While hyper-luxury superyachts are clearly cool to look at (and would be very cool to own) there’s no denying that speed is cool and this collection of record breaking boats…

“I think the Cookson 50 is one of the coolest yachts on earth for several reasons. First, it’s designed by one of the most renowned yacht design firms on earth:…

“In terms of complexity for speed, there isn’t anything else which has such a good ratio as a MOD 70. We’ve been over 40 knots [boatspeed] on them, and with…

America True was a ground-breaking campaign for the 2000 America’s Cup. Created by Dawn Riley, it was the first America’s Cup syndicate to be headed up by a woman, and…

Biscuits Cantreau 2 was a Formula 40 trimaran designed for Jean Le Cam in 1987. “Formula 40 was a class born in France with a very simple rule for multihulls…

“The Ultimes to me are the most technologically advanced and fastest boats that you can still go offshore with, at incredible speeds and at the same time a robustness and…

“The late Mike Birch’s Olympus Photo, designed and built by Walter Greene, sits at the root of all modern multis,” says Verdier. “Mike and his boat began the legend of…

Legendary American yacht designer Nathaneal G Herreshoff is famed for his spectacular America’s Cup designs, drawing every Cup winner for nearly 40 years from 1893-1934. However, among ‘Capt Nat’s’ prolific…

The Cal40 has iconic status in the United States and was a game-changer in the 1960s as a true racer/cruiser. Designed by Bill Lapworth, it has a radical flat-bottomed hull…

The Cherub is a 12ft two-person dinghy with a single trapeze (twin in the UK), designed in 1951. It evolved into an international development class, with a wide range of…

My choice would be the yacht Reliance of 1903 designed by the famous Nat Herreshoff. I read the book Temple to the Wind a long time ago and could not…

Aquitaine Innovations was one of those breakthrough boats that precipitated a step change in sailing. Yves Parlier was, and continues to be, one of the sport’s great innovators and the…

I was so fortunate to be working with an owner in Jim Clark who had a vision of all speed/no compromise. He was dared by a couple of Australian 100-footer…

“I stepped on board Volvo 70 Puma for the first time in Southampton to start trials for Team SCA for the Volvo Ocean Race. I’d just come from the Olympics…

Westward was designed by the great Nathanael Herreshoff and launched in 1910 and at 96ft LWL (135ft LOA) the steel schooner was the largest yacht Herreshoff had built so far.…

“What I love about My Song is the fact that somebody has been brave and said OK, I want to go cruising, I want to have comfort, but let’s make…

“What sets Pride of Baltimore II above all the other boats I’ve encountered is the combination of the boat itself, her captain and crew, her history and what she represents.…

“Kuka Light is the most extreme keelboat I have ever sailed,” explains Mitch Booth. “At 42ft and built in an autoclave she is VERY light and stiff. But when you…

“I would take a complete crazy thing: a Snipe. I think it’s an excellent boat for kids to start sailing in, and even for grown-ups. I have a Snipe dinghy…