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The Sailboat With No Wires Holding Up the Mast
29 June 2026 · 13 min · 51K views
What this video covers
The Nonsuch 30, a Canadian cat-rigged sloop built from 1978 onward, carries a freestanding mast with no shrouds, no forestay, no backstay, and no headsail — just a single 540-square-foot sail on a wishbone boom.▶ 3:52 Conceived by Gordon Fisher, designed by Mark Ellis, and built by Hinterholer Yachts in St. Catharines, Ontario, the boat was a deliberate departure from conventional sloop design.▶ 0:56 At 30 feet 4 inches LOA with an 11-foot-plus beam, it delivers interior volume closer to a 35-footer, with a real galley, head, and storage.▶ 4:13 Tacking requires no sheet work — the bow passes through the wind and the sail crosses on its own, making the boat genuinely shorthanded-friendly.▶ 5:37 The boat points to roughly 45 degrees and performs best on a reach, where the absence of standing rigging lets the sail open fully.▶ 7:19 Key purchase risks include a large, heavy sail that demands good halyard hardware or electric winches, controlled jibing in breeze, mast-step and deck-partner integrity, and balsa coring used in both deck and hull.▶ 9:42 Westerbeke diesels were common.▶ 10:17 Prices run $50,000 and up.▶ 11:04 The Nonsuch 30 suits shorthanded coastal cruising but is not recommended for ocean passages, where rig failures have occurred.▶ 11:18
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