Global Solo Challenge: Which boats were designed by Bruce Farr?
by Global Solo Challenge 25 Jun 2022 14:19 BST
Farr Design - VOR65 One Design © Global Solo Challenge
It is incredible to think that New Zealander Bruce Farr, designed his first yacht at the age of thirteen and during his teenage years, he was involved in designing small class-racing yachts, which were notable for their lightweight construction and good planing abilities.
He also designed a number of fixed keel cruisers. Before looking specifically at the Farr designed entries in the Global Solo Challenge let's look briefly at the background of this extremely talented designer.
By the age of 24, Farr was heavily involved in the designing of yachts for the competitive 18-foot skiff class, with his yachts winning the JJ Giltinan Championship several times in the early 1970s (which is regarded as the World title for this class of yachts).
Such wins attracted a number of clients, and this enabled Farr to follow Naval Architecture as his chosen career. In the early years, his yachts had considerable success, winning the ¼, half, ¾, and 1-ton World Championships run under IOR rules.
Basically, the yachts he was designing were faster, cheaper and better to sail than his rivals.
Apart from designing many other cruisers and racing yachts, Farr also designed a number of yachts for the Whitbread Round the World Race (1973- 1990). His yachts were in every race held under that name, and the boats he designed won on four occasions. Apart from the success in the Whitbread races, Farr's designs have won races like the Sydney to Hobart race, 15 times, and they have had wins in virtually every other major sailing event.
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