Todd Bradshaw
09-10-2003, 04:33 AM
Six months ago, or so, I got an e-mail from Gary Dierking in New Zealand looking for suggestions on how best to construct an interesting looking, tall mainsail that he was developing for one of his outrigger canoes. I gave him my best guesses, since all of us here in Wisconsin grow-up sailing outriggers and they're second nature to us....
Anyway, I e-mailed him yesterday to see if he ever built it and if so, how it worked? He sent me this reply:
"Hi Todd,
It's a long story but I'll make it short. There were a lot of delays involved with the client
and the sail was only made about two months ago. I've flown it from the mast in the
front yard but the boat won't be launched until next month and then we'll see how it
goes. As the clients are real Polynesians, I can't just go out and test it without
everything going through the proper ceremonies.
I decided to abandon the curved rod battens in the top. It works fine in a small rig but
one this size just gets too awkward when trying to insert the battens. So I went with a
gunter arrangement; probably the first Tahitian batwing gunter in history. How do I get
myself into these things?
You can see from the attached photos what I've got.
Thanks again for your help. I cut and seamed pretty much as you had advised.
Gary Dierking"
Talk about having a tough audience! Building an outrigger for real Polynesians! Anyhow, he sent me a picture of the sail and a couple of the boat that it will go on. I think I've figured out which end is the bow, but not much else. It's certainly very different technology from what most of us are used to looking at, but a nice wooden boat is a nice wooden boat in any language.
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid79/p010e45444403f15d65b79fa8ff78ad48/fb2165fd.jpg
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid79/p2770d6f3d82cb4df1600028e55a3821a/fb2165ed.jpg
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid79/pe541dd291dd29d2bdfac6983f77d1589/fb2165da.jpg
Anyway, I e-mailed him yesterday to see if he ever built it and if so, how it worked? He sent me this reply:
"Hi Todd,
It's a long story but I'll make it short. There were a lot of delays involved with the client
and the sail was only made about two months ago. I've flown it from the mast in the
front yard but the boat won't be launched until next month and then we'll see how it
goes. As the clients are real Polynesians, I can't just go out and test it without
everything going through the proper ceremonies.
I decided to abandon the curved rod battens in the top. It works fine in a small rig but
one this size just gets too awkward when trying to insert the battens. So I went with a
gunter arrangement; probably the first Tahitian batwing gunter in history. How do I get
myself into these things?
You can see from the attached photos what I've got.
Thanks again for your help. I cut and seamed pretty much as you had advised.
Gary Dierking"
Talk about having a tough audience! Building an outrigger for real Polynesians! Anyhow, he sent me a picture of the sail and a couple of the boat that it will go on. I think I've figured out which end is the bow, but not much else. It's certainly very different technology from what most of us are used to looking at, but a nice wooden boat is a nice wooden boat in any language.
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid79/p010e45444403f15d65b79fa8ff78ad48/fb2165fd.jpg
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid79/p2770d6f3d82cb4df1600028e55a3821a/fb2165ed.jpg
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid79/pe541dd291dd29d2bdfac6983f77d1589/fb2165da.jpg