Ron Moore (boat builder)

Ron Moore is largely credited, along with George Olson and Bill Lee, tohave given rise to the modern ULDB, or ultralight displacement boat. This yacht type revolutionized sailing as the modern world knows it, especiallyin downwind races as are common on California's West Coast. [ [http://www.moore24.org/ Moore 24 Racing - www.moore24.org ] ]

The first Moore 24 "Grendel" measured 24' long and weighed justover 2000 lbs., less than half of what similar length sailboats in themarketplace displaced. The next development was "Summertime" with various tweakswhich became known as the Ultimate Wednesday Night Boat and proved itselfrepeatedly on the racecourse. The subsequent molds were taken from this boat,and the production Moore 24 was born. Mr. Moore's famous boatyard was known as"the Reef" off of Soquel Ave. in Santa Cruz.

Through a long and storied career in boatbuilding, Ron and his wife Martharan a boatyard that embodied the California Lifestyle, complete with barbecuesand a hot tub. Sailing ULDBs required agile, athletic sailors that would shun creature comforts in favor of high performance surfing onbig waves in windy conditions. Really outstanding Moore 24 sailors like Will Baylis,
John Kostecki, Morgan Larson, and others have gone on to achieve the highestlevels in world championship sailing and the America's Cup. [ [http://www.latitude38.com/features/BaylisFamily.htm/ Baylis Family dynasty ] ]

Others Moore 24 sailors like Dave Hodges and Jim Maloney, have also achieved tremendous highs in class performance, and have been active at the grass roots level of the class.They can be often be seen in the hazy fog enveloping the Santa Cruz harbor or torchingup the San Francisco Bay on a wild broad reach off of Pt. Blunt. As new fleets and sailors have mushroomed up around the world, Moore hascontinually set the Santa Cruz tone of the class so often espoused by Bill Lee: "Fast is Fun".

The Moores realised the diversity and excellence of the core sailinggroup in the Moore 24 class and supported the community at a grass roots level.

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