A yacht is a sailing or power vessel used for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, though the term generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. To be termed a yacht, as opposed to a boat, such a pleasure vessel is likely to be at least 33 feet (10 m) in length and may have been judged to have good aesthetic qualities.
Dinghy sailing is the activity of sailing small boats by using five essential controls:
The Albacore is a 4.57 m (15 ft) two-person planing dinghy, for competitive racing and lake and near-inshore day sailing. Hulls are made of either wood or fiberglass. The basic shape was developed in 1954 from an Uffa Fox design, the Swordfish. Recent boats retain the same classic dimensions, and use modern materials and modern control systems.
The GP14 is a popular sailing dinghy, with well over 14,000 built.
The Wayfarer is a wooden or fibreglass hulled fractional Bermuda rigged sailing dinghy of great versatility; used for short 'day boat' trips, longer cruises and for racing. Over 11,000 have been produced as of 2016.
The Sunfish is a personal-size, beach-launched sailing dinghy. It features a very flat, boardlike hull carrying a lateen sail mounted to an un-stayed mast.
The J/24 is an international One-Design and Midget Ocean Racing Club trailerable keelboat class built by J/Boats and defined by World Sailing. The J/24 was created to fulfill the diverse needs of recreational sailors such as cruising, one design racing, day sailing, and handicap racing.
The Lark is a two-person, non-trapeze sailing dinghy, designed in 1966 by Michael Jackson. All Larks are made of glass-reinforced plastic (GRP). The Lark is a one-design class which leads to very close racing.
The 18 ft Skiff is considered the fastest class of sailing skiffs. The class has a long history beginning with races on Sydney Harbour, Australia in 1892 and later in New Zealand. The boat has changed significantly since the early days, bringing in new technology as it became available. Because of the need of strength, agility and skill, the class is considered to be the top level of small boat sailing. Worldwide this boat is called the "18 Foot Skiff". It is the fastest conventional non-foiling monohull on the yardstick rating, with a score of 675, coming only third after the Tornado and Inter 20.
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.
The Thames A Class Rater is both a historic and modern specialist sailing craft designed for the particular conditions at Thames Sailing Club, on the River Thames at Surbiton in England. The class is a development of the Half Rater, which was designed by Linton Hope and Alfred Burgoyne in 1907. The rules refer to the craft as a yacht.
The Scorpion is a British National class of a small sailing dinghy. The Scorpion is a lightweight, high performance, two person, hiking racing dinghy. Its adjustable rig enables sailing in all weathers for crews of all weights, ages and experiences. The Scorpion was originally designed for launch and recovery through Cornish surf at Porthpean in St Austell Bay. Its 14ft hard chine planing hull is built to strict measurements while rig controls and cockpit layout are left to personal choice.
The Contessa 32 is a 9.75 metre (32 ft) fibreglass monohull sailing yacht, designed in 1970 by David Sadler in collaboration with yachtbuilder Jeremy Rogers, as a larger alternative to the Contessa 26. With over 750 hulls built, the yacht has become the most successful one-design cruiser-racer of all time. The yachts have a masthead sloop rig, with a fin keel and a skeg-mounted rudder, a cutting edge concept for the period which now represents a cross between newer and older designs.
The Laser 3000 is a racing sailing dinghy crewed by two persons with a trapeze for the crew. Launched in 1996, the 3000 was developed from the Laser 2, using the original Frank Bethwaite-designed planing hull combined with a brand new self-draining deck by Derek Clark. Clark also re-designed the rig, using spars and sails from premium proprietary sources and replacing the symmetric spinnaker of the Laser 2 by a larger asymmetrical spinnaker. The gennaker is chute-launched and retrieved using a single halyard line, and is set on a retractable bowsprit. Helm balance and handling were improved using a shorter-footed mainsail with two full-width battens giving a larger roach. A mast with conventional spreaders replaced the now-unusual diamond arrangement of the Laser 2.
The 3000 is a racing sailing dinghy crewed by two persons with a trapeze for the crew. Launched in 1996 as the Laser 3000, the 3000 was developed from the Laser 2, using the original Frank Bethwaite-designed planing hull combined with a new designed self-draining deck by Derek Clark. Clark also re-designed the rig, using spars and sails from premium proprietary sources and replacing the symmetric spinnaker of the Laser 2 by a larger asymmetric spinnaker (gennaker). The gennaker is chute-launched and retrieved using a single halyard line, and is set on a retractable bowsprit. Helm balance and handling were improved using a shorter-footed mainsail with two full-width battens giving a larger roach. A mast with conventional spreaders replaced the now-unusual diamond arrangement of the Laser 2.
A sailing yacht, is a leisure craft that uses sails as its primary means of propulsion. A yacht may be a sail or power vessel used for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, so the term applies here to sailing vessels that have a cabin with amenities that accommodate overnight use. To be termed a "yacht", as opposed to a "boat", such a vessel is likely to be at least 33 feet (10 m) in length and have been judged to have good aesthetic qualities. Sailboats that do not accommodate overnight use or are smaller than 30 feet (9.1 m) are not universally called yachts. Sailing yachts in excess of 130 feet (40 m) are generally considered to be superyachts.
The Hornet dinghy is a 16-foot-high performance dinghy designed by Jack Holt in 1952.
The WoodPussy is a 13½’ catboat designed by Philip Rhodes. The first boats were constructed in 1945 by Palmer Scott Boat Works. These boats were wood with wooden masts. The class switched to fiberglass hulls, dacron sails and aluminum masts in the early 1960s. It is estimated that 800-850 hulls were constructed by Palmer Scott, MarScott and O'Day. The Weeks Yacht Yard in New York is now building new fiberglass WoodPussys.
The Water Wag is the oldest one-design dinghy in existence, having been devised in 1886 and formalised as a one-design class in Ireland in 1887. It was last modified in 1900. The class is still sailed to this day, notably with large Water Wag fleets racing during summer evenings from Dún Laoghaire harbour on Dublin Bay. The Water Wag class is administered by the Water Wags club, based in Dún Laoghaire.
The Geary 18 is an American sailboat that was designed by Ted Geary as a one-design racer and first built in 1926.
