USS Royono (IX 235) Class

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USS Royono (IX 235) in a Bermuda race with yacht Enchanta in the background.
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Class: ROYONO (IX 235)
Design: Racing yawl by John G Alden (his design 623)
Displacement (tons): 39.6
Dimensions (feet): 87' oa, 71.25' on deck, 50.75' wl x 15.7' x 9'
Armament: none
Accommodations: unk.
Speed (kts.): 17 max, 12 cruising (2016)
Propulsion (HP): sail
Machinery: Bermudan yawl rig

Construction:

IX	Name	Acq	Builder	Keel	Launch	Comm
235	ROYONO	29 Dec 1949	Herreshoff, Bristol, RI	--	1936	Apr 1950

Disposition:

IX	Name	T	Decomm	Strike	Disposal	Fate	MA Sale
235	ROYONO		26 Jun 1967	1 Jul 1967	29 May 1968	Navy sale	--

Class Notes:
Designed by John Alden and built as Mandoo II for D. Spencer Berger, she raced actively on the east coast from 1936 to 1939 before being sold to John B Ford and moved to the Great Lakes. Ford renamed her Royono, which translates to 'happy home on the water' in the local Native American dialect. She raced intensively for a decade on the Great Lakes and in the Atlantic before being donated to the US Naval Academy in Annapolis in 1950. On 2 March 1950 the name ROYONO and designation IX 235 were assigned to the former oil screw yacht ROYONO which had recently been accepted by the US Navy as a gift for the benefit of and use in connection with the US Naval Academy at Annapolis. For the next 17 years, she raced extensively on the Eastern Seaboard including the biennial Bermuda Race. Royono placed third in her first Bermuda race for the Navy in 1950 and was the first to finish and the first in Class A in the 1952 race with the best time at 97:16:28, 6.5 knots, although the overall winner of that race after handicaps was the smaller Carina (Class C). Royono participated in many later Bermuda races without placing in them and was sailed by President John F Kennedy on occasions in the 1960's.

From 1968 through 1973 Royono had several different owners, had a major refit in Maine, and spent time as a charter boat in the Caribbean. In 1975 she was arrested for smuggling marijuana and was brought to Florida by the USCG. In 1976 she was sold at auction to Mike Davis and Geoffrey Gibson, who recognized the boat's vintage and had her restored in Massachusetts. In 1985, she was sold to Philippe Bommer and moved to the Mediterranean where she sailed in many regattas. In 2001-2003 she changed owners once again and underwent an intensive rebuild and restoration in La Ciotat including replacing her framework with steel. In 2016 she was acquired by an unnamed San Francisco Bay Area interest.

Ship Notes:

IX	Name	MA	Notes
235	ROYONO		Sold 1968 to Spedcor Electronics, rebuilt in 2003, still exists in pristine condition.