Preview: The Yacht Design Spiral – Will Sturdy on the Eggemoggin 47

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A fascinating look and listen as yacht designer Will Sturdy, walks us through transforming a spirit of tradition racing yacht, for new sailing grounds, while maintaining her pedigree.

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26 Responses So Far to “The Yacht Design Spiral – Will Sturdy on the Eggemoggin 47

  • Christopher Steingraber says:

    Incredible vessel! I’m very impressed. I think now there are whiches that can electronically trim out while keeping the line in the self tailer so I would expect to see those so you could trim out from windward side not just trim on. I guess you can trim out from windward you just have to keep the line in your hand on the windward side not in the self tailer but i don’t race so I wouldnt know. Makes sense about the headsails having more aspect ratio is better overall. Interesting how that allowed for the rig widening. I wish there was some software loading simulation when discussing the load distribution so we could see that. I feel very happy overall that a boat that looks like this sails that fast and is that competitive. A dream vessel indeed.

  • Bradford Preston says:

    Extraordinary boat and interesting conversation. Thanks.

  • Burke Horner says:

    I may as well have heard similar words from an astronaut, flying a space module. From thousands of years of sailing manually, to such precision and multiflous push button sailing, no wonder this ship is the fastest of them all, in it’s class,, engineered perfectly. This was a brilliant video for a greenhorn admirer like myself! Thanks, Eric!

  • Neil Henderson says:

    A lovely boat with a lot of electrical technology – hope she still works after that batteries go flat. I’m sorry to say I have a real problem with the term “drive a boat”. I have never driven a boat – helming or steering yes. I hope that young designer can drop that term.

  • ed dem says:

    Nice For me this is what i am after yacht design….loved the technical talk…would love to also look into this construction method and learn how to do it…

  • Mark Gillespie says:

    I have a question for Will: how does he figure and design for the angle of heel upwind?
    Thanks for all the insights.

  • Alan Balchin says:

    A technically advanced boat with such beautiful lines – A true work of art.

  • Ralph Wernett says:

    It would be a great learning curve to be part of their crew…

  • Lester Garnier says:

    Does it come with an instruction manual? Beautiful boat. A lot of good thinking involved in this design and construction.

  • Claude A McNeill III says:

    Sublime. Zero turbulence off the stern. A big 470.

  • Beau Vrolyk says:

    Beautiful boat!! We used to own a Spirit-46, which was awfully similar. This is like a race-version. While folks complain about electric winches and sail controls, it keeps a few 80-year-olds I know out sailing. If a group doesn’t want electric/hydraulic controls, they can always ensure there isn’t an exception granted to the racing rules. This would be an amazing couple’s boat.

  • chip puhl says:

    What an inspiring video and so well produced by the OCH crew. It serves as proof that with all the advanced technology you can still preserve the Spirit of Tradition. Imagine the E47 class for the future of the Americas Cup. After all, that was once a traditional sailboat race between boats that measured displacement in pounds rather than ounces.

  • Peter Strock says:

    All the Herreshoffs would be proud: beauty and technology.
    I agree on vulnerability and consequences of mechanical stuff failing. On the one hand we did get to the moon — on the other we blew up some rockets and lost some people in the process
    But then she is not designed to sail across the pond is she ?

  • ken drewry says:

    Big,big IOD 33ft which we raced for 35 years in Marblehead , with many new tecnical developments . Excellent article well writen .

  • Jerry McIntire says:

    Beautiful boat and now a proven test bed. I look forward to seeing many of the hull design features make their way into much smaller boats.

  • Richard Morrison says:

    This is a beautiful boat and a tribute to the design and engineering of Will’s expertise and his wisdom of calling upon the sailmaking and spar manufacturing experts. To those of us who have raced on typical race boats over the years, this boat addresses all of the required adjustments that can be achieved from the cockpit on the windward side of the boat. Absolutely brilliant! Attention to detail down to the luff tension on the code zero is amazing. It is no wonder that she is winning races. What a boat!

  • Brent Williams says:

    Wow, what a beautiful boat. Great video thanks for sharing.

  • Larry Cheek says:

    I really appreciated Will’s clear and detailed explanations of the control systems and sailing dynamics of the boat. While all the electric and hydraulic systems and carbon fiber components are a world away from anything I deal with on my simple, non-racing wooden boat, I still learned things. And thanks also to the owner, designer, and builders for bringing another ravishingly beautiful boat into the world.

  • Dave Dickmeyer says:

    What a sweet and beautiful boat! Kudos to the design team, the builders and the crew. And once again, thanks to you guys at OCH for the video interview.

  • Heidi Roy

    Heidi Roy says:

    Kudos to Will Sturdy for planning, thinking it through, and designing this beauty……….but what happens if the electrical system breaks down, can Tink navigate manually…..the old way?

  • Anders Swahn says:

    I love the boat! It must be really fun to sail. Thanks for producing this inspiring video.

  • Bruce Cresser says:

    Great looking boat, but too much push button sailing

    • Joseph Wl Haley III says:

      Racing of course, you need a skipper and crew that understands it all.

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