CAPITAL GEM by Geoff Gillett, Stratagem #116

Lake Burley Griffin in Canberra is a challenging place to sail with winds ranging from calm conditions in winter, strong breezes in spring generally fading through the summer sailing season to the winter calms. Races are held in an area of the lake surrounded by a variety of landforms including Black Mountain rising over 200 metres above the north western shore of the lake. This environment causes dramatic wind shifts although some say the greatest wind comes from Parliament House.

Canberra offers a range of competitive events for a wide range of sailing craft. Cruising and racing activities are also readily available from nearby inland lakes as well as the South Coast. Some boats travel to further afeild places like Lake Macquarie and the Gippsland lakes.

The trailer sailer fleet in Canberra is a mixture of classes with very few types dominating the scene. Newer designs like the Magic 25 and Elliot 7 do exist but only in very small numbers. The most popular classes are the Castle 650, Farr 6000 and the Gem 550.

The Gem 550 was introduced into Canberra about 3 years ago by an experienced skipper and generated interest almost as soon as it hit the water. Its performance was outstanding and was consistently in the honors list both on handicap and outright. While owners of larger boats objected to being passed by the Gem, other owners were watching this attractive little boat with great interest. Over the last 3 years, the Gem 550 fleet in Canberra has grown to 10 boats with at least 6 boats competing regularly in Canberra Yacht Club events.  

Why has the Gem 550 been so popular in Canberra?

The boat has been described as the family weekender that loves to race. The original design concept from England was that it was developed as a micro-tonner to meet the need for a reasonably priced racing oriented family weekender and to provide top performance at a level that falls midway between the popular dingy classes and the smallest offshore racing yachts.

The Gem is very easy to set up, launch and retrieve. On the water it does not require muscle to handle and sails like a dingy with good stability offered by a wide beam and 180kgs of ballast in the keel. Two sheet winches are provided to assist with sheet loads in strong conditions. At least four of the Canberra Gems are sailed by skippers using wives and girlfriends as crew where effort to sail the boat is an issue.

Price has certainly been a factor in Canberra with new boats to date costing less than $20,000. With increases in the cost of fiberglass and other materials, the price for a new basic boat is likely to exceed $20,000, however, the Gem still offers a lot for the price.

For those interested in cruising, while it is hard to get a galley into a 5.5 metre boat, the Gems interior is remarkably spacious offering good basic cruising configuration. Some Canberra Gems have a small slide out galley unit with a portable stove and small sink which provides the basics.
The Gems best point of sailing is to windward. The 8 metre three quarter rig is high aspect with a standard blade jib. The boat points very high and tacks like a dingy. A genoa is used in conditions up to 10 knots and a three quarter rigged spinnaker completes the competition configuration.

In Canberra the Gem group has an active Class Association that supports racing and cruising activities as well as a range of non-sailing social events. The Association has fostered a close-knit group of people sharing a sailing interest with Association dinners held in members homes and local restaurants.

This website has assisted in stimulating interest not only in Canberra but in other parts of Australia and overseas and has resulted in orders from Melbourne to Cairns and one order from Canada!

The Gem 550 also has support from the Canberra Yacht Club where it has preferred class status which provides separate results for the Gem 550 for championship events, provides links with the Gem 550 web site from the CYC site and promotion of the class though the club.

Enquiries about the Gem 550 can be made through the Gem 550 web site or by contacting Trevor Hippisley on (02) 6254 9102, Geoff Gillett on (02) 6288 7474 or the builder, John Stockton, Central Boating Services, Adelaide - contact details are on the GEM 550 page.