Length – 14ft Beam – 40ins Hull weight as specified – 75lbs Masts – Aluminium standard tubing set up as 2 piece to fit inside the boat Sails – 3 options. Squaretops have one reef that can be set up on the beach. Balance lug has 3 reefs that can be set up on the water. 4.7sq m Squaretop Laminate Bermudan Rig with laminate sail and sleeve luff 6.0sq m Squaretop Laminate Bermudan Rig with laminate sail and sleeve luff 6.3sq m Balance Lug with 3 reefs.
Viola 14 Sailing Canoe with a stable planing dinghy hullform. DIY
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Docile handling at speed, waves and any angle of heel
The asymmetry with flatter sections aft makes the boat fast with a performance curve similar to a fast light sailing dinghy. At 75lbs is IS a fast light sailing dinghy with similar handling. But, sailing canoes are well known for having very nice steering characteristics. The hull has similar volume each end and the centre of buoyancy doesn’t shift far aft as the boat heels. That is heeling the boat doesn’t change its steering characteristic.
Something we learned from our first boat plan, the very famous classic but fast BETH design. You can push boats with balanced volumes very hard and they track straight and happily.
You can see the very neutral tiller angle in every video shot. It is always light with a positive response to tiller movement.
Viola 14 Sailing Canoe for RAIDS, Expeditions and Distance Events
The stability is also important because Joost in the Netherlands was planning to join RAID events which are different in the country of dykes and windmills. They sail along canals and under fairly frequent low bridges. So he had to be able to stand up to lift the mast out for very low bridges.
Whether the wind was light or very strong the Viola did very well compared to the much larger boats in the event.
He uses the 6.3sq m lug rig version on the Viola 14 sailing canoe for RAIDS and expeditions as the sail can be reefed from large to small while sailing. Or it can be dropped completely for a paddling section of the course. All three rigs are in the video.
Viola 14 Canoe Stitch and Glue Construction
The Viola Sailing Canoe comes from 4 sheets Gaboon plywood. They must be a minimum 8 x 4ft (2440 x 1220) for easiest building.
The basic five panels are cut. Then stitched together. We plan to have kits available in the USA and UK shortly.
Stability for Reefing and getting the Mast Up and Down
The third photo is the sailing canoe’s namesake, Viola getting back in after a practice capsize. She hasn’t done much sailing since her dinghy days 20 years ago. Her comment was “what a simple and easy to sail boat”. And then Joost asked Viola to do a trial capsize.
