Yachts and Yachting Online

YANDY.CO.UK mobile sailing news

Most successful Scorpion ever going on sale

by Tom Jeffcoate

Scorpion 1936, Bottyburp the Barbarian, is to go up for sale this month. Built by Gosling Dinghy Craft in 1991 she has been the most successful Scorpion ever built and the one to beat for almost 20 years!

Her incredible record at the Scorpion Nationals reads: 2nd, 4th, 2nd, 1st, 1st, 1st, 2nd, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 3rd, 1st, 2nd, 1st, 2nd, 2nd, 2nd, 3rd.

She has also finished 2nd, 2nd, 1st, 1st at the Europeans.

Many of the wins were with a day to spare, and included a remarkable run of 14 championship races on the trot and this is in a fleet that has never been less than 50 boats and is usually over 60!

Over the 20 years she has been immaculately maintained, only appearing for a few opens and the Nationals each year and constantly updated with the latest kit. However, 2010 will be her 20th championship and owner John Mursell commented:

“It's bad enough that I'm in the Veteran Helm category and that my crew and I qualify for the Ancient Mariners' trophy, but also being eligible for the old boats' prize was too much – she's a lot younger than both of us and to mention her in the same breath would be very un-gallant to say the least! Unfortunately I can't update myself so it felt the right time for a change.”

The boat is an example of how long these boats remain competitive and the fact that the modern epoxy hulls are built to the same shape as 1938, Bottyburp's sister ship, is testament to the fact no one has been able to find a better shape for the Scorpion hull. Given her condition and history Bottyburp is expected to sell for around Ł6,500 and the lucky new owner will be picking up a fully sorted and tuned boat that has proven its ability to win.

More details will appear on the Scorpion website soon.

Related Articles:

50th Scorpion Nationals at Looe Sailing Club - Overall - 06 Aug 2010
Dave Wade & Steve Hall have won the 2010 Scorpion Nationals. After a shaky start to the week they finished strongly with a string of top 3 results to claim the title ahead of John Mursell & Nick Keast.
50th Scorpion Nationals at Looe Sailing Club - Day 5 - 05 Aug 2010
It’s going to be a tense final day after 2 more races left us still with a tie at the top of the leader board. The wind had abated slightly although there were still a few vicious gusts to catch out the unwary.
50th Scorpion Nationals at Looe Sailing Club - Day 4 - 04 Aug 2010
Sunshine, wind and pasties. The local forecast proved right with their prediction of force 5 / 6, the wind was a steady 20 – 23 knots gusting up to 29 at times.
50th Scorpion Nationals at Looe Sailing Club - Day 3 - 03 Aug 2010
The promised Northerly never materialised and instead the 80 strong fleet were greeted by 6 – 10 knot south westerly winds. They even created some waves for a bit of surfing practice.
50th Scorpion Nationals at Looe Sailing Club - Day 2 - 02 Aug 2010
Sunshine had replaced rain but the wind was still light so the fleet enjoyed an extra hour eating pasties and ice cream (usually not together) before launching at midday.