IC37: NYYC names Westerly Marine as builder, North/Southern for sails and spars, Harken for gear, an

NEWPORT, RI – To create the next great one-design class, the New York Yacht Club has partnered with Melges Performance Sailboats along with other industry leaders, including Mills Design, North Sails and Westerly Marine. The IC37 was developed to carry the Rolex New York Yacht Club Invitational Cup, the world's premiere Corinthian competition, into its second decade. But interest in the boat has spread well beyond the current and former Invitational Cup participants. Sailors around the world are extremely eager to get their hands on this new boat."The tremendous feedback we received on this new design convinced us that this boat can be more than just the next platform for our flagship competition, the Rolex New York Yacht Club Invitational Cup," says New York Yacht Club Commodore Philip A. Lotz, a veteran one-design sailor with top finishes in the J/105, Swan 42, Melges 32, Viper 640 and Etchells classes. "We couldn't be more pleased at the group of industry partners that have signed on to develop this class. They are each leaders in their respective fields and will help ensure that this new class is a global success." –Stuart Streuli, NYYC comms director, in a press release the Club issued today.

Your Ed. believes this is an exciting and ground-breaking announcement on many levels. With this sailing industry A-list backing NYYC's innovative launch of the new IC37 Class, you can expect to see more yachts built than just the 20-boat fleet commissioned by NYYC – and not just in and around Newport, RI but at other major yacht clubs, or groups of yacht clubs in a given region, and being used for other major events. For example, we would not be at all surprised to see a number of the new IC37s pop up sooner than later in the Great Lakes and be the boat the Royal Canadian Yacht Club (Toronto) turns to for future editions of the Canada's Cup. Down the road, Long Beach YC's Congressional Cup? San Diego YC's Lipton Cup and the International Masters Championship?

We are particularly pleased to see that NYYC is building the IC37 in the USA, and that they have partnered with the esteemed Westerly Yachts in Southern California (Santa Ana in Orange County), with whom your Ed. has had nothing but a positive experience over the years. Together with Harken and Melges in the Midwest, this is truly a national effort that bodes well for the Class, the industry and the sport.