27. Designing the Boat You Want to Sail: Steve Dashew on Becoming a Yacht Designer
October 7, 2026 · 56 min · 578 views
What this video covers
Steve Dashew and his wife Linda transitioned from high-performance multihull sailing to long-distance cruising on a 50-foot Columbia 50 yawl named Intermezzo.9:23 After gaining experience on the yawl, they identified significant design flaws common to the era, including unbalanced steering and poor performance in adverse conditions.13:06 Their cruising experience highlighted the critical link between boat speed and safety, particularly when navigating reef-strewn passages like the route from Tonga to Fiji using only sextant and dead reckoning.16:18 A near-miss with breakers during an overcast passage, combined with the observation that one in ten boats in their cruising fleet failed to reach New Zealand due to reef encounters, solidified their belief that higher speeds reduce exposure to navigational risk.19:13 While in New Zealand, they considered purchasing a Herreshoff 57 hull but ultimately rejected the idea due to construction concerns.19:40 Exposure to the performance of a 60-foot home-built yacht named Inasmara eventually inspired them to design their own vessel to address the shortcomings of their previous boats.20:26
Boats in this video
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