History

One of the very few good things that came out of Europe during the turbulent years of the Second World War was the decision by the Swedish Sailing Federation to hold a competition for a new small one-design racing yacht that would have enough accommodation to enable the boat to be used for weekend cruises. From the many entries received and input from the selection committee Tord Sunden was charged with producing the final design, which from its democratic origins was named the Folkboat and is now known as the Nordic Folkboat. Such was the initial demand for the boat that 80 orders were received before the plans were finalised or the first boat launched. The rise in popularity of sailing in the post-war period meant that the fame of the Folkboat spread, not only throughout Scandinavia but also into Northern Europe and Great Britain. During the 1950's the rules were relaxed in the UK and a number of hulls were built using carvel construction methods, the original plans called for clinker built hulls. But whether carvel or clinker built the reputation of the Folkboat for good, fast, safe sailing spread ever wider. In 1960 the first Transatlantic Single-handed race from Plymouth to New York attracted a total of five entries and of those two were Folkboats. Blondie Hasler entered 'Jester', a junk rigged Folkboat. The boat was a Portsmouth built carvel hull with highly modified deck layout. The sail trimming was done from an enclosed control hatch and the steering was by means of a vertical whipstaff or a wind-vane self-steering system, of which Hasler was a pioneer. 'Jester' took part in every single-handed transatlantic race until she suffered critical damage to her superstructure during the 1988 race and her current owner, Mike Richey, was forced to abandon her. Such was her fame that a trust was set up after her loss and a replica was built to continue the tradition and it was only when the organisers of the race increased the size of boats that were allowed to race that she no longer raced across the Atlantic. The second boat that took part in the race was Valentine Howell's traditional built 'Eira'. After the race she was sold to a gentleman from Boston, Massachusetts and after a long period of decline on the Eastern seaboard Tom Maloney, a 17 year old from Ipswich, Massachusetts rescued the boat in 2004 and, with the help of his Dad, is in the process of restoring 'Eira' to her former glory. Another effect of the race was to introduce the Folkboat to the yachting fraternity in America. In particular a fleet was established in San Francisco Bay and the Californian seaport is home to most of the Folkboats in America today. In September this year the San Francisco Yacht Club ran the 12th San Francisco Cup, a bi-annual regatta run with typical American efficiency and hospitality. Entries were received from six countries and the UK's Stuart Watson finished a very creditable 8th. The 1960's saw a rapid development and expansion in the use of fibreglass for the production of yachts. The popularity of the Folkboat design also spawned many other designs around the world; probably the best-known UK examples are David Sadler & Jeremy Roger's Contessa 26 and David Hill's Varne that was very popular on the East Coast. Also around 1966 – 1968 Tord Sunden produced a carvel-planked version with a self-draining cockpit and more space below decks. This was initially known as the International Folkboat but the Scandinavian Associations felt this was misleading and the design became known as the 'IF boat'. Besides its well-established reputation for competitive racing the Nordic Folkboat started to attract the attentions of long-distance sailors and there were many blue water voyages that were undertaken. Two of the most notable were Adrian Hayter's voyage in 1962 when he sailed 'Valkyr' from England west about around Cape Horn to New Zealand and later in the decade Rozzelle Raines became the first woman to sail single-handed to Russia in 'Martha McGilda'. It wasn't until 1977 that the first legal fibreglass Nordic Folkboat was produced. The mould was taken from the winner of the Gold Cup, the class's unofficial World Championship, and since that time the Folkebad Centralen boatyard in Denmark has produced a steady stream of boats. With over 4,000 boats built since 1942 there are still, 65 years on, active fleets racing in Sweden (1,300 boats registered), Denmark (1,125), Germany (900), Finland (400) as well as good representations in Great Britain, Ireland, the Netherlands, America and Canada.  The continuing appeal of the class seems to be three-fold. Firstly, the boats are highly competitive on the racecourse. Whether racing as a One-design class, the original intention, or taking on other classes in the IRC the class is always competitive. Folkboats have won the Gold Roman Bowl in the Island Sailing Club's 'Round the Island' race five times, more than any other class. They also have a very good record at Cowes Week when sailing in the IRC class. Edward Donald, sailing 'Madelaine' almost made it a unique double in 2007 when he finished 2nd overall in the Skandia Cowes Week having already won the Round the Island Bowl. Secondly a large number of owners spend their time cruising, mostly over the weekend but often on far longer voyages. A pair of 23 year-olds Henry Adams & Tom Fosh raced the Adams' family Folkboat 'Ariel' across the Atlantic in the 2007 ARC. The third, and smallest group, are the dedicated souls that find old and tired boats and restore them to their former glory. Within the U.K. the activities of the class are organised by the Folkboat Association of Great Britain. Established in April 1961 the association was formed to 'foster a fellowship amongst all those who sail in Folkboats' and over the past 46 years it has continued to promote both the racing and cruising aims of Folkboat sailors. The largest fleet in the UK is based at Lymington but the class has always had strong ties with the Isle of Wight. The largest annual regatta, Folkboat Week, is held each August under the burgee of the Royal Solent Yacht Club and combines a good racing schedule with varied social programme. An increasing number of boats are now based in Yarmouth harbour and these extra boats have persuaded the Royal Solent to give the class their own start in the new sailing programme.