Enquiries
Chris Koper, Designer
Sea K Designs
Listowel, Ontario, Canada
chriskoper@hotmail.com
519-291-6396
Chickadee Class InformationThe Chickadee was introduced, like a duckling, to her new element - the water! The Chickadee swims! She sails! She flies! Comments received from junior sailors:
What is a Chickadee?She is a 12 ft x 3.9 ft scow-style junior trainer that delivers performance that is outstanding - so showing young people how exciting sailing can be. Her speed on a reach is the high point, in flat water or waves, with a ride something like a sailboard - but the sailor remains seated! With low hull and all up weight - 90 lbs bare hull and 125 lbs fully rigged, and 70 sq ft of sail, she is as responsive as much larger sailboats. She is a beauty to boot!Chickadee PerformanceShe showed her pedigree - being quick to plane and agile when surfing the waves in winds of around 15 - 20 knots. Big waves give the opportunity to enjoy a series of wonderful high-speed rides, combining the power of the wind and waves. Turning down off the crest causes her to accelerate into the trough - sheet in the sails and off she goes!Chickadee sailorsThe Chickadee is intended to be the logical next step for young sailors graduating from an Optimist or similar. She perfectly fills the gap between the Optimist and the usual two-person Club trainers like the 420 or Flying Junior.Smaller juniors can sail her two-up; when they become big enough, they may prefer single-handing, still using the jib. In this way the Chickadee is versatile in purpose, and the boat is usable for teenagers growing over a period of several years longer than other boats. The ratio of sail area to weight creates a boat that is very responsive. Responsiveness teaches learners how to become great sailors - skills that are transferable to any other boat. Chickadee Design featuresThe Chickadee design is based on the legendary South African Dabchick, with over 3,500 built and after almost 50 years, still the primary training boat there. The design differences reflect what we have learned since about performance and construction.The small non-overlapping jib is easy to handle for young crews, or for single-handing teenaged juniors. The powerful mainsail sports a substantial roach area and promotes good performance on all points of sail. The maximum beam of the boat has been located so it is at the best location for hiking. The dished cockpit is unique. The concavity is 8 ft long, 28” wide, and 4” deep, with a semi-circular sectional shape. This gives sufficient feeling of space and comfort and creates a hull that is twist-free and completely self-draining. Flooding the cockpit becomes a non-issue, as all water drains out through the centerboard case or the open transom. The foredeck has 2½” of camber to improve the aesthetics, strength, and performance in waves. The scow shape is a significant contributor to performance, as her width is carried well forward, producing a broad surface that adds stability and promotes early planing. In light winds, heeling about 10 degrees reduces wetted surface drag. The depth of the Chickadee hull is only 16”, so combined with a low weight, this makes it easy for her to be carried on her side through a doorway, and for car topping. She can also be double, triple or quad stacked on a suitable trailer. Chickadee SailsHer two sails total 70 square feet including the large roach area and full-length top batten. The sail plan features a relatively small jib at 18 sq ft. This allows a smaller child to handle the jib confidently, and simplifies sail handling for single-handers. The 52 sq ft mainsail gives good drive on all points of sail. Once fleets are established, racing will be with both sails, whether being sailed single or double handed.The sails are sourced exclusively from North Sails South Africa, and were developed from decades of experience with the Dabchick Class. The mainsail is (optionally) built of Mylar reinforced with a loose woven scrim sandwiched between two layers of film, while the jib is of Dacron, better lasting in that application. |
Building a Chickadee
The Chickadee is currently available only by building at home, school, or club. This is a great opportunity to learn about boat building, in a package that is not too difficult to handle. The time invested makes her an ideal winter building project for adult-and-junior teams.Sailing schools will find her a well-chosen project, and can build a small fleet over the off-season. A supervising parent needs only a degree of common sense, some manual and electric woodworking tools, and a space to work in. (Many Dabchicks have been built by 15-16 year-olds.)
Okoume marine plywood and Philippine Mahogany lumber are needed. Epoxy and fiberglass tape are used for reinforcement, gluing, and for saturating all of the wood so that the boat is made impervious to moisture. Expect about 130 hours for building her.
The Plan-Set includes drawings (in AutoCAD) with full size frame sections, well detailed building directions & illustrations, materials lists for building and fitting out, and registration of the boat in the class association.
The Building Kit (for the hull only) includes 4½ sheets BS 1088 grade plywood, pre-sized Philippine mahogany lumber, one gallon epoxy resin, glass fiber tape, fastenings, epoxy rollers, brushes and gloves.
Three Chickadees can be built for the price of one Club 420, or two for the price of a Byte!
