Gordon Bennett And The First Yacht Race Across The Atlantic Av Sam Jefferson

<p>The 1866 transatlantic yacht race was a match that saw three yachts battle their way across the Atlantic in the dead of winter in pursuit of a $90,000 prize. Six men died in the brutal and close-fought contest, and the event changed the perception of yachting from a slightly effete gentlemen''s pursuit into something altogether more rugged and adventurous. The race also symbolized the beginning of America''s ''gilded age'', with its associated obscene wealth and largesse (the $90,000 prize put up by the three contestants is about $15 million in today''s money), as well as the thawing of relations between the US and UK. <br><br> The narrative focuses on the victorious yacht <i>Henrietta </i>and her owner James Gordon Bennett. Bennett was the son of the multimillionaire proprietor of the <i>New York Herald</i>, and a notorious playboy. His infamous stunts included driving his carriage through the streets of New York naked, tipping a railway porter $30,000, and turning up at his own en