N G Herreshoff’s Universal Rule addressed the concerns raised by the trend towards the extreme and impractical designs engendered by the Seawanhaka Rule. The Q boats; exemplars of the Universal Rule, amply revealed the pedigrees of their designers among the best of the period and were typically very well built – proving moreover to be fast, firm – and very beautiful.
N G Herreshoff’s Universal Rule addressed the concerns raised by the trend towards the extreme and impractical designs engendered by the Seawanhaka Rule. The Q boats; exemplars of the Universal Rule, amply revealed the pedigrees of their designers among the best of the period and were typically very well built – proving moreover to be fast, firm – and very beautiful.
JOUR DE FÊTE (ex FALCON II and HAYDAY) has been meticulously restored by John Anderson and others in the USA and in her current ownership won may of Europe’s classic events. Perhaps most importantly she has rewarded her crews with the exhilarating sailing for which the Q boats are rightly famed.
Historical Notes
The Universal Rule of Measurement, introduced in 1904 saw the birth of the Class Q. It was the first class to get started in this way, followed by others such as the J, M and R classes. From 1904 until 1937, at least 16 of these Q boats were built. While originally intended for sailing in the USA and Canada, they were designed as well as by Herreshof himself, John Alden, Frank Paine, Starling Burgess and later Nicholas Potter. Leading designers worldwide included Johan Anker, Charles E. Nicholson and Tore Holm were retained also to develop the lines for the Q Class.
After World War II, racing in the Q Class pretty well ceased; as it did for many fine designs and the boats were widely dispersed and many falling into serious disrepair. By the 1990s however, these great boats were being rediscovered - including such as COTTON BLOSSOM II, now called by her original name LEONORE and FALCON II. This latter boat was fully rebuilt and restored by then owner the late Konrad Ulbrich’s son in law John Anderson, who went to great lengths to retain as much as possible of the original materials; fittings as well as the timbers then to be renamed JOUR DE FÊTE. There are other Q boats still sailing and with the dramatic growth in classic sailing around the world, there is clearly enthusiasm now for maintaining – and developing this class.
JOUR DE FÊTE has won many of the major events in Europe including
- Imperia 2012
- Marseille 2013, 2014 and 2015
- Voiles de St Tropez 2014
- Panerai Antibes 2014
- Panerai Cowes July 2015
Construction and Finish
- Carvel double planked; 5/8th inch mahogany outer and 3/8th inch cedar inner above waterline
- Single 1 inch cedar planking below waterline
- Steam bent oak frames
- Mahogany keel
- Angelique backbone
- All bronze fastenings
- New bronze keel bolts and floor bolts
- Varnished 5/8th inch white pine deck planking over 2 layers of ¼ inch marine ply sub deck
- Laminated spruce deck beams
- Varnished cover board and toe rail
- Varnished king plank
- Ply over cedar coach roof
Accommodation and Domestic Equipment
- Summary single berths for 5
- Companionway steps down
- Isolator panel behind companionway steps
- Interior joinery is raised panels with mahogany trim
- Varnished Douglas fir cabin sole
- 2 x Single quarter berths aft
- Saloon forward with stowage under and outboard above
- 2 x Settee berths
- Galley forward athwartships
- Origo 4100 2 burner alcohol stove with stowage aft, under and glazed cabinet above outboard
- Stainless steel sink with bronze hand pump stbd
- Top loading fridge stbd
- Stowage under and glazed cabinet above outboard
- Doorway and step up forward
- Head compartment to port with manual WC and hand basin
- Stowage to stbd, port by head and forward
- Hatchway exit to fore deck
Rig Spars Sails and Canvas
Sloop rig
- Mast and boom are hollow glued and varnished Sitka spruce
- Stainless steel masthead fittings
- Sitka spruce spinnaker pole – stowed stbd foredeck
- Stainless steel standing rigging
- Running rigging is all new; Spectra halyards and Dacron sheets
Sail Inventory
- Main and jib by Maine Sailing Partners
- Main North Sails 2013
- Main North Sails 2015
- Nordac racing genoa North Sails
- Norlight 60 code 2 spinnaker North Sails
- Genoa Maxi 180% 2013
- Genoa Maxi 190% 2015
- Blade N°3 2014
- Medium genoa 2015, Incidences
- Heavy genoa 2015, Incidences
- Medium 150%, Sanders 2015
- Code 5, Incidences 2013
- Light symmetrical spinnaker, North Sails 2013
- Medium symmetrical spinnaker, North Sails 2013
- Asymmetric lightweight, North Sails 2013
- Asymmetric heavyweight, North Sails2013
- Mainsail cover
Deck Equipment and Ground Tackle
From aft
- Bronze ensign staff socket
- Bronze mooring line fairleads
- Round bronze low profile mooring post on king plank
- Ash main sheet blocks
- Harken 44 two speed bronze nickel main sheet winch
- Large and quite deep self draining cockpit with coamings rising to trunk cabin
- Tiller steering
- 2 x Harken 44 two speed secondary winches, bronze cleats inboard each side
- 2 x Original bronze primary winches
- Bridge deck
- Low profile trunk cabin with 6 port lights each side
- Sliding hatch access below with bronze cleats each side
- Merriman jib tracks on cover board
- Harken Genoa sheet blocks
- Mast
- 3 x Bronze Lewmar 40 halyard winches on mast
- Merriman track on leading edge of mast for spinnaker pole
- Merriman jib tracks fitted to deck forward
- Hatch in fore deckhead Spinnaker pole stowed to stbd
- Varnished hand rail on king plank for fore deckhand’s security
- Fortrans anchor and warp
- Bronze low profile mooring post on bow
Mechanical Electrical and Tankage
- Lombardini light aluminium 30 HP Diesel new 2014 cruising speed 7 and max 8 knots
- 7 Gallons / 32 litre fuel tank
- 10 Gallons / c 45 litre fresh water tank
Navigation Communication and Electronics
- Ritchie steering compass
- Raymarine ST 40 depth sounder
- GPS chart plotter
- VHF radio telephone
Safety
- Electric and manual bilge pumps
- Ring life buoy
- Radar reflector
- Air horn and manual foghorn
Miscellaneous
- 3 x Titan floating winch handles
- 4 x Fenders
- Boom strap
- Tiller extension handle
- Ensign and staff
- Equipment manuals
Restoration Refit
2007 – 2008 Complete rebuild / restoration
Other Equipment
JOUR DE FÊTE
