When Outward Bound decided to retire the pulling boats in which it teaches students self sufficiency at sea, it held a design competition for the replacement for an iconic vessel that for 40 years has fulfilled an iconic mission.
In its winning submission, Rodger Martin Design studied the design brief, not the old boat. The requirement that the boat be rowed by six people with 13-foot oars established the sheer height amidships, and much of the rest of the design flowed from that. The boat is self bailing, it has positive flotation, and a sharpie sailing rig of two identical spritsails set on unstayed carbon-fiber masts. All the rig’s components stow down the center of the boat, alongside the centerboard trunk. Each of the six students has a rowing seat with personal stowage while the two instructors keep quarters in the stern.
The Hurricane Island 30 is now being offered to sailors looking for something a little different in a gunkholer.
