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Warrington Baden-Powell, the brother of Robert Baden-Powell,
the founder of the Boy Scout movement, was one of these
members and took a keen interest in developing an effective
small sailing vessel with center board (drop keel), yawl rig
and outboard rudder, which could make good course against the
wind. By the 1870's these ideas had spread to North America.
And nine years after the Royal Canoe Club had established the
"Sailing Challenge Cup" in 1875. The New York Canoe Club
instituted the "International Cup" in 1884. It must be
remembered that this was at a time where sailing was regarded
as a pastime for the wealthy in large yachts manned by
professional crews. Both trophies have survived to the present
day.
In the early years of this century the idea of Canoe sailing
was brought to Sweden. R.C. Anderson (later well known as a
naval historian and an authority on the rigging and building
of sailing vessels) describes a number of cruises, first with
his friend Bill Longstaff and then with Herman Lantz. The
latter trip, being a more ambitious voyage from Stockholm to
St. Petersburg. Later Lantz set out on a breathtaking project,
nothing less than a voyage in a sailing Canoe from Stockholm
to Bombay via the Volga and the Euphrates. He got as far as
the Caspian Sea only to be stopped once and for all by the
outbreak of world war in 1914. Even today, Sweden has an
unparalleled number of Canoe sailing classes that are uniquely
suited for cruising and racing on the Baltic Sea.
In the meantime during the 1880's the American Paul Butler, a
lightweight competitor, devised the "sliding seat" or "hiking
board", which allowed the helmsman to sit outside the hull and
still control rudder and sails. All the essential ingredients
of the modern international Canoe, as now defined for
international competition were in place, but many years would
pass before this would come about.
The sliding
seat itself became the subject of controversy among British
sailors. It was allowed in 1894 but forbidden ten years later.
British and North American versions of the sailing Canoe moved
further apart when in 1900 the larger "B"- class, with
dimensions increased from 4,87 m to 5,18 m and the beam
enlarged from 0,762 m to 1,06 m, was adopted in Britain. The
matter was finally resolved in 1933 when the Royal Canoe Club
and the American Canoe Association agreed on rules for the 10
m2 Canoe which formed the basis of the current International
Class.
The situation was quite different in continental Europe, where
Sailing Canoe classes had been established in Scandinavia and
Germany to an entirely different specification. Swedish
sailors did go to Britain in 1939 but the negotiations were
interrupted by the outbreak of the World War Two.
Present
and future
When the ICF was revived in 1946 the 10 m2 Canoe was adopted
as the ICF class, but the first World Championships were not
held until 1961 at Hayling Island (GBR). They took place every
four years until 1975, since then they are organized every
three years.
In 1970 a mono design hull form was adopted to encourage
serial production, initially in wood, cold or hot moulded and
later in plastic. The development continued in the improvement
of the rig, driven by new material and technology. It was now
possible to have greater control of the sail power according
to the wind strength and the weight of the helmsman. The IC
(as the Class is known by) is the fastest monohull and an
exhilarating and challenging boat to sail. It attracts highly
skilled competitors and at the same time provides highly
enjoyable sailing for any man or woman who just wants to go
out on the water.
The development of the rig continues. Experiments whit a third
sail or gennaker to improve down wind performance are now
going on in Australia, Germany and Great Britain To make this
practical for the single handed sailor does require some
ingenuity, but canoes sailors are a friendly crowd and freely
make their ideas and experiences available to all via the
internet. There is also a need to provide an attractive entry
for young people. The development of a "Junior Canoe" is being
worked at in the UK. It is made of a hull that can be built
inexpensively from a kit which does not sacrifice quality or
performance. Australia and Canada have already shown interest
in this project.
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