In 50 years, the America's Cup experiences many changes and just as many "firsts": in 1876 the starting signal is given for the first time with the boats already sailing and no longer at anchor; from 1881-after a long period of unevenness in the fleet- only auric cutters participate, and for the first time racing will take place in a "one-on-one" format. That same year also sees the Americans inaugurate Defender Selections to meet the Canadian challenge (the first Defender selected was Mischief, designed in 1879 by Archibald Cary Smith). In 1886 a woman participated in the races for the first time on the challenger boat: it was Mrs. Henn, wife of Galatea's owner William Henn. The day before the races, aware her "green thumb," members of the New York Yacht Club ensured that dozens of pots of plants and flowers were delivered on board to beautify (and weigh down) the yacht. The result? In the first 32.6-mile race the Defender Mayflower beat Galatea by 12:02 in corrected time, and in the second 40-mile race she did so by 29:09.