1930s sailboats

Story of the J-Class Yachts:

The J-Class was adopted for America's Cup competition in 1928, looking forward to the next regatta in 1930.  The Class itself, though, dated back to the turn of the century when the Universal Rule was adopted though no J-Class yachts had yet been built.

The Rule used a yacht's various dimensions to calculate an equivalent rating in feet.  Boats of equal rated lengths could then race against each other directly without making other allowances for time or distance sailed.  Even though one yacht might have a longer length or another yacht a larger sail area, their overall configurations had to produce a rated length that met the Universal Rule for that class. Boats in Class J, more commonly today termed J-Class yachts, were the largest constructed under the Universal Rule.  The Rule actually includes provisions for an even larger type of boat, the I Class, though none were ever built.  Inquiries made in the 1930s for a Defense in the smaller K Class were rejected.

The J-Class were the first yachts in an America's Cup match to be governed by a formal design rule.  Previous defenders and challengers were only restricted by minimum and maximum lengths set forth in the Deed of Gift.  Sir Thomas Lipton, challenging in 1930 for the fifth time, had held earlier discussions with the New York Yacht Club in hopes of adopting the Universal Rule for the previous America's Cup match, intended for 1914 but delayed until 1920.  Though an agreement to use the rule was not reached for that match, the 1914 US boats, Vanitie and Resolute, still roughly followed J-Class parameters.

Building Program:

There were only 10 J-class yachts designed and built.  Additionally, several yachts of closely related dimensions, mostly 23-Meter International Rule boats, were converted after their construction to meet the rating rules of the J-Class. 

Only the purpose-built Cup yachts, though, could compete in the America's Cup.  The "converted" J-Class yachts, while acceptable for Class racing events, were not admissible for America's Cup competition.  Responding to issues that surfaced in earlier defenses, the America's Cup rules required that all boats had to be sailed to the event on their own bottom.  Some critics pointed out the possibility that the challenger might, as a result, be disadvantaged by  being of heavier construction than the defender.  In order to avoid a situation that could be perceived as an undue advantage, the NYYC eventually agreed that all America's Cup J-Class yachts would be built to Lloyds A1 standards, ensuring that defender and challenger met the same minimum construction specifications (the nautical term is "scantlings").  Most existing yachts were not built to such standards, so the Cup-eligible boats thus ended up heavier than the ineligible J's.

(The issue of challengers having to build heavier boats due to the ocean crossing was a popular, if uncertain, explanation in the British press for the long string of American victories.  In practice, a number of challengers added internal bracing for the crossing, which was then removed before racing.  And on a few occasions defenders subsequently made the crossing in reverse in search of competition following their successful defense.  The rule requiring that the challenger sail to the event on her own bottom was actually instituted in response to a super-lightweight challenger towed to the match through canals and rivers from Canada.

The J-Class Yachts

Disposition:

Conceived at the height of the affluent 1920's, the J-boats arrived during the Great Depression.  They required enormous crews, and, despite expert attention to their technical details, still broke an astonishing number of masts.  While they were in most regards the most advanced sailing yachts yet built, and they were  indeed powerful sailing thoroughbreds formed in sleek lines that can race the pulse of almost every viewer, the glorious J's proved too extravagant for their own good.  Most had very limited sailing careers outside of America's Cup.  Ranger , whose 1937 cost was upwards of $500,000, was laid-up at the end of her debut season and never sailed again.  All of the American J's were scrapped between 1935 and 1941. Most of the British J's were either abandoned or scrapped.

When NYYC sought to revive the America's Cup in the 1950s, there was a faction that favored returning to the J-Class.  Mike Vanderbilt even stated that not only would he like to see the Cup contested in the large boats, but that if so he would consider rebuilding a new Range r to the design of the original.  Still, another faction hoped for smaller dual-use yachts that could be used in offshore racing when the Cup year was ended.  With cost estimates for a 1958-era J starting around three million dollars, the impulse for a J-Class defense faded away in the face of economic pressures and a compromise was reached to sail the America's Cup in International Rule 12-Meters.

The J-Class Resurgent

J-Class rigs today are no longer built of wood or dur-alumin, but with modern lightweight composites.  Their sail technology is long past being canvas duck, and many other subtle changes have been made to make the ongoing maintenance and operation of these yachts a realistic proposition.  Still, the J-Class owners have gone to great lengths to insure the integrity of the boats.  The J-Class is self-administered, rather than governed by an outside organization as is the case with almost all other classes.  This allows the members to more easily adapt the rules in order to serve the needs of these uniquely historic yachts.

Most of the surviving J's are available for charter.  Cambria was reportedly for sale in 2000.  Endeavour changed hands in 2006 for a reported $13.1 million USD, though as her former owner Dennis Kozlowski said, "No one truly owns Endeavour .  She's a part of yachting history.''

Recreations, Replicas, and a Tender:

For decades, most yachting fans thought that we would never again see the likes of these boats again, the few survivors would sooner or later fade away, and the whole history would be reserved for books and fading photographs, but following the restoration of the surviving hulls rumors grew throughout the late 1990's and early 2000's about building "new" J's.  In 2001, all of this dock talk began to become reality:

Ranger Wooden Boat magazine, March/April 2001, described a "Dutchman" who had commissioned a new Ranger built to the original's plan.  This incredible rumor came true, and a piece of lost sailing history was brought back to life.  The new version of this "Superboat", as Mike Vanderbilt once called her, was officially launched in October, 2003. 

Designed by Studio Scanu and Reichel-Pugh, and built by Danish Yachts, Skagen, Denmark, she is not an exact replica of the original. Some would term her a re-interpretation, as a number of changes were made including greater freeboard, and Ranger 's original designers did not participate in the project.  The new Ranger first competed head-to-head against other J's in Antigua, Spring, 2004.  It took some additional adjustment after launch by her owners and designers to seek the proper trim that would make her float on her lines, an essential step in the process of being officially rated a J-Class yacht.  Visit the Ranger Website for more info.  J-Class Management is also at work on a restoration of Bystander, tender to the original Ranger .

Endeavour II An Endeavour II replica is being built at Royal Huisman Shipyard, with a planned 2008 launch date.  Gerard Dykstra and Partners is leading the project, which features a lightweight Alustar (aluminum alloy) hull and carbon-fiber mast.  See additional photo at Yachtspotter

Lionheart Based on an unbuilt alternate design by Starling Burgess and Olin Stephens II that was considered for 1937's America's Cup defender Ranger , this new boat is being built at yards in the Netherlands for an expected 2008 launch.  Lionheart will be the longest J-Class yacht when completed. See more including photos of the completed hull at the Lionheart Website and the story of sailing onboard including photos and videos Cruising J-Class Style Aboard Lionheart at Yachting World Designer:  Hoek Design Builders: Bloemsma Aluminiumbouw and Claasen Jachtbouw BV

Svea Tore Holm's unbuilt 1937 design, said by some to be faster in the test tank than any of the original boats, is being pursued by Hoek Design

Name To Be Announced In late March 2008, reports of another replica about to begin construction appeared on the Classic Boat website .  Whether this is one of the known projects, such as Svea , above, or yet another replica about to become reality, such as Rainbow , below, should become known shortly.

Rainbow In late May, 2008, Dykstra and Partners announced that a new build of the 1934 America's Cup Defender Rainbow was underway, with an expected launch date of 2010.  Read the Press Release

Other projects: Hoek Design is also studying replicas of 1930's Enterprise and another boat from Yankee designer Frank Paine.  Yankee herself has also been rumored as a new project, as well.  Earlier reports of a Ranger alternate-design carrying the name of Seawolf may have been referring to the project that has become Lionheart , see above.  Whirlwind and Weetamoe are the only two designs of the original ten J's that aren't known to be sailing, building, or under serious consideration as of 2008.  The J-Class website points out that there are 10 unbuilt J designs from the 1930's, so the possibilities for more J-Class yachts are intriguing.

Yachting World reported in May, 2003 , that construction was underway on a yacht replicating the famous G.L Watson design Britannia .  Photos showed a nearly completed hull at Solombala Shipyard, in Arkhangel, Russia, and included interviews with the yacht's owner Sigurd Coates of Norway.  The design was adapted by Cesil Stephansen from published plans.  The original designer's modern descendent company, G.L.Watson & Co., Ltd., has no involvement with the Arkhangel boat.  Little was been heard of this ambitious project for years, until the yacht was finally launched only to become subject of a financial dispute, trapping her in Russia until 2009, when she "escaped" to Norway. 

In the Spirit

A similar project to return elegant yachts to competitive racing, the W-class, was set in motion by Donald Tofias, an American enthusiast.  He commissioned naval architect Joel White to design a new class with lines evocative of famous racing yachts like the New York 50's and the J-Class.  The first two boats, Wild Horses and White Wings , were built in Maine of modern cold-molded wood construction and launched in 1998.  It is Tofias' aim that there will eventually be a whole fleet of the beautiful W-class to regularly compete against each other.  The one-design W-76 is actually similar to the New York 50's.  Tofias' long-range plans involve a range of classes including 46, 62, 76, 105, and 130.  The 130's would be nearly identical in basic dimensions to the J-class. See the W-Class Websit e .  

Additional Links: Chris Cameron onboard Ranger at Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup, 2010: Photo Gallery

Web Sites of Particular Interest: The J-Class Association J-Class Management, Inc.  

Further Notes:

K-Class: The Royal London Yacht Club made and withdrew its inquiry for a K-Class challenge in 1935.  The intent had been to reduce costs, not the least of which was hoped to be a lower velocity of mast replacement, but the K-Class line of thought was rejected for several reasons.  For one, the K-Class wasn't so much smaller than the J-Class as to have clearly led to significant savings.  Additionally, no K-Class yachts existed on either side of the Atlantic while several J's of various pedigree were available for testing, training, and racing in 1935.  Also a factor was that the NYYC was already actively considering another challenge at the time the RLYC began their communication  about the K-Class and it was the NYYC's policy to consider only one challenge at a time, in keeping with the Deed of Gift.

Sailing to the Event on Own Bottom: This provision of the Deed of Gift was at times strictly interpreted to the the degree of making sure that the challenging yacht actually was under her own sail while traveling to the match, not towed by another boat.  Challengers returning across the Atlantic after Cup matches concluded were sometimes towed for convenience. Eventually the NYYC agreed at various times to permit towing the yachts to the match, particularly when conditions were light, and in 1956, for the coming of the 12-meter yachts in 1958, the Deed of Gift was amended to eliminate the requirement.

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Lipton commissioned Charles Nicholson to design his contender.  Shamrock V became the first J Class yacht. She was designed by Nicholson and built at the family yard in 1930, and before she crossed the Atlantic to attend the Cup she had notched up more than 700 sea miles (1,296km), won 15 out of the 22 races she had entered and had been tweaked and tested to a high degree.


The NYYC held defender selection trials with two to four candidates since the 1881 match which gave the Club a distinct advantage over the challengers who could only challenge one at a time.  1930 was no different.  In response to Lipton’s challenge of 1929 the Americans designed and built four J-Class yachts as possible defenders. Enterprise, Whirlwind, Yankee and Weetamoe were launched within a month of each other; Weetamoe and Enterprise from the Herreshoff yard and Yankee and Whirlwind from Lawley & Son’s yard in Bristol.

Enterprise, designed by. W. Starling Burgess, had a waterline length of 80 feet, a steel hull plated with Tobin bronze, and a lightweight rig including a duralumin mast and 19-strand wire rigging. Enterprise’s most famous feature was her “Park Avenue” boom that permitted the bottom part of the mainsail to be curved into an efficient aerofoil shape.

Whirlwind, the second J, was the most revolutionary of the four. L. Francis Herreshoff had moved away from conventional yachts and designed a boat, which took the new rule to its extreme. Whirlwind combined many new ideas and Herreshoff experimented with hull shape and rig. She was the longest of the early J’s at 86ft on the waterline and remained so until Ranger and Endeavour II were built in 1937.

Her hull was of semi-composite construction (the other three American Js were built mainly of steel and plated with highly expensive Tobin bronze), was double-ended and had a permanent backstay. Uffa Fox described her profile as: “Very pleasing to the eye, the stem sweeping down to the keel in a very sweet line, and to a man who, like myself, believes that a pointed stern is a logical ending for all vessels, her stern is a joy to behold.” He predicted, “If the Yacht Racing Rules govern well and wisely, we shall see Whirlwind racing 50 years hence. If they do not she will probably be cruising then.” But Whirlwind met an early demise. Her building was delayed as she didn’t meet Lloyd’s A1 scantling rules and she wasn’t chosen to be the 1930s defender. She was often out-performed when close hauled, her steering gear making her difficult to steer. She was eventually scrapped along with Enterprise in 1935. However, her unusual double-headsail rig was later adopted by the rest of the Js.


The third American J, Yankee, was the best all-rounder. At 84ft on the waterline and 125ft length overall, her hull was built of steel and plated with Tobin bronze. An extremely well balanced boat. Designed by Frank Paine, Yankee had an almost straight sheerline and easy lines. She was a powerful contender for defender, but not fine-tuned enough to succeed. She did, however, take part in the 1934 America’s Cup trials and with alterations to her rig, to carry more sail, and bow, which was lengthened and made more of a V-shape, she then proved more successful, especially in light winds.

The fourth of the American J’s was Weetamoe, which was designed by Clinton Crane and was the narrowest of the early four. Despite claims that Yankee was the best all-rounder, Weetamoe is said to have been the closest rival to Enterprise to be the Cup defender. Charles Nedwick, in Ian Dear’s book Enterprise to Endeavour, describes Weetamoe as having a profile “that is practically a triangle, with a straight line from the after end of the waterline to the bottom of the keel and thence a line which is slightly convex, and then slightly concave to the forward end of the waterline.” In an attempt to better performance and make her less tender, her profile below the water was radically altered in 1934 with a new contour and bulb keel. The alterations failed and not long afterwards were reversed. In common with the other J’s, she had about 43ft of overhang and her hull, Nicholson opined, “was the best of all the US Js”.


When Shamrock V and Enterprise eventually met off Newport, Rhode Island, later that year, the two J’s were well matched in hull profile, but differed significantly in rig. Enterprise’s rigging was lighter, she had the Park Avenue boom, which was so advantageous to windward, and had lots of winches on board. Shamrock V meanwhile, was under-winched and hard work to sail. She has since, however, proved her success in that she is still sailing today.

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Published on June 26th, 2017 | by Editor

Return of the J Class Yacht

Published on June 26th, 2017 by Editor -->

J Class yachts , which reigned supreme in the 1930s, are making a thrilling comeback, with restorations, new builds and the biggest fleet the class had ever seen at the America’s Cup J Class Regatta . Why wasn’t the event broadcast, people asked. One theory was the fear of higher viewership than the actual America’s Cup.

In this report by Matthew Sheahan , he charts a return to glory for the class.

Only 10 were ever built from just 20 designs and their reign lasted less than a decade. In their day, J Class yachts were the most technically advanced and universally admired yachts in the world. They drew royalty and captains of industry aboard, while regularly pulling big crowds of spectators to vantage points ashore. But the death of a sovereign, who regularly raced one, and the threat of a world war saw them disappear as fast as they had arrived.

Of the 10 that were raced between 1930 and 1937, six were built in America and four in the UK. Three of the British boats survived, but only just, while all the American ones were scrapped.

Conceived in 1930 as a more affordable alternative to the previous generation of expensive, one-off America’s Cup yachts, now, more than 85 years later, J Class is about to hit a new high. In 2017, seven J Class owners raced their boats in Bermuda – the biggest fleet the class had ever seen ( see photos ).

Of the original examples that still existed, Endeavour was the first to be fully restored back in the 1980s. Velsheda and Shamrock V followed. Since then, all three have been newsworthy sights at some of the most famous yachting venues around the world. From there, fascination with the Js continued, but with no original boats to restore, people started building replicas.

The first was the American yacht Ranger. “When we launched her in 2003 she was the first new-build J Class yacht for 66 years,” says owner John Williams. “I have had a number of large yachts over the years, but owning a J Class is like owning an F1 car, you simply can’t go back.”

The launch of Ranger, combined with Williams’ success on the water, inspired the construction of others, including Hanuman, the modern interpretation of aviation pioneer and yachtsman Thomas Sopwith’s 1936 J Class, Endeavour II.

Indeed, it was the competition between Endeavour II and the original Ranger that rekindled interest in the last J Class battle for the America’s Cup in 1937, when Harold Vanderbilt wiped the floor with Endeavour II in a match that brought down the curtain on prewar J Class activity and the class itself.

Some owners are now even building yachts from original 1930s lines plans that were never actually constructed. Lionheart was the first– one of seven rejected Ranger models from 1936. Svea, which launched earlier in 2017 ( see photos ), is the latest example – based on an original Tore Holm design from 1937, brings the total in the J Class fleet to nine.

Over three decades, J Class fever has taken a hold at a price tag of around $16.5m apiece. They are expensive boats to run too, costing around $1.3m to $2.5m per year for a racing J. The most competitive might even have new sails for each regatta, so with a single genoa priced at around $127,000, campaigning these boats is not for those looking to compete on a modest budget. And herein lies part of the appeal.

A J Class is not simply a type of yacht – it’s a phenomenon and has always attracted the world’s wealthiest individuals. In addition to Sopwith, Vanderbilt, George V and tea magnate Thomas Lipton were among the famous owners on both sides of the Atlantic. As well as satisfying a personal zest for yacht racing, the boats drew attention that often helped develop their global businesses.

Today, many current owners are equally accomplished, whether as captains of industry, technology or the internet, but in contrast to their forebears many prefer anonymity and are discreet about their professional backgrounds. That said, they are just as besotted with what are described as the most beautiful yachts in the world. Such is the legacy of the J that many see their ownership as simply custodial, even if the boats are replicas.

Back in 1984, American writer and businesswoman Elizabeth Meyer kick started the reincarnation of the J Class when she bought the derelict and barely floating hulk of Endeavour. One of the most famous of all the Js, Endeavour is still widely considered to have been Britain’s best chance of winning the America’s Cup in over 160 years. A full restoration programme saw the yacht back afloat in 1989.

“The size and beauty of these boats is a huge draw. It is hard to make a boat look as beautiful as a J does – there is some magic to it,” says Dutch businessman Ronald de Waal. As the owner of Velsheda, he admits to being hooked on the class. “Their history is also an attraction. They all have a big provenance.”

De Waal’s involvement started almost by accident but quickly led to Velsheda’s full restoration from a bare hull and deck. “I had bought a 40m yacht that caught fire during trials, which led to me looking for another boat,” he explains. “Yacht designer Gerard Dykstra found out there was a J Class hull that had been confiscated after the boatyard restoring it ran into financial difficulties. I paid off the shipyard and the bank, bought the hull and set about restoring the boat, and in 1997, she was launched.”

De Waal is the longest-serving J Class owner and remains very active on the racing scene. His enthusiasm and support, along with Dykstra’s design expertise, have been instrumental in the development of the current fleet. Where Meyer was the catalyst, De Waal and Dykstra have created solid foundations for the class. “To own a boat like Velsheda is to own something that is irreplaceable,” says De Waal. “It’s not just about the money, it’s the history and the almost spiritual feeling about the boat and what she stands for. It reminds me of life and living, it’s that strong a connection.”

Dykstra and his design team have been involved in no fewer than six different Js, with another on the drawing board, and remain closely involved with the practical day-to-day aspects of running a J campaign. “When you step aboard a J, you are not just a sailor but a part of yachting history,” says Dykstra. “The sailing is impressive, but it’s impossible not to be affected by the sense of heritage and the part these boats have played. They drew huge crowds in their day, and today’s spectators are equally fascinated.”

While the J Class continues to epitomise all that was grand, elegant and competitive about yacht racing in the 1930s, the reality is that these boats were, and remain, challenging brutes to handle. Not surprisingly, their immense power and complexity attract some of the world’s top professional sailors.

Jeroen de Vos at the Dykstra design office is one of several staff who sail regularly on Js. “Of the 30 or so crew aboard, more than 20 need to be highly experienced sailors,” he says. “You have to work flawlessly as a team because the boats are so powerful that the slightest mistake can result in a serious situation. The level of competition is also extremely high.”

Following the racing in Bermuda, the aim of the fleet is now the 2017 J Class World Championship on August 21-26 in Newport, RI

Sharing the credit for the new wave of Js is designer Andre Hoek who has created five of the modern Js. His work has concentrated on yachts like Lionheart and Topaz, modern builds from original lines.

“The move to aluminum as a construction material has been a big step for the class and one of the key factors in their current appeal,” he says. “Originally the boats were stripped-out racing machines built from steel. Today, owners want full interiors with creature comforts and systems that allow them to cruise the boats as well. A lighter aluminium build means they can have these interiors and still float to their original lines.”

Another key factor has been the clever handicapping system that ensures equitable racing at all the events. The handicap system was originally developed by Dykstra in conjunction with technical experts at the Wolfson Unit at Southampton University, which required detailed performance analysis. Andre Hoek’s team has also spent time assessing the current and future performances of the Js, but for subtly different reasons.

“We conducted a huge amount of research with velocity prediction programs to assess the various performances of the boats, both those that had been built and those that were just designs,” says Hoek. “The result is we now know more about why certain hulls work and others don’t. We can also see which of the original designers were working along the right lines.”

The willingness and enthusiasm of owners to take their elegant yachts to the mid-Atlantic island of Bermuda in June 2017 is testament to both the continued pull of the America’s Cup and to the historical significance of the J Class.

“It’s rare for a venue to host more than a few boats, but the Hamilton Princess hotel in the centre of the town provided berthing for all the Js,” says J Class Association secretary and event organiser Louise Morton. “This created an incredible spectacle, right at the heart of the event.”

J Class yachts could not be more different from the modern, lightweight, high-speed, hydrofoiling catamarans that are the current America’s Cup boats.

A J Class has a single 41m hull, a lead keel and over 900sq m of sail. She requires around 30 crew, weighs around 150 tonnes and has a typical maximum speed of 12 knots (14mph). A modern America’s Cup catamaran is 15m long, has two hulls, flies above the water on hydrofoils at speeds approaching 52 knots (60mph) and is powered by an aeroplane-style wing sail. The boat is sailed by just six crew and weighs only 1,320kg.

On the face of it there is no comparison, yet they share the same DNA. Just as current foiling catamarans are defining new limits, the Js of the 1930s represented the leading edge of yacht design and construction, their size and loads pushing at the limits of what was technically possible.

But it wasn’t just the boats and their towering 50m masts and colossal sails that were breaking new ground; systems and technologies developed elsewhere on the boat were also helping to shape the modern era of both racing and cruising yachts. A good example is the development of electronic sailing instrumentation for information on wind strength and direction. First used on Sopwith’s J Class Endeavour II, such instrumentation soon became commonplace.

Even to this day, such technical developments have continued. “In the early 1990s, the winches on these boats were manually powered by the crews winding pedestal grinders,” explains Dykstra. “Now those grinders have been replaced with hydraulically powered winches that allow crews to handle the boats more efficiently. It has changed the game and led to more advanced systems and new sailing techniques.”

So while the enthusiasm for this classic yacht may appear to be driven by nostalgia, the boats are continuing to do exactly what they were originally designed to do – push the boundaries and create the ultimate racing machine. Sometimes history repeats itself in unexpected ways.

Tags: America's Cup , America's Cup J Class Regatta , J Class , Matthew Sheahan

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A pocket guide to the J Class yachts – the world’s most elegant racing fleet

• Toby Hodges
• March 19, 2017

Toby Hodges profiles the world's most beautiful fleet of classic racing yachts – the J Class

Shamrock V – JK3

J Class yacht Shamrock sailplan

LOA: 36.50m /119ft 9in · LWL: 26.7m/87ft 7in · Beam: 6.00m/19ft 8in · Disp: 166 tonnes

Original lines: Charles E Nicholson

Modified design: Dykstra Naval Architects

Launch year and yard: 1930, Camper & Nicholsons

Identifying features: The only wooden J and the smallest. Dark green hull with bronze deck fittings.

Current state: She has just had a refit in Palma after a long period under her past owner chartering, cruising and occasional racing.

Race prediction:Her smaller size means she will struggle against the other J Class yachts in real time – but she has the most experienced skipper and her recent mods are all aimed at making her competitive on handicap.

Skipper: Simon Lacey · Race Helmsman: Mike ‘Moose’ Sanderson

Photo: J Class Association / Gerhard Standop

Velsheda – JK7

J Class yacht Velsheda sailplan

LOA: 39.25m/128ft 9in · LWL: 27.8m/91ft 3in · Beam: 6.57m/21ft 7in · Disp: 180 tonnes

Launch year and yard: 1933, Camper & Nicholsons. Rebuilt by Southampton Yacht Services in 1997.

Identifying features: Dark blue hull, pinched transom and that iconic sharp J bow.

Current state: Continually optimised and very well prepared.

Race prediction: Highly experienced, well-gelled crew and a yacht that is looking particularly nimble and aggressive at the start. Despite surrendering size to the modern J Class yachts she’s a firm favourite to win any regatta.

Skipper: Barney Henshaw-Depledge · Race helmsman: Owner-driver

Helen Fretter goes racing on board J Class yacht Velsheda

Photo: J Class Association / Onne van der Wal

Endeavour – JK4

J Class yacht Endeavour sailplan

LOA: 39.31m/128ft 12in · LWL: 27.30m/89ft 7in · Beam: 6.68m/21ft 11in · Disp: 175 tonnes

Launch year and yard: 1934, Camper & Nicholson. Relaunched by Royal Huisman in 1989.

Identifying features: Royal ‘Endeavour Blue’ hull, clean deck, single deckhouse.

Current state: Completely refitted by Yachting Developments in 2010-11. Based between Palma and Cascais she is for sale through Edmiston and in prize condition.

Race prediction: Fully optimised and race ready, but is up for sale and now already unlikely to be ready in time for Bermuda.

Skipper: Luke Bines · Race helmsman: N/A (Torben Grael in 2012)

Video exclusive: what it’s like to sail the iconic J Class Endeavour

Photo: J Class Association / Jens Fischer

Ranger – J5

J Class yacht Ranger sailplan

LOA: 41.63m/136ft 7in · LWL: 28.80m/94ft 6in · Beam: 6.41m/21ft 0in · Disp: 203 tonnes

Original design: Starling Burgess and Olin Stephens

Modified design: Studio Scanu, Reichel Pugh, Fred Elliot and Dykstra Naval Architects

Launch year and yard: 2003, Danish Yacht

Identifying features: White hull with snub nose and spoon bow.

Current state: Refitted and optimised at Newport Shipyard 2016, where chainplates were moved forward and tracks modified to take a bigger headsail.

Race prediction: The heaviest J, but a rocket in flat water, such as in Bermuda’s Great Sound. A veteran crew whose consistency is Ranger’s trump card.

Skipper: Dan Jackson · Race helmsman: Erle Williams

Ranger J5 – the first completely new J Class yacht

Ranger , J5 RYS centenary 2015. Photo Paul Wyeth

Rainbow – JH2

J Class yacht Rainbow sailplan

LOA: 39.89m/130ft 11in · LWL: 26.90m/88ft 3in · Beam: 6.42m/21ft 1in · Disp: 167 tonnes

Original lines: William Starling Burgess

Launch year and yard: 2012, Holland Jachtbouw

Identifying features: Black hull, red bottom and modern grey rig with race boom.

Current state: Sold in 2015 by Chris Gongriep, the former owner of Holland Jachtbouw, she has since solely been used for cruising by her US owner who shows no signs of wanting to race, although she will be in Bermuda to watch.

Race prediction: Was cruised and raced extensively for a couple of seasons after she was built and has proven to be a supremely fast boat for her size in the right hands.

J Class yacht Rainbow – the Dutch destroyer

Hanuman – JK6

J Class yacht Hanuman sailplan

LOA: 42.19m/138ft 5in · LWL: 27.50m/90ft 3in · Beam: 6.60m/21ft 8in · Disp: 180 tonnes

Launch year and yard: 2009 Royal Huisman

Identifying features: Carries the old Endeavour II sail number JK6 – but a totally modern day reinterpretation of Sopwith’s second boat, built in aluminium.

Current state: Her weight and stability were optimised at Newport Shipyard in 2016 and she was also fitted with a new mast and rigging, plus a new furling headstay.

Race prediction: With her same core Comanche/Puma crew and Ken Read on the wheel, this is a highly race-oriented J Class yacht.

Skipper: Greg Sloat · Race helmsman: Ken Read

Inside J class yacht Hanuman

Lionheart JH1

J Class yacht Lionheart sailplan

LOA: 43.4m/142ft 5in · LWL 27.2m/89ft 3in · Beam: 6.55m/21ft 6in · Disp: 180 tonnes

Original lines: Starling Burgess and Olin Stephens

Modified design: Hoek Design

Launch year and yard: 2010, Bloemsma and Claasen Jachtbouw

Identifying features: Black hull and rig, bulwarks giving a high freeboard effect, two deckhouses.

Current state: Constantly upgraded, Lionheart has new North raw sails with plans to build more sails before Bermuda.

Race prediction: Lionheart is consistently optimised, has some key pros and a fantastic crew spirit. Should be finishing in the top three in Bermuda.

Skipper: Toby Brand · Race helmsman: Owner-driver · Tactics: Bouwe Bekking

J Class yacht Lionheart J/H1 – replica of an original that was never built

Photo: J Class Association / Thierry Martinez

J Class yacht Topaz sailplan

LOA: 42.7m/140ft 1in · LWL: 27.8m/91ft 3in · Beam: 6.75m/22ft 2in · Disp: 180 tonnes

Original lines: Frank Paine

Launch year and yard: 2015, Holland Jachtbouw

Identifying features: Longest waterline of all the Js (for which there is a sail area penalty) she has a striking Art Deco interior and a dark blue hull with turquoise antifoul.

Current state: New and raring to go.

Race prediction: With her fuller volume forward, longer waterline and shorter keel, Hoek believes she will be the fastest J Class downwind and in light airs. The crew has practised hard since last year and now has top big boat helm in Holmberg.

Skipper: Romke Lopik · Race helmsman: Peter Holmberg

New J Class yacht named Topaz is launched – and the design team says she is “absolutely stunning”

Photo: J Class Association / Carlo Borlenghi

J Class yacht Svea sailplan

LOA: 43.6m/143ft 1in · LWL: 27.6m/90ft 7in · Beam: 6.65m/21ft 10in · Disp: 180 tonnes

Original lines: Tore Holm

Launch year and yard: 2017, Bloemsma / Vitters

Identifying features: Dark grey metallic hull, near flush ultra-clean, ergonomically optimised deck with low single doghouse and huge 8ft diameter wheel that turns in a well that extends down to the keel frames.

Current state: Just launched.

Race prediction: Tore Holm was a gifted Metre designer and Svea looks like a fast upwind boat, with a race oriented deck design and a slippery underwater shape. It’s asking a lot of her crew to be competitive for 2017.

Skipper: Paul ‘PK’ Kelly

Race helmsman: Owner driver

Nine Js and counting: J Class Svea J-S1 is sold and under construction at Vitters

The history of the J-Class

The Js are inextricably linked with the America’s Cup as, barring Velsheda , all were built for the purpose of America’s Cup racing. From 1929 to 1937, 20 J Class yachts were designed. Ten of these went on to be built, with six racing in the America’s Cup finals. A modern J Class yacht’s  lines can only be taken from the original designs, ensuring the fleet’s look endures.

Established 1904

The Olympia Yacht Club

Sailboat Racing in the 1930's By Frank & Lisa Mighetto The OYC’s historical archives received a windfall in 2010: as Gary Waldherr stood outside the clubhouse, an unidentified car pulled up and he was handed a stack of mimeographed bulletins called "Starboard Tack" from the 1930s. The historical committee is grateful to him for passing them along. These turned out to be delightful accounts from the "sailboat committee" of the OYC. The masthead, which is reproduced here, established a whimsical, casual tone, noting that the bulletin was "published once in a while." But a review of the articles throughout the 1930s reveals a spirit of commitment and great enthusiasm for sailboat racing.

The boats seemed smaller back then, and there was much talk of a new flat-bottomed vessel called a "flattie," designed by Seattle Yacht Club commodore Ted Geary. Interestingly, the Seattle YC’s history identifies Geary as a strong supporter of their saltwater outstations, as the fresh water mainstation in Seattle did not, in his view, encourage racing of sailboats. Olympia had the edge in this respect, which perhaps accounts for the Seattle boats that participated in the sailboat races organized by the OYC in the 1930s. In any case, the relative merits of the flatties were described throughout the pages of the bulletin. "We have it on good authority," noted one bulletin in 1931, " that [our commodore] has offered to bet anyone any amount of money (against a lead nickel) that his dad could take a flattie out for the first time and with it beat any…sailboat on the bay." Thus challenged, some OYC sailors responded, "We, the undersigned owners of homemade suicide sloops, not yet convinced of the superiority of flattties and not yet convinced of the superiority of gray hairs at the helm, hereby wager …that one or more of us can out sail any flattie whatsoever; said wager to be settled in a sailing race off Boston Harbor…"

Weather was also a big topic throughout the pages of the bulletin. "Boisterous west winds…predict a lively time at the races off Boston Harbor this Sunday," read one entry from 1931, while another from that same year reported "one knock-down and four capsizing within an hour. A wind that was a wind!" Additional events chronicled in the "Starboard Tack" include a "Lady’s Day Race," which required a woman at the helm for the entire race. Among the records is the first invoice for the bulletins, indicating that the cost to print 55 issues was $3.71, which might have been a significant amount during the Great Depression. In summary, much about the history of the OYC as well as boating in the 1930s can be gleaned from these bulletins, now a part of our rich historical archives.

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• Sailboat Guide

L Boat (1930)

L Boat (1930) is a 27 ′ 11 ″ / 8.5 m monohull sailboat designed by Luedtke Brothers and built by Luedtke Brothers (USA) between 1930 and 1935.

Rig and Sails

Auxilary power, accomodations, calculations.

The theoretical maximum speed that a displacement hull can move efficiently through the water is determined by it's waterline length and displacement. It may be unable to reach this speed if the boat is underpowered or heavily loaded, though it may exceed this speed given enough power. Read more.

Classic hull speed formula:

Hull Speed = 1.34 x √LWL

Max Speed/Length ratio = 8.26 ÷ Displacement/Length ratio .311 Hull Speed = Max Speed/Length ratio x √LWL

Sail Area / Displacement Ratio

A measure of the power of the sails relative to the weight of the boat. The higher the number, the higher the performance, but the harder the boat will be to handle. This ratio is a "non-dimensional" value that facilitates comparisons between boats of different types and sizes. Read more.

SA/D = SA ÷ (D ÷ 64) 2/3

• SA : Sail area in square feet, derived by adding the mainsail area to 100% of the foretriangle area (the lateral area above the deck between the mast and the forestay).
• D : Displacement in pounds.

Ballast / Displacement Ratio

A measure of the stability of a boat's hull that suggests how well a monohull will stand up to its sails. The ballast displacement ratio indicates how much of the weight of a boat is placed for maximum stability against capsizing and is an indicator of stiffness and resistance to capsize.

Ballast / Displacement * 100

Displacement / Length Ratio

A measure of the weight of the boat relative to it's length at the waterline. The higher a boat’s D/L ratio, the more easily it will carry a load and the more comfortable its motion will be. The lower a boat's ratio is, the less power it takes to drive the boat to its nominal hull speed or beyond. Read more.

D/L = (D ÷ 2240) ÷ (0.01 x LWL)³

• D: Displacement of the boat in pounds.
• LWL: Waterline length in feet

Comfort Ratio

This ratio assess how quickly and abruptly a boat’s hull reacts to waves in a significant seaway, these being the elements of a boat’s motion most likely to cause seasickness. Read more.

Comfort ratio = D ÷ (.65 x (.7 LWL + .3 LOA) x Beam 1.33 )

• D: Displacement of the boat in pounds
• LOA: Length overall in feet
• Beam: Width of boat at the widest point in feet

Capsize Screening Formula

This formula attempts to indicate whether a given boat might be too wide and light to readily right itself after being overturned in extreme conditions. Read more.

CSV = Beam ÷ ³√(D / 64)

One-Design raced in the Detroit Michigan area from the 1930s thru the 1960s. The Luedtke Brothers yard was located in Toledo, Ohio, USA.

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The 1930s inspired superyacht Taransay is an instant classic

Could this be a new trend in superyachting? The 40 metre Taransay  from Rossinavi may look like a 1930s boat – but rather than go to the trouble and expense of restoring a crumbling oldie, the owner built one from scratch: a brand new, but utterly traditional and beautiful modern classic yacht.

Why build a modern classic?

Why would anyone choose to build a 1930s-style yacht today? I can’t get that question out of my head as the newly built 40 metre Taransay hangs above me in a travel lift at the Rossinavi shipyard in Viareggio, ready for launch. The style absolutely demands small, limiting windows, a relatively low volume compared to modern, similarly sized platforms and the added challenge of hiding today’s complicated systems in a classic-looking package.

A few months later, in Venice, I’m on board the boat for the first time and Taransay ’s captain, Marco Santoro, is giving me the answer, shortly before leaving on the yacht’s maiden voyage with the owner and his family.

“I was involved in the project from the beginning, while I was still captain on board Ocean Glory (ex- Destiny ), a gentleman’s motor yacht designed by GL Watson & Co and launched in Scotland in 1935,” begins Santoro. “After an adventurous life, Destiny arrived in dire condition in Genoa, where she underwent a full refit at Amico & Co yard. The yacht was presented as Ocean Glory in all her splendour at the Monaco Yacht Show in 2007.”

She was made available for charter and immediately caught the attention of Taransay ’s owner. He ended up chartering her for a number of years in a row and was seduced enough by the idea of owning a classic himself that he investigated buying one to refit.

I realised that I would love to own some kind of classic yacht, so I could have the opportunity to travel in style rather than at top speed

_Taransay_'s owner

“Chartering Ocean Glory , I realised that I would love to own some kind of classic yacht, so I could have the opportunity to travel in style rather than at top speed,” the owner says. In 2012, while enjoying his annual cruise in the Med aboard Ocean Glory , he chanced upon a beautiful modern replica of a classic sailing yacht built by Royal Huisman. That was a turning point: the realisation that building his own replica from scratch would allow for a made-to-measure classic yacht, without the constraints and unforeseen problems that come with a refit project.

The brief for Taransay

One thing was established from the outset: his new boat’s style should be inspired by the gentleman’s yachts designed by GL Watson & Co, a company that, in the early 20th century, produced icon after icon. Madiz , Blue Bird , Nahlin , King Edward VII’s Royal Yacht Britannia – all penned by the company’s founder, George Lennox Watson, or by its design studio. Today it is run by William Collier, an entrepreneur with a PhD in yachting history, who works with owners restoring classics such as _ Malahne  _and designing new ones inspired by former projects.

Once the decision to build a replica was taken, Rossinavi was entrusted with the project. It was a tricky proposition from the outset: there was no platform or pre-existing project to draw on, so the team, comprising the owner, Santoro and Rossinavi’s technical department, had to rely on old photographs for inspiration and information. The most difficult task, though, was to stay faithful to the shape of a yacht from the 1930s, while still giving it all the comfort, volume and amenities of a contemporary vessel. As the owner said: “A project like this turns the clock back and forward at the same time.”

A project like this turns the clock back and forward at the same time

The team settled on a size of 39.3 metres, a displacement hull and a canoe stern and high bow to eke the most volume out of her length. The steel hull and aluminium superstructure house an interior styled by French designer Alain Tassin, who came with a wealth of experience, having worked on the refit of Ocean Glory. “We have tried to recreate a gentleman’s yacht atmosphere,” Tassin says. “The owner had his own requests for the yacht’s layout and overall feel and we worked in close collaboration to give Taransay the right ambiance and liveability.”

Taransay 's period-inspired interior

By studying the layout and features of a number of classics that had been refitted, Alain Tassin was able to create a tasteful period interior with plenty of teak, exposed deck beams and simple white panelling. He resisted the temptation to over-embellish the décor, so the final effect is elegant and homely, rather than grating pastiche. “The main deck welcomes guests in a quite austere setting, while in all cabins we used a delicate white satin lacquer to enhance the open-pore grain of the ash wood panelling,” Tassin explains. “This also means that the cabins on the lower deck seem light and airy despite the small portholes. The use in the cabins, stairs and lobbies of dark-brown leather floor tiles is a modern touch – they will develop a warm patina with age.”

Entered through double glass doors, the main saloon is an intimate retreat entirely clad in satin-lacquered mahogany, although not much natural light makes it through the row of small, shapely windows that stand in stark contrast to the massive glazing panels we’re used to seeing today. The galley, forward of the saloon, is one area where the past hasn’t penetrated; it’s laid out thoughtfully and equipped with all the details and appliances you’d expect on a modern yacht. Custom-made fridges and a wine cellar complete the professional feel of this large, bright space. From here, stairs lead up to the wheelhouse in its sturdy deckhouse, where the past and present mingle: contemporary instruments and screens sit alongside a traditional teak steering wheel and a replica of a classic wood and brass binnacle.

Taransay has an unusual lower deck arrangement, with the amidships engine room splitting the accommodation. Two guest cabins sit forward of the machinery space, while the owner and more guests sleep aft of it. The owner’s quarters use the beam to its maximum advantage, stretching across almost the widest part of the boat. A twin guest cabin sits behind it, and then a very traditional touch: a guest cabin in the stern with V-berths in a space easily big enough for a double bed. The overall feeling down here is of space and relaxation – a huge advantage of building a “new classic” instead of working with a layout from the past – and all cabins benefit from plentiful storage and en suite bathrooms, with finely moulded marble countertops and marble-lined shower stalls.

The quarters forward of the engine room comprise the VIP double and another twin cabin, both accessed via dedicated stairs off the dining room. Large and comfortable crew quarters for six are on the lower deck forward, while the yacht’s captain has his own double cabin abaft the wheelhouse.

Nothing feels fake about the yacht’s interior and this sense of authenticity carries over on to the decks. Hatches boasting brass handles and hinges have been placed on the forward deck and all over the yacht finely executed fixtures and fittings hark back to the 1930s. All involved, from Rossinavi to the owner, worked hard to fit out Taransay with period details. “Our aim was to recreate the feel and style the owner loved so much on board Ocean Glory and Rossinavi has been very willing to cooperate and listen to our requests, even the most unusual ones. I’d be glad to build another hundred yachts with them!” declares Santoro.

The upper deck of Taransay

The upper deck, once free of the tenders, provides a vast area of relaxation at anchor. Facing L-shaped sofas provide the seating up here and can turn into a wonderful al fresco dining area thanks to adjustable-height tables. The faux funnel towering above the deck hides a small bar with fridge and freezer and an ingenious foldable crane to launch and haul out the tenders.

Perhaps the ultimate lounging space is atop the wheelhouse: sunpads accessed via a ladder. In keeping with the GL Watson style, there are full walk around decks on both the main and upper levels for an evening stroll, but they don’t seem to pinch too much volume from inside thanks to a beam of 7.6 metres.

Taransay 's exterior

The canoe stern prohibits a bathing platform or any modern flourishes like a beach club, but a folding boarding platform on the starboard side is a very good second-best. It was designed to fold down low to the waterline to make for easy entry and exit to and from the sea, so is an ideal dive platform and makes access to the yacht a breeze from the HTM Custom Tender. It’s while out circling the boat on this RIB that the yacht really shines. Her blue paintwork is buffed to dark blue perfection, reflecting the glinting waters of the northern Adriatic. Getting a finish like this on a refit project is notoriously difficult, with old steel and rivets upsetting the eye line. Here, though, there’s no such problem.

“To get what I wanted from a refit project would have required a gamble – you never know what you’re going to find beneath the surface. By building my very own classic from the ground-up, I have managed to get the best of both worlds. Taransay has all the old-world charm I could ever want in a boat, but I was also given total control of her destiny thanks to starting new and there were no nasty surprises. She also has every convenience of a modern yacht, and the comfort and spaces to rival any other 40 metre,” says the owner, neatly answering my initial question of why anyone would want to build a modern classic.

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Boat of the Week: This Historic, 90-Year-Old Sailing Yacht Was Once a Floating Playground for Ernest Hemingway, Cole Porter and More

1930s celebrity guests like pablo picasso, louis armstrong and coco chanel gave "weather bird" its provenance., julia zaltzman, julia zaltzman's most recent stories.

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Weather Bird is more than a classic, wooden boat. The 101-foot staysail schooner is a whispering storybook from the 1930s when luminaries like Ernest Hemingway and Cole Porter rubbed shoulders out at sea. Coco Chanel walked her teak decks. Pablo Picasso found inspiration amid the rich varnished woodwork. Louis Armstrong reportedly wrote a song about the yacht and then hid the record deep inside the frames of the wooden hull.

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The 90-year-old boat wears her age well, having emerged from a 12-month refit last year with a complete mechanical overhaul. Weather Bird ’s current owner bought the yacht 18 months ago. His two previous boats were Tecnomar motoryachts—an 83-footer and a 120-footer, which caught fire in Mykonos. But wooden schooners are his passion, and though the vintage collector has experience renovating classic cars, Weather Bird was his first antique yacht.

After multiple refits, the 90-year-old yacht has kept its original wooden beauty, but the engines, electronics and even the sail systems have been modernized.  Courtesy Northrop & Johnson

For the Greek owner, the experience has been less restoration, more in-depth reconditioning. The Vladimir Orloff-designed oak hull is original, but virtually all else, such as fabrics, lights (made from opaline rather than glass, as per the 1930s) and interior cabinetry are new, albeit in sympathetic Art Deco style. The owner commissioned an artist to create sketches of what Weather Bird would have looked like in her heyday and used these to remain true to the original styling.

“I researched the boat and found magazine articles and books of how the lamps and ceiling lights looked back then,” he told Robb Report . “I also found an 80-year-old carpenter who used to build wooden boats, and he’s overseen much of the styling.”

Louis Armstrong reportedly wrote a song about the yacht and put a record of it deep in the wooden hull.  Courtesy AP

Built in 1931 by Chantiers Navals de Normandie, Weather Bird was a leading superyacht of her day. Her original American owners, high society couple Sara and Gerald Murphy, settled on the French Riviera where they entertained the artist community of 1930s Paris aboard their newly commissioned yacht.

At one point, French painter Fernand Léger used the two-masted schooner as a floating studio, creating a series of watercolor paintings of the vessel. Picasso painted Sara’s portrait seven times. It’s also thought that F. Scott Fitzgerald portrayed the Murphys as the main couple in his novel, Tender is the Night .

“I haven’t been able to verify it, but it’s rumored that Louis Armstrong, who was a friend of Sara Murphy, wrote a song called ‘Weather Bird’ and embedded the first record in the keel of the boat,” said the owner, asking not to be named. “It’s a difficult job to open up the 40-ton keel to check, but it’s written in all the newspapers at the time, so I like to think it’s true.”

The yacht still has the same sail plan, but the winches and furling systems have been modernized for single-person operation from the helm.  Courtesy Northrop & Johnson

The boat has undergone several refits since her launch. The 2021 refit included new engines and generators. All electrical systems have also been upgraded, controlled by a Lutron system that can be operated by a smart phone.

The owner has also added his own touches, such as a fold-out piano in the center of the main salon, near an Art Deco-inspired cocktail bar for Gatsby-like entertainment. A fireplace has been reinstated, this time gas-electric. The main sails are also now electrically operated, meaning the boat can be under sail in a speedy three minutes. “The details nod to the 1930s but it’s modern underneath,” he says.

If the walls could talk: The yacht still has a sense of 1930s style.  Courtesy Northrop & Johnson

Sunbathing happens at the bow. A side boarding ladder allows for easy guest embarkation. Amidships on deck is a cozy seating area. The newly designed cockpit features custom-made electric gauges and switches. It was inspired by Perini Navi’s automated sailing system and means the entire sail plan can be operated by one person. Marble adds a contemporary touch in the guest en suites, as do glass skylights on the lower deck.

The plan for this summer is to sail the Greek islands, taking in Patmos and Hydra before heading to Bodrum in Turkey. With its 14-foot draft the boat will need to anchor outside of the port. This does little to trouble the owner, who has visited the yacht every day since acquiring her to relax on the on-deck sofa. “There is an amazing vibe on board,” he says. “You sense the bygone era and the guests who have passed before.”

A summer fling will have to be enough for the owner, who placed the yacht for sale with Northrop & Johnson at about $4.06 million, with the rather Jay Gatsby-like explanation that he has another big project waiting in the wings.

Here are other views of Weather Bird. 

Courtesy Northrop & Johnson

• Northrop & Johnson

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Wooden Motor Boats of the Early 1920's Through the 1930’s

• 1930's Boats
• Dodge Boats
• Horace E. Dodge
• Horace E. Dodge Boat and Plane Corporation

In this technological age, many neglect to reference the “written word” found in books. When I started this business 30 years ago, the internet was in its infancy and in true form, the only access I had to the history of Motor Boats was by flipping pages in old “Motor Boating” and “Rudder" magazines. One day a colleague introduced me to a collection of books, authored by Bob Speltz, who amassed a unheard of collection of stories on Motor Boat manufacturers. I was fortunate enough to acquire a set of 7 Real Runabout (ISBN info Below) volumes and was satisfied I had come across the Holy Grail of reference. I spent countless hours devouring the details in these books and found myself focusing on those manufacturers that changed Motor boating forever.

• 16’ split cockpit with 40 hp @25mph.
• 21’6” split cockpit with 115hp @35mph
• 25’ triple cockpit with 125hp @32mph
• 25’ triple cockpit with 165hp@38mph
• 25’sedan with 165hp@34mph
• 28’ triple cockpit with 300hp@45mph
• 28’ Sedan with 300hp@38mph

1931 Dodge Restoration Story Here:

https://absoluteclassics.com/pages/the-story-of-a-1931-dodge

Real Runabouts - Book Series ISBN Link: 

https://isbnsearch.org/search?s=the+real+runabouts