This page is dedicated to on going and future projects. Periodically, we will update this page to reflect our progress. The aim will always be to finalise a design and make these yachts available in the near future.

3rd October 2025

Pringle (US1m) Project Launch

At last, today we finally launched my new design Pringle (US1m). It is my design introduction to the class after 7 years of development. In 2018, I visited the Space Coast club in Florida and was welcomed by a local club skipper called Art Lent. He passed a transmitter into my hands and told me to race his boat. After the event and with a creditable win, Art sent me away with his words echoing in my ears, ‘go and build your own’. I was hooked!

After 18 months, I managed to create my own hull shape but unfortunately production of a prototype was shelved due to Covid. Finally in 2022, I travelled to Mason Park, Los Angelese to compete in my first US1m Championships. The sole purpose of racing was to learn about the class and to see if my design was as competitive than the rest of the boats. Finishing mid-fleet, I realised there was still a lot of work to do.

That said, I understood what changes I had to implement into the project. However, another 3 years would pass before finalising the new hull design for 'Pringle'. One contribution was because the major events would remain in California, the extra expense travelling from the UK was beyond my budget, so again the project was shelved until I relocated to Florida in February and heard the news that this year's class championship would be hosted by my local club Space Coast MYC.

Therefore, the project was again restarted and over these months finalised at last.  I wish to thank Damian Ackroyd for his time and effort building this lovely US1m. Now it is all about the racing.

27 August 2025

Akula (IOM) 2026

Having thoroughly tested my Akula (IOM) over a long period both in the UK and US, I'm now ready to proceed with mould creation.

The newly tweaked 'Akula' hull shape will include new foils which have also been developed as part of this project, whilst employing a low ratio rig seen on other recent IOM designs.  My plan is to finalise everything over the winter and produce the first moulded Akula (IOM), aiming for a UK launch in the spring of 2026.

26 June 2025

USA Club Racing

A fleet of 9 boats arrived for a club race at Hobert Park, Vero. However, the skippers involved mostly appear towards the top half of the US (IOM) Ranking system. During the event 14 races were completed in light to medium wind speed conditions. There was some close competition and it provided a great opportunity to gauge the performance of my Akula (3D) prototype. We return to the UK in September.

27th May 2025

Bahamas (IOM) Championship

Despite a small fleet the quality of competition was very high as all of the skippers above me feature towards the top end of the US ranking list, or sail regularly within the US racing circuit. Therefore, I was happy just to race against these guys and hang in there.

In general terms, I was pleased to achieve some good scores and my prototype 3D (IOM) remained competitive. Therefore, I think I have achieved enough evidence, with a few tweaks to move forward with my design and think about a proper moulded version of 'Akula' in time for 2026.



Local TV News Report. https://youtu.be/f1qo8mXyP-I

21 April 2025

Gillette (IOM) Construction Images

I am pleased to receive new pictures on the construction of a second Gillette (IOM) within the UK. The hull is being constructed from ‘Obeche’ wood with ‘Spruce’ highlights, covered in a thin layer of glass for strength.

Since the launch of the Gillette design a handful of plans have been distributed, but these are the first construction images received from the home builder. For more information on this IOM, go to the Gillette (IOM) Kit page on this website.

24 March 2025

My new  Akula '3D Prototype' competed in its first US regatta. The Region 7 Championship is the equivalent to a UK (IOM) Ranking race. The event had a fleet of 30 skippers all using top quality and well-established boats. I was pleased to finish the regatta in 10th place and this result provides a solid base for collecting evidence of my design's performance. After competing, I continue to make further improvements to my boat prior to the next regatta, which potentially could be towards the end of May.

29 December 2024

The 'Akula' hull is a 3D printed prototype IOM which has been put together by myself and Damian Ackroyd. In a short number of weeks we have managed to finish the project, launching during the New Year period. In the coming months, 'Akula' will be trialled in the US and if successful, it is hoped we can move forward by creating the moulds, to make this our primary IOM design later in 2025.