A Scow

Last updated

A Scow
A-ScowLogo.png
Development
Designer John O. Johnson
Location United States
Year1901
Builder(s) Johnson Boat Works
Melges Performance Sailboats
Role racer
NameA Scow
Crewat least five
Boat
Crewat least five
Boat weight 1,850 lb (839 kg)
Draft 4.00 ft (1.22 m) with a centerboard down
Hull
Type monohull
Constructionwood or fiberglass
LOA 38.00 ft (11.58 m)
Beam 8.25 ft (2.51 m)
Hull appendages
Keel/board typedual centerboards
Rudder(s)dual, spade-type rudders
Rig
Rig type Bermuda rig
Sails
Sailplan fractional rigged sloop
Mainsail area350 sq ft (33 m2)
Jib/genoa area150 sq ft (14 m2)
Spinnaker area1,200 sq ft (110 m2)
Total sail area500 sq ft (46 m2)
[ edit on Wikidata]

The A Scow is an American scow-hulled sailing dinghy that was designed by John O. Johnson as a racer and first built in 1901. [1]

Contents

The A Scow design was developed into the V38, by Victory by Design, LLC in 2005. [2]

Production

The design was initially built by Johnson Boat Works in White Bear Lake, Minnesota United States, but that company closed in 1998 and production passed to Melges Performance Sailboats, who continue to build it. [1] [3] [4] [5]

Design

The A Scow traces its origins back to a Johnson-designed prototype in 1896. Over time the class has changed and evolved into essentially a one design class today. At 38.00 ft (11.58 m) length overall, the design is the largest scow raced today and is one of the largest dinghies produced. [1]

The A Scow is a racing sailboat, with the early versions built from wood and the more recent ones built predominantly of fiberglass. It has a fractional sloop with a masthead spinnaker. The hull is a scow design with a raised counter, vertical transom; dual spade-type rudders controlled by dual tillers and dual retractable centerboards. It displaces 1,850 lb (839 kg) and carries no ballast. [1]

The boat has a draft of 4.00 ft (1.22 m) with a centerboard extended and 1.00 ft (0.30 m) with both retracted, allowing beaching or ground transportation on a trailer. [1]

For sailing the design is equipped with an asymmetrical spinnaker of 1,200 sq ft (110 m2), flown from a retractable bowsprit. [1]

The design is raced with a crew of at least five sailors and normally has a total of six or seven crew members to help balance the boat. [5]

Operational history

The boat is supported by a national class club, the National Class A Scow Association, which regulates the class and organizes races. [6] The A Scow is mostly raced on lakes in the midwestern United States. [1]

A film was made about racing A Scows, The Ultimate Ride, by racer Peter Crawford. [7]

A review in Sailing World in 2006 by Gary Jobson, wrote, "these boats sail best when heeled more than 20 degrees, and in a breeze, it takes a lot of courage to do this. The boat rocks up and you feel as if you're about to be catapulted out of the cockpit. But a subtle tug on the tiller, a slight ease of the main and spinnaker sheets, and zingo, you're sailing at 25 knots. There's no crew weight limit, so depending on the wind strength, 5 to 7 crew can be piled on the rail with sailors rotating on or off in between races." [7]

See also

Related Research Articles

Thistle (dinghy) Sailboat class

The Thistle is an American planing sailing dinghy that was designed by Sandy Douglass as a one-design racer and first built in 1945.

Lightning (dinghy) Sailboat class

The Lightning is an American sailing dinghy that was designed by Olin Stephens of Sparkman & Stephens, as a one-design racer and first built in 1938.

The Blue Jay is an American sailing dinghy that was designed by Drake Sparkman of Sparkman & Stephens as a trainer for the Lightning one-design racer. The Blue Jay was first built in 1947.

Jet 14 Sailboat class

The Jet 14 is an American sailing dinghy that was designed by Howard Siddons as a one-design racer and first built in 1952.

The MC Scow is an American sailing dinghy that was designed as a one-design racer and first built in 1956.

C Scow Sailboat class

The C Scow is an American sailing dinghy that was designed by John O. Johnson as a one-design racer and first built as early as 1905. Sources disagree as to the first-built date, with claims of 1905, 1906 and 1923.

M Scow Sailboat class

The M Scow, also called the M-Scow and the M-16 Scow, is a Canadian/American sailing dinghy that was designed by Johnson Boat Works and Melges Boat Works as a one-design racer and first built in 1950.

E Scow Sailboat class

The E Scow is an American sailing dinghy that was designed by Arnold Meyer Sr as a one-design racer and first built in 1924.

Y Flyer Sailboat class

The Y Flyer is an American sailing dinghy that was designed by Alvin Youngquist in 1938 as a one-design racer and first built in 1941.

X Boat Sailboat class

The X Boat, also called the Cub, is an American sailing dinghy that was designed by John O. Johnson as a one-design racer and first built in 1932.

The Interlake is an American planing sailing dinghy that was designed by Francis Sweisguth in 1932, as a one-design racer and first built in 1933.

The Interclub Dinghy is an American sailing dinghy that was designed by Sparkman & Stephens as a one-design racer and first built in 1946. It is sailed in frostbite racing on the US east coast, particularly on Long Island Sound. Frostbite races are the series held after the normal sailing season is finished.

The Widgeon 12 is an American sailing dinghy that was designed by Robert H. Baker and first built in 1964. The design has been raced but is more often employed in the sail training role.

The Rascal 14 is an American sailing dinghy that was designed by Ray Greene and first built in 1961.

The Designers Choice is an American sailing dinghy that was designed by Sparkman & Stephens as a sail training and racing boat and first built in 1978. It was Sparkman & Stephens' design #2349.

The US1, sometimes written US 1, is an American sailing dinghy that was designed by Ralph Kuppersmith and Clark Mills as a one-design racer and first built in 1973.

The AMF Apollo 16 is an American sailing dinghy that was designed by Canadian Bruce Kirby as a one-design racer and first built in 1977.

The Cape Cod Mercury 15, also called the Mercury Sloop and just the Mercury, is an American trailerable sailboat and sailing dinghy, that was designed by Sparkman & Stephens and first built in 1940.

The Mobjack is an American sailboat that was designed by Roger Moorman as a one design racer and first built in 1956.

The Rhodes 18 is an American trailerable day sailer or sailing dinghy that was designed by Philip Rhodes in 1938 and first built in 1948. It is Rhodes' design #448.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 McArthur, Bruce (2020). "A Scow sailboat". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 1 December 2020. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
  2. ↑ Victory by Design, LLC. "Design Story". victorybydesign.org. Archived from the original on 6 April 2017. Retrieved 15 November 2020.
  3. ↑ McArthur, Bruce (2020). "Melges Performance Sailboats". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 8 September 2020. Retrieved 26 November 2020.
  4. ↑ McArthur, Bruce (2020). "Johnson Boat Works (USA) 1896 - 1998". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 8 September 2020. Retrieved 26 November 2020.
  5. 1 2 Melges Performance Sailboats (2020). "The Melges A Scow". melges.com. Archived from the original on 22 September 2020. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
  6. ↑ McArthur, Bruce (2020). "National Class A Scow Association". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 1 December 2020. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
  7. 1 2 Jobson, Gary (4 October 2006). "The Ultimate Ride, Indeed". Sailing World. Archived from the original on 27 November 2020. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.