International 110: A historic class makes a comeback with modern model kits
Dieter Loibner
· 13.06.2026
- The International 110 was designed in 1939 by C. Raymond Hunt as an affordable sports boat.
- The yacht is 7.32 metres long, but only 1.27 metres wide.
- In the US, the class is making a comeback, partly because of its low costs and simple boats.
- Some second-hand models are sold for considerably less than modern pleasure boats.
It was a grey September morning in Port Madison at the northern tip of Bainbridge Island in the US state of Washington, but the club harbour was a riot of colour. “Like a box of coloured pencils,” remarked one sailor, looking at the super-slim double-ended boats lined up at the jetty. Pointed at the bow, pointed at the stern, and in between either plywood or fibreglass, painted red, green, blue, white, orange or clear. A dozen of these unique boats had gathered to determine the US West Coast champion and to celebrate the revival of the local fleet, which had been dormant for years due to a lack of participants.
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The International 110 has its origins in New England, where C. Raymond Hunt, who designed this boat in the late 1930s, was also based. The aim was to create a boat that, following years of economic depression, would appeal to a wide audience thanks to its low production and maintenance costs. Licensed shipyards such as Lawley in Neponset and Graves in Marblehead produced the boats using what was, at the time, revolutionary boat-building plywood. Later, 110s were also built in the Midwest and on the West Coast, including some made from fibreglass-reinforced plastic (FRP). The total number is estimated at around 750 boats, of which approximately 75 are still in active use in the USA. Asking prices on the class website range from next to nothing to 10,000 US dollars, depending on condition.
Technical Specifications for the International 110
- Designer: C. Raymond Hunt
- Fuselage length: 7.32 m
- Waterline length: 5.49 m
- Width: 1.27 m
- Draught: 0.84 m
- Weight (min., without sail): 412 kg
- Wing area: 14.6 m²
- Website category: 110class.com
C. Raymond Hunt’s affordable sailing boat concept
“It simply occurred to me to design boats that weren’t so bloody expensive,” said designer Hunt, who also designed the Concordia Yawl, which was built in the post-war period by Abeking & Rasmussen on the River Weser for the US market. The popular Boston Whalers are also his creation.
The 110, often referred to as the forerunner of sports boats, was a more economical version of the 225. At 10.7 metres in length, the 225 was significantly larger and faster, but also too expensive to produce on a large scale. However, Hunt’s design concept – featuring a narrow, efficient chine-hull comprising a flat bottom, almost vertical side walls and a tapered stern – could be scaled down perfectly. Smaller meant both cheaper and more practical.
Short keel, narrow hull, easy-going nature
The short iron keel of an 110 has a draught of just 84 centimetres, yet at 300 kilograms it accounts for around three-quarters of the total weight of 412 kilograms. Compared to modern performance boats, these 7.32-metre-long and 1.27-metre-wide International 110s feature a strikingly short rig. With a mast height of 6.70 metres and an upwind sail area of 14.6 square metres, they appear almost underpowered, yet that is all the boat needs. This not only keeps the cost of purchasing sails down, but also encourages the participation of mixed teams.
Like many other classic yacht classes, the International 110s have also had to adapt to changing times. Alongside asymmetrical spinnakers, various headsails, a double floor and line routing into the cockpit, the approval of GRP hulls and the introduction of the trapeze were of crucial importance, without, however, spoiling the boat’s character. “The 110 has a manageable sail area and always remains easy-going,” explains Brendan Meyer, one of the top skippers from California with experience on modern racing yachts. The eventual winner sails a bright red, simply designed wooden boat that has been around for several decades.
Senior citizens on the regatta course
The atmosphere at the skippers’ meeting on the club terrace in Port Madison was also extremely relaxed. There were sun-tanned faces representing a wide range of age groups, from Masters (45–54) to Great Grand Masters (65+). Topics of conversation included not only adventures on the regatta course, boat trim and speed, but also hearing aids, artificial joints and pacemakers.
Out on the water, then, came the moment of truth. There were mostly light winds, much like on an Alpine lake, plus a gentle tidal current. In these conditions, the senior sailors had to huddle in the cramped cockpit on the upwind leg or even use the leeward trapeze to achieve the desired heel angle and reduce the wetted surface area. Downwind, the 110s glided seemingly effortlessly through the water, without any noticeable stern wake, though heeled to windward, with spinnakers sheeted far to windward. Quite a few teams loosened their shrouds with a single movement to tilt the masthead forwards, improving the airflow over the mainsail. It was also striking to see how the seasoned sailors threw themselves into the rolling tacks and dived under the low mainboom – not a trace of rust to be seen.
Skip Allan – US champion at the age of 77
Certainly not in the case of Skip Allan, the legendary blue-water veteran, who was honoured not only for his sailing achievements but also, back in the day, for rescuing two sailors whom he saved from drowning. “The 110s have some very good skippers and wonderful people in the class, who are all of a similar age and grappling with similar problems,” he explained with a smile at the skippers’ briefing. In 2022, as a newcomer to the 110 class, Allan went on to win the national championship in a thrilling photo finish, which he effectively decided in his favour right on the finish line of the final race. He was 77 at the time, making him the oldest US champion in the class to date.
However, it took a few years’ lead time to get this regatta off the ground from practically scratch, as the foundations first had to be laid for the successful development of a viable fleet. The aim was to counteract the decline of the established skiff and dinghy classes, which were suffering from falling membership numbers because purchase, equipment and maintenance costs were spiralling out of control, leading to a loss of young talent.
Why the International 110 is once again in tune with the times
- Sailing is becoming more expensive; the 110 was designed from the outset to be an affordable boat.
- The boat is small, light and made from few materials, but it’s still a proper regatta boat.
- The design is instantly recognisable.
- The class combines classic charm with modern sailing features, including GRP hulls and a trapeze.
“You need boats and sailors you enjoy competing against, but a suitable mooring and access to the water are just as important,” explains Zigmond Burzycki, a former dealer in Vanguard sailing boats in the Seattle area and one of the two founders of the fleet. He was supported by James “Kimo” Mackey, owner of the historic Second Rule six-metre yacht “Saga”, designed by Bjarne Aas in 1935 (see YACHT 9/2014). Mackey lamented the difficulty of finding suitable crew for his Six-Metre, which now lies at its mooring, as beautiful as ever but unsailed.
And so it came to pass that, during the Covid lockdown, Burzycki spotted an old International 110 whilst on a boat trip in Puget Sound; the owner was using it as a daysailer. Further research revealed that International 110s, which were still sailing in good numbers on the East Coast and in California, were mainly being sailed by people switching from well-known classes who wanted to continue their sailing hobby with just as much fun, but without the hassle and expense. On top of that, the former fleet of 110s in Seattle was just waiting to be revived, and there were plenty of second-hand boats of this type available elsewhere at a good price.
Boat hunting on the west coast
The next step was to source these high-quality, affordable boats, which Zig Burzycki and Kimo Mackey purchased out of their own pockets with a view to selling them later to keen prospective buyers. The designs still exist, but these boats have not been in production for quite some time. So Mackey and Burzycki travelled across the western United States and also paid a visit to the Californian fleet in Inverness, near San Francisco, where they found what they were looking for and purchased several relatively new GRP boats with double bottoms and modern fittings, plus a beautifully preserved, naturally varnished wooden boat.
“Zig and Kimo got in touch with me out of the blue,” recalls class president and surveyor Milly Biller, 72. She is a boatbuilder by trade and has been sailing 110s since she was a child. If anyone wants to buy or sell a boat, she is the first port of call. “One day, I got a call from someone who’d found a 110er on Google Earth, at a storage yard in Los Angeles,” says Biller. Because the owner had unpaid bills, the boat had been pledged as security, so the owner of the site sold it off to the person who’d found it. He, in turn, turned up at the former owner’s place at some point to collect the sails and equipment – just “as the police were about to arrest him during a drug raid,” she laughs.
Modern model kits for a historic class
As mass production of the International 110 was not feasible, Burzycki commissioned Brandon Davis of Turn Point Design in Port Townsend, Washington, to develop a kit for a GRP sandwich-core boat, which was professionally built on site, with meticulous attention paid to compliance with class rules in order to ensure compatibility with existing boats. “Traditionally, the hulls were built from moulded plywood,” explained designer Davis, “but getting ten-millimetre plywood sheets into the desired shape requires real strength, a dozen tension straps, sturdy frames and a great deal of perseverance.” Ultimately, the prototype’s hull bottom and deck were constructed from GRP sandwich panels, whilst the side walls were made of plywood.
Prior to developing a 110 kit for plywood, Steve Clark was a successful sailor on the US East Coast, who, in the 1980s, was the owner of the Vanguard Sailboats shipyard, which built, amongst other things, Sunfish and Olympic boat classes such as the 470 and the Finn Dinghy.
Serenity rather than commercialism
The hull shape was scanned from a fibreglass boat using a 3D scanner by a technician friend of his, before Clark processed the data on the computer and gradually refined the design. He then created cutting files for a CNC machine, which he sent to Chesapeake Light Craft, a company that sells kits for small plywood boats. There, the panels were cut to size and sent straight back to Clark, who used them to build his International 110. Clark noted that such a project would be too complex for amateurs, but anyone who absolutely wants a new International 110 can now choose from two kits and commission a professional to assemble it.
But we’re not quite there yet, as the second-hand boat market meets the demand, partly because many sailors carry out the restoration work themselves. “The 110 class has talented sailors,” said Kris Bundy, a former world champion in the I-14 skiff class, “but despite their ambition, they remain relaxed.” These days, he commutes from the Midwest to compete in regattas with the revived 110-class fleet in Port Madison, where the art of composure is mastered.
More classics in YACHT classic
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