Saturday, August 7, 2010

Dylan Winter films the Three Rivers Race, Norfolk Broads, Part 3

There were two more Dylan Winter videos of the 2010 Three Rivers Race that caught my eye; both of them featuring two local Broads dinghy classes.

The Norfolk Punt sailing class developed from gunning punts, but now the sailing Punt is so tricked out as a racing dinghy (double trapeze, assymetric, full battened sails) that the only traditional characteristic that remains is the canoe stern (very similar to the International Canoe!). Punt Number 19 seems to be a traditional model with a low rig, long boom, gunter rig. Number 69 and 96 are Wyche and Coppock hard chine designs (designed in the 1950's if memory serves); the most popular sailing Punt model going. The Norfolk Punt is a restricted development class with hull lengths approaching 22 feet. Some of the higher number hulls have probably had the hand of one of the modern English dinghy boffins, like Morrison or Howlett, in drawing up their lines.



Sorry, video has been removed!




And the Norfolk One Design. Designed and built by Herbert Woods, the first in 1931 and the last was built in 1968; 86 in all. The Norfolk One Design's very much look like an Uffa Fox International 14, though they are lapstrake, not smooth bottomed. They seem very comfortable short tacking up the river. A very pretty traditional design!



Sorry, video has been removed!




Watching the video of the Norfolk One Design, it occurred to me that one could take a Jet 14 hull, knock the deck off it, put in some seat tanks, add some wooden spars and gunter rig and get very close to the same boat. Oh no, not another mashup!

Tip of the hat to Dylan, my favorite sailing videographer, for this series.

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