The sun., 1906-12-28
BRITISH HANDICAP YACHTING.
CHANGES TO, BE SUGGESTED IN
SYSTEM.
Old American seawanhska Rule Not salts
factory TO Racing Men-Association's
Recommendation Expected to Dis
courage Further Handicap Contests.

- N-~--~f-~~%
Handicap yacht racing has been popular
with British yaohtsuen for many seasons and
It was the success Of this class OF racing
that made American yaohtsmen try the expert-
ment to find q means Of getting some sport
out OF vessels whose careers In the racing
classes had ended. Various methods OF
handlcapping have been tried. but all have
proved more or less failures. The rule was
based on the old Seawanhaka rule Of rating
length on water line plus square foot Of sail
area divided by two. Then club members
were induced to arrange handicaps. but what
might be a good handicap in light weather
would be poor one in breeze. and SO to
discount this trouble two handbags we're
arranged. each being based on a certain wind
velocity. Now 1t seems there Is to be some
more reliable rule framed. The YachtsmaA
says;
We are glad to hear that the Yacht Racing
Association intends to make a representation
or some sort to the clubs on the subject Of
handicap racing. We can, of course, only
opinion. and II We are correct In our forecast
M Will be an admonishment of the evil effects
th,; 81 enGolraging tins form OF racing. TO our
least enjoyable type OF yachting sport. both
10 those engaged and TO those who happen
cases as that OF the ex-52 footers, W hich were
all built Tor racing In the same class under
one rule and when the allowances are nxed
think OF 1t there is no redeeming feature In
such raoing-not even as much as In that OF
one design sailing where there can be no time
allowance and where the success OF any boat
should theoretically depend entirely on the
skill OF her crew.
met with an eleemosynary dole Of time allow
ance from sympathetic club. so that one 10
safer in attributing the glory Of a victory to
the generosity of the ndlcappers than to
any particular merit OF the helnlsman, crew.
designer. builder or sailmaker. Cases, to
be sure. are not unknown In which the pre-
man has proved fatal to the life OF 'one de-
sign classes, and these have quietly died and
their members have drifted into other classes;
but so far as we are aware, nobody has as yet
suggested the application Of a handicap In
such an emergency. Yet this would be no
more ridiculous than the prevailing system
OF handicap racing which has done more
harm to legitimate racing than many yachts
men conceive. 1t Ia not by any means our
wish to make a sweeping condemnation OF
handicaps, but to point out the Inherent worth:
leSsness or the custom-strange that IL shOuld
be necessary!-lesving IL TO the clubs to sat
arise for including them In their programmes
In small centres and among the minor clubs
we can easily understand that handicap rae
ing should still continue, and there are ways
in which II may be managed so as to yield
fair sport, but even in these cases II would be
well to limit the number OF the races and
the amount offered in prizes. so that a sum
should be set apart for the encouragement
Of open racing.
As an.nstqnce. let us take the clubs about
the Thames. II every club were TO lay itself
out TO encourage, sav, the new metre class,
II would not greatly interfere with their usual
programmes TO provide quite thirty races
next year for this class. and there would then
be no lack OF entrants Instead OF that
however. we read that This club Intends 10
cat er for such and such an old class and that
one for another, so that one day they Will
wake up 10 find thst the world at large has
become entirely oblvious TO their importance
Ia the ranks OF yachting ORGANIZATIONS.