The Vanguard 15 is an American
sailing dinghy
Dinghy sailing is the activity of sailing small boats by using five essential controls:
* the sails
* the foils (i.e. the daggerboard or centreboard and rudder and sometimes lifting foils as found on the Moth)
* the trim (forward/rear angle o ...
that was designed by
Bob Ames as a
one-design racer and first built in 1992.
[Sherwood, Richard M.: ''A Field Guide to Sailboats of North America, Second Edition'', pages 54-55. Houghton Mifflin Company, 1994. ]
Production
The design was built by
Team Vanguard in the United States and later by
LaserPerformance, but is no longer in production.
Design
The Vanguard 15 is a recreational
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 ...
, 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 ...
. It has a
fractional sloop rig with
aluminum
Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. It ha ...
spars, 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 vertical
transom, 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 air or water). On an aircraft the rudder is used primarily to counter adve ...
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 retractable
daggerboard. It displaces and is capable of
planing upwind.
The boat has a
draft
Draft, The Draft, or Draught may refer to:
Watercraft dimensions
* Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel
* Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail
* Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a vesse ...
of with the daggerboard extended and with it retracted, allowing
beaching or ground transportation on a
trailer or car roof rack.
For sailing the design is equipped with a
boom vang
A boom vang (US) or kicking strap (UK) (often shortened to "vang" or "kicker") is a line or piston system on a sailboat used to exert downward force on the boom and thus control the shape of the sail.
The Collins English Dictionary defines it ...
and the
mainsail
A mainsail is a sail rigged on the main mast of a sailing vessel.
* On a square rigged vessel, it is the lowest and largest sail on the main mast.
* On a fore-and-aft rigged vessel, it is the sail rigged aft of the main mast. The sail's foot i ...
and
jib
A jib is a triangular sail that sets ahead of the foremast of a sailing vessel. Its tack is fixed to the bowsprit, to the bows, or to the deck between the bowsprit and the foremost mast. Jibs and spinnakers are the two main types of headsail ...
have windows for improved visibility. The
halyard
In sailing, a halyard or halliard is a line (rope) that is used to hoist a ladder, sail, flag or yard. The term ''halyard'' comes from the phrase "to haul yards". Halyards, like most other parts of the running rigging, were classically made of ...
s are external and the mast is of a non-tapered design. The boat is normally raced with a crew of two
sailor
A sailor, seaman, mariner, or seafarer is a person who works aboard a watercraft as part of its crew, and may work in any one of a number of different fields that are related to the operation and maintenance of a ship.
The profession of the s ...
s.
Operational history
In a 1994 review Richard Sherwood wrote, "the Vanguard 15 is designed for college/yacht club racing fleets. Rig is simple, and the boat is a strict one-design. The deck is rounded, for easy hiking ... With the daggerboard and light weight, the boat may be easily dry sailed — often helpful for fleet sailing."
In 2014, a Vanguard 15 one-design racer, John Storck III, reported that the boat was falling out of favor with college sailors and that attendance at regattas was declining.
See also
*
List of sailing boat types
References
External links
*
{{Sailing dinghies and skiffs
Dinghies
1990s sailboat type designs
Sailboat type designs by Bob Ames
Sailboat types built by Team Vanguard
Sailboat types built by LaserPerformance