next boat, princess 18
The Cold Hard Factibles
19" long by 7' wide drawing 6" at her skinniest, 3' with twin boards fully stretched down.
She's also a lightweight, with 113kg added ballast, her bare weight is under 500kg.
But there's more to this little gem. Her weighted centreboards get sucked up into the sides of berths, and there are no bulkheads below. Under the for'ard bunks & 'neath the cockpit is built in ballast to render her unsinkable. Well, at least she won't sink like a shot balloon.
I had the great good fortune or raw intelligence to buy her as my first boat & enjoyed her a lot & sailed her even more. It was unusual to sail two different waterways on a single weekend. She towed like nothing; literally you forgot she was there
I sold her because I could not raise the mast by myself. I now know better, a simple pulley system would easily get the job done.
Camping on her was a dream, because she could sneak up to the shore out of the weather, sat light to her anchor & was very accommodating.
My abiding criticism of her design is that she remains tender under sail, but I'm confident that with forty yearsore experience, I can manage this easily. Smaller sails, jiffy reefing & better weather knowledge will see her lightness to advantage.
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