With a name that is the abbreviation of the words Velocity Made Good it isn’t a surprise that the Enkhuizen based shipyard VMG Yachtbuilders is moving ahead at a very steady pace. VMG Yachtbuilders in itself is a relatively new name in yachting circl

Apology to Richard Pierce, who took this photo of Iain Oughtred to accompany his obituary, written by Nic Compton. “Iain regularly sailed at the annual Toberonachy Small Boat Muster on the Isle of Luing, Scotland where the photo was taken,” says Rich

Anyone who’s visited Salcombe in Devon by boat recently will know that, for most of the summer, its picturesque estuary is heaving with motorboats. Most of these are large RIBs which crisscross between the moored yachts endlessly, causing a dispropor

“Definitely.” That was the answer Finn Irvine gave when asked if it was a bit crazy to buy an old wooden boat to charter, especially in Sydney’s hot climate. Nonetheless, a fruitful outcome is proving that sometimes crazy is the way to go. The boat i

One anniversary we nearly missed this year is that of the International Rating Certificate – known to all simply as IRC. In the words of the press release: “Back in the early 1980s, most boats were racing under the International Offshore Rule (IOR),

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Weather Bird was commissioned for Sara and Gerald Murphy, a high-society American couple whose parties lit up the era on the French Riviera where they settled. The 102ft (31m) wooden, gaff-rigged schooner has welcomed on board some of the most famous

Late in the summer of 1991 my family and I were homeward bound from the traditional boat gathering at Risør in southern Norway with Hirta, our 1911 Bristol Channel pilot cutter. The coast thereabouts is wall-to-wall rocks, with cliff-side berthing in

Fitting locks to cabin drawers is one of the more delicate operations in yacht joinery, constantly at risk of botching the near-finished work. The problem is lack of space. Picture a shallow bunk-side drawer with perhaps 1ft (30cm) or less between th

Morecambe Bay prawner Spray is at Glasson Dock near Morecambe, where her new owners, the Morecambe Bay Prawners Trust, are undertaking routine maintenance before setting her to sail around the bay and beyond this summer. The prawner was the local fis

For the benefit of south coast sailors, I should explain that one of the chief attractions of sailing on the east coast is that there’s hardly any water here. This makes sinking a lot more difficult and altogether more challenging for readers hoping

The building of Norfolk’s iconic wherries concluded in an extravagant manner thanks to the philanthropic nature of Lowestoft’s first Freeman, Howard Hollingsworth. Hollingsworth wanted to produce a lasting representation of a typical wherry’s hull sh

An exhibition exploring the history of ship models and evolution in shipbuilding design has opened at the Scottish Maritime Museum in Irvine, and will run until 26 May. “Ship Models - A History of Shipping in Miniature” features a diverse collection

The 46ft, century-old schooner La Volpe sails out of California, looking as good as the day she was launched The 28ft Aussie-built Maluka is the veteran of eight Sydney-Hobarts, so in 2023, it seemed natural to have a crack at the Fastnet. The 1932 A

Artisan Boatworks, well known for their beautifully-crafted daysailers like the Herreshoff Buzzards Bay 15 and 18, are well under way with their biggest project to date: the 39ft 6in (12m) bermudan yacht Wisp. Wisp has been designed by Maine spirit-o

The 2024 Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta will feature a spectacular fleet with several notable entries attending for the first time. Returning veterans include the three-masted, Arthur Holgate-designed, 184ft (56m) LOD schooner Adix (1984); the Henry G

Last night I was lecturing in Plymouth. Part of the story involved a 650-mile beat from Cape Farewell in Greenland to Newfoundland in the 35-tonne pilot cutter Hirta. We’d seven of us on board, including my wife Roz and our four-year-old daughter Han

Classic boats are out of the woods. The evidence of my own eyes is enough to convince me that wooden boatbuilders are no longer an endangered species, as some have claimed, nor are the boats they build, mend or restore. Within a radius of 50 miles, I

The always popular National Historic Ships UK Photography Competition is back for a 15th year, in partnership with Classic Boat magazine. This year’s theme is “True Colours” and there are some fantastic prizes to be won, as well as the chance to be f

Hunter’s Yard in Norfolk is planning a cruise to mark 50 years since the original Swallows and Amazons film was released in 1974 (a more recent version was released in 2016). The yard and its fleet, which are a much-loved time-warp, is home to many o

Sailmakers’ needles are precision tools which must be kept sharp, rust-free and easy to find when needed, typically in a stoppered cylindrical case. Although new needles are often supplied in a plastic case some would argue that wood is a more histor

Since 2007, The Boatbuilders Show on Cape Cod has gathered together the best of New England’s boat builders, designers, and maritime trades in one place. With Cape Cod’s proud maritime traditions and ideal location – nearly equidistant between Portla

This month, in what has become a tradition, the 2024 Classic Boat Awards ceremony is being held at the Royal Thames Yacht Club (RTYC) in Knightsbridge. It is an entirely appropriate connection, with each organisation, in their different ways, serious

The 76-year-old Firefly dinghy that British solo sailor Arthur Macdonald competed in at the 1948 Olympics in Torbay was the star of the show at the RYA Dinghy Exhibition in Farnborough in February. The 12ft wooden dinghy, Jacaranada, sail No F503, wa

Soon after completing the restoration of Kaléa a sailing friend, having taken a look around, turned to me and said:“It would have to be you Tim that can see the benefits of downsizing to a bigger boat.” What I think he meant by that, and he’s actuall