Old Gaffers Association (OGA) 1963

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Arturo
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Joined: Mon Feb 13, 2012 8:11 pm

Old Gaffers Association (OGA) 1963

Post by Arturo » Mon Feb 23, 2015 9:45 pm

The Old Gaffers Association (OGA - The Association for Gaff Rig Sailing) is an unincorporated association formed in 1963 in the United Kingdom to promote the use of the Gaff rig. (Seen on the picture 1; Stamp).

The first ever ‘Old Gaffers’ race was held on the Solent in 1959, with just 13 boats. A similar race was held on the east coast of England in 1963. The growing success of these early races, open to gaff rig boats, led to the formation of the OGA as a national association at the Little Ship Club, Maldon, Essex in 1963. In the early days, activities were focussed on rescuing or preserving old gaff rigged boats. Now members can also choose to sail new gaff rigged boats. Some new boats are built using traditional methods and others use modern techniques and materials but still provide a traditional sailing experience.

The OGA is managed on an area basis in the UK and Ireland, with members all over the world. It has close links with affiliated associations in France, the Netherlands (which has members in Belgium), Canada and Australia.

In 2013 the association celebrated its 50th anniversary with the publication of a book of stories from the history of the Association. 21 member boats from the UK and the Netherlands took part in a UK circumnavigation (Round Britain Challenge) and hosted a number of area based events culminating in a Golden Jubilee Festival at Cowes attended by more than 180 gaff-rigged boats.

There are mainly two types of rigs. Square rig and fore and aft rig. In the square rig; sails are perpendicular to the keel. You can see it easly in topics “Viking Longship” , “Drakkar c VI”, “Sagres (I) 1896” and “Derwent”.

Or you can see it on the picture 2. (Picture 1 is stamp itself).

In fore and aft rig sails are not perpendicular to the keel. (A fore-and-aft rig is a sailing rig consisting mainly of sails that are set along the line of the keel rather than perpendicular to it. These kind of rigged sails are either four cornered or triangular). Such sails are described as fore-and-aft rigged.

Gaff rig is a sailing rig (configuration of sails) in which the sail is four-cornered, fore-and-aft rigged, controlled at its peak and, usually, its entire head by a spar (pole) called the gaff.

The gaff enables a fore and aft sail to be four sided, rather than triangular. A gaff rig typically carries 25 percent more sail than an equivalent bermudian rig for a given hull design.

A sail hoisted from a gaff is called a gaff-rigged sail.

(Picture 3)

Gaff rig remains the most popular fore-aft rig for schooner and barquentine mainsails and other course sails, and spanker sails on a square rigged vessel are always gaff rigged. On other rigs, particularly the sloop, ketch and yawl, gaff rigged sails were once common but have now been largely replaced by the Bermuda rig sail.

See topics: “Alert (Sloop)” and “Spirit of Bermuda” or Picture 4 for Bermuda rig.

Bermuda rig sail, in addition to being simpler than the gaff rig, usually allows vessels to sail closer to the direction from which the wind is blowing (i.e. "closer to the wind").

Additionally, a gaff vang may be fitted. It is a line attached to the end of the gaff which prevents the gaff from sagging downwind. Gaff vangs are difficult to rig on the aft-most sail, so are typically only found on schooners or ketches, and then only on the foresail or mainsail.

A triangular fore-and-aft sail called a jib-headed topsail may be carried between the gaff and the mast.

See Picture 5 and 6 and stamp itself.

All other pictures are gaff rigged sails.

Guernsey 1991, S.G.?, Scott: 463.

Source: Wikipedia
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