Suhaili

Suhaili
Sailing vessel Suhaili in Gosport, UK in 2018
Sail no 306242
Designer(s) William Atkin
Launched 1963
Owner(s) Robin Knox-Johnston
Racing career
Skippers Robin Knox-Johnston
Notable victories Sunday Times Golden Globe Race
Specifications
Displacement 9,876 kg (9.720 long tons; 10.886 short tons)
Length 9.8 m (32 ft)
Sail area 61.8 m2 (665 sq ft)

Suhaili is the name of the 32-foot (9.8 m) Bermudan ketch sailed by Sir Robin Knox-Johnston in the first non-stop solo circumnavigation of the world in the Sunday Times Golden Globe Race.[1]

Design and Construction

Suhaili was built in Bombay with the help of Royal Bombay Yacht Club, India in 1963. She follows plans designed by William Atkins for "Eric" in 1923. Her design is based on the Norwegian sailing lifeboat designs of Colin Archer.

Specification[2][3]
1963
LOA 13.41 m (44.0 ft)
LWL 8.53 m (28.0 ft)
Beam 3.37 m (11.1 ft)
Draught 1.67 m (5.5 ft)
Thames Tonnage 14
Net Tonnage 6.29 Tons
Keelson 1’ 2” x 10" - 22ft in Length
Planking 1 ¼" Indian Teak

Notable Appearances

In 1997 Suhaili went to the National Maritime Museum at Falmouth as an exhibit, but the controlled atmosphere began to shrink her planking, and, unwilling to see her die this way, Sir Robin Knox-Johnston removed her in 2002 and re-fitted her again. She still belongs to RKJ and is currently being slowly re-fastened at the Elephant Boatyard at Burseldon, Near Southampton, UK with the objective of getting her back into commission.

Suhaili was one of a number of prestigious vessels moored along the route of the Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant, to celebrate the diamond jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II. Due to her size, she was not part of the flotilla, and was instead moored with other vessels at St Katharine Docks, in a display known as the Avenue of Sail.[4]

Suhaili was also the vessel described in Sir Robin Knox-Johnston's 1969 book A World of My Own, which details his famous first non-stop solo circumnavigation of the world in the Sunday Times Golden Globe Race.

References

  1. ↑ Knox-Johnson, Robin (1969). A World of My Own. Cassel.
  2. ↑ "Suhaili". Retrieved 2017-06-20.
  3. ↑ "Sir Robin Knox-Johnston refits his famous yacht Suhaili". Retrieved 2017-06-20.
  4. ↑ "Participation in the Pageant". Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant. Archived from the original on 2012-08-06.
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