Forgotten classics The 21-Footers: a unique Australian sailing class
WHY DO SOME ONE-DESIGN YACHTS ENDURE while others wither into obscurity? Why does the Dragon still prosper after 82 years while – if they survive at all – the Bluebird (1947) and Thunderbird (1958) seem to serve mainly as mooring minders? The answer is probably a combination of factors – performance, aesthetic appeal, durability, patronage, competitive fleets and resale value – but there’s no doubt particular designs find that ‘sweet spot’ and enjoy extended popularity. Others rise and fall within a few decades, for reasons that can be difficult to fathom. This splendidly detailed new book contains some clues to this mystery, tracing all the influences that determined the initial success and then slow decline of a uniquely Australian class. 74
Signals 135 Winter 2021
The prototype of the class, Idler, was built in Melbourne in 1909 to a design by Charles Peel. It was 24 feet long, 21 feet on the waterline, with a beam of 8 feet and 2 foot 3 inch draught. Sail area on a lug, gaff or gunter rig was around 450 square feet with a small bowsprit. The maximum drop of the plate keel was 3 foot 6 inches and it sailed with a crew of six. Idler was quick, and within a few years its rough dimensions became the basis of the 21-foot restricted class rule. The outbreak of World War I halted further development, but in the early 1920s racing resumed with gusto in Port Phillip Bay. The class then spread to Sydney, with the sail area of the Sydney boats reduced by 25 square feet in response to the sudden gusts on Port Jackson.
