A practical and historical handbook provides hands-on advice, anecdotes, diagrams, and illustrations for racing and cruising yachtsmen, surveying the sport's development and the design, construction, and selection of racing yachts. It discusses hull types and rigs, centerboard and keel options, fitting out and tuning for races, and crew duties and discipline. Detailed chapters outline race examples, rules of navigation and racing, and how measurement and tonnage regulations shaped yacht form. The book also covers yachting etiquette, insurance and legal relations, and practical cost-saving guidance, concluding with final operational and maintenance tips for owners and skippers.