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New US builder found for Farr 36 offshore one design

Farr International Inc announced today production will soon resume of its latest offshore yacht, the Farr 36 One Design. Custom boat builder James Betts Enterprises, Inc. of Verdi, NV will be the sole North American builder of this 36-foot high-performance carbon fibre yacht and expects two new boats to be ready to race in Key West in January, 2004.

"We’re very excited to have forged this alliance with such a quality builder as Jim,” said Geoff Stagg, president of Farr International. “His experience and the quality of his operation are a great match with the production demands of this sophisticated design. This will be the first time a Farr production one design boat has been built in the West, and we feel confident we are close to the ideal markets for this design. In many ways it is the ideal boat for the West Coast: extremely fast in light air, easy and fun to sail in breezy downwind offshore races, and easily trailerable for transport to different regattas with its hydraulic lift keel option.”

"Building this boat will be like producing a sports car that’s all ready to go,” said Jim Betts. "We can put our measuring tapes and long boards away, since the design has been streamlined for an efficient assembly process and the tooling built by dk Composites on a five axis milling machine exceeds our expectations as a custom builder.” Betts’ experience has been in building sophisticated custom composite designs since 1970, and includes numerous sleds, Turbo-sleds and performance cruising yachts. Betts also built the IACC yacht America True for the 2000 America’s Cup.

Thus far five Farr 36 ODs have been built by dk Composites and Carroll Marine, competing at events such as Tera Nova Trading/Key West Race Week, the Acura SORC, Block Island Race Week and Hahn Premium Race Week 2003 at Hamilton Island. Three yachts will compete in the inaugural Rolex Farr One Design Invitational in Miami over November 19-22, and five will be expected at Key West in January, 2004.

The Farr 36 represents the next step in one-design fun, combining superb performance and offshore capability into a modern design at reasonable cost. Free of all handicap constraints and easily transported, the Farr 36 is destined to become the boat of choice for those looking for serious racing fun. Farr International will manage strict one-design standards and controls on sails, crew weights, and professional crews with the same attentiveness that has resulted in the world-wide popularity of the Mumm 30, Farr 395, and Farr 40 one designs.