Small Boat Designs - 10' to 30'
Tad Roberts Yacht Design

Designer's Comments

  Hero is one of four small sailboat designs created for Tad's article Sailing Cruiser Design -Part 1 PDF published in Wooden Boat #175. Sailing Cruiser Design -Part 2 PDF was published in Wooden Boat #176.

Hero is designed to go to sea and stay there. The quay punts of Falmouth, England, are the ancestors of Hero and of his close relatives such as Laurent Giles's Wanderer III, Lye Hess's Taleisin, and Billy Atkin's designs Fore An' Aft, Ben Bow and Tally Ho!. These boats were the major characters in numerous cruising stories that I grew up with. For me, they represent the epitome of a small, self-sufficient offshore cruiser.

With Hero I have chosen to compromise among these designs, with beam 17 inches greater than that of Wanderer and 11 inches less than that of Taleisin. With a beam/length ratio of 0.33, Hero is close to the early Atkin boats. At 9 foot 10 inches this is right at the wide edge of the normal range of beam for keelboats of this length. Why not the wider and more roomy Hess version? In laying out the sheer in plan view, I just could not make a wider boat come out looking right. To me, Hero has a balanced-looking hull. Wanderer has finer lines than Taleisin, but her interior appears cramped. As well as improving on Wanderer's accommodation, Hero's greater beam will provide decent side decks. The moderate beam also means a very high range of stability; Hero will still have positive stability upside down--at 180 degrees of heel.

The hull, deck, interior, machinery, and rig of Hero will weigh about 6,200 pounds. Ballast will total 6,300 pounds, fuel and water about 1,100 pounds, which leaves about 2,900 lbs for outfitting, crew, and stores. This will just bring Hero down to the designed waterline, and it will take almost 900 pounds more to put Hero down an inch below DWL. When sailing at design weight, Hero's Dellenbaugh heel angle will be 16.4 degrees, average for this size cruiser. I have extended the forward overhang considerably from that of the plumb-stemmed quay punt derivatives, the Hess and Atkin designs. Hero is closer to the Laurent Giles model and has more buoyancy and deck space forward. It also moves the inner forestay forward, giving us a lower-aspect staysail. The spoon bow pulls the lines out and, in my opinion, gives the boat a more graceful and less dated look.

 

Hero 29'6" Offshore Cutter Modified to a Pilothouse Ketch: A recent enquiry prompted the modification of the 29’6” heavy-displacement ocean cruising cutter Hero to a pilothouse ketch.  The shorter rig with three small working sails will be easy to handle and balance, while the pilothouse adds versatility and comfort in the winter months.  

This arrangement will see her interior re-arranged with a double quarter berth opposite the inside helm, head and galley midships, and twin berth/seats forward with dining table between.  This version would be intended as a coastal cruiser and the larger cockpit reflects that.