CHAPTER IX

SMALL YACHT RACING ON THE SOLENT

By 'THALa.s.sA'

As Lord's is to the cricketer, St. Andrews to the golfer, Newmarket to the lover of the Turf, so is the Solent to the yachtsman--the Solent in its largest sense, not the West Channel only, but the whole of the waters inside the Wight, bounded by fifty miles of sh.o.r.e line, and covering an area of over fifty square sea miles. The West Channel, twelve miles long, is nearly twenty-four square miles; the East Channel, eight miles long, is equal in area; and Southampton Water, six miles long, covers three square miles. Nearly all of it is navigable to yachts, the Brambles being the only midwater shoal which interferes with small vessels of moderate draught.

The water of the Solent is clear as crystal, the air healthy as Switzerland, the scenery nearly as beautiful; here are watering places with mirth and music; cities with docks and shipping; men of war and men of peace; clubs and hotels; piers, slips, jetties, and hards; building and repairing sheds; yacht designers and agents; skippers and 'hands'; sail, flag, and rope makers; yachts' ironmongers and purveyors, &c. &c. &c., which etceteras include several snug anchorages and small harbours for those who wish to escape from the general hubbub during the yachting and excursion season. And the whole of this within a two hours' journey of London!

Curiously enough, the advantages of the Solent for yachting have only been fully appreciated during the past few years. It is true that the Royal Yacht Squadron was started early in the century, and the Royal Southern and Royal Victoria Yacht Clubs early in the forties; but yachting on the Solent as we know it now was not dreamt of, and the Thames held for many years the leading position as the centre of this essentially English sport.

Many things have combined to drive yachts from the Thames. Manure, marmalade, cement, gas, and other manufactories now line its banks; the Barking outfall fouls its waters, and an enormous steamer and barge traffic obstructs them. No wonder the yachtsmen deserted the Thames. But this is not all; a new sport has been born--the racing of small yachts, for which the Thames is peculiarly unsuited. Steam yachting has caused this development of small yacht racing. Men who would otherwise have built or purchased large sailing yachts now prefer steam, and, although they may themselves race but little in any craft, their action has destroyed our fleet of large sailing yachts, and with it the market for outcla.s.sed racers of any considerable size.

Moreover, the very perfection to which racing has been brought tells in the same direction, because few men can afford to build large racers year by year to replace those which are outcla.s.sed. Yacht clubs have increased both in numbers and wealth, and the executives find that racing brings grist to the mill and repays the cost and the trouble. This especially applies to small yacht races, the prizes for which are not a severe tax on a club's exchequer, and can therefore be given more frequently.

Owners were not slow to avail themselves of the sport offered, which on trial proved to possess many advantages over large yacht racing.

In small craft an owner is more his own master, and frequently steers and sails his own boat. Corinthian hands can form all or a large portion of the crew; ladies can take an active part; the sport is less costly and better fun than with large craft; there are more races; fouls and accidents are less dangerous; and people can get home to dinner.

In short, the advantages are so numerous and real that one marvels at any men preferring to act as pa.s.sengers on board their own yachts in the more ancient sport. Even this adjective belongs really to the boats, as prehistoric men no doubt owned and raced canoes for ages prior to the existence of larger vessels. But we as moderns are concerned with the nineteenth century, during which sailing boats have certainly raced frequently on the Solent. The square stem and stern boat used by the Itchen ferrymen for fishing in Southampton Water and the E. and W. channels is still a favourite type, and during the seventies became almost a cla.s.s for small yacht racing, inside lead ballast, moulded, being first introduced, then lead keels, until in 1878 heavy lead keels, with fore and aft overhang, became the fashion with racing owners, and the Solent 'Length Cla.s.ses' were introduced to the yachting world; 21 feet, 25 feet, and 30 feet L.W.L. being the top limits of each cla.s.s.

A scale of time allowance for length was made by the Y.R.A., and the boats developed into great 'brutes' which were efficient sail-carriers if nothing else, the final outcome being over 70 square feet of canvas to each foot of L.W.L., whereas a modern rater in the small cla.s.ses is driven almost as effectively with 20 square feet per foot of similar hull length.

There being no limit to sail in the length cla.s.ses, it was not a difficult matter to outbuild the crack boat of the year every winter.

Each succeeding boat had longer overhang, greater beam, draught, and displacement than her predecessor, and consequently won, being a larger boat and carrying more sail. The table of Solent racers prior to 1886, appended to this chapter, gives some details of interest.

A few races were given every year for what was termed the 27-ft. cla.s.s ('Sorella,' 'Whimbrel,' &c.), also for Itchen punts and for fishermen's boats; and, early in the eighties, races under various conditions were provided for small yachts by the Royal Southampton and Royal Portsmouth Corinthian Yacht Clubs, under the energetic direction of their respective Honorary Secretaries, Mr. Wolff and the late Mr. McCheane. These clubs may fairly claim to have started that small yacht racing on the Solent which now employs so many hands in building boats in the winter and sailing them in the summer, and affords so many people a healthy pastime for their leisure hours. The rest of the Solent clubs were not long in following suit, first one then another giving races for small yachts, until in 1891 'The Squadron' so far forgot the distich:

Nothing less than 30 T Must ever race with _our_ Burgee,

as to permit two 'extra' races for 5- and 2-1/2-raters, the prizes having been subscribed for 'privately' by some sporting members of this distinguished club. The same recurred in 1892 and 1893, but it is impossible to feel overwhelmed with grat.i.tude, as the manner of granting the concession was too like that of an old lady introduced sorely against her will to people and things she deems _infra dig_.

On the other hand, the Royal Victoria, or the 'Red Squadron,' as its friends delight to call it, has since 1890 taken to the sport with becoming enthusiasm, the committee being said to possess more knowledge of the requirements of yacht racing than the Y.R.A. itself.

This has produced some strange realities which the racing owner may see for himself at Ryde, in the shape of drums, time-post and semaph.o.r.es galore, together with a 500-guinea cup and other remarkable 'Gold cups in waiting,' if he step ash.o.r.e and can make friends with the good-natured secretary. The club gave several special days in 1892 and 1893 for matches in the Solent cla.s.ses, and the Royal Albert did the same at Southsea, in addition to similar races at their annual regatta--a two days' affair. The Royal London and the Royal Southern Yacht Clubs followed suit. In short, these elderly dames of the Solent are acting in a very proper spirit by adopting and a.s.sisting to support the offspring of their younger relatives, requiring them simply to belong to something 'Royal _or_ Recognised'--a peculiar distinction somewhat rough on the former word.

One caution to the unwary. Some of the senior clubs are very proud of their ordnance, but racing boats of _modern_ construction should give them a clear berth, or the concussion may cause damage. One of the cracks had to proceed to the builder's for repair soon after a race at which that great artillerist the hall porter of the Royal London Yacht Club shook Cowes to its foundations. Certain it is that some racing boats are now built far too light for safety if caught in a gale on the open sea.

Returning to the clubs, the table at the end of the chapter gives some prominent facts at a glance, so it will not be necessary to repeat them.

An aspirant to fame in any of the small cla.s.ses should belong to the Royal Southampton Yacht Club. It has plenty of members, of vitality, and 'go.' Its house is good and comfortable, with a fair cuisine and attendance, and its position is excellent for the racing sailor-man.

The fees are not heavy,[7] and the sport is good.

[Footnote 7: This club has raised its fees this year (1894), finding it impossible to exist on the income derived from nearly seven hundred members, whereas formerly it lived joyously on half the amount.]

The beginner will do well to make the acquaintance of the leading members of the committee, for their sound advice and local knowledge may be of service to him; but he may be cautioned not to disturb them after the racing with written memoranda about rounding buoys; the soul of man is not to be worried by such frivolities when absorbed in the worship of crab, tap, or Nap in the cosy cabin of the Committee-boat--and this applies with more or less force to all sailing committees and club secretaries. Some shrug the shoulder and vent an expletive, the more pious sigh deeply and glance to the zenith, while many impose a heavy fine on that enemy of peace and quiet who dares to protest against a breach of the regulations. An exception, however, is said to prove a rule; and the committee of the Castle Yacht Club administers the law with strictness, and perhaps severity. If this policy were general, many of the difficulties connected with yacht racing would disappear, as a large percentage is due to irregularities which sailing committees might easily correct, instead of scanning them with a blind eye at the telescope end. Real sportsmen like rules to be strictly observed and administered, and the discipline enforced at the Calshot racing has, if possible, increased the popularity of the club which was started in 1887 by some eccentric enthusiasts who considered that small yacht racing required further encouragement. At that date the idea was not so preposterous as it now appears; but whether this and other clubs a.s.sisted materially in the production of modern racing, or were themselves the products, is a problem for the Macaulay of sport to solve in the dim future, when he writes on the pursuit of pleasure in the nineteenth century.

The adoption of the present Y.R.A. rating rule in the winter of 1886 practically killed the 'Length' cla.s.ses; for, although the Solent clubs continued to support them for another year, no more 'lengthers'

were built, and, the existing boats gradually dropping out, the racing with 'footers' collapsed.

* * * * *

The year 1887 was a turning point in small yacht racing on the Solent, as elsewhere.

There was much diversity of opinion as to the suitability of the new rule for small yachts. Mr. Clayton declared in January that 2-1/2-raters would soon be 29 or 30 feet long. Mr. Dixon Kemp, on the other hand, so late as 1881, when the sixth edition of his book was published, gave 'the lengths of water-line ... possible in the cla.s.ses ... as follows':--

60 raters, 60 to 70 feet, their 1892 developments being 68 feet 40 " 50 " 60 " " " 59 "

20 " 40 " 50 " " " 46 "

10 " 30 " 40 " " " 38 "

5 " 20 " 30 " " " 34 "

2-1/2 " 16 " 20 " " " 28 "

1 " 10 " 12 " " " 21 "

This forecast erred in the three smallest cla.s.ses, where prophetic utterances, if only for six months, are extremely hazardous. The fact gives additional piquancy to small yacht racing.

The Solent clubs most interested in this racing began the year 1887 with a conference on January 28 at Southampton, and another on February 2 at Portsmouth, when it was finally agreed to recommend:--

I. The continuation of length cla.s.s racing for the season of 1887.

II. The adoption of two new cla.s.ses of square-sterned boats to race under the new rule, viz.--

_(a)_ 2-1/2-raters not exceeding 21 feet L.W.L.

_(b)_ 1-1/4 " " " 17 " "

In both cla.s.ses an overhang limit of 1 foot and a mainsail limit of 55 per cent. of the total sail-area.

SPECIAL RACING, 1887

Two new boats were built for cla.s.s (_a_), Miss c.o.x's 'Madcap' and Colonel Bucknill's 'Thala.s.sa' (see table). They were well matched, the rig being the same, viz. sloop with a small topsail of about 80 square feet. They were capital 'day boats,' with roomy wells, and fairly good performers in a sea-way. At first 'Madcap' proved the faster, but towards the end of the season 'Thala.s.sa' won most prizes, and captured the cla.s.s medal of the R.S.Y.C.

Mr. Campbell's 'Merrythought' was the only new boat in cla.s.s (_b_), but she failed to beat 'Tootsie' (afterwards named 'Minnow'), which belonged to Mr. Payne, and was altered to fit the cla.s.s. On the whole, the racing in the new cla.s.ses was somewhat disappointing, owing to the small number of compet.i.tors and of races. See the following table, which also includes the races for the 'Solent Cla.s.ses' in 1888 and 1892, and shows the great development of the sport during the past five years.

The actual races only are recorded, as clubs deserve but little credit for offering prizes hedged in by such conditions that owners will not compete for them.

_Races in the Solent Cla.s.ses_

+----------------------+--------------------------------------------------------+ | 1887 || 1888 || 1892 | +----------------------+------------++----------------++------------------------| Yacht Clubs and |21'2-1/2 || | |2-1/2 || | |2-1/2 | | | Sailing Clubs | |17'1-1/4|| | 5 | | || | 5 | | |1/2| | | | |Tot.|| 10| | |Tot.|| 10| | | 1 | |Tot.| +----------------------+------------++----------------++------------------------| Royal Yacht Squadron | 0| 0| 0|| 0| 0| 0| 0|| 1| 1| 1| 0| 0| 3| Royal London | 1| 0| 1|| 3| 0| 3| 6|| 0| 1| 2| 2| 2| 7| Royal Southern | 1| 1| 2|| 2| 2| 2| 6|| 0| 2| 2| 2| 2| 8| Royal Victoria | 0| 0| 0|| 0| 0| 0| 0|| 1| 3| 9| 7| 7| 27| Royal Albert | 0| 0| 0|| 2| 0| 2| 4|| 0| 6| 6| 6| 6| 24| Royal Southampton | 7| 6| 13|| 4| 2| 8| 14|| 4| 8| 8| 8| 8| 36| Solent Yacht Club | 0| 0| 0|| 1| 0| 1| 2|| 0| 3| 3| 1| 3| 10| Royal Portsmouth | | | || | | | || | | | | | | Corinthian | 1| 0| 1|| 7| 1| 7| 15|| 0| 4| 9| 7| 9| 29| Castle Yacht Club | (started) || 5| 0| 8| 13|| 1| 12| 12| 9| 7| 41| Island Sailing Club | --| --| --|| --| --| --| --|| 0| 0| 9| 9| 9| 27| Minima Sailing Club | --| --| --|| --| --| --| --|| 0| 0| 2| 12| 9| 23| Bembridge Sailing Club| --| --| --|| --| --| --| --|| 0| 0| 2| 1| 13| 16| +----------------------+------------++----------------++------------------------+ Totals | 10| 7| 17|| 26| 6| 34| 66|| 7| 40| 65| 64| 75| 251| +----------------------+--------------------------------------------------------+

CLa.s.s RACING, 1888.

Early in 1888, delegates from several of the Solent clubs met at the house of the Royal Southampton, to settle the difficult question of the cla.s.ses of small racing yachts to be encouraged on the Solent, it having become clear that racing under a rating of length alone was played out.

The Y.R.A. recommended that 10-, 5-, and 2-1/2-rating, by the new formula L. S.A. 6,000, should be encouraged as the small cla.s.ses, but the Scotch and Irish clubs favoured 6- and 3-raters as better suiting their 3-tonners, which had been produced under the 1730 rule, and were about 6-rating. After a lively correspondence in the 'Field,'

in which the Editor steered a middle course between the Southern buoys and the Northern shallows, the conference at Southampton decided to adopt the cla.s.ses recommended by the Y.R.A., and there has been no cause to regret this decision.