The Cal 20 is an American

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 C. William Lapworth and first built in 1961.

Production

The boat was built by

Cal Yachts Cal Yachts (also known as Jensen Marine and Cal Boats) was a manufacturer of performance oriented fiberglass sailboats from the 1960s to the 1980s. The Costa Mesa, California, headquartered company was founded in 1957, among the earliest of all ...

in 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 Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

from 1961 to 1975, but it is now out of production. The Cal 20 was seen by Canadian Al Nairne during a visit to

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. Nairne convinced Jack Jensen of

Jensen Marine Cal Yachts (also known as Jensen Marine and Cal Boats) was a manufacturer of performance oriented fiberglass sailboats from the 1960s to the 1980s. The Costa Mesa, California, headquartered company was founded in 1957, among the earliest of a ...

to allow him to produce the Cal 20 under licence in Canada and formed Calgan Marine in North Vancouver for that purpose. Calgan Marine went on to produce many Cal Yachts designs, plus designs of its own. A total of 1,945 Cal 20s were built during its 14-year production run.

Design

The Cal 20 is a small 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 cl ...

. It has a fractional

sloop A sloop is a sailboat with a single mast typically having only one headsail in front of the mast and one mainsail aft of (behind) the mast. Such an arrangement is called a fore-and-aft rig, and can be rigged as a Bermuda rig with triangular sa ...

rig, 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 ...

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 ...

with a weighted bulb. It displaces and carries of ballast. The boat has a draft of with the standard keel fitted and is normally fitted with a small

outboard motor An outboard motor is a propulsion system for boats, consisting of a self-contained unit that includes engine, gearbox and propeller or jet drive, designed to be affixed to the outside of the transom. They are the most common motorised method ...

for docking and maneuvering. The boat has a PHRF racing average handicap of 279 with a high of 291 and low of 270. It 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 2010 review Steve Henkel wrote, "best features: She is fast and easy to sail. A 46% B/D ratio, with a bulb keel concentrating her ballast low, gives her good stability. An outboard well located in the cockpit keeps the engine under the helmsman’s control. And for those looking for camaraderie, the big network of Cal 20 fleets (largely on the West Coast) will be attractive. Worst features: Fin keel with bulb makes the boat a chore to launch at shallow ramps. Also, the boats are among the oldest fiberglass boats around, and most will require more strenuous than ordinary maintenance to keep in top condition. The keel (made of iron, which rusts), keel bolts, and surrounding fiberglass are common causes of concern."Henkel, Steve: ''The Sailor's Book of Small Cruising Sailboats'', page 89.

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 refere ...

, 2010.

References

{{Calgan Marine Keelboats 1960s sailboat type designs Sailing yachts Sailboat type designs by Bill Lapworth Sailboat types built by Cal Yachts Sailboat types built by Calgan Marine

Production

Design

Operational history

See also

References