Single-handed sailing dinghy Guppy 9

skiffrecreationalcatboat

The "Guppy" is a cousin to our Polliwog and has a similar look and appearance but with an overall length of 19 inches longer, it has a greatly increased capacity to carry weight as a dingy and sail area as a small sailboat. The Guppy is a fine candidate for the all around dingy/skiff/small sailboat, without vice, she does her job efficiently and smoothly. With a small outboard on her stern, she makes a fine dingy for exploring a quiet anchorage and for ferrying people and pets ashore. We've had 3 adults and gear on board and she seems to handle it all in style. As a small sailboat, it's hard to find a parallel amongst the Guppy's competitors. This boat can provide fun for my 72 inch, 200 pound body as well as be a safe and able sailor for my 10 year old son. It's always hard to find a boat that is this versatile but the Guppy seems to do it so handily that it makes the job look easy. She is a finely balanced boat under sail with smooth quick tacks and the capability of sailing very easily up to her hull speed of about 3.8 knots. Gusts of wind are dealt with by simply leaning outboard with one's upper body; at almost no time is it necessary to hike outboard of the boat. For the sail rig on the Guppy, we have used a cut down windsurfer rig. These rigs can be bought new or used with mast, boom, and sail, all costing less than just a custom sail for another type of rig. The windsurfer rig is easy to setup and take down and usually the mast can be purchased as a two part mast and this allows all sail rig parts to be stowed in the boat broken down.