South Boats Special Projects Ltd. is pleased to announce that it has agreed to become the title sponsor of the 5th Half Ton Classics Cup, taking place from 22nd to 26th August.

Hosted by the Royal Corinthian Yacht Club in Cowes, the regatta is open to all former IOR half ton racing yachts, and promises to be the largest event ever in the history of the halftonners.

The Half Ton Class Europe emerged in 2003 to ensure the cooperation of all European Halftonner-related events. The founding idea of the class is to encourage cost-effective, fun & affordable sailing.

For a boat to be considered a Halftonner it must have been designed and built as a prototype one-off in the period between January 1967 and December 1994, have been eligible to participate at an edition of IOR Half Ton Cup and no alterations have been made to the hull of the boat, except keel and rudder. Moreover, every production boat derived from the hull of a prototype one-off halftonner will also be considered as a halftonner.

Jeremy Paul of South Boats is quoted as saying “South Boats is delighted to support this regatta, which epitomises a vital part of the culture of the Isle of Wight. The tradition, competitiveness and quality of the halftonners are all values that South Boats can readily identify with”.

South Boats is recognised as a pioneer in designing and manufacturing wind farm service vessels. The shipyard has built 45 vessels in five classes, from 15m to 30 meters, representing a 50% market share in European wind farms that are serviced by 13 operators, including Turbine Transfers Ltd. (Holyhead Towing Company), Iceni Marine Services Ltd., Northern Offshore Services AB, MPI Workboats, Ltd. (Vroon Group BV), Maritime Craft Services and MTS Group. The boats have worked on 25 wind farm projects in 7 countries.

South Boat designs are continually evolving to meet the growing expectations of the industry for higher levels of safety, reduced noise levels and enhanced crew comfort.