John G Alden And His Yacht Designs

At the present time, fulfilled by their lifelong passion for wooden boats, and with their children-Kathy, Nat, and Sarah-out on their own, Anne and Maynard are searching for a vintage Vespa motorscooter and the youthful feeling that goes with it.

Olin Stephens is the most successful racing-yacht designer of the 20th century, a legend in his own time almost from the day in 1931 when he and his brother Rod and father Roderick, Sr. finished a transatlantic race to England in the revolutionary 52' yawl Dorade a full two days ahead of the competition. His autobiography begins with youthful family sailing, moves on to Six-Metre designs and victories, to J-Boat experience in the 1930s, to war work in the 1940s, to American Cup design and sailing from 1958 to 1983, and to a fleet of great cruising and racing yachts in between. This personal history of Olin and his brother, Rod, of the renowned design firm of Sparkman and Stephens, and of international yachting in this century, is informed, introspective, eloquent.

This guide to yacht designing includes discussions of contemporary design and materials as they influence the yacht designer's work. Written primarily for the beginner, the book first gives directions for the use of tools and suggestions for material and other equipment. Successive chapters cover specific problems relating to the preliminary design, the lines, construction and joiner plans, and sail plans, with full discussion and directions for handling the many problems involved. A significant chapter describes in detail the complete process of drawing the lines of a yacht as it is done in practice.

This book tells the life story of Boston-born aviation pioneer and yacht designer W. Starling Burgess.