If any one-design class has a cult following, it would be the Etchells. The boat was designed in the mid 1960s by Skip Etchells as a candidate to be the three-man Olympic keelboat. Despite dominance in the trials, the Etchells lost out to the Soling, but gained a dedicated group of sailors. Since then, over 1200 hulls have been launched and sailed by individuals such as Dennis Conner who used the boat in training for his America’s Cup campaigns, Gary Jobson, Russell Coutts and Jud Smith.