Kirby 25

{{Infobox sailboat specifications

|name = Kirby 25

|insignia = File:Kirby_25_Sail_Insignia.jpg

|insignia size = 120px

|insignia alt =

|insignia caption =

|line drawing =

|line size =

|line alt =

|line caption =

|image boat = File:Kirby 25 sailboat 0854.jpg

|image size =

|image alt =

|image caption =

|designer = Bruce Kirby

|location = Canada

|year = 1978

|no built = 223

|design =

|class = MORC

|brand =

|builder = Mirage Yachts

|role = racer

|boats =

|crew =

|trapeze =

|draft =

|air draft =

|displacement = {{convert|3150|lb|kg|0|abbr=on}}

|hulls =

|hull type = Monohull

|construction = Fibreglass

|loa = {{convert|25.17|ft|m|abbr=on}}

|loh =

|lwl = {{convert|20.75|ft|m|abbr=on}}

|beam = {{convert|8.75|ft|m|abbr=on}}

|hull draft = {{convert|4.17|ft|m|abbr=on}}

|hull weight =

|engine = outboard motor

|appendages =

|keel type = fin keel

|ballast = {{convert|1150|lb|kg|0|abbr=on}}

|rudder type = internally-mounted spade-type rudder

|rigs = Fractional rigged sloop

|rig type =

|I = {{convert|26.50|ft|m|abbr=on}}

|J = {{convert|9.00|ft|m|abbr=on}}

|P = {{convert|30.25|ft|m|abbr=on}}

|E = {{convert|11.25|ft|m|abbr=on}}

|mast length =

|rig other =

|sails =

|sailplan =

|sailarea main = {{convert|170.16|sqft|m2|abbr=on}}

|sailarea headsail = {{convert|119.25|sqft|m2|abbr=on}}

|lp =

|sailarea spin =

|sailarea gen =

|sails other =

|sailarea upwind =

|sailarea downwind =

|sailarea total ={{convert|289.41|sqft|m2|abbr=on}}

|rating =

|d-pn =

|rya-pn =

|phrf = 174 (average)

|status =

|previous =

|successor =

}}

The Kirby 25 is a Canadian trailerable sailboat, that was designed by Bruce Kirby as a racer and first built in 1978. The design is out of production.{{cite web|url=http://www.canadianyachting.ca/boat-reviews/one-design/1541-kirby-25-sail-boat-review|title= Canadian Yachting magazine review of Kirby 25 |accessdate = 26 Nov 2017|work = Canadian Yachting|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170714022511/https://www.canadianyachting.ca/boat-reviews/one-design/1541-kirby-25-sail-boat-review|archive-date= 14 July 2017|url-status= live}}{{cite web|url = https://sailboatdata.com/sailboat/kirby-25|title = Kirby 25 sailboat specifications and details|accessdate = 4 March 2017|last= Browning| first = Randy |work = sailboatdata.com|year = 2017|archive-url= https://archive.today/20210616153215/https://sailboatdata.com/sailboat/kirby-25|archive-date= 16 June 2021|url-status= live}}{{cite web|url = http://www.sailingjoy.com/sailboat_specs/sailboat_specs/view/251/kirby-25|title = Sailboat Specifications for Kirby 25 |accessdate = 4 March 2017|work = Sailing Joy|author= InterVisionSoft LLC|year = 2017|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190125183256/https://www.sailingjoy.com/sailboat_specs/sailboat_specs/view/251/kirby-25|archive-date= 25 January 2019|url-status= dead}}{{cite web|url = https://sailboatdata.com/designer/kirby-bruce|title = Bruce Kirby|accessdate = 4 March 2017|last= Browning| first = Randy |work = sailboatdata.com|year = 2017|archive-url= https://archive.today/20200825141144/https://sailboatdata.com/designer/kirby-bruce|archive-date= 25 August 2020|url-status= live}}{{cite web|url = https://sailboatdata.com/builder/mirage-yachts-ltd-can|title = Mirage Yachts Ltd (CAN) 1972-1989 |accessdate = 27 February 2017|last= Browning| first = Randy |work = sailboatdata.com|year = 2017|archive-url= https://archive.today/20210616152925/https://sailboatdata.com/builder/mirage-yachts-ltd-can|archive-date= 16 June 2021|url-status= live}}Henkel, Steve: The Sailor's Book of Small Cruising Sailboats, page 352. International Marine/McGraw-Hill, 2010. {{ISBN|978-0-07-163652-0}}

Production

The boat was built by Mirage Yachts in Canada between 1978 and 1983, with 223 examples completed.{{Cite web|url=http://kirby25.com/class-information/owners-list/|title=» Owners List Kirby 25 Class Association|website=www.kirby25.com|language=en-US|access-date=2017-11-25|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180421200659/http://kirby25.com:80/class-information/owners-list/|archive-date= 21 April 2018|url-status= dead}}

Design

File:Kirby 25 sailboat Dynamo Hum 1716.jpg

In the 1970s the most competitive racing sailboat in PHRF and Midget Ocean Racing Club (MORC) competition was the J/24. Mirage Yachts owner Dick Steffen originally wanted to build the J/24 in Canada, but a deal with Johnstone could not be reached. Steffen instead commissioned Kirby to design a new boat to beat the J/24 and the resulting design was the Kirby 25.

The Kirby 25 is a racing keelboat, built predominantly of fibreglass. It has a fractional sloop rig, an internally-mounted spade-type rudder and a fixed fin keel. It displaces {{convert|3150|lb|kg|0|abbr=on}} and carries {{convert|1150|lb|kg|0|abbr=on}} of ballast.

The boat has a draft of {{convert|4.17|ft|m|abbr=on}} with the standard keel and is normally fitted with a small {{convert|4|to|6|hp|kW|0|abbr=on}} outboard motor for docking and maneuvering.

The design has sleeping accommodation for four people, with a double "V"-berth in the bow cabin and two straight settee berths in the main cabin. The interior is minimalist for racing and there are no provisions for a galley or head. Cabin headroom is {{convert|54|in|cm|0|abbr=on}}.

The boat has a PHRF racing average handicap of 174 with a high of 187 and low of 159. It has a hull speed of {{convert|6.1|kn|km/h|2|abbr=on}}.

Operational history

In a 2010 review Steve Henkel wrote, "More than 200 of these popular PHRF and 'half-ton rule' racers were built by Mirage Yachts in Montreal between 1978 and 1983, after Mirage owner Dick Steflin asked Bruce Kirby to 'draw me a boat to beat the J/24s.' This 'hot' boat is generally seen as competitive and relatively inexpensive compared to the J/24 ... and is suited to racers more than cruisers. Best features: Kirby 25s are spirited, fast, and agile, with a fractional rig and bendy mast, which permits precise control of sail shape. The boats are well-made, with neat and tidy liners that double as structural elements. Worst features: The number of controls—particularly the running backstays, which need to be readjusted after every tack going upwind—may put off some inexperienced sailors and relaxed cruising types. Also, accommodations below are stripped out, as becomes a highly competitive racer. The

ends of the boat, both bow and stern, are off limits to heavy cruising supplies; fast boats always keep the ends light. In fact, a portable ice chest, Coleman stove, and portable plastic wash tub may be all that some hard-nosed racers will permit on board."