Fully
battened mainsails were brought into the class around 1900.
Fully
battened mainsails were brought into the class around 1900.
The Bermuda rig was officially introduced to Norway on the Square Meters before 1920.
Whip-topped masts were made their appearance on Square Meters between 1910 - 1920.
Roller-reefing came into use at least from the middle of the 20’s.
Sails
The introduction of the genoa jib and the parachute
spinnaker to the USA is first reported on visiting Square Meters. According
to "Yachting" October 1929, genoas were not popular and were generally not in
use in the USA. When one of the premier yacht clubs on the East Coast, the Corinthian
Yacht Club of Marblehead, Mass. organized a series in 1928-29 at the urgings
of a certain Mr. Herreshoff, the challenging teams from Sweden and Germany trashed
the American fleet. American yachtsmen had expected the winds typical of the
Baltic to produce undercanvassed boats and careful, reserved sailors. The same
magazine reported, "The Americans learned a lot about new sails, such as genoa
jibs [...] high-cut mainsails, and an enveloping spinnaker which the Swedes
produced." One Swedish boat in the 1928-29 series was the first foreign boat
ever to win every race in a series in American waters. The 30 Sq. Meter "Bacchant"
of the Royal Swedish Yacht Club was sailed by Eric Lundberg. ("The Rudder" Oct.
1929)
Two-speed winches were phased in on Sq. Meters of the 1930’s.
Bearing-mounted mast A recent development designed to reduce turbulance around the mainsail. The mast is mounted in a ball-bearing collar which allows it to turn with the sail/boom. This presents a tuned profile at the leading edge of the airfoil.