Rudderless racing

[chris]

Books on boats get mentioned from time to time on this forum. I was thumbing through one I was given a while ago.,by John Gardner published in Maine I think. Called Building Classic Small Craft.

One chapter described a St. Lawrence River Skiff which is not unlike a Thames skiff but it looks somewhat more robust. Length 22ft or so. As they started life as a rowing boats they never had rudders and even by the 1880’s they were fitted with sails and raced - still without a rudder! There are a couple of ald photos of them being raced; one series shows a tack in progress. – looks quite a challenge.

Anyone form that part of the world have any experience of them. They do look lovely craft. An illustration shows a man standing on the gunwale without it tipping.

[Rod]

From my blog; http://earwigoagin.blogspot.com/2009/11 ... er-st.html

[chris]

Hi,
Very glad to see they are still around and being built. I hadn't realised they were quite so symetrical. The photos in my book didn't show that clearly in fact one drawing showed an elegant bentwood arm chair for the comfort of a passanger tucked into the stern.

They must make a good sight.

[Nigel]

Wow. I was expecting it to have a jib. No ruidder and a single sail sounds really dificult. I would like to see it being done.

[Nigel]

How to sail a contender without a rudder:

http://contenderskiff.org/en/the-boat/howtosail.html

it impressed me

[kfz]

wow

[LASERTOURIST]

The well established spanish (or better said catalonian) catamaran class called Patyn à vela (literally skates with sails ) never had rudders and the skill is to gybe and tack by using the sail setting and balancing the boat fore and aft with the crew weight.

These bots are still made though the class has been around since the end of WW1 and they are some times sailed in strong Tramontane winds and fierce mediterranean chop.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tJTWw2D-4X4

http://woodenboat.com/boat/?p=1358