KEEPING IT IN THE FAMILY

The Frers dynasty of naval architects spans over 100 years of yachting history. Four consecutive generations, slightly confusingly all called Germán Frers and three of which are still alive and active today in their design offices in Italy and Argentina, have left an indelible mark on yacht design in general and yacht racing in particular.

In 1843 the first of the Frers family, also called Germán, migrated to Argentina and soon became a well-to-do landowner in the fast-developing country. When his son Germán Frers II died in 1907 at the age of 40, nine-year-old Germán seemed destined for a life as a farmer as well. But he developed an interest in yachting and admired the yachts imported from Europe that raced regularly on the River Plate, among them some 6-M and three 12-M yachts. He could have used these elegant and fast designs as a benchmark, but instead Germán was inspired by the seaworthiness of the Colin Archer type and his first design in 1926 was the 30ft (9.1m) double-ender Fjord. When this yacht proved its seaworthiness in a storm, his career was launched.

Eventually Frers