The genius of William Fife III of Fairlie's legacy lives on in the sailing seas of New York.
The Fife designed yachts which have graced the high seas all over the world is the inspiration behind an intriguing project in the 'Big Apple' to re-make the classic vessels for the 21st century.
A new William Fife III design inspired 8 Metre, described as 'sexy and intriguing' by sailing publications over the pond, is a historically accurate new build of the 30 foot Invader II - it was launched last summer, and another replica is set to follow.
The new construction has taken place at Wooden Boatworks on eastern Long Island, and has retained the dimensions of the original competitive racing class which is still so popular today.
Not only was it an Olympic class from 1908 to 1936, but the original Invader was commissioned to race in the 1932 Canada's Cup - the freshwater equivalent of the America's Cup. and such was the excitement generated, attracted more than 20,000 spectators to witness the dramatic rivalry between the Royal Canadian Yacht Club and the Rochester Yacht Club who were involved in the race.
The yacht had a distinguished racing career, due to its excellent racing characteristics but has still provided a challenge in terms of re-creating the design layout for a modern wooden boat to historical standards, while staying within the parameters and racing specifications.
No stone was left unturned by Brian Hunt Lawrence who has dedicated himself towards the new build, and he sought design expertise from Fife expert Duncan Walker, of Fairlie Yacht Restorations in Hamble, England, and English Naval architect Theo Rye, as work began in late 2013 on this project, and was completed in the summer of 2015.
The original Invader II sank in 225 feet of water in Hudson Bay after a collision with a tug and tow line during the mid-1960s, and is well remembered by veteran yachtsmen.
And now, Lawrence has commissioned another eight metre with the Defender, an exact sister to Invader, which is currently under construction and due to launch in Spring 2017, and will be sailed against each other in true match-racing tradition.
The only difference between the boats will be the tillers with the handle grip on the Invader in ebony and the handle on the defender being white, and is believed to be one of the few ways of telling them apart.
Theo Ryre also revealed that a fair amount of detective work went into the preparation of the yachts in terms of the hull and keel calculations, using the long hand calculations from William Fife III's original notebooks in relation to specific stages of the construction.
Watch the 'Launching of Invader at Wooden Boatworks Greenport New York' below