A leap forward in yacht design

I had just skippered the yacht Astrolabe to fourth in our class and sixth overall in the 1963 Fastnet Race. When the owner raised the question of how to improve the downwind steering on his boat, it was the first time I began to think seriously about the hull and rig. I always accepted these elements as fixed, as do most one-design sailors. My major emphasis, both in dinghies and ocean racers, had been on sails, tuning, tactics and boat speed. There was nothing one could do about the hull but clean the bottom. As the