Magnificent men and their flying machines

Two ambitious Cherub sailors are starting a 12ft skiff class in the UK

Within the last ten years high performance skiff sailing has taken off in the UK in a big way. We have seen the 18ft Skiff fleet grow to one of the biggest domestic fleets in the world and have had Olympic success in the Australian born 49er. Now another Australian skiff is on its way to our shores, a class many believe to be the most extreme sailing boat currently on the water: the 12ft Skiff.

The 12ft Skiff, like many Australian born skiff classes, originates some time back in the late 1800s. During the early part of the 20th Century the boats continued to develop until a significant leap around the 1950s saw the boats much more easily recovered from a capsize and as a result more practical to sail. This led to boats being taken to New Zealand providing the opportunity for an Australia/New Zealand Championship which in turn led to increased competitiveness and development. Since then the boat has not really taken off in any other countries and has remained solidly in the southern hemisphere….until now.



One of the men responsible for finally bringing the class to the UK after many years of discussion is Alan Atterbury. Atterbury, a long time Cherub sailor, has dreamed of sailing 12ft skiffs for almost 20 years since he saw a picture of one in the Guinness Book of Records of all places. In 1995 he managed to make part of that dream a reality when he was offered a sail on one when out in Sydney. Since then there he has regularly thought about and discussed importing a boat from Australia but it was not until the early part of this year he was actually able to do it. “Back in February myself and Bob Clements, who I have sailed with for 20 years in the Cherub, decided it was about time we stopped talking and actually got on with it,” says Atterbury.

Atterbury and Clements renewed talks with both the Australian and New Zealand class associations who helped find two boats to be sent over (below.) Kindly the Australian 505 sailors found some space in their containers on the way to their World Championship in Hayling Island recently enabling Atterbury and Clements to import boats with minimal shipping cost.



With the boats only having arrived in this country five weeks ago it is surprising to note the first event to be held was in Weymouth two weeks ago. This first event is being followed by a National Championship in Torbay on at the moment (20-23 August) and another event sailed from Weston SC, just around the corner from TheDailySail office, on 9-10 September. Finally there is potentially one last event of the year at Lee on Solent which has yet to be confirmed.

Clearly two boats is not exactly a fleet but there are in fact a great deal more potential boats in this country and Atterbury was expecting about six at the National Championship. “Basically there were two complete boats imported from Australia; there were also rigs from a third boat that came over and are going onto a Cherub,” Atterbury explains. “The Cherub measures as a 12ft skiff in principal other than a few subtle differences, the main difference being the weight. A Cherub is 5kg heavier by its measurement rules.” Beyond the weight issue the other big difference between a Cherub and a 12ft skiff is the sail area. On the Cherub the sail area is restricted whereas on the 12ft skiff there is no limit whatsoever. As Atterbury notes, “The size of your rig depends largely on how brave you are feeling.”

There are, in total, four Cherubs converting to 12ft skiffs by putting on larger rigs, all of whom should be present at the National Championship in Torbay. The Cherub class – never particularly huge but with a loyal following – we presumed would be somewhat worried about this new Australian cousin coming over to the UK and stealing all of its members. However, Atterbury says this is definintly not the case. “It is a strange thing because Bob (Clements) and I are both from a Cherub background and we both hold the Cherub very fondly. We see it as our background and our training ground for sailing 12ft skiffs. We are very keen for the Cherub to fulfil that role for others, as a feeder class for the 12ft skiff class. The Cherub is a superb piece of equipment, it is very good and we rate it highly and we certainly do not see it as a direct clash,” he comments.

It quickly becomes clear the Cherub issue is one Atterbury has spent sometime thinking about and he along with Clements have worked out a viable feeder system whereby both classes benefit. “I think the Cherub class’ initial reaction was that we might be a direct threat. However, after talking together I think they have now realised this might be a good thing for them because we will generate publicity and they win some of that. They will not be in isolation or competition, we see there being a synergy between the two. For us we think we need the Cherub to feed people into the 12ft skiff so it should work both ways,” he says.

Certainly if the Cherub is so easily converted to a 12ft skiff it seems to make sense to buy one and get to grips with that before buying a new rig and progressing into the 12ft skiff fleet. In fact this relationship is very similar to the 29er/29erXX although the 9er combination is different with its roots firmly in one design racing.

One of the most interesting aspects of the 12ft skiff – and one which makes it very media friendly - is the unlimited sail size. Wary of carrying vast amounts of sail area in heavy winds many 12ft skiffs have multiple mast and sail configurations. “Some boats have three masts; some boats have two and some people use jumpers to step the mast up. Some people have three sets of sails, some have four. There are endless combinations but to keep it simple if you work on the basis of three masts and three suits of sails then you are about right,” explains Atterbury.

Although this must clearly make the boat very impressive to watch, effectively it is fully powered up in almost any wind strength, the potential cost of all the additional equipment must be significant. “Well, having multiple rigs does effect the cost and that is a fear we face from many people,” states Atterbury. “In reality the cost of a brand new 12ft skiff in the country is about £15,000, which is very cheap for the amount of equipment you are buying.”

The price Atterbury quotes is based on importing boats and rigs from Australia but this may not be the case for too long. Andy Patterson of Bloodaxe boats – builder of International Canoes and Cherubs among others – is just one boat builder who will be having a go at building a UK 12ft skiff with many more potential builders said to be interested. The rigs, however, are a slightly different story. “We will probably end up continuing to import the rigs from Australia. The cost of a mast and full suit of sails is comparatively low over there and it seems like the best way of keeping the cost down,” Atterbury comments.

Looking beyond the events for this year Atterbury’s hope is to have more boats either imported or converted for a full racing season in 2007. As a part of this plan the class would like to bring in some sponsorship to help increase the rate of growth and try to get a fully fledged circuit with a significant number of boats by 2008. “We are currently in discussions with the Australian and New Zealand class associations about holding a Tri-Nations Championship here in the UK. So far they all seem very keen to come over to the UK and make the event happen for 2008,” he says. This would add a much more international feel to the class, currently there are only home events aside from the Interdominions every year between Australia and New Zealand.



Currently the class has some support in the shape of Blue Boat TV, a film production company who specialise in sailing. They are working with the newly formed class to pull content together which can then be sent out across a variety of different delivery media. The current hope is this footage will in turn drive investment in terms of advertising back into the class helping to generate a bigger and more sophisticated fleet.

The newly formed class association are taking suggestions for any venue suitable for skiff sailing and is spectator friendly to host an event on the 2007 circuit. If your home club thinks it has what it takes the class association can be contacted through their website, www.12footskiff.com. We hope the class succeeds over here and we certainly look forward to witnessing some big thrills and spills in the coming years.