The Seattle star. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1899-1947, 1920-07-14


ing and marine architectural firm OF
scott a Surters. New York. He Ia an
amateur yachtsman OF note. having
sailed racing yachts for Is years IN
England and America lie Ia quail
fled expert on all yaching zubjecta
In the following article he analyses
IN plain language the chances OF the
contestants FOR the Americas cup.
by T. ID. SCOTT
NEW YORK. July it.--Shamrock
". Sir Thomas Lipton's challenger.
and Resolutc. Of the New York
Yacht club. are TO meet off Sandy
Hook tomorrow in the first OF a
series OF races for the Americas
cup. symbolic Of the supremacy Of
the seas.
To forecast n winner IN any line
OF modern sport Is a hazardous un-
dertRking. even for close student
OF the science which n funda-
mental factor OF ali the major Amer
lean sports.
However. in yacht racing. a student
can become more prophetic than in
most lines OF sport. because scien-
tific deductions OF known quantities
can be drawn. and tho deductions
are generally accurate with the ex-
ception OF two unknown quanti,ies---
weather condition under which the
races are TO be staged and the
handicap OF time which "A large yacht
must conccde 10 smaller.
Shamrock w. being a larger boat.
must give time handicap to
Resolute.
Upon the length Of that handicap
the victory will be won.
The challenger will finish first in
the race upon the firmly established
fact that n larger boat always de-
feats a smaller boat.
II the challenger II forced 10 give
A handicap of six minutes to the de-
fender. she must finish with lead
OF IL miles. and she can do It.
The greater the amount Of handi-
cap. the less her chances. quite OBJ
viously. IL she is forced 70 give a
handicap Of nine minutes. the cup
will remain In America. because no
yacht afloat can give that much
distance.
To refute the general impression.
II might be said that the sail area
does not determine the handicap. In
every line of sport an attempt II
made TO have the opponents as near.
~ matched as possible: for example.
the weight divisions among boxers.
For the same primary purpose.
yacht racing rules fix n maximum
for breadth and draught and the
length of the water line. When those
specifications are exceeded a penalty
Is Imposed in the nature OF a handi
cap figured automatically in ratio
to the excessive measurements.
For instance. the draught OF the
miles out OF her course TO dodge
submarines. Upon her arrival here
she was hauled out and placed In a
hermetically sealed enclosure where
she remained for five years, mar.
rowly missing destruction by a fire
at the Jacobs shipyards early this
spring.
The New York Yacht club in 1914
had built three sloops 10 fight for
the honor Of defending the cup.
The Hesolute, a Herreshoff boat.
Vanitie. designed by William Gard.
ner, and Defiance. designed by
George Owen, met in "A series OF trial
races which determined the unfit
ness Of Defiance and left the com.
mittee in doubt as to Resolute and
VanitIe. Despite the fact that Reso.
lutte beat Vanltie In the majority Of
the trials, the committee was not
convinced that the former was the
better sloop.
In the trial races this summer.
Resolute again defeated Vanitie in
the trials and she was finally named
as the defender.
This brings the history OF the
races up to the present time and
makes the way clear for the next
chapter. the races off Sandy Hook
starting tomorrow between Sham
rock ~ and Resolute, the fourteenth
time the Americas Cup has been
fought for,