This paralympic sportsboat was designed for yachtsman Mike Browne.
Photos: Courtesy Stimson Yachts
This lightweight flyer features a canting keel and hull shape similar to a 49er skiff.
Skandia: Big Grin has lightweight Carbo AirBlocks, Harken ratchet blocks and winches.
The sliding seat runs freely on Harken CB traveller cars.
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paralympic sportsboat
I
n May, 2005, the Stealth 850 Skandia: Big Grin
emerged from the darkness of her build shed, resplendent in Skandia colours, who are her primary sponsors.
Over six months of design and build have gone into creating what can only be described as a 'special' sportsboat!
Having sailed various boats, large and small, multi and monohull, dinghies and keelboats, paralympic yachtsman Mike Browne was looking
for his next boat. He wanted something fast, fun, and lightweight, but felt multihulls weren't exactly what they were looking for.... "multihulls sail fast and flat, but when you race them aggressively, you are going to turn them over-it's only a matter of time!
This poses a few problems as I have to then extract myself from the seat harness when upside down...." Having seen Full Pelt X
last year, they approached Stimson Yachts and Jo Richards to come up with a smaller version to offer some "18-foot skiff style sailing
for old boys!"
The design was a collaboration between Stimson Yachts and Jo Richards, both based in Cowes. This lightweight flyer is designed
with a canting keel and hull shape broadly similar to a 49er skiff and that of the last Full Pelt, which was launched last year.
Flat aft sections and a long chine will offer awesome pace and control downwind, while the narrow waterlines will give good
speed when going upwind.
Stability is provided by a canting bulb keel that can swing out to 30-degrees on either tack. High stability is assured
as the keel contributes 600kg to a low total displacement of 1250kg. An expoxy/foam sandwinch construction method was
employed to minimise the hull shell weight to only 300kg.
Her powerful sailplan has a number of 'modes' available to optimise for differing conditions. When in standard 'Solent'
setup, she will set a fractional jib with masthead or fractional asymmetric spinnakers. In full-on 'lake racing' mode, a masthead code zero
is used in addition to a masthead asymmetric spinnaker with the extreme option of trapezes.
One of the more interesting and unique features of Skandia: Big Grin is that she is designed to be sailed by
her paraplegic owner, Mike Browne, from a sliding seat and integrated steering pod. This assembly 'tacks' from side-to-side and
runs freely on a set of our Captive Ball Bearing Traveller cars for the ultimate smooth ride.
Harken UK were closely involved in layout and systems design from early in the project and the boat sports a full inventory
of our latest and lightest Carbo AirBLocks®, ratchet blocks and winches. She was built by Paul Jennings of projects by Design
in Cowes, with Structural Engineering carried out in-house at Stimson Yachts.
Sails are by UK Sails and the latest UK Ultra-moulded technology.
Look out for this 'weapon' in the Solent this summer with her first competitive outing in the JP Morgan Fleming Round the Island Race.
Blink and you will miss it!
Link:
Stimson Yachts: http://www.stimsonyachts.com
