29er Dinghy: World’s coolest yachts

Yachting World has been asking top sailors and marine industry gurus to choose the coolest and most innovative yachts of our times, and inshore/offshore champion Hannah Diamond nominated the 29er Dinghy. Here’s the report:

“When I moved out of Oppies, I wasn’t sure I wanted to sail,” Diamond recalls. “I tried the 420 for a little bit, but for whatever reason, it just didn’t click. And I lost the love with sailing completely – from being completely obsessed to not really wanting to go. My dad arranged for a friend to take me out for a sail in his 29er. And in that hour, I found my smile, my passion for sailing just instantly came back.”

The 29er youth skiff is a natural feeder for many of the high performance classes. “My career path doesn’t look anything like what I expected it to. And a lot of the things I’ve ended up doing have put themselves in front of me rather than me really searching for them, which I’ve been really lucky with.

“But if I hadn’t sailed the 29er, I wouldn’t have had the fast boat pedigree. I probably wouldn’t have had the confidence to go into the Nacra 17, which then played into the SailGP.

“So one lunchtime sail at a winter youth squad actually sent me down the path I’ve ended on now.”

29er dinghy stats rating
Top speed: 19 knots
LOA: 4.4m/14.4ft
Launched: 1998
Berths: 0
Price: £15,000
Adrenalin factor: 75%

For Yachting World’s list of cool boats, click here.