A rig that suited the rule book
The yawl, with its small mizzen mast set behind the rudder post, was never the fastest rig in a straight line. In the first half of the twentieth century, though, it was a very common choice for offshore racing yachts. A big reason was how racing was handicapped. To understand the yawl’s racing career, it helps to look at the rules rather than at the sails alone.
The birth of offshore racing
Organised ocean racing for yachts developed in the 1920s. The Royal Ocean Racing Club in Britain grew out of the first Fastnet Race of 1925, which was sailed from the south coast of England around the Fastnet Rock off Ireland and back. Similar events followed in North America and elsewhere, including the Sydney to Hobart race, which began in 1945 in Australia.
These races involved boats of very different sizes and designs, and they needed a way to compare them. Rating rules assigned each yacht a number based on measurements of the hull and sails, and a handicap then adjusted the finishing times so that a smaller, slower boat could compete fairly with a larger one. Because the race was about overall results after handicap, a rule that treated one rig slightly kindly could influence what designers drew.
How the mizzen was treated
Rating formulas generally included a measurement of sail area, because more sail means more speed. Early rules did not always count every sail in the same way. In several of them, the mizzen was measured so that it counted for less than its real area, or it was handled separately from the mainsail and headsail. This meant that a yacht could add sail area on the mizzen at a lower rating cost than on the main. Designers on both sides of the Atlantic noticed this, and the yawl rig became popular among cruiser-racers.
It is important not to overstate the case. Rules differed from one country and one period to the next, and the details are technical. What can safely be said is that, under some early rules, a mizzen could add useful sail for a smaller rating penalty than the same area in a mainsail, and that this encouraged yawls and ketches. Naval architects of the time also valued the rig for its balance and for the convenience of smaller sails in long races.
Yawls designed by Olin Stephens and his colleagues in the United States did very well in the 1930s, including in the Fastnet Race. The yawl Dorade, designed by Olin Stephens, had a notable record in Atlantic and Fastnet racing in the early 1930s, and another Stephens yawl, Stormy Weather, also won major events. Their success helped to make the yawl fashionable, though the underlying designs also had well-shaped hulls and good construction, so the rig was only a part of the explanation.
Practical points in favour
The case for the yawl at sea was not purely about rating. Sailors pointed to several practical features.
- Balance. A small mizzen can help balance a boat when sailing under reduced sail, which is useful for steering and for easing strain on the helm.
- Smaller sails. Dividing the area made each sail more manageable for a racing crew, which in the pre-winch era counted for a lot.
- Mizzen staysail. On a reach, a lightweight sail between the two masts added speed when allowed by the rules.
- Riding sail. At anchor, a mizzen can help a boat to lie head to the wind.
The rules change
As rating systems were revised, the incentives changed too. The Cruising Club of America rule in North America and successive British and international rules adjusted how sail area and the mizzen were counted. By the 1970s, new systems such as the International Offshore Rule aimed to produce a more consistent and neutral formula, and the old advantage of the mizzen was reduced or reversed in many versions. Where the rule applied equivalent penalties to all sail area, the extra mast and rigging of the yawl became a disadvantage, because the mizzen sat in the disturbed air behind the mainsail and did little upwind.
Other developments weighed against the yawl too:
- Designers learned more about hull shape, keel and rudder design.
- Light, strong masts and better sail materials made a tall single-masted rig easier to manage.
- Winches and furling gear removed much of the old crew-handling argument for splitting the rig.
By the later decades of the twentieth century, the top racing fleets were almost entirely sloop-rigged. A yawl or ketch might still be seen in classic yacht regattas and in events that give a handicap allowance to older designs, where rules look back to the original measurement.
What the yawl’s story shows
The offshore yawl is a good case study in how a rule can shape the form of a boat. Racing designers have always looked for advantages within the rules, and rule makers have repeatedly adjusted the rules in response. This process affected hulls, keels and rigs, and sometimes produced boats that were less sound or less pleasant to sail than their predecessors. The yawl’s decline reflected changing measurement as much as any change in sailing ability.
In more recent years, historic yawls have been restored and raced in classic events, and the sight of a small mizzen sail behind the cockpit is now mostly associated with classic yachts, long-distance cruising yachts and a few traditional workboats.