''Ranger'' was a J-class racing yacht that successfully defended the 1937 America's Cup, defeating the British challenger ''Endeavour II'' 4–0 at

Newport, Rhode Island Newport is a seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Rhode Island, United States. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, Rhode Island, Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, and nort ...

. It was the last time J-class

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 ...

s would race for the America's Cup.

Design

Harold Stirling Vanderbilt Harold Stirling Vanderbilt CBE (July 6, 1884 – July 4, 1970) was an American railroad executive, a champion yachtsman, an innovator and champion player of contract bridge, and a member of the Vanderbilt family. Early life He was born in Oakd ...

funded construction of ''Ranger'', and she was launched on May 11, 1937. She was designed by

Starling Burgess William Starling Burgess (December 25, 1878 – March 19, 1947) was an American yacht designer, aviation pioneer, and naval architect. He was awarded the highest prize in aviation, the Collier Trophy in 1915, just two years after Orville Wright w ...

and

Olin Stephens Olin James Stephens II (April 13, 1908 – September 13, 2008) was an American yacht designer. Stephens was born in New York City, but spent his summers with his brother Rod, learning to sail on the New England coast. He also attended the Mass ...

, and constructed by

Bath Iron Works Bath Iron Works (BIW) is a major United States shipyard located on the Kennebec River in Bath, Maine, founded in 1884 as Bath Iron Works, Limited. Since 1995, Bath Iron Works has been a subsidiary of General Dynamics, one of the world's largest ...

. Stephens would credit Burgess with actually designing ''Ranger'', but the radical departure from the heavy displacement sailing yachts was attributal to Stephens himself who had first used the design in ''Dorade'', winner of the 1931 Trans-Atlantic Race. Geerd Hendel, Burgess's chief draftsman, also had a hand in drawing many of the plans. The hull was all-steel welded by a shielded arc process with a weight-saving aluminum, arc-welded, mast counterbalanced with a 110-ton lead keel supported by an arc-welded steel keel plate. ''Ranger'' was constructed according to the Universal Rule that constrained the various dimensions of racing yachts, such as sail area and length. Often referred to as the "super J", ''Ranger'' received a rating of 76, the maximum allowed while still adhering to the Universal Rule.

Career

''Ranger'' raced '' Endeavour II'' in the 1937 America's Cup, winning 4–0. ''Ranger'' was scrapped between either 1941 or 1946 – sources differ.

Replica

Construction of a replica of ''Ranger'' was started at Danish Yacht Boatyard (by Royal Denship) in early 2002 and was completed in late December 2003. The original designs were used as the basis for the new boat but were updated to conform to the latest safety regulations and the requirement of the owner to cross oceans in comfort.

References

External links

* {{J-class yachts J-class yachts Individual sailing vessels America's Cup defenders Yachts of New York Yacht Club members Sailing yachts designed by William Starling Burgess Sailing yachts built in the United States Sailboat type designs by Olin Stephens Sailboat type designs by American designers 1930s sailing yachts