In mid-May the 22 square metre Caritana left the Stirling and Son yard near Tavistock in Devon, following repairs carried out following an accident in which she was involved in a collision during a race at Cowes last summer.
Here’s what Will Stirling has to say about the project:
‘The repair work took two months to complete and included new timbers, a new sheer plank, deck beam, mast partners, covering boards and re-canvassing of the deck.
‘When we took off the old canvas deck we found a piece of newspaper under it dated 1946. It was only after replacing the canvas (which had to be done in a single piece) that it occurred to us that we should have put the piece of newspaper back with another piece from this year.’
Caritana is number 131 in the Mälar 22 square metre class drawn by the designer Gustav Estlander, and was built in Erik Eriksson’s yard in Strängnäs in 1946.
She is one of a fleet of 22s based at Cremyll, opposite Plymouth.
The fleet is run by Cremyll Keelboats who are organising a regatta to race the boats in Plymouth Sound on the weekend of Saturday 9th and Sunday 10th of June. Boat spaces are available for charter. For more information see the Cremyll Keelboats website.
