Starling (dinghy)

sailing dinghy designed by Des Townson.

Origins of the Starling

The Starling class yacht was conceived and the design commissioned by John Peet in the late1960s. At the time there were no single-handed boats available to teenagers for bridging the gapbetween the P class and the adult Finn, OK, Cherokee and Zephyr classes. Many young sailorswere leaving the sport because the step to the adult classes was too great. A stepping stone classwas required. In consultation with parents of current P class sailors a set of criteria was formulatedfor the proposed class: -
* The boat should cater for teenagers not able to cope with adult monotypes.
* Crew weight of approximately 50 – 70 kg.
* The boat should be easily handled in fresh conditions, plane readily and have good windwardperformance.
* The appearance of the boat to be of high priority.
* Buoyancy to be of P class standard.
* Cockpit space for two teenagers or one adult.
* Construction to be simple.
* Very close restrictions so that all boats to have equal performance. e.g. masts from standardaluminium extrusion, sails from the same material and same loft.Des Townson, the designer of the successful Zephyr, Mistral and Dart yachts of the period was approachedto design the boat and he completed this in June 1969. To confirm the simplicity of theconstruction concept, teenager David Peet built the prototype as his first boat-building project. TheStarling was launched at Westhaven, Auckland on Anzac weekend 1970. Extensive testing of theprototype was completed over the following months by dozens of P class sailors. Feedback wasvery supportive and encouraging, with a great deal of enthusiasm expressed for the concept and thefinished prototype.The prototype Starling sailing off the Glendowie Boating Club in the early 1970s. Originally the sail design was fully battened,however this was changed to the current format after feedback from sailors indicated a flexible sail layout was more suitable.

Quote excerpted from StarlingWebIntroduction.pdf [http://www.geocities.com/gbcyachting/StarlingWebIntroduction.pdf ]

Current Starling activities

The Starling is still a popular bridging class between the P Class and senior boats for competitive sailors in many parts of New Zealand and is officially supported by Yachting New Zealand [http://www.yachtingnz.org.nz/] and organised by the Glendowie Boating Club [http://www.gbcyachting.org.nz] . Over 1300 boats have been built. The Starling Nationals in 2006 and 2007 had approximately one hundred and fifty entrants per series.

The New Zealand North Island Championships will be held October 18th-19th 2008 in Parua Bay at the Whangarei Cruising Club

The New Zealand South Island championships will be held December 13th-14th 2008 in Picton at the Queen Charlotte Yacht Club

The 2009 New Zealand Starling Nationals will be held January 17th -23rd in Parua Bay, North Island at Whangarei Cruising Club

External links

* [http://www.geocities.com/gbcyachting/StarlingWebIntroduction.pdf Starling Web Introduction by John Peet ]
* [http://www.gbcyachting.org.nz/starling/index.html Full details of Starling class from Glendowie Boating Club web page ]
* [http://www.yachtingnz.org.nz/index.cfm?pageid=345&parentid=641 Yachting New Zealand details on the Starling and P Class ]
* [http://groups.google.com/group/cpsai/ The google group for New Zealand South Island Starling sailors]
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_IiLjum2uU&feature=related YouTube: Starling sailing in strong winds]
* [http://www.hyc.org.nz/zephyr/navigation/History/DesT-DesignList.html List of Des Townson designs]
* [http://www.hyc.org.nz/mistral/navigation/Starlet/Starlet-Home.html Article on the adaptation of the Starling as a two person boat for 10 year olds]
* [http://www.hyc.org.nz/zephyr/navigation/History/DesT-DesignList.html List of Townson Designs] - from the Zephyr Owners Association website.
* [http://boatbooks.co.nz/yachthist2.html Grahame Anderson (1999) FAST LIGHT BOATS, a Century of Kiwi Innovation]