Sail plan for a 72 foot ocean racing yacht
Designer
Ben Lexcen
(1936 - 1988)
Date10 October 1973
Object numberANMS1543[052]
NamePlan
Mediumink on drafting film
Dimensions760 x 730
Copyright© Ben Lexcen
ClassificationsMaps, charts and plans
Credit LineAustralian National Maritime Museum Collection purchased with USA Bicentennial Gift funds
DescriptionBALLYHOO sail and rigging plan. Drawn by Ben Lexcen (then Bob Miller) and the ‘Miller & Whitworth’ design office team in 1973, for Jack Rooklyn’s 72-foot aluminium maxi-racer.
HistoryThe design of the 72-foot maxi racer BALLYHOO started in 1973, continuing into 1974 during the build, and up to completion in November when the yacht was launched at the Halvorsen, Morson and Gowland’ boatyard in Sydney. BALLYHOO was named after Australian Gaming king, Jack Rooklyn’s business, Bally Gaming. With sail number 357, the first major race for BALLYHOO was the 1974 Sydney to Hobart race which started on December 26th. just over a month after being launched. BALLYHOO was second over the line behind the US maxi-racer ‘ONDINE’. Line honours and overall winner are not the same in a long offshore ocean race as the size, IOR rating, and type of yacht at taken into account. The 1974 Sydney Hobart race was won by Peter Kurts, in the ‘Sparkman & Stephens’ designed 47-foot LOVE & WAR.
The first overseas race for BALLYHOO was in New Zealand, where she took part in the 1975 ‘Three Kings Islands Race’ before going on to the Trans-Pacific or ‘Transpac Race’. Ben Lexcen (then Bob Miller) the designer, joined the yacht as watch captain for the 1,227 mile, 1975 ‘Transpac Race’, race, which took place from the Point Fermin buoy in San Pedro, California to Diamond Head in Hawaii. BALLYHOO was the first Australian yacht ever to enter this race. Following the race, the yacht and her crew, stayed in Hawaii to compete in the annual ‘Hawaiian Island Series’. This included the ‘Round the State Race’ in which BALLYHOO lost her rudder in very bad weather. Remarkably, the crew made up, a temporary rudder using the teak saloon table and a spinnaker pole. This followed a difficult 250 miles back to Honolulu, in 34 hours but BALLYHOO still crossed the finish line ahead of some of the other yachts. Later the same year, BALLYHOO participated in the ‘China Sea Series’ including the race from Hong Kong to Manilla. Initially, the yacht did not sail as well, or as fast as expected, so in late 1975 and 1976 the weights were adjusted and the ballast keel re-cast. These changes made a significant improvement, making BALLYHOO a fast and highly successful offshore racing yacht in all wind conditions. Additional re-design work was carried out on the ‘72-foot design package’ in 1976, by which time Ben Lexcen (still Bob Miller) had joined with the Dutch naval architect Johan Valentijn to form ‘Miller & Valentijn’ with offices in New York. In 1976 Jack Rooklyn accepted an invitation from the prestigious ‘California Yacht Club’ to race BALLYHOO in the California Cup and St. Francis Perpetual Series. BALLYHOO arrived in Los Angeles in 1976 following an amazing winning streak, which started with winning the ‘South China Sea Race’.
In the 1976 California Cup race BALLYHOO beat the famous America maxi yacht ‘KIALO III’. As one yacht magazine reported at the time: BALLYHOO proved what many already believed: she is unquestionably the fastest yacht in the world to windward. The yacht then went on to Honolulu, for the ‘Round the State Race’ again, this time taking line honours and many hours off the elapsed time record. BALLYHOO pioneered the sloop rig maxi, and went on to win line honours in the 1976 Sydney-Hobart race and, many other races through years. The yacht sailed in all the major off-shore racing events in the coming years, wining line honours at the 1977 Fastnet Race in UK. BALLYHOO was sold to Bill Whitehouse-Vaux in 1978, who re-named the yacht MISTRESS QUICKLY and continued to race the yacht into the mid 1990’s. She took part in the 2001 ‘Maxi-yacht Rolex Cup Race’ in Porto Cervo, Sardinia and is believed to still be sailing today as a charter yacht.SignificanceThe sail-plan and rigging detail drawing of the 72-foot ocean racing yacht BALLYHOO provides a date of October 10th. 1973. This is of particular interest, as it shows the yacht was being designed well in advance of construction, which took place in 1974 at ‘Halvorsen, Morson and Gowland’. It clearly indicates Ben Lexcen (formally Bob Miller) and the ‘Miller & Whitworth’ team were actively designing several yachts at the same time in 1973 and 1974.
