Dinghy

A dinghy (or dingey) is a type of small boat, often carried or towed for use as a ship's boat by a larger vessel. The term is a loanword from the Bengali ḍiṅgi, Urdu ḍīngī & Hindi ḍieṁgī. Utility dinghies are usually rowboats or have an outboard motor, but while some are rigged for sailing, they are not to be confused with sailing dinghies which are designed first and foremost for this purpose.

Types

Dinghies usually range in length from about 2 to 6 m (6 to 20 ft). Larger auxiliary vessels are generally called tenders, pinnaces or lifeboats. Folding and take-down multi-piece (nesting) dinghies are used where space is limited. Some newer dinghies have much greater buoyancy, giving them more carrying capacity than older boats of the same size.

125 (dinghy)

The 125 is a 12.5 foot (3.83 m) two person intermediate sailing dinghy complete with main, jib, spinnaker and trapeze. The 125 class has a strong following within Australia with national titles being held every year around the country and local state associations. The class was originally designed as an intermediate class for developing skills with the jib, spinnaker and trapeze but has become popular from novice to experienced sailors.

History

The 125 was designed in 1969 by Simon Greig as a class that would sit between Jack Holt's 3.3 m (10 ft 10 in) Mirror and the larger Mirror 16. As with the Mirrors, the 125 can be assembled from plywood using the "stitch and glue" method, and, as far as possible, the 125 uses Mirror parts in its design. The parallels between the boats go as far as the design of the sail insignia – the 125 employs a design based on the Mirror's symbol lying on its side.

Nevertheless, initial sales were not good, and with the arrival of the Mirror 14 Greig had decided not to continue production. However, John Coomer had built one of the few kits that had been sold, and encouraged Greig to continue producing kits if buyers were available. A new sail plan was developed based on the Flying Junior, and Coomer developed class rules and a constitution for the 125. Yet while his 125, Beauty Bottla, was successful in racing, there was no real demand for the class.