Venture 21

Venture 21

V
Development
Designer	Roger MacGregor
Location	United States
Year	1966
Builder(s)	MacGregor Yacht Corporation
Role	Racer-Cruiser
Name	Venture 21
Boat
Displacement	1,500 lb (680 kg)
Draft	5.50 ft (1.68 m) with keel down
Hull
Type	monohull
Construction	fiberglass
LOA	21.00 ft (6.40 m)
LWL	18.50 ft (5.64 m)
Beam	6.83 ft (2.08 m)
Engine type	outboard motor
Hull appendages
Keel/board type	swing keel
Ballast	400 lb (181 kg)
Rudder(s)	transom-mounted rudder
Rig
Rig type	Cutter rig
I foretriangle height	24.08 ft (7.34 m)
J foretriangle base	7.67 ft (2.34 m)
P mainsail luff	21.83 ft (6.65 m)
E mainsail foot	9.75 ft (2.97 m)
Sails
Sailplan	cutter rigged sloop
Mainsail area	106.42 sq ft (9.887 m2)
Jib/genoa area	92.35 sq ft (8.580 m2)
Total sail area	198.77 sq ft (18.466 m2)
Racing
PHRF	252
MacGregor 21  →

The Venture 21 is an American trailerable sailboat that was designed by Roger MacGregor as a racer-cruiser and first built in 1966. ^{[1] [2] [3]}

Boat reviewer Darrell Nicholson noted, "capitalizing on the fiberglass revolution in boatbuilding, MacGregor’s business-school project sparked a pivotal marketing shift that helped bring recreational sailing to mainstream America". ^[4]

The design was developed into the MacGregor 21 in 1980. ^{[1] [3] [5]}

Production

The design was built by MacGregor Yacht Corporation in the United States, from 1966 to 1979, but it is now out of production. It was the first monohull boat produced by the company. ^{[1] [3] [6]}

Design

The boat was designed by MacGregor as part of his Stanford University Master of Business Administration degree program, with a prototype built in 1965 and then put into production. ^[4]

The Venture 21 is a recreational keelboat, built predominantly of fiberglass, with wood trim. Early production boats had a plywood-cored deck, while later ones were balsa-cored. It has a cutter rig, a spooned raked stem, a slightly angled transom, a transom-hung rudder controlled by a tiller and a swing keel. It displaces 1,500 lb (680 kg) and carries 400 lb (181 kg) of iron ballast. ^{[1] [3]}

The boat has a draft of 5.50 ft (1.68 m) with the keel extended and 1.50 ft (0.46 m) with it retracted, allowing operation in shallow water or ground transportation on a trailer. ^{[1] [3]}

The boat is normally fitted with a small 3 to 6 hp (2 to 4 kW) outboard motor for docking and maneuvering. ^{[1] [3]}

The design has sleeping accommodation for four people, with a double "V"-berth in the bow cabin and two straight settee berths in the main cabin. Cabin headroom is 48 in (122 cm). ^{[1] [3]}

For sailing downwind the design may be equipped with a symmetrical spinnaker. ^{[1] [3]}

The design has a PHRF racing average handicap of 252 and a hull speed of 5.8 kn (10.7 km/h). ^[3]

Operational history

In a 2010 review Steve Henkel wrote, "best features: Price (on the used market, of course, since this design is no longer made) is below her comp[etitor]s, reflecting an ultra-low price when she was new—and perhaps some perceptions of the level of construction quality. Worst features: Headroom is lowest of the group of comp[etitor]s. Motion Index is worst of the group (though all her comp[etitor]s are so low it doesn't make much difference). Her Space Index is also at the bottom of the list. Her cast iron keel, like that on her comp[etitor]s, is a maintenance chore, since it eventually begins to need frequent attention to keep rust at bay. Hardware is not as high quality as her comps." ^[3]

In a 2011 used boat review in Practical Sailor, Darrell Nicholson wrote, "with two quarter berths and a V-berth, the Venture 21 technically could sleep four, but this sort of arrangement probably would be brief and acrimonious. Although you could pack a lot of gear under the cockpit, actual locker storage is limited. Some ambitious owners have added sinks, small galleys, 12-volt systems, and port-a-potties below, but the boat’s cramped headroom restricts its suitability for more than a few days of cruising. For the 20-something adventurer with aspirations of camp-cruising on one of America’s many inland lakes, it will do just fine, but more than a couple of days aboard a boat this size will be a sure test of any marriage." ^[4]

See also

• List of sailing boat types

Related development

• MacGregor 21

References

1. McArthur, Bruce (2022). "Venture 21 sailboat". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 7 March 2022. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
2. McArthur, Bruce (2022). "Roger MacGregor". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 28 June 2021. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
3. Henkel, Steve: The Sailor's Book of Small Cruising Sailboats, page 145. International Marine/McGraw-Hill, 2010. ISBN   978-0-07-163652-0
4. Nicholson, Darrell (25 March 2011). "Venture 21 Used-boat Review". Practical Sailor. Archived from the original on 7 March 2022. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
5. McArthur, Bruce (2022). "MacGregor 21". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 7 March 2022. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
6. McArthur, Bruce (2022). "MacGregor Yacht Corporation". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 28 June 2021. Retrieved 7 March 2022.