Engineering:Thistle (dinghy)
 | |
 | |
| Development | |
|---|---|
| Designer | Sandy Douglass |
| Location | United States |
| Year | 1945 |
| No. built | 4,000 |
| Builder(s) | Douglass & McLeod Clark Boat Company W. D. Schock Corp Northwest One Design Great Midwest Yacht Company |
| Boat | |
| Boat weight | 515 lb (234 kg) |
| Draft | 4.50 ft (1.37 m) with the centreboard down |
| Hull | |
| Type | Monohull Catamaran |
| Construction | Fiberglass |
| LOA | 17.00 ft (5.18 m) |
| LWL | 17.00 ft (5.18 m) |
| Beam | 6.00 ft (1.83 m) |
| Hull appendages | |
| Keel/board type | centreboard |
| Rudder(s) | transom-mounted rudder |
| Rig | |
| Rig type | Bermuda rig |
| Sails | |
| Sailplan | Fractional rigged sloop Masthead sloop |
| Mainsail area | 136 sq ft (12.6 m2) |
| Jib/genoa area | 55 sq ft (5.1 m2) |
| Spinnaker area | 220 sq ft (20 m2) |
| Total sail area | 191 sq ft (17.7 m2) |
| Racing | |
| D-PN | 83.0 |
The Thistle is an United States planing sailing dinghy that was designed by Sandy Douglass as a one-design racer and first built in 1945.[1][2][3]
Production
The design was originally built by Douglass & McLeod in the United States , but the company went out of business in 1971. Since then production has passed to several American builders, including the Clark Boat Company, W. D. Schock Corp, Northwest One Design and the current builder since 1975, Great Midwest Yacht Company. More than 4,000 boats of this design have been completed.[1][3][4][5][6][7]
Design
The Thistle is a recreational sailboat, with the earlier production models made from molded plywood and the more recent models built predominantly of fiberglass, with wood structural members and trim. The seats are a fiberglass-sandwich construction, and provide built-in flotation. It has a fractional sloop rig with aluminum spars and three spreader bars. The hull has no decks, a plumb stem and transom, a transom-hung rudder controlled by a tiller and a retractable, drum-mounted centerboard. It displaces 515 lb (234 kg).[1][3]
The boat has a draft of 4.50 ft (1.37 m) with the centerboard extended and 6 in (15 cm) with it retracted, allowing beaching or ground transportation on a trailer.[1]
For sailing the design is equipped with symmetrical spinnaker of 220 sq ft (20 m2) and built-in flotation.[3]
The design has a Portsmouth Yardstick racing average handicap of 83.0 and is normally raced with a crew of three sailors, although it has a capacity of six people.[3]
Operational history
By 1994 the design was being raced in more than 150 fleets.[3]
In a 1994 review Richard Sherwood wrote, "the Thistle was influenced by English dinghy design and is similar to the International 14, another racing dinghy with a plumb bow and flat run. Originally, boats were of molded wood. Racing crew is three, but the Thistle will carry six. She will fit into a garage. The Thistle has a lot of sail and a lot of speed. Class rules are strict. Gear that may be technically legal but provides an advantage is not allowed ... The Thistle is the boat used as the primary yardstick for Portsmouth Numbers."[3]
National Championships
Source: Thistle Class Association[8]
| Year | Carron 1st | Seneca Bowl 2nd | Fairhope 3rd | St Pete Trophy 4th | Richmond 5th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1946 | Gordon Sandy Douglass | ||||
| 1947 | J. Lovett | ||||
| 1948 | Gordon Douglass | ||||
| 1949 | W. Lawson | ||||
| 1950 | F. Marquardt | ||||
| 1951 | Gordon Douglass | ||||
| 1952 | J. Hendricksen | ||||
| 1953 | R. Brainard | ||||
| 1954 | H. Boston | ||||
| 1955 | Gordon Douglass | ||||
| 1956 | Gordon Douglass | ||||
| 1957 | J. Hendricksen | Samuel Merrick | |||
| 1958 | J. Jennings | Howard W. Mead | |||
| 1959 | J. Jenkins | J. Jennings | Charles Morgan | W.D. Mangold | |
| 1960 | Bruce Goldsmith | Howard L. Boston | Jerry Jenkins | Ed Walsh | |
| 1961 | Ed Walsh | Bruce Goldsmith | James Hendricksen | John Proctor | |
| 1962 | P. Bordes | A. Walter Stubner | James Miller | Elmer Richards | Lee Sutton 510 |
| 1963 | E. Walsh | Jack Wanenmacher | Dennis Posey | Bob Duff | Jon Carriel 821 |
| 1964 | P. Bordes | Jon Carriel | Dennis Posey | Walt Stubner | Bruno Markeliunas 1234 |
| 1965 | P. Bordes | Dennis Posey | Nils Dailey | Jim Fairclough | John Proctor 1222 |
| 1966 | W. Stubner | Tom Wilson | Charles Wiley | P. Bordes | Nils Dailey 1399 |
| 1967 | P. Bordes | Bill Alexander | Tom Wilson | William Poole | Ed Fracker 1109 |
| 1968 | D. Clark | Ed Fracker | Tom Wilson | William Alexander | Chuck Steigerwald 1619 |
| 1969 | J. Miller | Bob White | Lewis Wake | Ned Lockwood | Dennis Clark |
| 1970 | K. Foster | Dennis Clark | Charles Steigerwald | Bob White | Charlie Pollak 1708 |
| 1971 | R. Meissner | James Miller | Ted Fontelieu | Charlie Pollak | Gene Wood 3003 |
| 1972 | Charles Steigerwald | Bob White | Dennis Clark | Rod Glover | Fuller Moore 3152 |
| 1973 | J. Foster | Christopher Pollak | Mark Gilliland | James Miller | Ron Meissner 3170 |
| 1974 | T. Dykstra | Ron Rostofer | Chris Pollak | Fuller Moore | Steve Klotz 1 |
| 1975 | T. Dykstra | Cliff Seigh | Walt Stubner | Ron Rostorfer | Jerry Pignolet 2830 |
| 1976 | Mark Gilliland | Larry Klein | Andy Barnes | Jack Bauer | Bob White 124 |
| 1977 | Robert White | Mark Gilliland | Jack Bauer | Jim Moyer | Dave Ullman 3485 |
| 1978 | Andy Barnes | Champ Clover | Mark Gilliland | Jack F. Bauer | Mark Laura |
| 1979 | Christopher Pollak | Brent Barbehenn | Greg Fisher | Sandy Rapp | Mark Gilliland 2995 |
| 1980 | Dave Ullman | Larry Klein | Greg Fisher | Mark Laura | Ken Van Wagnen 3574 |
| 1981 | Christopher Pollak | Andy Fox | Brent Barbehenn | Sandy Rapp | Ched Proctor 3428 |
| 1982 | Brent Barbehenn | Andy Fox | Ched Proctor | Larry Klein | Greg Fisher 3748 |
| 1983 | Greg Fisher | Mark Gilliland | Champ Glover | Fred Hunger | Brent Barbehenn 3731 |
| 1984 | Brent Barbehenn | Greg Fisher | Chris Pollak | Jack Bauer | Ched Proctor 1049 |
| 1985 | David Dellenbaugh | Wayne Pignolet | Chris Klotz | Bill Ehrhorn | Jack Bauer 3743 |
| 1986 | B. Ehrhorn | Greg Fisher | Chris Klotz | Chris Pollak | John Lovett 3608 |
| 1987 | Greg Fisher | David Dellenbaugh | John Lovett | Fred Hunger | Brent Barbehenn |
| 1988 | Greg Fisher | John Lovett | Mark Laura | Kelson Elam | Fred Hunger |
| 1989 | David Dellenbaugh | Ched Proctor | Annie MacLean | Brent Barbehenn | John Wallace |
| 1990 | Chris Klotz | Brent Barbehenn | Chris Pollak | Greg Fisher | Dave Dellenbaugh |
| 1991 | David Dellenbaugh | Ched Proctor | Chris Klotz | Peter Bream | Chris Pollak |
| 1992 | David Dellenbaugh | Alex Smigelski | Chris Klotz | Bill Draheim | Fred Hunger |
| 1993 | Bill Draheim | Bill Wilson | Dave Dellenbaugh | Marty Seelig | Alex Smigelski |
| 1994 | David Dellenbaugh | Ched Proctor | Marty Seelig | Sjoerd-Jan Vanderhorst | Chirs Klotz |
| 1995 | Jack Franco | Bryce Dryden | Bill Draheim | John Lovett | Chirs Klotz |
| 1996 | David Dellenbaugh | Mike Ingham | Bryce Dryden | Ched Proctor | Brad Thompson |
| 1997 | Mike Ingham | Ched Proctor | George Szabo | Skip Dieball | Chris Klotz |
| 1998 | Bryce Dryden | Mike Ingham | Joe Burcar | Ched Proctor | Eric Gesner |
| 1999 | Bryce Dryden | Brad Thomson | Jack Finefrock | Terry Lettenmaier | Eric Gesner |
| 2000 | Mike Ingham | Doug Kaukeinen | Bruce King | Eric Gesner | Bryce Dryden |
| 2001 | Bruce King | Mike Ingham | Chris Murphy | Jack Finefrock | Erik Goethert |
| 2002 | Mike Ingham | Bruce King | Blair Dryden | Eric Gesner | Terry Lettenmaier |
| 2003 | Brent Barbehenn | Mike Ingham | Eric Gesner | Blair Dryden | Craig Koschalk |
| 2004 | Eric Gesner | Bruce King | Skip Dieball | Mike Ingham | Craig Koschalk |
| 2005 | Mike Ingham | Bruce King | D. Dellenbaugh | C. Koschalk | Paul Abdullah |
| 2006 | Greg Fisher | Skip Dieball | Paul Abdullah | Kyle Finefrock | Chris Murphy |
| 2007 | Mike Ingham | Scott Griffin | Terry Lettenmaier | Greg Fisher | Lloyd Kitchin |
| 2008 | Greg Fisher | Mike Ingham | Paul Abdullah | Brad Thompson | Greg Griffin |
| 2009 | Dave Dellenbaugh | Brain Kitchen | Mike Ingham | Brent Barbehenn | Charles Kreitler |
| 2010 | Mike Ingham | Greg Griffin | Greg Fisher | Brent Barbehenn | Greg Griffin |
| 2011 | Skip Dieball | Mike Ingham | Allan Terhune | Chris Murphy | Paul Abdullah |
| 2012 | Allan Terhune | Skip Dieball | Mike Ingham | David Tillson | Brent Barbehenn |
| 2013 | Allan Terhune | Skip Dieball | Steve White | Chris Murphy | Sam Ingham |
| 2014 | Lloyd Kitchin | John Baker | Skip Dieball | Mike Ingham | Scott Griffin |
| 2015 | Mike Ingham | Paul Abdullah | Sam Ingham | Greg Griffin | John Baker |
| 2016 | Mike Ingham | Paul Abdullah | Kyle Finefrock | John Baker | Mike Gillum |
| 2017 | Mike Ingham | Paul Abdullah | Brent Barbehenn | Ben France | Samuel Ingham |
| 2018 | Brad Russell | Dave Dellenbaugh | Dan Hesse | Paul Abdullah | Matt Fisher |
| 2019 | Greg Griffin | Scott Meyer | Paul Abdullah | Jesse Shedden | Doug Kaukeinen |
| 2020 | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic |
See also
Similar sailboats
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 McArthur, Bruce (2020). "Thistle sailboat". sailboatdata.com. https://sailboatdata.com/sailboat/thistle.
- ↑ McArthur, Bruce (2020). "Gordon K. (Sandy) Douglass 1904 - 1992". sailboatdata.com. https://sailboatdata.com/designer/douglass-gordon-k-sandy.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 Sherwood, Richard M.: A Field Guide to Sailboats of North America, Second Edition, pages 84-85. Houghton Mifflin Company, 1994. ISBN:0-395-65239-1
- ↑ McArthur, Bruce (2020). "Douglass & McLeod". sailboatdata.com. https://sailboatdata.com/builder/douglass-mcleod.
- ↑ McArthur, Bruce (2020). "Clark Boat Company". sailboatdata.com. https://sailboatdata.com/builder/clark-boat-company.
- ↑ McArthur, Bruce (2020). "Schock W.D.". sailboatdata.com. https://sailboatdata.com/builder/schock-wd.
- ↑ Great Midwest Yacht Company. "Great Midwest Yacht Designs". nowwebsites.net. http://www.nowwebsites.net/.
- ↑ Thistle Class Association. "Class Trophy History". thistleclass.com. https://www.thistleclass.com/class-trophy-history/.
External links
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