Dabchick (dinghy)

Dabchick

Boat
Crew	1
Hull
Hull weight	38.6 kilograms (85 lb)
LOA	3.607 metres (11 ft 10.0 in)
Beam	1.150 metres (3 ft 9.3 in)
Sails
Upwind sail area	5.57 square metres (60.0 sq ft)

The Dabchick is a South African youth sailing dinghy that is raced two up or single-handed. A Bermuda rigged boat, it has a mainsail and jib. Its hull is very shallow and its skipper sits on its flat deck. This hard chined scow was designed by Jack Köper^[1] in 1955.^[2] Since they were published in 1956, nearly 3,500^[2] plans have been issued to builders, and over 4,000 boats have been built.^[3] It is usually sailed by young crew with teenager skipper instead of the Optimist, before moving into higher performance classes.

Design and construction

For decades, Dabchicks all were built of marine plywood. Though fiberglass boats are now being built, dozens of wooden boats are still being sailed competitively.^[2] At the 2007 AGM, the class rules were modified to allow Mylar sails with a full length top batten.^[2]

External links

• Dabchick Association of South Africa website

References

1. Preedy, Roy (1979). Dinghy Sailing in South Africa. Cape Town: Purnell and Sons. ISBN 9780868430263.
2. "About the Dabchick". www.Dabchick.za.net. Dabchick Association of South Africa. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 21 Nov 2015.
3. sailboatdata.com. "DABCHICK sailboat specifications and details". Retrieved 21 November 2015.