It may be 44-years old but the Shearwater still offers fun and exciting racing. Richard Hamblin, class secretary, explains why, in this competitive world, cat sailors keep coming back for more...

History
This 44-year-old racing catamaran still regularly proves itself as a competitive and exciting competitor both in class racing and in mixed fleets. Recent results have seen Shearwaters filling the top spots at combined events and an active class association with a well-established Travellers’ Trophy series is ensuring that the class can look forward to its 50th anniversary with great optimism.

The Shearwater was designed in 1956 by Roland and Francis Prout and can rightly claim to be the forerunner in establishing catamaran sailing in the UK. The design was considered innovative even in the 1950s and has spawned the development of many of the catamaran classes we see racing today, from the Dart to the Spitfire and Storm. It can also claim to have been at the forefront of catamaran design innovation being the first to introduce rotating rigs, trampolines, trapezes (both single and twin), spinnakers and high aspect rigs, there have even been una-rigged versions. While the Shearwater is a national class, there are small fleets still in existence in Nigeria and Germany and a couple of boats have recently come to light in Canada.

Innovation
As a ‘restricted’ class there has always been great scope for the introduction of new ideas to reduce weight and increase speed and this is still true of today’s competitors.

The original hull shape remained virtually unchanged from the original design board in 1956 up to 1987 when Prouts became involved. A new plug for glassfibre boats was produced, with rule changes introduced to raise the rig and modify the basic hull shape from its original asymmetric design to a slimmer symmetrical hull. Refreshingly, while the modern boats proved to have an advantage in some conditions, the older boats remain competitive. To prove this, at the 2000 national championship held at Stokes Bay Sailing Club, a wood boat, built to the new rules, won for the third year in succession and fourth place was taken by a 13-year-old boat to the ‘old’ design.

The Present
Like many of the older monohulls which have suffered through the introduction modern, light, asymmetric boats, the Shearwater has likewise suffered with the introduction of many other catamarans over the years, most notably the Dart and to a lesser degree the Hurricane. The days of 70 boats at the championship are a fond memory from 1972. However, unlike the Dart and Hurricane which have seen decreasing numbers over the past few years, the efforts of the class association and a small band of dedicated sailors have been rewarded with a slow increase in numbers this year. Attendance at the Travellers’ Trophy series was up by 25 per cent for the year and the week-long championship up by 30 per cent.

Progress and consolidation
The association has been very sensitive to the pitfalls of making sweeping changes to the boat to compete with more modern designs, as these runs the risk of removing the class’ own individual identity. This caution has been rewarded with the maintenance of the competitiveness of much older boats when racing against the newer boats built to the latest rules. As a result no major changes are planned at present, merely rig refinement. Interestingly the association has resisted the introduction of an asymmetric spinnaker. Recent results have proven that the greater tactical skills required to compete in class fleets, and also mixed fleets sporting asymmetrics, using a ‘conventional’ spinnaker makes for not only far closer racing, but also regular out-performance of the more modern boats. A recent new member admitted that after just two races, having been previously convinced an asymmetric was required, that it would, in fact, be detrimental to the class.

Attractions
The Shearwater remains a fascinating boat in which to compete. It can be technically demanding yet is competitive, with crew weights ranging from 17-30 stone. Last year’s national championship results showed that the overall winning boat was carrying 17stone while the runner-up had an all-up sailing weight of 28 stone. There’s a good mix of males and females in the class and ages range from 14-69 years old – all of whom are competitive.

Perhaps however, the greatest strength of the Shearwater is what it offers: close exciting racing throughout the fleet, an extremely friendly atmosphere, great parties and the ability to compete on a budget. A competitive boat can be purchased for as little as £500 and a new boat put on the water for under £5,000. A measure of the nature of the class can be epitomised by two recent incidents. Firstly, at the 2000 Sailboat Show a prospective owner showed an interest in joining the class but was limited by budget and time. The association was able to put him in touch with an owner who kindly donated him his boat. Apart from obtaining a trailer, the new class member was able to compete at the following open meeting with the boat exactly as it was when he collected it, managing a third place in only his third race. Secondly, at last year’s championship, one unfortunate owner had his vessel break up beneath him as a result of the failure of his dolphin striker. By the following day, with the help of many fellow competitors, the boat had been completely rebuilt and he was able to continue without missing a race.

The future
While registrations of new boats have been relatively slow, there are currently two new wood boats under construction, with a potential third and a possibility of two or three new glassfibre boats in the near future. All of which again indicate that the class can expand as a result of careful management of the rules and enjoyable competitive events.

The Travellers’ Trophy series annual prizegiving social event always takes place at the beginning of the year and is another example of the class extending beyond mere sailing to create a social ambience that is the envy of many larger classes.Contacts

The committee and class members are always willing to give potential owners an opportunity to try the Shearwater by organising open days during the year. These events are usually held at Stone Sailing Club on the River Blackwater in Essex. Anyone wishing to try this challenging cat is welcome to contact the class chairman or secretary, or the class captain at Stone Sailing Club. The association will also happily put any prospective buyers in touch with builders and also runs a register of second-hand boats. They are also only too happy to take details of older boats and their owners, put them in touch with other owners or potential buyers, or simply to pass on information on the current status of the class.

Association Contacts Chairman: Tel: Catherine Howland 020 8240 1494 Secretary: Tel: e-mail: Richard Hamblin 01702 435869 Richard@hamblinr.fsnet.co.uk Stone Class Captain: Derek Williams Website: http://shearwater.mariner.co.uk

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