Russell Marine .... yep - they put them together.

Hull # 341 - means she's a late one.

Plywood ... interesting. Will pass this onto pal of mine who runs the Bilge Keeler Magazine and Alacrity Owners in Sweden - yes there's one in Sweden !! Same Mk1 type as mine .... but with the split cabin semi bulkhead.

http://www.geocities.com/jenku/alacrity.html

This guy collects together all he can about Alacrity ....

Here's a Plywood one as well :

http://www.geocities.com/jenku/poppy_rest.html

Hi Nigel

There still small boats sailing all over place, I have a Hurley 22 and sailed over 500nm last year and they said it was a bad summer. I know of a Hurley 22 that left Brixham and sailed to the Isles of Scilly in 26 hours (not bad for a small boat) One 22 crossed the Bay of Biscay last year.

Bruce

well well ,, we have a 25 foot vertue , built in 1962 , i am 62 and have sailed allsorts , but i allways wanted a wooden vertue , it only sleeps two , it dont cost much in marinas it dont cost much to antifoul , it dont take long to varnish , as long as you have your threrapy every three months it take about three hours , it sails well its happy in a biscay gale,, and if the missus dont wanna go ,  i go and she flies in  , we have a proper loo , baby blake , we have a cooker ,  and we do longish passages , I love it to bits , i wish i was in england because i would do the jester challenge ,  but we are in france the southern bit , see our trip from the humber to cadiz on,

http://homepages.rya-online.net/vertueowners/images/TheBoats/simo/simo_to_spain.htm 

this year barcelona,, moroco , then back to the balears for a bit , the back to gruissan

have fun  

Hi Michael. Just been reading your blog. Wonderful to see someone enjoying their boat so much!

Have another great summer.

Hi Michael, I really enjoyed reading about your trip and seeing the photos.  Scotty

ref: Twister website  http://www.twister.org.uk/news/index.html

I've got a 25footer that I'd happily take further afield. However, all my time is devoted to racing and my boat simply doesn't meet the saftey requirements of longer races - a base SSSN of 20 is required and we only have one of 12.

I'm a big believer in small boats anyway (mainly because I couldn't afford a bigger one!). My marina fees are less, not just berthing but cranage etc etc. I just bought an entire new suit of racing sails for less than one of our competitors brand new #1 headsails.

I do believe however that there has been a major shift in the design of small boats in the last 10 years or so. My boat is berthed next to a Contessa 26 which makes for an interesting comparison. My rig is ~ 1.4x taller, we weigh half as much, carry significantly more sail area and go a lot faster. However, the contessa will have accomodation and is capable of crossing serious stretches of water. I suppose it's a case of chossing which you style best suits your needs. As a racing sailor, there's only really one choice for me.

If you wish to increase your SSN number, there are many ways to do it.

The number isn't a raw calculation of stability, but a mixture of factors, for example flooding volume of cockpits, height of bridge deck, size of self draining pipes, draft, beam etc etc. all these can be manipulated to increase the number, examples - semi permanently reducing cockpit volume by glassing in tanks, permenantly closing the hatch boards in place to a height above the main deck, carrying a proper storm jib and trysail. The level of safety kit also puts up the number, eg on my boat going from Cat 4 up to Cat 2 takes the number up from 32 to 36. Consider putting a lead extension on the keel (easily done) it will improve stability, deepen the draft which will increase the SSN, and make her go better upwind as well!

Have a good look at the rules, talk to RORC and one of their measurers, I'm sure you can get to 20 quite easily. Its getting from the low 20s  up to the 30s that's difficult.

"What happened ? Has safety become a bigger issue and increased peoples concerns about such ventures ? Are just as many or more still doing it but media / public are no longer interested".

http://www.jesterinfo.org/thejesterazoreschallenge08.html

http://www.jesterinfo.org/jc2010entrylist.html

I should have qualified my statement - I'd struggle to get the boat to a sufficient SSN without a lot of expenditure and work that would take the boat out of a competitive rating profile. Our racing success is a result of keeping the boat exceedingly light to make it plane early.

We do actually have a modified keel with an appreciable sized lead bulb added

Hi Scotty

Why brag, its all been done before, we are only following in the wake of those who went before.

I sail a Hurley 22 and theres very little they have not done. I know of folk with much bigger boats that dont go as far as we do.

Good Sailing

 Bruce

Hi Scotty

Not me. I sail we my partner, you just could not carry the stores for two in a 22 across the Atlantic and solo was done by the 1st women (Margaret Hicks)

Bruce 

Most people now days seem to think that a 25 footer is small, but we used to yomp back and forth across the North Sea a Cinder 22 which was probably the most sea worthy of any of the numerous boats we have owned. She was built like a brick (out)house, had no cockpit lockers to let water in in  a knock down and so much encapsulated ballast that you never got knocked down anyway.

In subsequent bigger boats we've been much more carefull about watching the weather etc although this may have come with age and growing up (well a bit) and I must admit it is nice to stand up.

Hi Jonathan

I have looked at lots of boats (we were looking for a liveaboard) and the Westerly Corsair was the only one I could stand up in.

good sailing

Bruce