Men’s Keelboat – Star

Specifications
Type
Keelboat
No. Of Crew
2
Designer
William Gardner
Year Designed
1911
Hull Length
6.92m
Beam Length
1.73m
Draught Length
1.02m
Mainsail Area
24.1 m²
Headsail Area
4.6 m²
Boat Weight
671kg
Ballast Weight
400kg
Advertising Cat
C

The Stars (Starboats) will be making an appearance at the Perth 2011 ISAF Sailing World Championships.

The International Star is a 6.9m, two-person, racing keelboat. Due to strict regulations, the boats must each weigh at least 671kg.

The Star was designed in 1910 by Francis Sweisguth, draftsman for William Gardner's Naval Architect office, and the first 22 were built in Port Washington, New York, by Isaac Edgar "Ike" Smith during the winter of 1910-11.

Since that time about 7,500 of these boats have been built.

The earliest Stars were built from wood but modern boats are generally made of fibreglass. Stars today have positive flotation and an integrated keel. The design, sails, and equipment of the Star are governed by stringent class rules, created to improve competition on the basis of skill and cost control. This has also served to help the longevity of the design, keeping older boats competitive. The priorities of safety and practicality have ruled most of the changes.

Another notable aspect of Starboat sailing is the position adopted by the crew and sometimes the helmsman, who use harnesses to hang low off the windward side of the boat with only their lower legs inside the boat.

The Star was added to the Olympic Games programme at the 1932 Los Angeles Olympic Games, in the United States and has been part of the Olympic Games sailing competition ever since.

The Stars are popular today throughout North America and Europe.