City - State - NEW ENGLAND Country - United States
About
Ranger - J Class Yacht - Race Week, Newport, RI 7/22/06
1/1600th - f/8 - iso200 - 28mm
One of the most amazing experiences you can have is to be on the water next to an original J class yacht blowing by at 15-20 knots. You can literally feel the power of this boat as it moves through the water.
The J-class yacht Ranger won the 1937 America's Cup, defeating 4-0 the Endeavour II of Britain, raced at Newport, Rhode Island. It would be the last time huge J-class yachts would race in the America's Cup.
Harold Stirling Vanderbilt funded construction of the Ranger, and it launched on May 11, 1937. It was designed by Starling Burgess and Olin Stephens, and constructed by Bath Iron Works. Stephens would credit Burgess with actually designing the Ranger, but the radical departure from conventional J-class design was more likely attributable to Stephens himself.
Ranger was constructed according to the Universal Rule which determined how large various dimensions of racing yachts, such as sail area and length, could be. Often referred to as the super J, the Ranger received a rating of 76, the maximum allowed while still fitting within Universal Rule constraints.
Overall length: 135 ft Length at water line: 87 ft Beam (width): 21 ft Draft: 15 ft Displacement: 166 tons
Thank you for the history lesson on such beautiful craft. As a sailor I knew at once what the image was. Today I feel privledged just to see a 12 meter yacht, this must be near wonderment.
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{K:963} 2/2/2009
