Iroko

Inchcape, Border Minstrel Class Ketch Rigged Motor Sailer

Part 1 Registration - 336296

Built 1968 by Eyemouth Boatbuilding Co.

Yard Build No 176

Naval Architect: James Evans, B.Sc., F.R.I.N.A., M.I.Mech.E

Background

The following is taken from an Eyemouth Boat Building Company brochure from the early 1970s.

The Inchcape class of MFV yachts was introduced in 1963 to meet a growing demand from yachtsmen whose main considerations were sea-keeping ability, spacious and comfortable accommodations and low running costs.  As a class, the Inchcapes are perhaps unique in that they are built on the lines of the traditional motor fishing vessels used by fishermen for seine-netting and trawling off the coasts of Scotland and North East England, with only minor modifications allowed by the naval architect to improve the craft for service as a yacht.  Their sea-kindly hull form and bold sheer will always catch the eye-and-the-heart of the seamen - and indeed all who appreciate that here is something staunch and genuine.

In 1965, the "Border Minstrel" was introduced to meet the requirements from owners for a vessel to sail single-handed over long distances.  The prototype of this vessel was sailed immense distances and crossed the Atlantic twice in her first year of commission, including a crossing in the tremendous gales of 1966.