Articles

Within the last fifty years there has been a significant number of high profile, catastrophic failures related to sail boat keels and the structures that are supposed to hold them in place. A small percentage of these failures have resulted in fatalities and have therefore been well documented. But most of the time when “keels fall off,” or come close... Learn More

If you can ask a room full of sailors the question “What is a sport boat?” I guarantee you will get a different answer from each one…believe me, I’ve done it!!! It can become a pretty emotional issue for some people, depending on whether you own a sport boat or are racing against one. I understand their frustrations with the... Learn More

One of the problems any yacht design company faces when it embarks upon a new design is being able to assess the vessel’s performance characteristics. If the design office does not have an extensive database of past proven designs to emulate, it is very important to the success of the project that a thorough research and development program be initiated.... Learn More

Until recently, the pleasure boat industry has tended towards oversimplification in the engineering of fiber reinforced plastics (FRP). The reason? Local loads on small boat hulls are not well defined and, in many cases, are approximated. A thorough engineering laminate analysis of small boat structures is seldom justifiable from a cost standpoint. Research often involves deriving a boats scantlings either... Learn More

Water ballast, in one form or another, has been around for the past 150 years. It has only been in the last 20 years that racing boats have utilized water ballast as a performance enhancing feature in their design criteria. We have seen this development primarily in the Open Class 30s, 40s, 50s, and 60s as well as the Whitbread... Learn More

Back in the late summer of 2004 I was contracted by a client who wanted me to design and engineer a luxury houseboat. That in itself isn’t so unusual, except for the fact that it had to resemble an Italian villa. I have to admit I was a little skeptical. But my mind soon changed after consulting with the client,... Learn More

The kit boat has always been popular with those who want the experience and satisfaction of building their own boat. Back-yard boat construction was quite common back in the 70’s, particularly with cruising sailors and with the smaller IOR classes such as the quarter and half tonners. However, we have seen a resurgence in amateur boat building through affordable kit-plan... Learn More

What could be seen as a direct reaction to an age of prolific one-design where open forums for the development of new and innovative ideas in sail boat design are becoming increasingly scarce, there is a growing trend developing in event driven classes, particularly offshore events. A prime example of this is the Transpac Race, a 2225 mile ocean classic... Learn More

With the outstanding success of our free-standing cat rig Open30, “OverProof,” in demonstrating its offshore capabilities, Piet Human of Moondance Yachts in Cape Town, South Africa asked me “how do we give this boat a broader appeal by making it easier to handle so that it doesn’t require youth and athleticism to have it perform to its full potential?” Coincidently,... Learn More