The OZ PD Racer Project
A small boat that sails really well, motors and rows By Michael Storer See his website: PDRacer.info and Videos
Design Roots
The PD Racer is the simplest and cheapest sailing boat that you can get on the water.
It was originally developed in the USA by David "Shorty" Routh to be the sort of boat that could be whipped up by first time builders in a few weekends, carry two adults and maybe some little kids as well, didn't take up too much storage space. The design allows a lot of freedom of construction and design - so there is a great opening for individual creativity. Even up to a three masted square rigger complete with brass cannon - as long as it has the same basic hullshape anything goes.
In a bit over a year there are over 100 launched around the world. Home built hulls, home built sails, home built masts and booms.
Earlier this year I was visiting my friend Peter Hyndman in Qld and he suggested that we build something and showed me www.pdracer.com on the net.
I instantly recognised the enthusiasam of the builders but also realised that most of them weren't tapping the true sailing potential of the boats. So I sat down with my trusty laptop for a couple of hours and worked out one that would sail VERY well, yet retain the cheapness and simplicity.
The first two PD Racers in Australia
Over a month we built, designed and redesigned two PDRs until we got them right. They are now brilliant little sailing boats - one bloke who has a string of national championship titles under his belt had to be escorted back to shore so others could have a go - he was just having too much fun to come back. We had the same problem with the bloke who took the two little girls out (see pics on this page) - he had done windsurfing before but had never sailed a dinghy or yacht before.. People just love the PDRs - they are nice and stable, go where they are pointed and FEEL like a proper boat.
They used three sheets of ply, a couple of litres of epoxy per boat and we used a heap of nasty looking timber (much of it finger jointed radiata pine) left over from a building renovation. It cost us $700 total to get the two boats on the water.
The sail is a polytarp - we worked out an easy design that anyone can build in a night which matches the flexibility of our masts perfectly with the right camber (fullness) for good sailing. The sails cost $30 for the pair - cut out of a bargain basement polytarp with some thread from a "two dollar shop" and an eyelet kit from a camping shop.
At this point in the article the racing guys are all getting hot under the collar - "sails made of polytarp just can't work". I suggest they go to look at the videos online if they have broadband handy - http://tinyurl.com/jlqe3. And then reflect about how much their last boat cost them - and costs to run each year.
If you weren't able to scrounge wood like we did, it would be hard to get the total cost of all materials to get a boat on the water for over $900 to $950. (based on quotes)
Design approach
The changes made to the design simply reflect the Australian tradition of boatbuilding. Our boats are much lighter than most of the previous ones and have more sail area.
The lightness is great not only for performance, but it makes the boats really easy to manage on shore. Although the boat is aimed at adult sailing even a couple of kids can lift the 65 lb (29kg) hull to get it down to the water. The hollow timber mast is light enough for them to lift in and out of position.
The larger sail gives sparkling sailing performance, but is manageable for novice sailors because the mast has been designed to be very flexible and the sail shape has been carefully matched to produce a rig that depowers in gusts to help stop the boat from heeling excessively. You can see this bend in the pictures and videos.
Our boats also have three bouyancy tanks - one at the front and two either side at the back. If the boat capsizes it can be brought upright easily (because the mast is so light) with less than a bucket of water aboard.
The Problem of Participation
Small boat sailing in Australia is in crisis.
The small sailing clubs that used to be in just about every cove and every beach around Australia have largely faded away over the last 20 years. The thousands of small boats sailing boats that used to hit the water each weekend have been fast disappearing.
The reason - here are some current prices for some highly regarded sailing boats
NS14 - boat for two adults - $14,500
Manly Junior - boat for two kids - $7,800
Sabot - boat for one kid - $6,312
Fireball - boat for two adults - $18,500
All these classes were originally drawin up to be cheap boats for family sailing - with the idea that anyone with a jigsaw and a few sheets of ply could whip one up over winter to sail in summer with the family. But they have been victims of an arms race of spiralling costs and technology. The really silly thing is that all that money has been spent just to match the other boats - they all go more or less the same speed.
"You have a carbon fibre mast - I have to have one too!"
Something has gone terribly, terribly wrong. No wonder that when little Mark or Elizabeth ask if they can learn how to sail - dad and mum will suggest that they go to play basketball. Or, all those adult learners who complete sailing school courses and wonder "what now". Who can blame them for thinking that they have ot make a choice between owning a boat or a CAR!
There's been a lack of an introductory level boat for adults and kids that want to get sailing at a sensible cost. Later on they can move to a more fancy boat - or not - as the case may be.
Boating is more than just sailing
I was going to write some paragraphs to talk about how the PDR can be used for rowing, fishing and motoring with a small outboard, but some records from the official website will give you the idea..
Rowing (25/3/06) record: 2.9 mph over 1 mile
Motoring (5/8/06) 2.5 hp Motoring speed: 4.7 kts
Cheap Plans
Plans for someone who hasn't built a boat before have to be REALLY good.
They have to guide them through the process - show them each step with detailed photos and clear drawings. We are confident that the plan we have developed is among the best in the world for levels of detail. It shows how to build all the bits of the boat including the sail.
Normally a plan of this level of detail would sell around the $120 mark but we are trying something novel. We are going to sell the plans over the internet for direct download for under $30 and hope that the number of customers from selling the plans around the world will help cover the thousands of hours we have invested in this project. We will see over the next few months!