Wolstenholme Punt Singlehander

Upon seeing my post on the tricked out Swedish D-Kanot, Neil Kennedy of NedsLocker sent along this article of a singlehander design by Brit Andrew Wolstenholme, based off the Norfolk Punt class. I've included the article below. Wolstenholme's design is smaller than the D-Kanot and is a simple V shape, not round bilged, but it is interesting to see how similar these two designs are, given the very different design traditions they draw upon.



A photo of a vintage gunter-rigged Norfolk Punt...

..which is a far cry from how the modern Norfolk Punt is set up today (trapezes, assymetric spinnakers, carbon spars, etc).

Header Photo: The Norfolk Punt

The previous header photo was of the Norfolk Punt, a racing dinghy class found on the Norfolk Broads, England and derived from the bird gunning punts that were in use there in the late 1890's, early 1900's. The Norfolk Punts are 22' long, double-ended and like the International Canoe, the modern boats have no resemblance to their heritage except for the canoe stern. The Norfolk Punts of today are very much a modern racing dinghy with double trapezes, assymetrics, and a tall, overpowering sailplan. Although the modern class is a development class there does seem to be a good mix of vintage punts racing though I have no idea how they handicap Punts with hulls from 1935 versus a punt designed in the last ten years. The Punt featured in the header photo looks like a 1960's Wyche and Coppock single chine design.

The photo of the Norfolk Punt below gives a good idea of what the original sailing Punt looked like; reverse sheer, decks sloping outward, high coamings. With this Punt you can see the gunning punt lineage. This Punt looks short so it may be a reproduction.

Here is a modernized 1930's Punt hull with carbon rig and trapeze. It retains the reverse sheer and high coamings.

A video of a modern double trapeze Punt with the video also ending with a modern double trapeze teabag capsize.

Three Bridges Race: 2015 Drone Video

I've covered the Three Bridges Race before on Earwigoagin, a 50 mile jaunt around winding narrow rivers, under low hanging bridges, in the English Norfolk Broads. Here is a drone video of this year's event, no sound, just bucolic images of classic sailing classes starting the race under typical English summer weather, alternating glorious sun with grey belly cumulus. From the text blurb accompanying this video:

"The 55th Three Rivers Race was the first time aerial photography was allowed by organisers, Horning Sailing Club. Richard Kemp of Skyhover used an octocopter to photograph the start of the race . The three rivers from which the race gets its name are the three northern rivers of the Broads (Norfolk, UK), the Bure, Ant and Thurne. There are numerous Windmills and pumps such as the white Thurne Mill along the route.

At first the race sounds simple, an out and back course, in which you must round four marks and return to the start. It begins to sound trickier when you discover the course is in the order of fifty miles in length. It requires great planning and skill to navigate in unpredictable tides and variable winds. Many of the classes are for historic boats built in Norfolk and Suffolk for the difficult local conditions: such as the River Cruiser (first built 100 years ago) Yare & Bure One Design, Norfolk Punt. The greatest outsider challenge comes from the extremely fast Thames A Raters."

Navigators & General Three Rivers Race 2015 from Skyhover Aerial Video Norfolk on Vimeo.

Dylan Winter films the Three Rivers Race, Norfolk Broads, Part 3

There were two more Dylan Winter videos of the 2010 Three Rivers Race that caught my eye; both of them featuring two local Broads dinghy classes.

The Norfolk Punt sailing class developed from gunning punts, but now the sailing Punt is so tricked out as a racing dinghy (double trapeze, assymetric, full battened sails) that the only traditional characteristic that remains is the canoe stern (very similar to the International Canoe!). Punt Number 19 seems to be a traditional model with a low rig, long boom, gunter rig. Number 69 and 96 are Wyche and Coppock hard chine designs (designed in the 1950's if memory serves); the most popular sailing Punt model going. The Norfolk Punt is a restricted development class with hull lengths approaching 22 feet. Some of the higher number hulls have probably had the hand of one of the modern English dinghy boffins, like Morrison or Howlett, in drawing up their lines.

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Sorry, video has been removed!

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And the Norfolk One Design. Designed and built by Herbert Woods, the first in 1931 and the last was built in 1968; 86 in all. The Norfolk One Design's very much look like an Uffa Fox International 14, though they are lapstrake, not smooth bottomed. They seem very comfortable short tacking up the river. A very pretty traditional design!

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Sorry, video has been removed!

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Watching the video of the Norfolk One Design, it occurred to me that one could take a Jet 14 hull, knock the deck off it, put in some seat tanks, add some wooden spars and gunter rig and get very close to the same boat. Oh no, not another mashup!

Tip of the hat to Dylan, my favorite sailing videographer, for this series.