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 A One Design Class
The development of the Class began at the IYRU trials in l953, held at La Baule to find
the "best possible two-man centreboarder", an 18 footer "Coronet"
showed clearly superior to all her competitors.
 That winter the Caneton
Association, the most important small boat racing body in France, asked the designer of
"Coronet", John Westell, if he could modify her to suit their needs. Reducing
the overall length, lightening the hull and modifying it considerably, together with
cutting the sail area to 14 sq. mtrs., produced a new design which retained the good
features of the larger craft.
By a remarkable far-sighted decision
members of the Caneton Association, at their A.G.M. in Paris in January 1954, voted
unanimously to adopt the new class.
The Five-0-Five was born!
 With strong organisation already existing
in France, the 505 started life on an International basis. The Class expanded rapidly and
in November 1955 the IYRU accorded it official International status. Fleets developed in
many parts of the world, most of these are still very active today, 18 Countries have
active fleets.
Although any material and type of
construction may be used, current boats are now using carbon fibre and epoxy resins. The
hull shape is strictly controlled with minimum weights both for the bare hull and the
complete boat in sailing trim.
By August 2004 8888 boats had been registered.
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Designer
Crew
Length
Beam
Sailing Weight
Main & Jib Area
Spinnaker Area |
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John Westell
2 persons
5.05 metres
1.88 metres
127.4 kilos
14 sq. metres
26 sq. metres |
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