The Alacrity 19 is a British trailerable

sailboat A sailboat or sailing boat is a boat propelled partly or entirely by sails and is smaller than a sailing ship. Distinctions in what constitutes a sailing boat and ship vary by region and maritime culture. Types Although sailboat terminology ...

that was designed by

Peter Stevenson Peter Stevenson is a former Gaelic footballer who played for the Derry county team in the 1960s and 1970s. Described as a "tower of strength", he won the Ulster Senior Football Championships on three occasions. He was awarded an All Star in 19 ...

as a

cruiser A cruiser is a type of warship. Modern cruisers are generally the largest ships in a fleet after aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships, and can usually perform several roles. The term "cruiser", which has been in use for several hu ...

and first built in 1960.Henkel, Steve: ''The Sailor's Book of Small Cruising Sailboats'', page 19.

International Marine S&P Global Inc. (prior to April 2016 McGraw Hill Financial, Inc., and prior to 2013 The McGraw–Hill Companies, Inc.) is an American publicly traded corporation headquartered in Manhattan, New York City. Its primary areas of business are financ ...

McGraw-Hill McGraw Hill is an American educational publishing company and one of the "big three" educational publishers that publishes educational content, software, and services for pre-K through postgraduate education. The company also publishes referenc ...

, 2010. The Alacrity 19 is a fibreglass development of the wooden Alacrity 18. The design was developed into the Vivacity 20 in 1963.

Production

The design was built by

Hurley Marine Hurley may refer to: Places ;In the United Kingdom: * Hurley, Berkshire * Hurley, Warwickshire * Hurley Common, Warwickshire ;In the United States: * Hurley, Alabama * Hurley, Mississippi * Hurley, Missouri * Hurley, New Mexico * Hurley, Ne ...

and later Russell Marine in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

, with more than 700 built, but it is now out of production. The boat was also imported into the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

by Wells Yachts.

Design

The Alacrity 19 is a recreational keelboat, initially built of wood and later of fibreglass, with wood trim. It has a masthead sloop rig, a

raked stem The stem is the most forward part of a boat or ship's bow and is an extension of the keel itself. It is often found on wooden boats or ships, but not exclusively. Description The stem is the curved edge stretching from the keel below, up to ...

, a

reverse transom A transom is the vertical reinforcement which strengthens the stern of a boat. This flat termination of the stern is typically above the waterline. The term was used as far back as Middle English in the 1300s, having come from Latin ''transvers ...

, a transom-hung

rudder A rudder is a primary control surface used to steer a ship, boat, submarine, hovercraft, aircraft, or other vehicle that moves through a fluid medium (generally aircraft, air or watercraft, water). On an aircraft the rudder is used primarily to ...

controlled by a

tiller A tiller or till is a lever used to steer a vehicle. The mechanism is primarily used in watercraft, where it is attached to an outboard motor, rudder post or stock to provide leverage in the form of torque for the helmsman to turn the rudder. ...

and a fixed dual fin

keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element on a vessel. On some sailboats, it may have a hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose, as well. As the laying down of the keel is the initial step in the construction of a ship, in Br ...

s. It displaces and carries of iron ballast. The boat has a draft of with the standard keels. It is normally fitted with a small outboard motor for docking and manoeuvring. The design has sleeping accommodation for three people, with a single berth on the port side of the bow and two straight settees in the main cabin. The

galley A galley is a type of ship that is propelled mainly by oars. The galley is characterized by its long, slender hull, shallow draft, and low freeboard (clearance between sea and gunwale). Virtually all types of galleys had sails that could be used ...

is located on the starboard side opposite the bow berth. The

head A head is the part of an organism which usually includes the ears, brain, forehead, cheeks, chin, eyes, nose, and mouth, each of which aid in various sensory functions such as sight, hearing, smell, and taste. Some very simple animals may ...

is located under a hanging locker just aft of the bow cabin on the port side. The design has a

PHRF Performance Handicap Racing Fleet (PHRF) is a handicapping system used for yacht racing in North America. It allows dissimilar classes of sailboats to be raced against each other. The aim is to cancel out the inherent advantages and disadvantages ...

racing average handicap of 378.

Variants

;Alacrity 18 :Model was built of wood. ;Alacrity 19 :Model was built of fibreglass and is more than a foot longer in

length overall __NOTOC__ Length overall (LOA, o/a, o.a. or oa) is the maximum length of a vessel's hull measured parallel to the waterline. This length is important while docking the ship. It is the most commonly used way of expressing the size of a ship, an ...

. It was built in Mark I, Mark II and a ''Weekender'' variants.

Operational history

In a 2010 review, American Steve Henkel compared the boat to the Windrose 18 and the

Hunter 18.5 The Hunter 18.5 is an American trailerable sailboat that was designed by the Hunter Design Team as a cruising sailboat and first built in 1987.Henkel, Steve: ''The Sailor's Book of Small Cruising Sailboats'', page 37. International Marine/McGr ...

. He wrote that hull design "indicates a nice shape for fast sailing, except for her pair of stubby keels ... the relatively large wetted surface of which would deter from good performance ... Best features: About the best we can say is that the Alacrity is a nice boat for her vintage ... Worst features: Her two comp etitor, with their shallower board-up drafts, would be easier to launch and retrieve at a ramp. With her shallow twin keels of iron, which rusts, each weighing a mere 240 pounds, she is probably least weatherly, most tender, and slowest in light air compared to her lighter comp etitor with their deeper centerboards, beamier hulls, bigger sail areas, etc—all in all not the boat to seek if performance is at all important to you."

References

{{Trailer sailers and Trailer yachts worldwide Keelboats 1960s sailboat type designs Sailing yachts Trailer sailers Sailboat type designs by Peter Stevenson Sailboat types built by Russell Marine Sailboat types built by Hurley Marine

Production

Design

Variants

Operational history

See also

References