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The largest tall-ship sailing the US flag the USCGC Eagle is to visit Waterford and northern Europe in 2011 during the vessels 75th anniversary celebrations, according to a report in TheDay.com.
The United States Coastguard Cutter operates the sail-training vessel which is to depart next summer from her homeport of New London, Connecticut on the 7 May. The ports of call are Waterford, 27-30 May; Hamburg, Germany, 3-6 June; London, 10-13 June; Reykjavik, Iceland, 24-27 June; Halifax, Nova Scotia, 15-18 July; Boston, Mass., 22-25 July; New Bedford, Mass., 29 July- 1 August and New York 5-8 August.

"This is a great opportunity to tie the Eagle's rich history directly into the annual cadet summer training at sea," said Capt. Eric C. Jones, commanding officer. "By the time the ship arrives in Hamburg, the cadets will have shared in an experience that the Coast Guard Academy has shared with prospective officers for 65 years- learning to live and work on the ocean aboard a tall ship."

USCG Eagle is also the only active square-rigger in U.S. government service. Originally the three-masted barque was commissioned for the German Navy. In 1936 the vessel was launched as Horst Wessel from the Blohm & Voss Shipyards, Hamburg. A decade later the 295-foot vessel was taken as war reparation to the U.S Government.

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Previewing Ireland's Tall Ships 2011 Season


Can Ireland Get a New Tall Ship?

Published in Tall Ships

The GP14 is a popular sailing dinghy, with well over 14,000 boats built.

The class is active in the UK, Ireland, Australia, South Africa, Sri Lanka and parts of north-eastern USA, and the GP14 can be used for both racing and cruising. 

Designed by Jack Holt in 1949, with the assistance of the Dovey Yacht Club in Aberdyfi. The idea behind the design was to build a General Purpose (GP) 14-foot dinghy which could be sailed or rowed, capable of also being powered effectively by a small outboard motor, able to be towed behind a small family car and able to be launched and recovered reasonably easily, and stable enough to be able to lie to moorings or anchor when required. Racing soon followed, initially with some degree of opposition from Yachting World, who had commissioned the design, and the boat soon turned out to be an outstanding racing design also.

The boat was initially designed with a main and small jib as a comfortable family dinghy. In a design philosophy that is both practical and highly redolent of social attitudes of the day the intention was that she should accommodate a family comprising parents plus two children, and specifically that the jib should be modest enough for "Mum" or older children to handle, while she should perform well enough to give "Dad" some excitement when not taking the family out. While this rig is still available, and can be useful when using the boat to teach sailing, or for family sailing, and has some popularity for cruising, the boat is more commonly seen with the full modern rig of a mainsail, genoa and spinnaker. Australian boats also routinely use trapezes.

GP14 Ireland Event Dates 2023

  • O'Tiarnaigh (Apr 22-23) Blessington Sailing Club
  • Ulsters (May 20-21) East Antrim Boat Club
  • Munsters (Jun 17-18) Tralee Bay Sailing Club
  • Leinsters (Jul 7-9) Dun Laoghaire Regatta
  • SOYC (Aug 19-20) Rush Sailing Club
  • Nationals (Sep 1-3) Sutton Dinghy Club
  • Hot Toddy (Sep 30-Oct 1) Royal North of Ireland Yacht Club

 

At A Glance – GP14 Dinghy Specifications

Crew 2
Draft 1,200 mm (47 in)
Hull weight 132.9 kg
LOA 4.27 m (14 ft)
Beam 1.54 m
Spinnaker area 8.4 m2
Upwind sail area 12.85 m2

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