• Source: Maxi yacht

A maxi yacht usually refers to a racing yacht of at least 21 metres (70 ft) in length.




Origin


The term maxi originated with the International Offshore Rule (IOR) rating system, which in the 1970s and 1980s measured offshore racing yachts and applied a single-number rating to each boat. This number was approximately equal to the sailing waterline length in feet, plus or minus speed enhancing or reducing factors in the design. A yacht with a rating of 12 metres (40 ft) was generally about 14 to 16 metres (47 to 52 ft) in length overall. The IOR had upper and lower rating limits of 4.9 metres (16 ft) and 21 metres (70 ft), so a yacht designed and built to exceed the maximum limit of 21 metres (70 ft) rating was known as a maxi.

Being the biggest sailing yachts afloat, Maxis have always had the best chance of finishing first. They were sufficiently fast and seaworthy to cross oceans and became the craft of choice of pioneers of the Whitbread Round the World Race. The racing giants in the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup 2005 are the modern descendants of those early aquatic thoroughbreds.




Competition


The IOR Maxis were generally 23 to 25 metres (75 to 82 ft) long overall, and raced boat-for-boat without handicap, unlike the rest of the IOR fleet which raced with a time correction factor depending on the boat's rating.
In the 1980s they were the most glamorous, exciting, expensive and high-visibility racing yachts in the world, with regular appearances at most of the great races such as the Fastnet, Sydney-Hobart, Bermuda Race, and their own private series of regattas in the Mediterranean and Caribbean seas. The maxis were also prominent as line honour contestants in the Whitbread Round the World Race from 1973 to 1993.




Modern maxis



Modern maxi yachts are usually custom-designed and built to the IRC rule but regardless of handicap in order to achieve line honour victories. In 2001 however two 26 m (86 ft) Reichel/Pugh boats were built to the "maxZ86" class in order to match boat speed evenly, but the class did not generate further interest.
For the 2009 Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race, the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia increased the IRC rating upper limit for length of hull from 29.9 to 30.5 m (98 to 100 ft), and most 29.9 m (98 ft) yachts have been lengthened to this size. In order to achieve higher speeds, maxi yachts were early adopters of modern materials and technologies such as carbon fibre, thermoformed sails, rotating wingmasts, water ballasts, canting keels, and hydrofoils. Previous smaller maxi yachts are still raced with corrected time class victories in mind whilst the 22 m (72 ft) "mini-maxi" yachts now have a class of their own. Maxi yachts are raced in both inshore and offshore races.




= List of largest maxi yachts

=

• LH designates the length of hull as measured by IRC, excluding bowsprits




See also



International Maxi Association
Maxi Yachts AB - production sailing yachts designed by Olympic medallist Pelle Pettersson and built on the island of Gotland. Over 16,000 have been built over the last 30 years. Current production consists of the Maxi 1200, Maxi 1300 and the Swedish Match 40.




References

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