...

s and

rudder A rudder is a primary control surface used to steer a ship, boat, submarine, hovercraft, airship, or other vehicle that moves through a fluid medium (usually air or water). On an airplane, the rudder is used primarily to counter adverse yaw ...

s may be modified. * Note 4. Rigs may be modified. * Note 5. Boats race under the IRC handicap system.

Past winners

* 2003. 24 entries - Nieuwpoort - 'General Tapioca' - Berret prototype 1978. Timber. Fractional rig. Fin and bulb keel. * 2005. 30 entries -

Dinard Dinard (; , ; Gallo: ''Dinard'') is a commune in the Ille-et-Vilaine department, Brittany, northwestern France. Dinard is on the Côte d'Émeraude of Brittany. Its beaches and mild climate make it a holiday destination, and this has resul ...

- 'Ginko' - Mauric production 1968. Super Challenger. Masthead rig. * 2007. 25 entries-

Dún Laoghaire Dún Laoghaire ( , ) is a suburban coastal town in County Dublin in Ireland. It is the administrative centre of the county of Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown. The town was built up alongside a small existing settlement following 1816 legislation th ...

- 'Henry Lloyd Harmony' - Humphreys prototype 1980. Timber. Swept back fractional rig. * 2009. 23 entries- Nieuwpoort - 'General Tapioca' - Berret prototype 1978. Timber. Fractional rig. Fin and bulb keel. * 2011. 38 entries -

Cowes Cowes () is an England, English port, seaport town and civil parish on the Isle of Wight. Cowes is located on the west bank of the estuary of the River Medina, facing the smaller town of East Cowes on the east bank. The two towns are linked b ...

- 'Chimp' - Berret prototype 1978. Timber. Swept back fractional rig. 9.4m. o/a. * 2013. 29 entries - (Boulogne sur Mer) - 'Checkmate' - Humphreys production MGHS30. 1985 Epoxy sandwich construction?. Swept back fractional rig. Fin keel without bulb.(Similar rig to Henry Lloyd Harmony) From 2013 Championship held annually: * 2014. 22 entries- St.Quay Portrieux, Brittany- 'Swuzzlebubble' - Bruce Farr 1977, two-off Plywood construction. Much modified by Mark Mills with new low V.C.G. lead keel without a bulb, and with laminar flow keel section with hollow trailing edge, swept back fractional rig with wide shroud base, non-overlapping jibs etc. * 2015. 22 entries - (Nieuwpoort, Belgium) - 'Checkmate'- Humphreys production MGHS30. 1985. seriously modified with new cockpit and modifications listed above. * 2016. 20 entries (Falmouth, Cornwall, England.) 'Swuzzlebubble' - Bruce Farr 1977. * 2017. 21 entries (Kinsale, Co. Cork, Ireland.) 'Swuzzlebubble' - Bruce Farr 1977 modified 2015? Owned by Phil Plumtree. * 2018. 19 entries (Nieuwpoort, Belgium) 'Checkmate XV' highly modified Humphreys MGHS30 owned by Dave Cullen, Howth Yacht Club * 2020. Half Ton Classics Cup cancelled due to international virus.

Designers

The most successful or popular designs were prepared by the following designers *David Andrieu (FRA) *Georg Nissen (DEU) Play and Loss *Laurie Davidson (NZL) * Doug Peterson(USA) *Jean Berret (FRA) - 'Chimp' etc. *

Tony Castro Tony Castro (full name Antonio Maria de Lancastre de Mello e Castro), Conde das Antas, Conde da Lousa, Visconde de Pernes, born 1952, is a British yacht designer, known for numerous winning designs. Born in Lisbon, Portugal, he has been designing ...

.(POR) *Ed Dubois (GBR) *

Bruce Farr Bruce Kenneth Farr (born 1949 in Auckland) is a New Zealand designer of racing and cruising yachts. Farrdesigned boats have won, challenged for, or placed highly in the Whitbread Round the World Race, America's Cup, and Sydney to Hobart Yacht R ...

(NZ) - 'Swuzzlebubble' etc. *Jacques Fauroux (FRA) *Groupe Finot (FRA) *Giles Gahinet (FRA) *

Ron Holland Ronald John Holland (born 1947 in Auckland, New Zealand)Ron Holland:De ...

(Ireland) *Michel Joubert (FRA)- 'SpAce Odyssey' etc.. * Georg Nissen *Peter Norlin (SWE)- 'Scampi' etc.. *Rob Humphreys (GBR)- 'MGHS30' etc. *Stephen Jones (GBR) *Andre Mauric (FRA) *Bernt Andersson (SWE) *Håkan Södergren (SWE) *David Thomas (GBR) *Van de Stadt (NED) *Judel Vrolijk (NED) *Hugh Welbourn (GBR)- 'Chia Chia' *Paul Whiting (NZ) *Ron Swanson (Aus)

History

Competitions

Half Ton Cup

Half Ton Classics Cup

Criteria

Past winners

Designers

Boats

See also

References

External links