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Introduction to the OK-Dinghy

 

Technical Overview

By Donald Andrews

Technically speaking, the OK Dinghy is :

  • a single handed dinghy
  • 4 m long
  • 1.5 m wide
  • 72 kg hull weight
  • hard chine construction
  • built of wood, grp or 'composite'
  • home built or professionally built
  • sailed by men or women between 60 - 95 kg (or less or more!)
  • a mast of carbon fibre - though this may be of wood or aluminium
  • foils of wood, which may be sheathed with grp (metal centreboard is permitted)
  • a sail of 8.5 square m
  • comfortable side decks and 'sitting out' position
  • rig, sail and controls chosen to suit the owner's physique and personal preferences
  • controls which effectively control sail shape
  • full and reliable buoyancy arrangements

The OK is inexpensive to campaign : new home built boats, competitive at any level, have been put on the water for less than 2,500 Euro.

Even this price could be reduced if previously owned equipment, such as a cut down Finn mast, were used.

The very top of the range, ready to sail, new boat would cost about 8,000 Euro.
Competitive, previously owned boats can be acquired for as little as 1,500 Euro.

Trim guide

Nick Craig wrote a brief trimming guide, older guides are not much help anymore as the class went for carbon masts in 2003.
The guide is in pdf format, for easy print out.
Trim Guide (PDF, 48 KB)

 

Famous Sailors

The following is a limited list of world-class sailors who sail, or used to sail, the International OK Dinghy.

  • Ib Andersson (DEN), 1st Soling Worlds '73
  • Poul.R. Hoj Jensen (DEN), Soling 2x gold medal olympics, 1st Dragon Worlds
  • Jørgen Lindhardsen (DEN), 1973 Soling World Champion (crew), 1977 Soling Vice World Champion (crew), competitor olympic games '76 Finn, 1981 & 1985 2nd Finn Europeans, 1983 1st Finn World Ranking, 3rd Finn Gold Cup '85, 14 times National DEN Champion Finn
  • Bjørn Westergard (DEN), 1st Finn Europeans, competitor '96 olympics
  • Stig Westergard (DEN), 2x 1st Finn Gold Cup, Soling, competitor olympics '92, '96, Volvo Ocean Race (2001/2 djuice)
  • Mike McIntyre (GBR)
  • Rolf Vrolijk (NED/GER) Yacht Designer, many winning racing yachts including Alinghi
  • Hans Horrevoets (NED) (VOR 1997/98 BrunelSunergy, VOR 2005/06 ABN AMRO TWO). He sadly died in the 2005/06 edition of the VOR at the age of 32
  • Rod Davis (USA/NZL) competitor olympics: 1984 (Soling gold), 1992 (Star Silver), 1996 - Team New Zealand Americas Cup Team
  • Peter Waymouth (NZL), Americas Cup (2003: OneWorld)
  • Tony Mutter (NZL), Volvo Ocean Race (2001/2 SEB, 2005/6 ABN AMRO ONE)
  • Leith Armit (NZL), Finn, Yachtsman of the Year NZL
  • Peter Blake (NZL), 1st Whitbread, Jules Verne-Trophy, America's Cup
  • John Cutler (NZL), America's Cup helmsman
  • Chris Dickson (NZL), America's Cup helmsman
  • Richard Dodson (NZL), tactitian winner America's Cup '95, 2000
  • Tom Dodson (NZL), olympics 1988 - crew winner America's Cup '95, 2000
  • Craig Monk (NZL), 3rd Finn olympics '92, crew winner America's Cup '95
  • Greg Wilcox (NZL)
  • Marc Reynolds (USA), 1st Star Worlds, gold medal olympics '92
  • Jochen Schümann (GER), 3 gold, 1 silver medal olympic games (Finn & Soling), several worlds titles, America's Cup helmsman and afterguard (2003 & 2007: win with Alinghi)
  • Frank Butzmann (GER), competitor olympics '96 Star
  • Tom Gosch (GER), Int. 14-foot dinghy, 3rd worlds '95
  • Alexander Hagen (GER), 2x Star Worldchampion, olympic competitor 1988
  • Bernd Jäckel (GER), Soling crew gold medal '88, '96, 1st worlds and europeans
  • Thomas Jungblut (GER), helmsman winner Admiral's Cup, Soling, Star
  • Ekard Kaphengst (GER), Tornado competitor '84 olympics
  • Kai Graf (GER) yacht design researcher, substantial design work for several Americas Cup projects.
  • Murks Nissen (GER), Star, Dragon
  • Lutz Patrunky (GER), 470
  • Phillip Pudenz (GER), windsurfing
  • Reemt Reemtsma (GER), yacht helmsman (Abap/4, Rubin), Dragon
  • Peter Wrede (GER), Soling competitor '88 olympics
  • Mateusz Kusnierewicz (POL), Finn, Starboat, World champion, olympic games: 1996 (Finn Gold), 2000, 2004 (Finn Bronce), 2008, 2012
  • Frederik Lööf (SWE), 1st Finn Gold Cup, competitor olympics '92, '96, 2000 (Finn Bronce), 2004, 2008 (Star Bronce), 2012 (Star Gold), Star European & World Champion, Volvo Ocean Race
  • Mats Caap (SWE) Finn, competitor olympics '88
  • Lennart Heselius (SWE), (former Gustavsson), 2nd Finn Europeans, 3rd Finn Worlds (first half 70s)
  • Guy Lilljegren (SWE) ,Gold,Silver and Bronze Finn Europeans, Silver,Bronze Finn Worlds, Competitor Professional Windsurfing World Tour, Silver,Bronze Raceboard Worlds.
  • Kent Carlsson (SWE), 3 times Olympic competitor, 76, 80, 84 4th Olympics Star 84
  • Stefan Jarudd, Bronze Europeans Ice-yachting
  • Lennart Persson (SWE), 2 nd Europeans Soling -86, 7 th Olympics Soling -88
  • Ingvar Bengtsson (SWE), Bronze Finn Worlds 85, Olympic Competitor Finn -84
  • Magnus Olin (SWE), World Champion Finn -75, Silver Worlds -73
  • Björn Forslund (SWE), bronze Snipe Eurpeans 2000
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