I have been involved with the Disabled Sailing Association of Alberta as volunteer co-ordinator for Mobility Cup '97 and was on the Board of Directors for 2 years. Mobility Cup '97 was very important because prior to thattime the regatta was held on the West Coast. We were sure to invite some sailors from Ontario and Quebec as we knew that they would embrace the sport and try to introduce disabled sailing to Canada's most populous provinces. It was absolutely the most gratifying experience of my life. The Martin 16 was designed by Don Martin of Vancouver B.C. Canada. He is a really nice guy. The 300 lb bulb on the bottom of the daggerboard makes the boat untippable. The sails would tear away first rather than capsizing. In '98 the DSAA came up with a sip-and-puff design for the boat. The "Royal Liberty" allows a sailor with little or no mobility below the neck to control the boat simply by using a blow-tube, that is attached to his/her lifejacket to control the rudder and sails !!! A friend of mine has described sailing a Martin 16 as "Armchair Sailing".

There has been discussion of getting the controls to be "voice controlled" but I'm not to sure how far the research has gone.

If you can recall I posted here about sailing on a Hobie 16 this past summer. The owner of the boat lost the use of his legs ten years ago. But with innovative design concept, he can race a catamaran in regattas and place well.

posted February 28, 2003 09:50 AM            

Another nice design touch about the Martin is you can sail with two: Great for teaching or taking out a friend and introducing them to the sport.

I also saw a similar type of boat exhibited at the World Conference of Occupational Therapists in Stockholm Sweden last year.

Calgary will be hosting Mobility Cup again in 2005. Come on up!!!