April 13, 1908 – September 13, 2008
Olin Stephens (13-4-1908 – 13-09-2008) was one of the most prolific designers of the 20th century with an active designers career that ran for almost 75 years. His yachts dominated offshore racing as well as the America’s Cup for decades. He also inspired several generations of naval architects.
When a journalist once commented on the fact that some of his designs has some typical Stephens traits and asked Dutch naval architect Gerard Dijkstra if he had been inspired by him he answered: “Inspired! Hell no. I simply copied him. Dorade and Stormy Weather are the most beautiful designs I have ever seen so how can you improve on that?”
Like Nathaniel Herreshoff before him the yachts Olin Stephens designed had a signature style that made them immediately recognizable in a fleet of yachts. That would have been before a start as after the race they were even more easily recognised by the fact that they were usually the first to cross the finish line.
Both Masquerade as well as Avanti are typical Stephens yachts. Deep keels and a moderate beam with incredibly fine lines ensuring easily driven hulls. The genius of Olin Stephens is apparent in how they manage to combine blistering speed with extreme seaworthiness.
Sources and full articles: Telegraph, September 16, 2008 (PDF mirror), Wiki