INFORMATION and facts ABOUT sailing

 The American’s won and received their trophy. They decided to name their trophy, as well as the race, America’s Cup. This today is the world’s oldest, and one might say, prestigious international event in sailing.

 The Americans have held their victory for 132 years (1851 – 1983), until the victory was swept away by Australia. Since then, the only other countries that have won the Cup were New Zealand in 1995 and Switzerland in 2000.

 Since the beginning of the Cup, among many other competitive racing, many changes have been brought forth. One of the most significant changes is the yachts that participate in the races.  There are three main types of yachts used for sailing.  These types of boats are Handicap, One-design, and Rating boats. Handicap boats are boats that allow the sailors to race and an equal level with much larger and deeper boats. One-design boats are known for their speed and smaller sizes. These boats are usually from 7 feet to about 40 feet in length. Rating boats can differ with one another from length, displacement, and the sail area. These boats are better used with a sailor that has more of skill and knowledge of the sport.

 Although the sport of sailing has been going on since the beginning of the 17^th Century, today, all races are governed by the International Yacht Racing Union, which was founded in 1907. These rules are used mainly to avoid collisions. The rules help with all forms of sailboat racing, be it ocean courses, closed-course and coastwise competitions. The ocean competitions must be navigated throughout the sea to help with the safety of the ships. Ocean races are the most dangerous of the three, especially if they are races that are solo and race for long distances at a time. Some major open ocean races that are most popular are the Newport-Bermuda Race and the Volvo Ocean Race, better known as the Whitbread Round the World Race