Articles

Micromegas 5

 Just Launched  Catamarans  Voyaging  Smallcraft

Think for yourselves and let others enjoy the privilege to do so, too.
—Voltaire

Emmanuel and Maximilien Berque have unveiled their latest Micromegas: No. 5. Earlier incarnations of Micromegas have all been self designed and built, unballasted small craft for minimalist voyaging, and this one is no different.

M5 is current with the latest thinking on high speed multihulls: hulls are surfboard-like planing surfaces; The central pod…

Micromegas 5

07 October 2010     1 comments.

Provocative proa art

 New Designs  Designers  Proas

There are no more audacious multihull sailors, designers and builders on the planet than the French. The modern, post-war multihull boom may have begun in the U.S., but in 1936, it was Frenchmen Eric de Bisschop and Joseph Tatiboet who first pitched a tent on a secluded, shady spot of Waikiki Beach, to build Kaimiloa. The “mad Frenchmen” sailed safely back to France, via the Cape of Good Hope, and the French have been mad about…

10 June 2010     0 comments.

Documenting the history of modern multihulls - before it’s gone

 Designers  History

The Searunner Rides Again

One of the nicer surprises of 2010 has been the resurgence of multihull pioneer Jim Brown. His classic The Case for the Cruising Trimaran is available once again, and his personal memoirs of modern multihull history and lore are coming soon. The forward to Volume One is pure Jim Brown, and if this is just a taste to wet the appetite, consider mine wetted:

If the ancient outrigger canoe seems to us now an…

17 May 2010     0 comments.

Bernard Smith, 1910-2010

 News  Designers  History  Hydrofoils  Proas

Bernard Smith passed away on Feb. 12, three months short of his 100th birthday. He invented a radical sailboat called the aerohydrofoil that had neither a “sail” nor a “boat”, and he outlined his design in his 1963 book, “The 40-Knot Sailboat” . I must have checked that book out of my local library about 20 times! Thanks to Paul Dunlop for the news.

The passing of sailing’s true rocket scientist | Mr. Smith’s Amazing Sailboats

The 40-Knot Sailboat cover

18 February 2010     0 comments.

Apacolypso

 Boatbuilding  Proas

Apacolypso is a Pacific Islander inspired outrigger sailing canoe, made from aluminum pontoon boat parts, bamboo and various other locally obtainable items in their native American south, all lashed together with spit and vinegar. Her two crew are about to embark on a voyage of discovery, circumnavigating Florida via the “Saltwater Paddling Trail”, from Pensacola to Fort Clinch State Park, a distance of 1,515 miles.

However,…

02 February 2010     0 comments.

Ninja Pro sailing outrigger

 Just Launched  Outrigger Canoes  Smallcraft

This sporty little multihull hails from Cape Town, the home of designer Gerhard Schein and G-Force dinghies. It’s called a “tacking proa”, though we purists would say “outrigger”. It has all the mod-cons like a square top main and a carbon fiber bow sprit for the screacher, and it looks like a great ride. Though the actual boat doesn’t have it, the 3D model on the G-Force site shows a Bruce foil in the ama.

Edmond Bruce was a…

21 January 2010     0 comments.

Another Mystery

 Proas

Considering how well you all did with identifying Jzero/Lazarus, here’s another challenge. This amazing vessel has recently appeared on Le Prao Petrel, with no more information than it is from the West of France. The photos show a Pacific proa with a stayed, balestron rig, leeward anti-capsize pod and small doghouse. How does this happen?!! My spies are everywhere, and this one slipped by everyone.

UPDATE 12.9.10: Helmut M. has sent…

Mystery Proa

09 January 2010     0 comments.

A proa for Ariadne

 Reports  New Designs  Boatbuilding  Proas

Maestro proa designer John Dalziel has an interesting new project - an 8m proa “workhorse” for the Greek Isles.

On the Greek island of Naxos, fabled home of Dionysus and Ariadne, Helmut Mueller is building an 8 meter proa. Unusually for its size, it is actually a half-displacement model of a 10 meter proa Helmut intends to build. However, we decided it was best to build the 8 meter model first and test it thoroughly. Besides being a…

8m Aegean proa

30 November 2009     9 comments.

Beach Cruiser reloaded

 New Designs  Catamarans

The return of Beach Cruiser - in 3D!

The Beach Cruiser sketch from last March has progressed into a 3D model - my first 3D project in a long while - a good vehicle for relearning the ropes. To recap, Beach Cruiser is intended to be a multihull version of the popular “open boat” style of camping cruiser. Over the years, small cats have become somewhat the victims of their own success - evolving into pure race boats. It’s a bit of a…

Beachcruiser

03 October 2009     0 comments.

Tahiti Douche

 History  Proas

Vintage racing proa in the Caribbean!

A 58’ vintage Atlantic racing proa has become available in the Lesser Antilles. ‘Tahiti Douche’ (also campaigned as ‘Lessives Saint Marc’) was launched in June 1980, to compete in short-handed races across the Atlantic such as the TwoSTAR. One of the few racing proas to survive the carnage of that period, he’s been sailing ever since in the idyllic trade winds of St. Martin.

‘Tahiti Douche’ was…

Tahiti Douche

21 July 2009     0 comments.