Welcome
Over the past 50 years I’ve had the lucky chance of designing an unusually wide variety of boats of all sizes – both sail and power-driven. Six years ago, I closed down my Design Studio in order to spend my time on the development of a particular kind of power-driven vessel - which I had been slowly working on as a sideline since 2003 (7 different boats of different sizes launched - but all collecting good knowledge on the way to making ‘CLARA’).‘
CLARA’s are characterised by the fact that, among other features, their hulls are unusually long for their displacement (from which the term ‘LDL’ (‘Low Displacement / Length ratio’) was created by us to identify these vessels from the beginning).
Where ‘CLARA’ is concerned, 13-14 knots are what we considered to be the ‘right’ upper speed limit - beyond which conventional planing-hulled designs would be more appropriate – especially if those speeds (or often much faster ones) are required for much of their time afloat.
Early in 2022, it became obvious that the characteristics we had chosen in our ‘LDL’ hull-shape made ‘CLARA’ a perfect partner for the burgeoning development of electric propulsion. As it happens, the idea is just as applicable to the petrol-driven version of ‘CLARA’. (So far, we have only had occasion to build one electrically driven boat (out of 5).
The biggest and most important ‘step-up’ in the whole ‘CLARA’ building programme – offered by Paul Smith - was the tempting idea of making it possible to produce an entire collection of drawings in both 3D or 2D perspectives – according to the need of each item.
The time it would take to lay out such a bold enterprise was going to have to be expensive. …Luckily, we were in discussions with an experienced sailor from Germany – who had recently come over to test CLARA. As an engineer, he was immediately interested in this new idea – as it allowed him to share it with the well-known Boatbuilder, Fricke & Dannhus - near where Dieter and Ruth live - instead of having to put up with occasional visits over here in the UK.
Strangely, we never heard from the builders – which was just as well, because they speak no more English than we speak German … although Dieter (who speaks very good English) did call us now and then ‘as a messenger’ for clarification with Paul (…which has now been added into the programme).
The most important result, though, was that Dieter was happy to say that ‘watching and helping the process of building his boat was a great experience’. …The experience from our perspective is that what happened in Germany is, we hope, the beginning of a whole new way of working with boats anywhere, helping Boatbuilders, their staff, their customers, their local suppliers (including a CNC cutting company),…and those retired folk (like Dieter..) who might be happy to watch – and maybe help out – in the building of their CLARA.
Ambitious owners might consider building a CLARA themselves in their own garden – maybe getting some help and supplies from the local CLARA builder.
…Some of the above ideas might turn out to be far more rewarding than simply importing a plastic boat - from a far-away country – with no contact, no boatbuilding stories to share, and nothing more than a handful of foreign money…sent off into overseas oblivion…
NIGEL IRENS
Summer 2026
CLARA’s are characterised by the fact that, among other features, their hulls are unusually long for their displacement (from which the term ‘LDL’ (‘Low Displacement / Length ratio’) was created by us to identify these vessels from the beginning).
Where ‘CLARA’ is concerned, 13-14 knots are what we considered to be the ‘right’ upper speed limit - beyond which conventional planing-hulled designs would be more appropriate – especially if those speeds (or often much faster ones) are required for much of their time afloat.
Early in 2022, it became obvious that the characteristics we had chosen in our ‘LDL’ hull-shape made ‘CLARA’ a perfect partner for the burgeoning development of electric propulsion. As it happens, the idea is just as applicable to the petrol-driven version of ‘CLARA’. (So far, we have only had occasion to build one electrically driven boat (out of 5).
The biggest and most important ‘step-up’ in the whole ‘CLARA’ building programme – offered by Paul Smith - was the tempting idea of making it possible to produce an entire collection of drawings in both 3D or 2D perspectives – according to the need of each item.
The time it would take to lay out such a bold enterprise was going to have to be expensive. …Luckily, we were in discussions with an experienced sailor from Germany – who had recently come over to test CLARA. As an engineer, he was immediately interested in this new idea – as it allowed him to share it with the well-known Boatbuilder, Fricke & Dannhus - near where Dieter and Ruth live - instead of having to put up with occasional visits over here in the UK.
Strangely, we never heard from the builders – which was just as well, because they speak no more English than we speak German … although Dieter (who speaks very good English) did call us now and then ‘as a messenger’ for clarification with Paul (…which has now been added into the programme).
The most important result, though, was that Dieter was happy to say that ‘watching and helping the process of building his boat was a great experience’. …The experience from our perspective is that what happened in Germany is, we hope, the beginning of a whole new way of working with boats anywhere, helping Boatbuilders, their staff, their customers, their local suppliers (including a CNC cutting company),…and those retired folk (like Dieter..) who might be happy to watch – and maybe help out – in the building of their CLARA.
Ambitious owners might consider building a CLARA themselves in their own garden – maybe getting some help and supplies from the local CLARA builder.
…Some of the above ideas might turn out to be far more rewarding than simply importing a plastic boat - from a far-away country – with no contact, no boatbuilding stories to share, and nothing more than a handful of foreign money…sent off into overseas oblivion…
NIGEL IRENS
Summer 2026
