The Mirage 29 is a Canadian
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 terminolo ...
, that was designed by
Philippe Harlé Philippe is a masculine sometimes feminin given name, cognate to Philip. It may refer to:
* Philippe of Belgium (born 1960), King of the Belgians (2013–present)
* Philippe (footballer) (born 2000), Brazilian footballer
* Prince Philippe, Count o ...
and first built in 1986.
The Mirage 29 design is often confused with an unrelated design, the British
Thames Marine Mirage 29 first built in 1983.
Production
The boat was built by
Mirage Yachts
Mirage Yachts Limited was a Canadian boat builder initially based in Pointe Claire, Quebec, a suburb of Montreal and founded by Dick and Irene Steffen. The company specialized in the manufacture of sailboats.
The company was founded in Februa ...
in
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
, which completed 290 examples, starting in 1986, but it is now out of production.
Design
![Mirage 29 sailboat Ink Spot 1993](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/88/Mirage_29_sailboat_Ink_Spot_1993.jpg)
The owners of Mirage Yachts, Dick and Irene Steffen, were looking for a newer design to replace the
Robert Perry-designed
Mirage 27 in the product line. In 1985 the Steffens asked a number of different designers to provide preliminary designs for a boat in the same class. The winner was Philippe Harlé, who was selected to complete his design. It was introduced in the spring of 1986 as the Mirage 29 and became a quick success, with 50 boats sold before the first one had been delivered and 290 built in total. As a result of this success, Harlé went onto design the
Mirage 275 in 1986 and
Mirage 39 in 1989.
The Mirage 29 is a recreational
keelboat
A keelboat is a riverine cargo-capable working boat, or a small- to mid-sized recreational sailing yacht. The boats in the first category have shallow structural keels, and are nearly flat-bottomed and often used leeboards if forced in open w ...
, built predominantly of
fiberglass
Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass ( Commonwealth English) is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass clo ...
, with wood trim. It has a
masthead sloop
A masthead rig on a sailing vessel consists of a forestay and backstay both attached at the top of the mast.
The Bermuda rig can be split into two groups: the masthead rig and the fractional rig. The masthead rig has larger and more headsails, ...
rig, an internally-mounted spade-type
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 air or water). On an aircraft the rudder is used primarily to counter adve ...
and a fixed 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 ...
. It displaces and carries of ballast.
The boat has a draft of with the standard keel.
The boat is fitted with a
Volvo
The Volvo Group ( sv, Volvokoncernen; legally Aktiebolaget Volvo, shortened to AB Volvo, stylized as VOLVO) is a Swedish multinational manufacturing corporation headquartered in Gothenburg. While its core activity is the production, distributio ...
diesel engine
The diesel engine, named after Rudolf Diesel, is an internal combustion engine in which ignition of the fuel is caused by the elevated temperature of the air in the cylinder due to mechanical compression; thus, the diesel engine is a so-ca ...
of . The fuel tank holds and the fresh water tank also has a capacity of .
The boat has a
hull speed
Hull speed or displacement speed is the speed at which the wavelength of a vessel's bow wave is equal to the waterline length of the vessel. As boat speed increases from rest, the wavelength of the bow wave increases, and usually its crest-to-t ...
of .
Operational history
In a review Michael McGoldrick wrote, "This boat is an excellent example of the newer boats which were built in the mid to late 1980s (just before most of the sailboat manufacturers in Canada closed their doors). The Mirage 29 has a long waterline, a bow with little overhang, a large but relatively shallow cockpit, an aft head, and aft cabin with a double berth which extends under the cockpit. These are all features found on many French boats which became so popular in the latter half of the 1980s...One of the main attractions of these boats is an enclosed aft cabin... People over 6 feet tall may find most of the berths on Mirage 29 a little short."
See also
![Mirage 29 sailboat Ink Spot 1649](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b5/Mirage_29_sailboat_Ink_Spot_1649.jpg)
*
List of sailing boat types
Similar sailboats
*
Alberg 29
*
Bayfield 29
The Bayfield 29 is a Canadian sailboat that was designed by Ted Gozzard as a cruiser and first built in 1978.
Production
The design was built by the Bayfield Boat Yard in Canada from 1978 to 1983, with 350 boats completed, but it is now out ...
*
C&C 29
*
Cal 29
The Cal 29 is an American sailboat, that was designed by William Lapworth and first built in 1971.
A special cruising version was designated as the Cal 2-29.
Production
The boat was built by Cal Yachts in the United States, between 1971 and ...
*
Hunter 290
*
Island Packet 29
The Island Packet 29 is an American sailboat that was designed by Robert K. Johnson as a cruiser and first built in 1981.Sherwood, Richard M.: ''A Field Guide to Sailboats of North America, Second Edition'', pages 246-247. Houghton Mifflin Co ...
*
Northwind 29
*
Prospect 900
*
Tanzer 29
The Tanzer 29 is a Canadian sailboat, that was designed by the French company of Joubert-Nivelt and first built in 1986.
Production
Production of the boat was commenced in 1986 by Tanzer Industries of Dorion, Quebec. The company entered bankru ...
*
Thames Marine Mirage 29
*
Watkins 29
References
External links
{{Mirage Yachts
Keelboats
1980s sailboat type designs
Sailing yachts
Sailboat type designs by Philippe Harlé
Sailboat types built by Mirage Yachts