ReallySimpleSails.com saves $300 or more on your Goat Island Skiff, Oz Goose or Oz Racer.
Custom sails for other boats are also available and will represent a cost saving on your boatbuilding project.
These are full quality sails that we all have worked hard to keep the price down on without reducing quality.
Peter’s Blog about building two quick canoes. Includes a couple of camping/touring photoessays. The Quick canoe is very quick to build.
The new dinghy design is now called the S-12.
Launched into light winds, there’s not a lot to report, but a photo essay. And some comments about the staying of the rig and keeping boats cheap and simple.
A new lightweight 12ft plywood dinghy under development. This prototype by Canadian Rick Landreville. It won’t have a cloud of sail area,but will be light enough low drag enough to hit consistently high speeds relative to other boats of this length.
Dave Lafontaine built his Goat Island Skiff in New York over the last couple of years. He’s now using it for some of the things he had planned.
Dayboat Launch 23ft (6.5m) by Stephen Foster – great photos of a fantastic looking boat.
It is a very simplified hull – basically a square box, but I’ve done my normal trick of making it look rather nice. And Stephen’s clever adaptation of the cabin is just excellent!
Cheap Electric Power and a day sightseeing!
The boat is driven easily at reasonable speed with a small electric trolling motor – some are well under 200 dollars. It doesn’t require a trailer. It comes from three sheets of exterior plywood. Costs are down on every front.
And the family is happy! Snohomish Estuary
2013 – Once again an OzRacer wins the PDRacer World titles. That is four times in the last five years.
An OzRacer does need to be modified to fit the PDRacer rules or as standard is an excellent boat for first time sailors. It sails REALLY well which aids learning. And doesn’t need to cost any extra money. Plans $20
Just for the hell of it, Stephen put a 2hp outboard on the back of his Electric Quick Canoe.
Watch the boat fly in the video. Speed with little or no fuss. Also a discussion of hullforms for different speed ranges.
So how does a lug rig boat go in club racing? My designs won’t be outclassed in club racing. I’m really keen to find out how the yardstick (handicap) changes as George and crew get used to the realities of course racing making the boat sail faster. We end up with an estimate of PY – Portsmouth Yardstick for the Goat Island Skiff.
Slightly arrogant I!
I visit the Philippines then Malaysia and also find a large community of Filipino boat builders there. I find they know much more than me about boat design and varieties. Stunning mix of different boats from curvaceous to plywood and boxy.
But Gosh … the shapes they come up with!
Nice little video showing the easy speed of the Goat Island Skiffs in moderate conditions. Venue is the Small Reach Regatta.
It also shows the standard cat rig and the optional Yawl rig.
Malcolm Eggins, boat builder and designer has passed away.
A small tribute to one of the many people that has influenced me and many other sailors and designers. He was a part of the development of Moths, NS14s, VJs, VeeEsses and many other Australian racing dingies as a builder and designer along with his son Darryl. He won several State Championships.
BETH sailing canoe – The designer has lots of fine things to say about the sailing performance of BETH – but Andrew Barclay has been racing his against mixed fleets in British Columbia where she sails equal with Laser Radials in light wind and gradually outclasses them in stronger.
I provide some tips about getting a bit more from the boat.
OK … it IS a rant. But it was prompted by the very legitimate question about why have a mizzen sail.
But sadly I descend into a rant about how expense is a really poor predictor of performance.
Why is every boat different despite the best aim of the designer?
It’s because every customer is different. Which is OK!
Mark Milam has done an amazing job of overseeing a project combining his work with that of a boatbuilder friend. Also the best method I have seen of supporting a windsurfer mast in a sailing dinghy.
Wonderful woods, some great detail design and the very best fitting of a windsurfer rig to a dinghy that I have ever seen.
Fyne Boat Kits has an excellent reputation for customer service and quality.
I am happy to announce that they will be gradually phased in as the UK Agents for storerboats kits, plans and materials.
Eureka Canoe on Hungarian TV. Csaba Mezai, storerboatplan’s agent in Hungary translated my plans into Magyar (Hungarian). He also runs by far the biggest website in that language – www.hajoepitok.hu which includes a very active forum.
Some examples of sailing nicely in the Goat Island Skiff, reversing, sailing at nice speed in comfortable conditions.
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