flying scot sailboat data

Flying scot

The flying scot is a 19.0ft fractional sloop designed by gordon k. douglass and built in fiberglass by tanzer industries ltd. since 1958., 5300 units have been built..

The Flying scot is an ultralight sailboat which is a very high performer. It is stable / stiff and has a low righting capability if capsized. It is best suited as a racing boat.

Flying scot for sale elsewhere on the web:

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• Sailboat Guide

Flying Scot

Flying Scot is a 18 ′ 11 ″ / 5.8 m monohull sailboat designed by Gordon K. (Sandy) Douglass and built by Tanzer Industries Ltd., Douglass & McLeod, Customflex, Loftland Sail-craft Inc., and Flying Scot, Inc. starting in 1958.

• 1 / 2 Alexandria, VA, US 1992 Flying Scot $9,000 USD View
• 2 / 2 Alexandria, VA, US 1992 Flying Scot $9,000 USD View

Rig and Sails

Auxilary power, accomodations, calculations.

The theoretical maximum speed that a displacement hull can move efficiently through the water is determined by it's waterline length and displacement. It may be unable to reach this speed if the boat is underpowered or heavily loaded, though it may exceed this speed given enough power. Read more.

Classic hull speed formula:

Hull Speed = 1.34 x √LWL

Max Speed/Length ratio = 8.26 ÷ Displacement/Length ratio .311 Hull Speed = Max Speed/Length ratio x √LWL

Sail Area / Displacement Ratio

A measure of the power of the sails relative to the weight of the boat. The higher the number, the higher the performance, but the harder the boat will be to handle. This ratio is a "non-dimensional" value that facilitates comparisons between boats of different types and sizes. Read more.

SA/D = SA ÷ (D ÷ 64) 2/3

• SA : Sail area in square feet, derived by adding the mainsail area to 100% of the foretriangle area (the lateral area above the deck between the mast and the forestay).
• D : Displacement in pounds.

Ballast / Displacement Ratio

A measure of the stability of a boat's hull that suggests how well a monohull will stand up to its sails. The ballast displacement ratio indicates how much of the weight of a boat is placed for maximum stability against capsizing and is an indicator of stiffness and resistance to capsize.

Ballast / Displacement * 100

Displacement / Length Ratio

A measure of the weight of the boat relative to it's length at the waterline. The higher a boat’s D/L ratio, the more easily it will carry a load and the more comfortable its motion will be. The lower a boat's ratio is, the less power it takes to drive the boat to its nominal hull speed or beyond. Read more.

D/L = (D ÷ 2240) ÷ (0.01 x LWL)³

• D: Displacement of the boat in pounds.
• LWL: Waterline length in feet

Comfort Ratio

This ratio assess how quickly and abruptly a boat’s hull reacts to waves in a significant seaway, these being the elements of a boat’s motion most likely to cause seasickness. Read more.

Comfort ratio = D ÷ (.65 x (.7 LWL + .3 LOA) x Beam 1.33 )

• D: Displacement of the boat in pounds
• LOA: Length overall in feet
• Beam: Width of boat at the widest point in feet

Capsize Screening Formula

This formula attempts to indicate whether a given boat might be too wide and light to readily right itself after being overturned in extreme conditions. Read more.

CSV = Beam ÷ ³√(D / 64)

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Why would I want to sail one? index

• The boat is an outstanding daysailer or gunkhole cruiser.
• The racing is great.
• The boat is easy to sail.
• The boat is easy to trailer.
• You can take the whole family along.
• They're faster than most small "cruising" keelboats.
• They're indestructible and last forever.
• The class association is one of the most active in North America.

Think of it as an overgrown College 420 with an attitude. Or as a cross between a JY-15 and a J/24. Or as a miniature 30 footer that you can trailer -- and actually afford. Better yet, come out and try one; you'll enjoy it!

Why is it called the Flying Scot? index

"Believe it or not, my biggest problem in designing the Flying Scot was in deciding on a good name for the class and then in designing a suitable emblem because with some 600 'classes' already on record [as of 1957], the field had become somewhat restricted. 'Flying Scot' has been the name of the famous London-to-Edinburgh express, and there also was a famous yacht of the [Eighteen] Nineties by that name. It seemed to be a good choice." -- Sandy Douglass

What is that funny squiggle in the class logo? index

Sandy's original idea for the class logo involved the words "Flying S" with the S slightly above and to the right...

...but that would have made the emblem very difficult for a sailmaker to reliably reproduce, so the rest of the word "Flying" was filled in with a solid color, and became the familiar squiggle.

How was the Flying Scot designed? index

"While my years of experience had given me a pretty definite conception of the planing family racing boat which was needed in the 19-foot field, I had not introduced such a boat because for many years, the Lightning had dominated that field; and it wasn't until 1956 that I thought that her hold could be challenged....

"Designing the hull was no problem because I already had a clear idea of what was needed for a planing family boat. Such a boat should have the safety of wide side decks, but also a roomy cockpit.

"How could I resolve this problem? The solution was to lower the deck and to shape it into the form of seats, thus combining the advantages of both. Why had no one before thought of this?

"The engineering of the structure was another matter. Fiberglass offers opportunities, but also presents problems. Being denser than wood it must be thinner, and being thinner it lacks stiffness and must be handled differently. It is flexible, and yet flexing can be its greatest enemy because it can lead to cracking.... When I learned that a balsa sandwich was being tried, I decided to go in this direction....

"I had built her with a 250 pound centerboard to make her self-righting, but found that much weight to be unnecessary for stability as well as undesirable in other ways. (Aren't we glad that I cut the weight down to 100 pounds?) I also soon found that while the seats kept out the spray they also held quite a puddle of water and that drains were most desirable....

"The boat had to have flotation.... The solution to the problem we found to be to use fiberglass straps, but to insulate them from the styrofoam with strips of waxed paper which protect the foam until the resin has cured." -- Sandy Douglass

Why doesn't the Flying Scot have... index

Has anyone famous sailed in Flying Scots? index

Sandy Douglass, Greg Fisher, Andy Fox, Larry Klein, Tom Ehman... (I know I'm forgetting quite a few - PTD)

And, maybe... you?

Is there a fleet near me? index

Yes, Fleet 42 is based at the same marina as the Goddard Sailing Association, at Selby Bay Sailing Center . Goddard sailors can join Fleet 42 and participate at fleet events.

Where can I find more information? index

You may find more information, among others, at the Flying Scot Sailing Association , at the Flying Scot company or at flyingscotracing.com .

What do I need to do to get my boat ready to race? index

Here's what we did during our first racing season on FS 4340, which had been extensively daysailed but never raced before 1995:

I'm getting killed upwind! What am I doing wrong? index

One of the Scot's little quirks is that the jib fairleads are in a spot that causes them to sheet the sail about four degrees too far outboard. (The Collegiate 420 has the same problem.) To fix the problem, tie your jib sheets together about eight inches off the clew, and put enough tension on the weather jib sheet to bring the upper jib batten parallel to the boom. The clew will wind up roughly in the middle of the leeward seat, as a rule of thumb. A main with a window in the upper part of the luff that lets you see the upper jib batten can be very helpful.

What you don't want to do is overtrim the weather sheet, which stalls the jib leech and closes the slot; you can tell when that is happening by the backwind that you get in the main luff. The more you weather sheet, the narrower the "groove" gets, which can actually be helpful -- the Scot's groove is unnaturally wide to begin with, and it's easy to be fooled into sailing too low or to miss shifts. However, in light air, heavy chop, or if you're having trouble holding the boat in the groove, the weather sheet can profitably be eased or left off.

What about cruising? index

Since there's so much room aboard a Flying Scot, including enough storage space for camping gear and supplies, many fleets organize cruises up and down coastlines or among groups of islands. A week-long cruise through the Thousand Islands is planned following this year's North American Championships, for example. Information about organized Flying Scot cruises frequently appears in the class newsletter, Scots 'n Water.

Raising and lowering the mast is a major pain! index

Getting the mast up and down on older boats can be a trying process, involving a good deal of trial and error and fumbling. Fortunately, on newer boats, there is a pin on a hinge just aft of the mast step that greatly simplifies stepping and unstepping the mast. With the mast hinge, you just hook up the sidestays, slide the mast into the pin on the hinge, attach the jib halyard to your trailer winch, and have one person in the boat guiding the mast to prevent it falling sideways while the other cranks the mast up to vertical. Hook up the forestay, and you're done! Reverse the process when taking down.

Older boats can have the mast hinge retrofitted fairly easily. The hinge only costs $15, and is one of the better investments that you can make. If you're within easy driving distance of the factory, they'll also install the bow bag and transom port for you for very little while you're there. Even if you aren't close to the factory, the hinge doesn't look to be particularly difficult to install yourself, and it will save you a lot of grief.

If you have an older boat with no mast hinge, you can simulate the effect of having a hinge by placing the butt of the mast in the tabernacle and following the above procedure, either using the trailer winch or walking forward from stern to midships while holding the mast overhead. The tabernacle will prevent the mast from falling over sideways while you're bringing it to vertical (which is the reason why it's there). Once the mast is vertical, hook up the jib halyard to the bow plate (not the tack shackle), and lift the mast from the tabernacle up to the mast step. Then hook up the forestay, and you're all set.

What about safety in a capsize? index

Because the Flying Scot is so beamy and has a very heavy centerboard that provides a good deal of counterweight, capsizes are rare. In fact, it can be difficult to intentionally capsize the Flying Scot to leeward when the centerboard is down, since the boat develops uncontrollable weather helm as it heels over, which heads the boat into the wind until the sails stall. Most Flying Scot capsizes occur during downwind legs of races in heavy, puffy air, when the centerboard is up, the boat is not being sailed conservatively, and the spinnaker is almost doubling the boat's total sail area.

2024 Allen Douglas Memorial Sportsmanship Award

The Lake Eustis Sailing Club did an amazing job managing h to accommodate the 81 entrants for the 2024 Midwinters and 54th GWBR Regatta. The competitors voted for Ray Laguna and his regatta team as recipients of the 2024 Allen Douglas Memorisl Sportsmanship award. Congratulations and thanks to LESC!

2024 Midwinters at Lake Eustis - it’s a Wrap

Championship winners Tyler and Carrie Andrews and Challenger winners Henry Picco and Jeff Bott. Thanks so much to Lake Eustis Sailing Club for a great event! Full results with crew names are at  https://fssa.com/content/2023-2024-florida-district-5-midwinters-and-54t... . Photos courtesy of John Cole;

Friday -  https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/...

2024 Midwinters at Lake Eustis - Day 3

We had 2 races today in the rain and great wind. Watch for results here;  https://theclubspot.com/regatta/NlXOS3p10P/results

2024 Midwinters at Lake Eustis - Day 2

We are under postponement on shore at Lake Eustis - first until 11 AM, now unti 1PM. Hoping for a little more wind. tried again at 2pm but no luck. No racing today, but we'll have a nice dinner tonight and try again in the morning.

We are under postponement on shoe  at Lake Eustis - first until 11 AM, now unti 1PM. Hoping for a little more wind.

The Boat That Stays With You

Please feel free to call us, 8-4 Eastern, Mon-Fri.

Flying Scot Inc.| 800-864-7208 | 301-334-4848 | [email protected]

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