FOREWORD

by lan Proctor RDI FCSD (deceased), designer of the Kestrel.

The Kestrel has the distinction of being the first sailing boat to be built in this country entirely of glass reinforced plastics. The first Kestrel was exhibited at the Boat Show in January 1956 and created a lot of favourable comment in the plastics' magazines, though yachting journals were not enthusiastic about the material at that time.

A few timber Kestrels had previously been built and were sailing in Cornwall, but I particularly remember the sailing trials of the first reinforced plastics version. The boat was completed in the very early hours of a December night in Wales. The next day we trailed her through the Welsh Mountains to Llangorse Lake. We launched her in a gale which drove the snow horizontally across the lake. It was perishing cold and the lake seemed very lonely, as we could see nothing but flying snow and the dark wind-lashed water, but the trials were quite successful. On the return journey across the Brecon Mountains we got completely stuck in a snow drift and had to abandon the boat, where she remained for a week at over 1,400 feet.

Unfortunately, in the early days, plastic boat building met a fair degree of mistrust, which was not altogether unfounded, as it was common for plastics firms to endeavour to design their own boats and for most boat designers to know little about plastics. The Kestrel did not prosper in its plastic form and was virtually shelved for the time being. It was not until John Gmach's firm at Fordingbridge asked to build the Kestrel that real progress was made. This firm had already a sound reputation for workmanship in the material, and the boat went into proper production with very few modifications. The Kestrel class must be grateful to John Gmach for building its boats to high standards for 25 years, including the introduction of a new Mark II version, with, the side decks running right through to the transom, instead of an aft deck

In 1988 Martin Services in Essex purchased the moulds and was licensed as sole builder of Kestrels. Further small design amendments were made at this stage and Rod Martin modified the moulds to bring construction up to date and make assembly stronger and easier. His enthusiasm for the boat and the hard work and financial investment he has put in to modernize the construction, fitting out and finish to raise building standards to the current high level, has resulted in a dramatic upsurge in the numbers built annually. The class can look forward with confidence to a successful future with this new builder, but it also owes a great deal to past, present (and, no doubt, future) Kestrel Owners Association Committees, for all their hard work steering the class in the right direction. The Kestrel was designed and always intended to be a boat of reasonably high performance, but not a flat-out speed-at-all-costs type. She was intended to appeal to people who wished to race with their families sometimes, and to give them a chance to compete on even terms without needing to have crews of extreme athletic ability. Obviously, the performance of the Kestrel could be still further hotted-up by giving her more sail area, perhaps with a bigger spinnaker and trapeze and in numerous other ways, but this would destroy the chances of racing success by many people who now sail and enjoy Kestrels. This is the reason why, in the past, I have opposed some changes which have been suggested, but my thoughts on this matter are merely guides and the final decisions on such matters must be taken by the Class Association, which now largely controls the way in which the class will develop.

May I wish all Kestrel owners, both present and future, happy sailing and good competition.

THE KESTREL 2000

In 1999 Richard Hartley became the sole builder of Kestrels and set about updating the dinghy. The updated dinghy conforms to the ideals set out by Ian Proctor, but is built using modern techniques and with updated equipment to make a sleeker, stiffer dinghy for the 21st century. Richard's Kestrels are built at his factory in Derby; his contact details are here and Hartley Laminates web site is: www.hartleylaminates.co.uk. All purchasers of a new Kestrel are entitled to a years' free membership of the Kestrel Owners' Association.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION

The designer's declared intention was to provide a boat that was roomy, stable and easy to sail, suitable for family cruising yet with a performance to put it on close terms with all but the out and out racing craft. Since it was first exhibited in 1956 the Kestrel has consistently shown that it more successfully combines these apparently conflicting requirements of a stable roomy cruising boat and a fast high performance racing dinghy than any other recognised class design. Its well mannered sailing characteristics and roomy cockpit with a large stowage area under the foredeck make it an excellent cruising day sailer which is well suited for family outings. At the same time it is one of the fastest non trapeze racing dinghies capable of tremendous performance off the wind and an almost uncanny ability to climb to windward of other classes particularly in light winds. The Kestrel seems to go best in open water with winds between force 2 and 3 both to windward and on the run. However, the combination of a stable yet easily driven hull form, moderate to large sail area and lack of any vice in handling, make it possible to achieve good results in almost any wind condition on all points of sailing. At first sight the Kestrel does not look built for speed with its high freeboard and well rounded stem. A more discerning examination will reveal some other secrets as:

1. The sloping profile of the stem which, while it may sacrifice some waterline length, gains greatly in improving the steering qualities particularly downwind in rough conditions.

2 . The depth of the hull below the mast and firm bilges which contribute to the windward ability. This is a careful compromise between the very simple semicircular shape which is the optimum for speed (but which lacks stability) and a square or hard chine which has good initial stability (but large wetted area and therefore increased drag).

3 . The combination of a strongly built bow section, the high freeboard, the moderately fine entry and the well rounded bilges together with the long run aft, produce a hull shape capable of coping with rough sea conditions quite manageably.

The moderately sized rig with its 100 sq ft mainsail, the choice of a very powerful overlapping 52 sq ft genoa, or a smaller inboard sheeted sail, need care in setting up to gain the best performance. Although at different times there have been suggestions for allowing a trapeze this is really quite unnecessary, even for the lighter crew, if proper allowances are made and the boat sailed accordingly (although there is a thriving fleet of trapeze equipped Kestrels in Bahrain!). There are many light crews to be found at the front of most Kestrel fleets. Positioning of helm and crew, and the speed of reaction to change position, or the making of adjustments are all the more important than sheer weight. It is true that the lighter manned boats may not be fastest to the windward mark in the stronger winds but, once round the mark, the potential speed of the lighter boat is greater than that of its heavier competitors - though it may require hard work to achieve this potential.