America (yacht)

America ( Eng. America ) is an American cruising yacht , the first to win the British Sta Guinea Cup (hereinafter referred to as the America’s Cup ). Designer: George Steers .

America

In 1850, US yachtsmen decided to challenge the famous English yachtsmen. For this, a syndicate was founded and the schooner "America" ​​was built.

June 21, 1851 "America" ​​under the command of Dick Brown left New York harbor and after 20 days dropped anchor in the French port of Le Havre , where preparations were made for the upcoming races.

July 29, "America" ​​crossed the English Channel . After the "America" ​​anchored, it was examined by the British. Finding technical innovations in the design of the schooner, the Americans were denied admission to the annual Royal Regatta, because the yacht belongs to a group of individuals - a syndicate , and not to one person, as required by the rules of the race. Then the captain of "America" ​​agreed to a bet about which the newspapers made noise, and the Royal Squadron was forced to invite "America" ​​to participate in the race around the Isle of Wight for a prize in the form of a silver cup (hereinafter referred to as the "America's Cup").

On August 22, at 10 am, after a cannon shot, the crew of America began to slowly anchor, passing 14 English yachts forward. Until 3:30 in the afternoon, when half the distance was behind, America went almost a mile behind its nearest competitor.

There is a legend that the Queen asked the captain of her yacht, from the side of which she watched the race: “Which sailboat goes second?” There was an answer: “There is no second.”

The victory of the yacht "America" ​​has proved the advantage of engineering solutions over the skill of crews.

In 1851 - 1901, the yacht was resold many times and did not show outstanding sports results, although she took part in 51 races and won 12 victories.

In March 1941, the yacht was destroyed due to the fall of the roof of the storage hangar. The remains of the hull were burned in 1945 . At the moment, the main mast and several small parts have been preserved.