They range in size from 10 to 41 feet. Several date to the dawn of the fiberglass era and are considered collector's items; others are still in production, selling briskly. All have profoundly influenced the sport of sailing. By their sheer excellence, they have made sailing better.

Selections for the Hall of Fame were made by a committee of magazine editors comprised of Bill Schanen, SAILING Magazine , chairman; John Brunham, SailingWorld; and Patience Wales, SAIL. Half models of Hall of Fame boats are displayed each year at Sail Expos in Atlantic City, New Jersey; St. Petersburg, Florida; and Oakland, California; and are on permanent display at the Museum of Yachting in Newport, Rhode Island.

The Valiant 40

The boat was originally built by Uniflite in Bellingham, Washington. When the firm went out of business, Rich Worstell, a successful Valiant dealer, took over production. With a commitment to never compromising the boat's renowned integrity, Worstell built a loyalty among owners that has moved more than one observer to refer to them as the "Valiant family." Worstell went on to build larger and smaller Valiants, and today his plant in Gordonville, Texas, is busy turning out Valiant 42s, a Perry designed evolution of the 40. The Valiant 40, however, remains the benchmark.

Exactly 200 Valiant 40s were built before the boat was reborn as the Valiant 42 in 1993. Today there is a permanent waiting list for used models and new. Would-be owners can expect a long wait. A survey done by Worstell showed that half of the 40s built are still sailed by their original owners, many of whom are live-aboards and transoceanic cruisers.

The outsized appeal of the Valiant 40 and the zealous enthusiasm of the owners once earned the label "cult boat" in some circles, but that did a disservice to the fact that much of the boat's popularity derives from its remarkable achievements under sail. It has been the boat of choice for a number of circumnavigators and has recorded finishes at the top of fleets in some of the world's most challenging races, including the Singlehanded Transatlantic and the BOC Challenge. In the Valiant 40, Resourceful , Mark Schrader set the record for the fastest circumnavigation in 1983, becoming the first American to sail around the world via the five capes.

Of all the bragging rights that go with Valiant 40 ownership, one of the most impressive, according to company president Worstell, is that no Valiant 40 has suffered a disabling failure - ever! "Failure" is certainly not a word to use in connection with this boat, whose success began with the innovative Valiant 40 and continues today with incomparable Valiant 42.

Erin L. Schanen, SAILING Magazine