The origins of the V-32 One Design Class can be traced to the Tri-City Model Yacht Club (AMYA Club #169) in Placentia, CA. The club sailed V-32's at a small lake in the middle of a public park. As a result, they were often surrounded by interested onlookers of all ages, many of whom express interest and ask the expected questions, "Where can I get one and how much does it cost?" Few of these exchanges, however, led to anything - the initial cost seemed too high, or the potential new skipper had no building area (or skills) and just wanted to sail, or the boat was too big to transport, etc.

A while back, a group of TCMYC skippers decided to find a boat we could recommend that would alleviate these concerns. It had to be inexpensive, relatively small, attractive, sail well, and most important, it must be available in both Ready-to-Sail (including radio) and kit forms. The only boat that meets all these specifications was (and, to the best of our knowledge, still is) the Victor V-32, manufactured by Victor Model Products.

Several club members purchased V-32s and began sailing them in between our "manly-man" boat races. The result was exactly as we hoped - people were attracted to the brightly-colored bathtub toys, and we began to find new faces at the lake. Our club membership grew, new friendships were formed, and the fun quotient went up.

After the fleet grew to about half-dozen boats, we began sailing in informal "one-design" races. Here is where it gets really good - you just can't believe how enjoyable this kind of sailing can be! So, the logical next step was for the TCMYC to include V-32 one-design racing as part of our regular club racing schedule. A set of class rules was created with the sole purpose of creating a low-cost V-32 one-design class where the boats are as equal in performance as possible, and winning is primarily in the hands of the skipper (and Lady Luck). Therefore, we decided to keep the boats as close to "factory stock" as possible. The only modifications allowed serve merely to enable use of more reliable rigging, none of which impact the boat's performance.

 We've now become aware that there are thousands of closet V-32 skippers across the country (and around the world) that would like to sail together. Towards this end, a campaign to gain AMYA recognition of the V-32 One Design class was begun with the help of skippers all over the US, and we were soon an AMYA Sanctioned class. Once V-32 owners locate each other using our Class Registry and other resources here, who knows what will happen - can you say "Local, Regional, National, and even World-Wide" Regattas? Maybe not, but its guaranteed that we'll all have fun.