Classnotes
BY VANESSA BIRD‘S
ailing surfboards’ is how one
magazine described the
C-Scow in the 1970s, and it’s
hard not to agree when you see a
picture of one of these 20ft (6.1m)
boats, with scow bow, skimming
dish hull and generous cat rig that
towers over the water.
It’s a design that originates from
1905, and is one of a series of scows
that took the lakes of the Midwest
USA by storm during this and the last
century, providing exhilarating
sailing at top speeds, and combining
manoeuvrability with epic
acceleration. It was introduced as a
smaller version of the A-Scow, a
38-footer (11.6m) that designer John
O Johnson had developed around
1900 when he built Minnezitka, a
revolutionary new scow for inland
racing. Minnezitka’s success on the
race course kick-started Johnson’s
career as a boatbuilder and Johnson
Boat Works, which the Norwegian
émigré had set up in 1896, became
one of two leading scow builders at
White Bear Lake, Minnesota.
The C-Scow was designed for a
crew of two or three, depending on
weather conditions, and featured
twin bilgeboards – asymmetric foils
either side of the centreline that can
be raised and lowered according to
the point of sail – a single aluminium
rudder and 216sq ft (20m^2 ) of
bermudan mainsail.
Originally construction of the
C-Scow was of double-planked
white cedar, with a ¼in (6mm)-thick
layer laid lengthwise on top of an(^1) / 8 in (3mm)-thick diagonal layer,
glued and screwed on to white oak
timbers. A canvas-covered ¼in
(18mm) cedar deck and mahogany
trims completed the hull.
Wooden boats continued to be
built by the yard until the late 1970s,
although by this time GRP hulls were
also popular, built initially by
Forester Boats in Wyoming, but later
taken back in-house. In recent years,
the C-Scow has been built by Melges
Performance Sailboats, which has
also had a long association with the
class, after Harry C Melges Snr built
his fi rst one in 1945. It was one of
the fastest boats built, and today the
fi rm builds the design in GRP.
According to enthusiasts, sailing a
C-Scow is pure exhilaration, and they
are fast both up and downwind.
They are best sailed at a heel angle of
20-25°, at which point the waterline
length of the hull increases, while the
wetted surface area, and friction,
decreases, and the boat is able to slice
through any waves. It’s not a boat for
the fainthearted, though, as these
20-footers are relatively light, and
can be very tough boats to handle
and keep upright. One report of a
regatta on White Bear Lake records
40 C-Scows capsizing, including the
winning boat, which capsized three
times during the course of the race.
With minimal freeboard, they are
very wet boats, and suit the fl at water
of lakes, where they plane easily.
Today’s C-Scow is a one design,
but although the principle hull shape
remains the same, it has seen
considerable development over time
in the quest for speed. Consequently,
many owners changed their boats
every year to remain competitive,
thus swelling numbers and keeping
the class alive, and there are now
fl eets in Canada and 15 US states.
THE D-SCOW
The D-Scow is a sloop-rigged
version of the C-Scow, which was
introduced in 1945. It shared the
same hull design as the C-Scow,
but had twin rudders and carried
225sq ft (20.9m^2 ) of sail. But the
design never achieved the
popularity of the C-Scow, and
production soon ceased.
CREW WEIGHT
The ideal crew weight for a
C-Scow in heavy weather
conditions is 500lb (227kg). But
in lighter conditions, less crew
weight is preferred. Until 1981,
however, crew weight was
restricted to just 475lb (215kg)
for all conditions.
JOHNSON BOAT WORKS
John O Johnson established
Johnson Boat Works in 1896 and
the yard continued to build boats
until 1998. From 1900 onwards it
became renowned for its scow
building, building a range of
classes including the 38ft (11.6m)
A-Scow, 32ft (9.7m) B-Scow, 20ft
(6.1m) C and D-Scows, 28ft
(8.5m) E-Scow and the 16ft
(4.9m) M-Scow. The yard also
built iceboats and the 16ft Class X
for youngsters. According to a
former employee the yard rarely
advertised its services, reasoning
that “if they made good boats,
they’d sell themselves”.
THE PRICE
In 1972 a C-Scow cost $2,400
(c£1,600). Today, secondhand
C-Scows cost from $1,200
(c£800), depending on age
and condition.
MOLLY PORTER
Vanessa’s book, Classic Classes,
is a must-buy. Please bear in
mind that this book provides
only a snapshot of the myriad
classes in existence.
SPECIFICATIONS
LOA
20ft (6.1m)
BEAM
6ft 9in (2.1m)
DRAUGHT
3ft 3in/20in
(1m/51cm)
SAIL AREA
216sq ft (20m^2 )
DISPLACEMENT
650lb (295kg)
DESIGNER
John O Johnson
BUILDER
Johnson Boat
works
Next Month
ZULU
The
C-Scow
The fl at-bottomed C-Scow, designed by John O Johnson,
celebrated its 110th anniversary in 2015