By the beginning of the 2000s it was the norm for new yacht designs to have low centre of gravity keels, with generally bigger bulbs than previously, which dramatically improved…
boats
Popular yacht designs of the 1990s
The 1990s began with a recession that saw a massive dip in the number of new boats sold, in a marked contrast to the boom years of the 1970s and…
Popular classics – 1980s yacht designs that are still making waves today
The 1980s ushered in more change in the marine industry. A key trend was that boats were rapidly becoming larger and more comfortable, especially towards the end of the decade,…
Coming of age: the 1970s yacht designs that have stood the test of time
Sailing in the 1970s was characterised by innovation, enthusiasm, mass participation and home boatbuilding. Rupert Holmes reports
The age of discovery – what we can learn from yacht design of the 1960s
The 1960s saw a huge increase in sailing participation, fuelled in part by the DIY boatbuilding boom. Rupert Holmes reports
Sailing for All – the 1950s: a short history of yacht design
Although the post-war period was a time of scarcity – food rationing in the UK continued until 1954 – it was also a period of great optimism. There was more…
Boat show success for Oarsome Chance despite not finding bidder for Project Boat
Oarsome Chance, the youth support charity that took over building the PBO Project Boat in late 2018 has declared the PBO Project Boat stand at the Southampton Boat Show a…
Free boat plans – update plus extra plans and photos published
Four weeks on from the relaunch of the Nigel Irens designed Western Skiff, we offer our first round of updates. In addition to the 39-page set of A-zero paper plans…
Return of the sporty trailable cruiser
A performance weekender built in Britain has been missing for a long time – which is why it’s good to meet the BTC-22, says David Harding
Free boat plans – Build your own Nigel Irens 14ft rowing and sailing skiff
Fancy building your own Nigel Irens-designed 14ft rowing/sailing skiff? Nic Compton explains how to get the plans for free
How I designed and built my own 24ft sloop in steel
Mike Camp charts the trials and tribulations of designing and building his 26ft steel sloop
Sailing for all
Rupert Holmes charts the innovations and developments in yacht design that marked the post-war years through the 1950s
How to bag a bargain boat: why GRP cruising yachts have never been cheaper
It’s a fact: getting afloat in a boat of your own has never been more affordable or accessible. Let me put it another way: more than 50 years of glassfibre…
Trading under sail – could you make a living from transporting cargo on board?
On December 14, 1907 a 475ft seven-masted steel-hulled schooner went aground in a fierce gale off Annet, Isles of Scilly, with the loss of 17 souls. The wreck of the…
Sedna 26 review – the trailable cruiser that thinks big
Yacht design can be a challenging business, and nowhere is the balance between space, pace and safety harder to achieve than in the larger trailable sailers. These boats have to…
Dufour Drakkar 24 on test: Daysailer with a difference
During the summer in Poole I see dozens of sizeable offshore yachts heading out of the harbour and making the long and challenging passage to Studland Bay. Here they will…
Thames sailing barge – sail training with the Sea Change Sailing Trust
If your idea of Essex involves TV preconceptions of girls with rococo nail jobs and lads on the run from the law after a little contretemps with a cash machine,…
Joshua one-design class yacht adopted for 2022 Golden Globe Race
"An exciting development for the Golden Globe Race: a new class of simple, safe, affordable and competitive one-design yachts to race around the world."