Yare & Bure One-Design Class - History

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The first Yare and Bure One-Design was built in 1908 and remains one of the finest keelboat classes in East Anglia, despite approaching its Centenary year.

One of the Broads’ most prolific designers of the twentieth century was Ernest Wood of Cantley, who was the creator of the Yare and Bure One-Design. It resulted from a competition to establish a One-Design Class held by the Yare and Bure Sailing Club.

Ernest Woods built 8 boats in 1908 and went on to build a total of 69 boats. Herbert Woods (Nephew of Ernest) became the boat builder when Ernest passed away and built his first boat No. 70 in 1963. Herbert Woods built a total of 24 boats until the cost of building in wood became prohibitive.

In 1981 a fibreglass mould was taken from one of the early Ernest built boats and the current class builder Kingsley Farrington introduced the first GRP boat, YBOD No. 94. Ernest Woods’ original moulds are still owned by the class so there is no reason if your pocket is deep enough why you couldn’t have a wooden one built today.

The Yare and Bure Class Committee decided in 2005, that the time was right to commission its own mould and some of these new boats are already on the water.

Over 120 YBOD’s have been built to date. Some of these have been lost over the years in boatyard fires for example, but many of the originals are still sailing today and also as successfully as the day they first went on the water.

The latest addition to the fleet is YBOD No. 129 which is in build as of July 2007.

The YBOD has a reputation for providing the best racing on the broad, and it is that reputation that has attracted many owners to the Class.