I was recently asked by a friend to design a Gaff Rigged sailboat, designed to be a shuttle boat for use in the Colombian Caribbean. It is assisted by an electric outboard motor. The boat is intended for use between Cartagena, a beautiful Colombian historic port and an area near the Islas del Rosario. Although land routes exist to reach this spot, it is often easier to use a boat. In this case, my friend is an experienced sailor and althought the Gaff rig is not definitive, and it may be replaced by a Wharram type of Gaff Wingsail, it will be a Gaff style rig of one kind or another, he is the one that will decide and figure this out! Although technically capable of 9 knots under electric power, it is likely that she will operate at about 7 knots. She has been designed to be built using the stitch and glue method out of marine plywood and epoxy.
You must be logged in to post a comment.