Round Britain in a Macgregor 26

[pen2413]

Richard Kerswell is currently in Wick having left Penzance on 24th June.

Stops included St Kilda, Orkney and Shetland.

Pegasuses places

Delighted to be the proud owner of one of these truly versatile and capable craft.

 

[gordmac]

Are they the ones that will do 20kn under power?
Good on him.

 

[Snowgoose-1]

Great achievement. Well done.

 

[ashtead]

I once met a disabled sailor who was fulsome in his praises of these vessels .

 

[MADRIGAL]

Are they the ones that will do 20kn under power?
Good on him.

Some versions certainly do. There was one in our club with twin rudders on the transom and a 50 HP Yamaha outboard between them that passed us at about that speed in the harbour one day in a flat calm. I had never seen anything like it. I don’t know if he could make that speed with water ballast in, however.

 

[Laminar Flow]

Good on him.

In other news: Every other year some Brit sets out from Brighton beach to circumnavigate in a barrel.

 

[gordmac]

Some versions certainly do. There was one in our club with twin rudders on the transom and a 50 HP Yamaha outboard between them that passed us at about that speed in the harbour one day in a flat calm. I had never seen anything like it. I don’t know if he could make that speed with water ballast in, however.

Interesting, I would imagine the water is to replace the heavy dangly bit for sailing. Seems a good idea, you can sail if you like but can also get somewhere if you want to.

 

[gordmac]

Out of interest do you have to be outside steering when it is cold, wet and miserable like a normal sailboat?

 

[Ink]

I would be more impressed if he is sailing. Still a remarkable achievement none the less.

Ink

 

[Blueboatman]

I love that
It’s not the boats it’s the people in ‘em
And all that . What a great adventure he is having. Some nice photos and a cheeky smile along the way . ??

 

[Supertramp]

Good for him - it's inspirational when people have a go and do things a bit different. Having sailed the NE of Scotland many times in flat calms and also unpleasantly short steep seas I would be terrified if caught out in a boat like that. But I accept his strategy is different - choose your weather window and make shelter quickly if you need to. All credit to him - a different sort of preparation and planning. Probably the same approach I would use if sailing around Iceland.....

 

[ridgy]

All good fun but I feel that those two dudes who did it non stop in a wooden wayfarer have set a benchmark for being impressed at this sort of thing.

 

[pen2413]

Good for him - it's inspirational when people have a go and do things a bit different. Having sailed the NE of Scotland many times in flat calms and also unpleasantly short steep seas I would be terrified if caught out in a boat like that. But I accept his strategy is different - choose your weather window and make shelter quickly if you need to. All credit to him - a different sort of preparation and planning. Probably the same approach I would use if sailing around Iceland.....

Yes it's right that the Mac needs a different approach. I've been out in a force 7 in rough conditions and it's not the place to be. I didn't feel it was unsafe but the boat is way overpowered if sailing but motoring in such conditions is not much fun. And in the end this boat is just about fun - not breaking records. Certainly Richard seems to be enjoying himself!

 

[MADRIGAL]

Good for him - it's inspirational when people have a go and do things a bit different. Having sailed the NE of Scotland many times in flat calms and also unpleasantly short steep seas I would be terrified if caught out in a boat like that. But I accept his strategy is different - choose your weather window and make shelter quickly if you need to. All credit to him - a different sort of preparation and planning. Probably the same approach I would use if sailing around Iceland.....

It is the proven strategy used by dinghy cruisers who venture successfully into deep waters, and it can lead to delightful encounters in small ports. I admire him for his courage and seamanship.

 

[jwilson]

A MacGregor 26X is not in any way my favourite boat but given sense and a bit of seamanship is a quite interesting choice. For those that don't know it can sail adequately in light/moderate winds, and motor fast with a big outboard in a flat calm after you have emptied out the water ballast. Afficionados always point you at an US video that purports to show one sailing in a Force 8: it's not remotely Force 8, just a big swell in F5. They are pretty lightly built, with some marginally strong enough fittings. Credit to Mr. Kerswell.....

There was a really interesting MacGregor, the 65. Basically the same concept but much much bigger. An early one made a ridiculously fast Trans-Pac crossing by running the engine to keep it on the plane offwind - saw it on arrivel in Asia. Equally flimsily built though by normal standards.

 

[mjcoon]

Interesting, I would imagine the water is to replace the heavy dangly bit for sailing. Seems a good idea, you can sail if you like but can also get somewhere if you want to.

That reminds me that my mother guessed that the reason I had a centre board in my dinghy was to make it more stable. I had to point out that it was made of wood and thus provided negative ballast. Not sure that she understood about the lateral resistance making it even more tippy, though...