Stars & Stripes (yacht) - 12-metre Class Yachts

12-metre Class Yachts

The well funded Sail America Foundation commissioned four 12 metre yachts to support a campaign led by Dennis Conner, representing the San Diego Yacht Club, to win back the America's Cup in the 1987 competition in Fremantle, Australia.

  • Stars & Stripes 83 (US 53) built in 1985 by Geraghty Marine, designed by Chance/Nelson/Pedrick.
  • Stars & Stripes 85 (US 54) built in 1985 by Robert E. Derektor Inc., designed by Chance/Nelson/Pedrick. Proved to be faster than Stars & Stripes '83.
  • Stars & Stripes 86 (US 56) built in 1986 by Robert E. Derektor Inc., designed by Chance/Nelson/Pedrick. Designed with a different keel and more sail area.
  • Stars & Stripes 87 (US 55) built in 1986 by Robert E. Derektor Inc., designed by Chance/Nelson/Pedrick. Designed and built with the experience gained from the first three designs. Stars & Stripes 87 won the trials to select the challenger and went on to defeat the Australian defender Kookaburra III by 4 races to nil to win the Cup back for the USA.

The movie Wind is loosely based on Dennis Conner's experience, from the 1983 America's Cup loss to his America's Cup win in Perth, and on a number of events that occurred on various competitor boats throughout the match races of the 1987 America's Cup. For artistic reasons, the 12 metre Stars & Stripes 87 was dramatized in the film as Geronimo.

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