Landing School Boat Launching

A great week of learning, teaching and boat launching last week at The Landing School where I instruct in the Wooden Boatbuilding Program. These students just launched a Joel White designed Maine Coast Peapod. It performed great at the launch last Friday. We enjoyed a jaunt in the Kennebunk River during a small craft advisory. We ducked out into some of the swell, three of us aboard, to see how mannerly a Peapod is in these conditions. Even I was struck -- again -- by how well behaved a sea boat the 'pod can be, whether bow to or stern to the waves. We turned around and rushed in with the swell and tide as the regular Fall start students watched on and snapped photos.

With most of my work in plywood, CNC cutting and making boat kits, it is a joy to help students learn to build a boat in solid wood and one that does not depend on epoxy for holding it all together or fairing over mistakes!

Finer points of final assembly.

Check out the Programs at The Landing School on the Rocky Coast of Maine.

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A Deblois Street Dory

to The Compass Project in Portland, Me is building a DSD with a group of kids and they are doing a great job.

The boat is built like dories have always been built, using the bottom to erect stem, frames, and transom, then turning over the boat upside down on a strongback. Everything is plumbed and braced then planking begins.

Here the garboard has been installed and the sheer clamp is being fit. This is the only departure from traditional dory construction, the incorporating of the clamp helps tie together the frames into plumb and lock in the ends of the boat. It is a bit of a 3D puzzle!

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How to Sail the Lug Yawl: REPOSTED

My friend and fellow boatbuilder in the Northwest, James McMullen, created a very useful set of drawings to help people learn how to use our favorite sailing rig, the Lug-Yawl. For sail & oar boats you cannot have a more versatile and fun rig for your boat. Clint draws these rigs into most of his designs, such as the Calendar Islands Yawl or the Goat Island Skiff with a mizzen. Please look at these drawings and imagine how this rig could fit into your own sailing.

Now that you have seen these diagrams you can also see how useful the mizzen would be for switching from sailing to rowing and vice versa. While the mizzen is hauled in, the boat will keep herself pointing into the wind so the sail can be raised and lowered without filling and causing the boat to fall off one way or the other. I have found the mizzen useful for stopping and taking a break or for restowing gear or for dealing with safety matters. In these cases, it is best to learn to "heave-to" so that your boat doesn't lose too much ground. That is one drawback of lying head-to-wind under mizzen: you need to have plenty of leeway...no boats, rocks or land to get blown down upon. The advantage of heaving-to is that you don't lose too much ground at all. We make light, strong Birdsmouth masts and spars and have intimate knowledge of the Lug-Yawl.

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Morbihan 2011

This video was made by Voiles et Voiliers in 2010 after my visit there to meet and sail with my friend Francois Vivier. 
We sailed from Pornichet to the Gulf of Morbihan in his 25' gaff-sloop called Pen Hir  
and for 3 days sailed in company with thousands of boats during Semaine du Gulfe Morbihan. It
is an experience I will never forget and I cannot wait to return. 

Enjoy! You will see me at about 4:00. I don't remember what I said; if you speak French you can remind me!

You will notice all the Vivier boats sailing everywhere. That was not staged...there were simply so many Vivier 

boats that we were able to see the entire design catalog sailing and rowing, from 12' dinghies to 50' traditional

yachts! 

I have had a few complaints that the video did not load, but it seems to work. Give it time or check your connection.

Voiles et Voiliers 

La voile-aviron expliqu�e par Fran�ois Vivier by voilesetvoiliers

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Sneaking up on Perfection

For the first time in my short design-build career, I am finally in the stage I have longed for, that is, to be working on mk II and mk III+ versions of already successful boat models. Thus the blog title, "Sneaking up on Perfection". This is certainly the case with the Echo Bay Dory Skiff (EBDS), my first kit, based on a design a friend had drawn 26 year ago. I've built many Echo Bay's with families, corporate teams, and students. When it came time to start the kit business, it was obvious to begin with the EBDS. At that time, I had no idea how powerful 3D modeling programs could be and it didn't matter, I was a long way from knowing how to draw a line segment in 2-dimensions!

The original Echo Bay (left) at 26 years old and the mkIII version as a kit (right). 

The EBDS is the last of my boats to get modeled in the computer. After a couple weeks of side-work, I have just finished the new model. The improvements are:

• improved sheer for aesthetics and sailing purposes
• slightly longer (now 11' 10" LOA)
• increased freeboard (about 1")
• more interior options: enclosed plywood tanks for flotation and 2 different solid-wood thwart arrangements.
• improved sprit sail shape and new lug rig option
• dedicated oar plan for the EBDS
• paper plans will be available as well as full size patterns (FSPs) and a plywood kit

The new lug rigged option

Next step is to break the model apart and develop the 2D geometry. I'll start by unrolling the planks and flattening the bulkheads, frames, and other hull structure. This process of generating 2D geometry takes very little time (maybe 2-3 hours). The time consuming part is drawing the plans for how to make these parts from scratch and drafting the construction drawings so she can be built as designed. This will take another couple weeks of side work. Then the CAD files for cutting on a CNC machine will need to be made, another couple days of side work. 

This model shows the standard solid wood thwart arrangement, but a plywood (flotation) tank option is a new addition.

Phew. A lot for a 12-footer. But on par for creating what will be the best 12-foot sail and oar skiff the market has seen for a long time, perhaps ever! But this photo shows why I do it: adventures with the kids.

A recent outing in the EBDS with the skipper (the one in the stern).

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SRR 2013

Report from the Small Reach Regatta 2013

Beautiful weather, wonderful people, and a humbling location

Hog Island, Muscongus Bay, Maine

Elyssa tied up on first night at Audubon docks, Hog Island.

Waiting for the "go" word from lead chase boat as all the boats get underway. This morning we were in rowing mode and hanging out with the rowers, my usual crowd.

The fleet sets off with sails flying.

A typical lunch at the SRR. Boats galore!

Here is video shot as we beat out of a narrow channel in 15-20kts after lunch, day 1.

Going downwind afternoon day 2 in the Yawldory, wing-on-wing.

The downwind view from the Yawldory sitting in the bow seat at the end of day 2.

A great shot of the sleek and traditional, the 22' Yawldory.

Another favorite, the Myst by Don Kurylko.

Day 2 lunch spot and a napping participant. Can it get better?

The SRR participants are treated like royalty by the Hog staff and volunteers. Great food.

This is what every meal looks like, great food and great company.

It's not all about boats (but almost). It is also about enjoying a walk around Hog Island, birding and breathing the same air the spruce, moss, and lichens breath.

We also do a lot of helping each other. Here I am caught in the act of discussing lug reefing with a fellow lug nut.

A typical lunch stop (day 3) includes a skippers meeting and logistics to discuss the haul out procedures for 57 boats at one ramp in little Round Pond!

Heading back into camp.

A Caledonia Yawl being hauled in Round Pond on the last day.

A loon saying goodbye, until next year.

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Small Reach Regatta 2013

Sailing and Rowing Elyssa, a 22' dory in Muscongus Bay

Hog Island, Maine

This year's SRR is much anticipated. After several years at Lamoine State Park, the venue has moved to the Audubon Camp on Hog Island. I'll be crewing a 22' boat for which I built the spars, Paul Rollins built the boat, and Roger Long designed the boat. She is called a Yawldory and is named Elyssa by owner Susie Downs.

22' Yawldory Elyssa getting prepared for the 2013 Small Reach Regatta

This year we have 57 boats registered! They range from 15' to 22', all boats that can row or sail, most trailerable. Boats in my catalog that would be perfect for the SRR include the Caravelle Skiff (14'), http://clintchaseboatbuilder.blogspot.com/p/daysailers.html (14'), Deblois Street Dory (18'), and the http://clintchaseboatbuilder.blogspot.com/p/rowboats.html (17'). The Goat Island Skiff (16') is also a great choice. The key features are that the boat be safe and seaworthy, at least 14', and be able to row or sail depending on conditions.

Having Elyssa in the shop has been a great learning experience. I've wanted to gain more hours sailing a sprit-ketch rigged boat, and this will certainly satisfy that requirement. The company is great, the weather is forecast to be nearly perfect, and we have new, exciting cruising grounds to explore. Check back in a week for the report.

Location of 2013 SRR

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