Olin Stephens
Posted: Tue May 06, 2003 3:44 pm
I recently treated myself to a double book purchase....
1. "All This and Sailing Too" Autobiography of Olin J. Stephens II's design career.
2. "Lines" A collection of Sparkman & Stephens lines drawings, each with about a 200 word commentary.
Though published a few years apart, these texts complement each other perfectly. I can't imagine having read the autobiography without having the large drawings on hand for reference.
I swear I've learned more about yacht design in these past weeks than I have in my whole life. Dave Gerr's "The Nature of Boats" is also a good why-things-are-the-way-they-are text, but these S&S books are far more specific to sailing yachts, and they do NOT bother with dumbing it down for the newcomer. It's primarily a narrative of his career path, but there are some techno-heavy parts. If you don't already have a good handle on the basics of drag and stability, you'll be lost in these parts of the book. If you can give a half-decent definition of the Prismatic Coefficient right now off the top of your head, you'll LOVE these books.
The lines drawings are just pure art.
Finisterre is the design I'm currently hung up on.
1. "All This and Sailing Too" Autobiography of Olin J. Stephens II's design career.
2. "Lines" A collection of Sparkman & Stephens lines drawings, each with about a 200 word commentary.
Though published a few years apart, these texts complement each other perfectly. I can't imagine having read the autobiography without having the large drawings on hand for reference.
I swear I've learned more about yacht design in these past weeks than I have in my whole life. Dave Gerr's "The Nature of Boats" is also a good why-things-are-the-way-they-are text, but these S&S books are far more specific to sailing yachts, and they do NOT bother with dumbing it down for the newcomer. It's primarily a narrative of his career path, but there are some techno-heavy parts. If you don't already have a good handle on the basics of drag and stability, you'll be lost in these parts of the book. If you can give a half-decent definition of the Prismatic Coefficient right now off the top of your head, you'll LOVE these books.
The lines drawings are just pure art.
Finisterre is the design I'm currently hung up on.