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The Nonsuch line of
In the mid-1970s, Gordon Fisher, a respected Canadian sailor, commissioned designer Mark Ellis to create a design for a cruising sailboat which would have decent accommodations, but still be easy for a singlehander to manage. Ellis designed a Ljungström rig, modified with a
The Nonsuch series of boats are generally considered to be very sturdily built boats. In his review, Paul Howard states that two Nonsuches, David Philpott's "Serenity IV" and Brian Shelley's "Saci IV", were abandoned at sea, found floating months later, and were refurbished and are sailing today.
As of January, 2007, Wiggers Custom Yachts, a Canadian yacht builder located in Bowmanville, Ontario has acquired the molds for the Nonsuch line. Operating under licensing agreements with designer, Wiggers states they will build boats to order. As of October 2009, five Nonsuch 33s have been delivered, with work on another underway.
Regional chapters of the ''International Nonsuch association'' (INA) are organized in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Europe; with the largest fleets on Lake Ontario, and the Eastern U.S. seacoast.
The Nonsuch starts its own class, usually 12-15 boats, in the Spring and Fall Off Soundings race series.
Rendezvous are held every two years, alternating between Canada and the United States. The 2012 Rendezvous was held in Greenport, New York.
catboat
A catboat (alternate spelling: cat boat) is a sailboat with a single sail on a single mast set well forward in the bow of a very beamy and (usually) shallow draft hull. Typically they are gaff rigged, though Bermuda rig is also used. Most are f ...
s is a series of popular cruising sailboats built between 1978 and the mid-1990s by Hinterhoeller Yachts
Hinterhoeller Yachts was a Canadian boat builder based in St. Catharines, Ontario. The company specialized in the design and manufacture of fiberglass sailboats.
The company was originally founded by George Hinterhoeller as Hinterhoeller Limit ...
in St. Catharines, Ontario. They are popular in North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
, with over 950 boats built. The Nonsuch class was named after the ''Nonsuch'' that was the first trading vessel of Hudson's Bay Company
The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC; french: Compagnie de la Baie d'Hudson) is a Canadian retail business group. A fur trading business for much of its existence, HBC now owns and operates retail stores in Canada. The company's namesake business div ...
, which in turn was named after the Baroness Nonsuch (Barbara Palmer
Barbara Palmer, 1st Duchess of Cleveland, Countess of Castlemaine (née Barbara Villiers, – 9 October 1709), was an English royal mistress of the Villiers family and perhaps the most notorious of the many mistresses of King Charles II of ...
), a mistress of King Charles II of England
Charles II (29 May 1630 – 6 February 1685) was King of Scotland from 1649 until 1651, and King of England, Scotland and Ireland from the 1660 Restoration of the monarchy until his death in 1685.
Charles II was the eldest surviving child of ...
.
History
In the mid-1970s, Gordon Fisher, a respected Canadian sailor, commissioned designer Mark Ellis to create a design for a cruising sailboat which would have decent accommodations, but still be easy for a singlehander to manage. Ellis designed a Ljungström rig, modified with a wishbone boom
A boom, in the context of windsurfing, is a piece of equipment that attaches to the mast, providing structural support for the sail. It completely encircles the sail, and is designed to be gripped, allowing the sailor to control the sail for norm ...
, on a 30-foot modern hull with a plumb bow, fin keel and balanced rudder. A beam of nearly 12 feet and cambered house-top created a large interior with accommodation equal to a standard yacht several feet longer. George Hinterhoeller
George Anton Hinterhoeller (1928–1999) was a Canadian boat designer and builder, a significant contributor to the Canadian sailboat industry for almost forty years.
Early life
Hinterhoeller was born in Mondsee, Austria on March 16, 1928. He fi ...
, after some initial reservations about the design, agreed to build the boats, and the first Nonsuch 30
The Nonsuch 30 is a Canadian sailboat that was designed by Mark Ellis and first built in 1978. It was the first the series of Nonsuch sailboats and was scaled upwards and down, to form a complete line of boats, from the Nonsuch 22 to the N ...
rolled out of his shop in the summer of 1978.
Additional models were created in 22, 26, 32, 33, 36 and 45 foot lengths, with the 26 and 30 both available in "Classic" and "Ultra" configurations. The original boats were built with an unstayed, two-piece aluminum mast and wishbone boom
A boom, in the context of windsurfing, is a piece of equipment that attaches to the mast, providing structural support for the sail. It completely encircles the sail, and is designed to be gripped, allowing the sailor to control the sail for norm ...
. In later years, under new ownership, the factory produced new versions of 3 of its models, all with shoal draft keels one-piece carbon fiber
Carbon fiber-reinforced polymers (American English), carbon-fibre-reinforced polymers (Commonwealth English), carbon-fiber-reinforced plastics, carbon-fiber reinforced-thermoplastic (CFRP, CRP, CFRTP), also known as carbon fiber, carbon compo ...
masts. By the time Hinterhoeller closed its doors in January 1996, a total of 975 Nonsuch boats had been built.
Reviewer Steve Killing noted, "The Nonsuch series of cat-rigged sailboats was one of the success stories of the 1980s. The hulls that many thought to be "funny-looking" have now found acceptance".
Today
The Nonsuch series of boats are generally considered to be very sturdily built boats. In his review, Paul Howard states that two Nonsuches, David Philpott's "Serenity IV" and Brian Shelley's "Saci IV", were abandoned at sea, found floating months later, and were refurbished and are sailing today.
As of January, 2007, Wiggers Custom Yachts, a Canadian yacht builder located in Bowmanville, Ontario has acquired the molds for the Nonsuch line. Operating under licensing agreements with designer, Wiggers states they will build boats to order. As of October 2009, five Nonsuch 33s have been delivered, with work on another underway.
Regional chapters of the ''International Nonsuch association'' (INA) are organized in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Europe; with the largest fleets on Lake Ontario, and the Eastern U.S. seacoast.
The Nonsuch starts its own class, usually 12-15 boats, in the Spring and Fall Off Soundings race series.
Rendezvous are held every two years, alternating between Canada and the United States. The 2012 Rendezvous was held in Greenport, New York.
Notes and references
External links
{{Nonsuch sailboats Keelboats Sailboat types built by Hinterhoeller Yachts Catboats