EXTRAORDINARY BOATS
The custom-made Dyneema headstay strop has a breaking strength of 22,680kg (50,000lb)
Enterprise was a trial yacht for the French Kiss Challenge in 1985-87, but was seized when the syndicate went bankrupt.
ENTERPRISE is a 1977 S&S-designed 12 Metre, originally built to defend the America’s Cup, and fully restored in time for this year’s 12 Metre World Championships in Rhode Island
Among the 21 elegant Twelves lining the docks at Rhode Island’s Fort Adams for this summer’s 12 Metre World Championship, sat a yacht that for many was a huge disappointment. Enterprise, built for the 1977 America’s Cup, had everything going for her, but never got the invitation to the Cup she seemed destined to receive. Today, she’s arguably the best set-up 12 Metre in the world.
Designed by Olin Stephens and David Pedrick at Sparkman & Stephens, and built of boasted a number of firsts. She was the first design to be tank-tested on a large scale, with a handful of models measuring roughly 7m each, in tanks designed for the aerospace and military industries. Results from those tests suggested that over a typical 24-mile America’s Cup course in an average 10-knot wind, would be a minute faster than her rivals.
