Mirage 24

The Mirage 24 is a Canadian sailboat, that was designed by Cuthbertson & Cassian as a Midget Ocean Racing Club (MORC) racer and first built in 1972. The design is out of production.[1][2][3]

Mirage 24
Development
DesignerCuthbertson & Cassian
LocationCanada
Year1972
Builder(s)Mirage Yachts
Boat
Boat weight3,700 lb (1,678 kg)
Hull
TypeMonohull
ConstructionFiberglass
LOA23.83 ft (7.26 m)
LWL20.08 ft (6.12 m)
Beam8.42 ft (2.57 m)
Hull draft4.00 ft (1.22 m)
Engine typeoutboard motor
Hull appendages
Keel/board typefin keel
Ballast1,500 lb (680 kg)
Rudder(s)transom-mounted rudder
Rig
GeneralMasthead sloop
I (foretriangle height)28.00 ft (8.53 m)
J (foretriangle base)9.00 ft (2.74 m)
P (mainsail luff)23.30 ft (7.10 m)
E (mainsail foot)8.30 ft (2.53 m)
Sails
Mainsail area96.70 sq ft (8.984 m2)
Jib/genoa area126.00 sq ft (11.706 m2)
Total sail area222.70 sq ft (20.690 m2)

The boat was built by Mirage Yachts in Canada and was their first production design. It is a development of the Cuthbertson & Cassian designed Northern 1/4 Ton.[1]

Design

Dick and Irene Steffen owned a yacht dealership for C&C Yachts, in Pointe Claire, Quebec. The company had been very successful selling C&C boats, but the C&C line did not offer a boat smaller than the C&C 27 at that time. Dick Steffen was a competitive sailing racer and thought that there would be a good market for a C&C-built 24 foot keelboat for MORC racing. At his request Cuthbertson & Cassian designed the boat, but decided not to proceed with production at C&C. Steffen bought the design from them and founded Mirage Yachts in February 1972 to build the boat.[4]

Mirage 24
Mirage 24

The Mirage 24 sold well and the company soon had 15 employees building the boat model in their rented second floor facility in Pointe Claire. One factor driving the Mirage 24's strong sales was its racing record in MORC class events. Even 15 years after its introduction a Mirage 24 won the production boat division in the MORC national championships.[4]

Caught off guard by the success of the design, C&C decided to produce a competitor, the C&C 25, which was very similar to the Mirage 24's design. The Mirage 24 continued to sell well and usually beat the C&C 25 in competition.[4]

The Mirage 24 is a small recreational keelboat, built predominantly of fiberglass. It has a masthead sloop rig, a transom-hung rudder and a fixed fin keel. It displaces 3,700 lb (1,678 kg) and carries 1,500 lb (680 kg) of ballast.[1][2]

The boat has a draft of 4.00 ft (1.22 m) with the standard keel. It has a hull speed of 6.00 kn (11.11 km/h).[1][2]

Operational history

In a review Michael McGoldrick wrote, "The Mirage 24 belongs in that Canadian Sailboat Hall of Fame if only because it is the boat which launched Mirage Yachts...The Mirage 24 is pretty boat with a fair amount of interior space. This boat did very well in the MORC fleet, and its owners report that its performance really starts to shine in medium winds."[5]

Variants

Mirage 24
Mirage 24
Mirage 24
This model was introduced in 1972 and fits the standard height mast.[1][2]
Mirage 24 SM
This model was introduced in 1972 and fits a mast that is shorter than the standard mast by about 1.5 ft (0.46 m). The boat has a PHRF racing average handicap of 228 with a high of 224 and low of 234.[6][7]
Mirage 24 TM
This model was introduced in 1972 and fits a mast that is taller than the standard mast by about 1.5 ft (0.46 m). The boat has a PHRF racing average handicap of 228 with a high of 231 and low of 222.[8][9]

See also

Related development

Similar sailboats

References

  1. Browning, Randy (2017). "Mirage 24 sailboat specifications and details". sailboatdata.com. Retrieved 27 March 2017.
  2. InterVisionSoft LLC (2017). "Sailboat Specifications for Mirage 24". Sailing Joy. Retrieved 27 March 2017.
  3. Browning, Randy (2017). "C&C Design". sailboatdata.com. Retrieved 27 March 2017.
  4. Browning, Randy (2017). "Mirage Yachts Ltd (CAN) 1972-1989". sailboatdata.com. Retrieved 27 March 2017.
  5. McGoldrick, Michael (2018). "Mirage 24". Sail Quest. Retrieved 24 July 2018.
  6. Browning, Randy (2017). "Mirage 24 SM sailboat specifications and details". sailboatdata.com. Retrieved 27 March 2017.
  7. InterVisionSoft LLC (2017). "Sailboat Specifications for Mirage 24 SM". Sailing Joy. Retrieved 27 March 2017.
  8. Browning, Randy (2017). "Mirage 24 TM sailboat specifications and details". sailboatdata.com. Retrieved 27 March 2017.
  9. InterVisionSoft LLC (2017). "Sailboat Specifications for Mirage 24 TM". Sailing Joy. Retrieved 27 March 2017.
  • Media related to Mirage 24 at Wikimedia Commons
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