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An amateur yacht designer from Tasmania took top honors in a design competition held for Cruising World magazine readers, in affiliation with Westlawn Institute of Marine Technology and Island Packet Yachts. The contest, which drew entries from all over the world, was won by Richard Boult, whose Quick Clinker 31 achieved a well-reasoned and interesting design with "clean hull lines and appearance," the judges said. Boult, who designs commercial ferries, received a $1,000 check in addition to recognition in the August issue of Cruising World.

A total of 53 submissions came in from aspirants all over the globe in response to the search for an inventive boat design of between 30 and 60 feet LOA and capable of serious cruising with two or more people for a minimum of three weeks.

Two larger designs also received recognition:

First runner-up was Keimpe Reitsma of the Netherlands, whose Cruising Sailyacht 57 Feet was praised by the judges as "a beautiful, attractive, practical boat."

Second runner-up was Paulo Bisol of France, whose Deep Blue 48 has a "nicely proportioned design with pleasant relationships between the visual masses," the judges said.

The panel of judges represented top professionals from every sector of the marine industry: Dave Gerr, director, Westlawn Institute of Marine Technology; Norm Nudelman, provost, Westlawn Institute of Marine Technology; Chris Wentz, president, Z-Sails; Bob Johnson, founder and president, Island Packet Yachts; Rod Johnstone, co-founder, J/Boats; Bruce King, yacht designer; and Jeremy McGeary, CW contributing editor. Gerr, Nudelman and Wentz whittled the group of submissions down to 10 finalists and then turned them over for grading and comment to Johnson, Johnstone, King and McGeary.

Boult, who worked briefly for Hall of Fame yacht designer Ben Lexcen in the late '80s, has been interested in boat design from an early age, but has spent most of his career working on commercial vessels. "I hope to use the cash award," he said, "to develop a Web site, upgrade some computer software, and try to develop a yacht-design business."

To read more about Boult's Quick Clinker 31 and the nine other finalist designs, log on to the Cruising World website. Web site readers are also invited to participate in a poll and rank the designs as they would judge them, at www.cruisingworld.com/designfinalists. Details of the 2008 contest will be announced in an upcoming issue and on the Cruising World website.

Cruising World is one of more than 40 special-interest magazines published by Bonnier Corp. and is based in Middletown, R.I. The Westlawn Institute of Marine Technology offers yacht design and other courses in naval architecture out of Mystic, CT. Island Packet Yachts is a premier boatbuilder offering high-quality cruising sailboats built in its facility in Largo, Fla.


Contacts:

Cruising World: John Burnham, 401-845-5100
Westlawn: Caroline Chetelat, 410-990-4460, ext. 22
Island Packet Yachts: Bob Johnson, 727-535-6431

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