Nordic Folkboat

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The Nordic Folkboat is a clinker-built wooden sloop and it's design was the result of a competition held by the Scandinavian Yacht Racing Unionin 1942. There was no outright winner declared, but rather the best features of all shortlisted entrants brought together by professional designer Tord Sunden to create a craft that has endured for more than 60 years. The first Nordic Folkboat was built in Göteborg in Sweden, and as of 2005, more than 4000 Nordic Folkboat are still sailing around the world.

Key dimensions are:

Length (LOA): 7.68 m, Length on waterline: 6.00 m, Beam: 2.20 m, Sail area: 24.00 m², draft: 1.2m Weight: (min) 1930 kg. The iron ballast keel represents more than half of this displacement making the Folkboat extremely stiff and seaworthy, and it is one of the smallest craft to have made regular ocean crossings and circumnavigations.

Famous examples include Lt. Col. H.G. "Blondie" Hasler's (DSO OBE (1914–1987) Jester, finishing second in the first Observer Singlehanded Trans Atlantic Race in 1960, and Rozelle Raines' Martha McGilda in which she was the first British Woman to sail singlehanded to Russia in the 1960s

In 2005 there were active racing fleets in : Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Germany, United Kingdom, Ireland, Netherlands, Belgium, USA, Canada.

In the United Kingdom, a large fleet has developed on the south coast in recent years, and the class is continuing to expand. The 2004 Folkboat Nationals were hosted by the Royal Lymington Yacht Club.

The Folkboat is also popular cruising yacht especially in the Baltic Sea area, despite its small interior size and lack of a "head".

In 1969 Tord Sundén was commissioned by Marieholms to redesign the Folkbåt for GRP construction, leading to an increase in interior size and displacement.

This new boat type was originally called "International Folkboat" and later renamed to IF-boat or IF-cruiser. However, purists dismiss this piece of 'tupperware' as an unworthy contender to a 'proper' Wooden Nordic Folkboat.

[edit] External links

• Nordic Folkboat International Association
• Official UK Folkboat Website
• San Francisco Bay Folkboat Association
• International Folkboat links
• Swedish IF-Boat association