Gaff cutters racing in the Solent, a strait in the English Channel. It runs between the coast of Hampshire on the English mainland and the Isle of Wight. These yachts were sometimes referred to as being "over-sparred" meaning the ratio of sale area to depth displacement could lead to instability at sea. The power of the sea and it's elements has always been clear to me. I spent many days as a child on a sailboat.