H-Boat U.S.A.
photos copied from http://www.dlc.fi/~waananen/otto/h/h.htm
International H-boat Association
The H-Boat is one of the most dynamic, fun, and safe racing-cruisers built in the world. The exact number of H-Boats is anybody's guess, however, it is safe to estimate that close to 5,000 of these incredible boats have been manufactured and the majority are sailed and raced in Europe. In fact, the H-Boat is the largest fin keel racing class on the international scene.
Retail sales outside of Europe have basically been limited to a
few boats in Japan and the United States. Rumor has it that there may be
as many as 50 H-Boats in the U.S.
The purpose of this site is to bring the US H-Boaters together in fellowship
(long-distance though it may be) and to enhance the knowledge and awareness of
the intricacies of rigging, trimming, and sailing the H-Boat. Many
of us have never personally seen another H-Boat other than our own
History
In 1967, Hans Groop of Finland designed the H-Boat after the revered classic Nordic Folkboat with some modern touches; namely - a hull of fiberglass and the ability to fly a spinnaker. The boat grew rapidly in popularity so that by 1970, the H-Boat was a Finnish National Class and in 1977 was granted international classification by the IYRU. While the US does not have a recognized H-Boat Association, countries such as Germany, Switzerland, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Austria, Norway, Holland, and Belgium have very active racing associations.
General Layout Of This Site
This site was created to be a hands-on, low-key, general get-together meeting place for H-Boat owners and other folks just interested in H-Boats. As the initial creator of this site, Bill Henry agrees to maintain it as long as there appears to be an active interest and welcomes input from any and all of you H-Boaters. Without you, this site will become my site and this does not fit into the grand design of enlarging the awareness and fellowship of the joy of sailing, especially the H-Boat.
Please send photos of yourselves, your families, your boats, stories of your adventures in finding your boat or your sailing/racing experiences, etc. I will create several pages, as many as we need, to share this information. Of special interest to me right now is rigging, trimming, and overall sailing of this boat. Therefore, detailed photos of your rigging and your secrets of how to trim your boat the best are extraordinarily valuable to all of us, especially those of us who have never seen another H-Boat in person. Links to your favorite sailing sites, H-Boat or otherwise will all be put on a special "Favorite Links" page, etc.
At this moment in time, I have identified owners in the Bay Area of California (4), Tullahoma, TN (1), Rhode Island (2), Connecticut (1) and, of course, us in New Jersey. If you know of others, send this site address to them and invite them to join us in the mission.
Sept. 2001--Since this was written in June 2001, 3 more H-Boats have been uncovered; New York (1), Delaware (1), and one more in Rhode Island. I have also heard that one is for sale in Atlanta, however, I have not confirmed it at this time. Therefore we are now up to 12 and growing.
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