Racing yacht

Yacht racing is a form of sport involving yachts and larger sailboats, as distinguished from dinghy racing. It is composed of multiple yachts, in direct competition, racing around a course marked by buoys or other fixed navigational devices or racing longer distances across open water from point-to-point. It can involve a series of races when buoy racing or multiple legs when point-to-point racing.

Yachting, that is, recreational boating, is very old, as exemplified in the ancient poem Catullus 4:

The yacht you see there, friends,
says that she's been
The fastest piece of timber ever seen;
She swears that once she could have overhauled
All rival boats, whether the challenge called
For racing under canvas or with oars.

(trans. James Michie)

"Yacht" is referred to as deriving from either Norweigian ("jagt"), Middle Low German ("jaght") or from the Dutch word jacht, which means "a swift light vessel of war, commerce or pleasure. The sporting element in the word lies in the derivation of jaght from the root jaghen, which means to hunt, chase or pursue…."

The formal racing of boats is believed to have started with sailboats in the Netherlands some time in the 17th century. Soon, in England, custom-built racing "yachts" began to emerge and the Royal Yacht Squadron was established in 1815. In 1661 John Evelyn recorded a competition between Katherine and Anne, two large royal sailing vessels both of English design, "…the wager 100-1; the race from Greenwich to Gravesend and back." One of the vessels was owned, and sometimes steered, by Charles II, the King of England. The king lost.

In 1782 the Cumberland Fleet, a class of sailing vessel known for its ability to sail close to the wind, were painted racing up the Thames River with spectators viewing from a bridge. Much like today, this obsession with sailing close to the wind with speed and efficiency fueled the racing community.

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