Tartan Yachts have been synonymous with innovation in sailing for decades, winning numerous awards from magazines like Cruising World, Sailing World, and others. This is the first time in the boat builder's history, however, that is has been nominated for the Gussies! The Gussies, also known as the Gustave Trouve Awards, recognize excellence in the design, construction, and execution of electric boats. Started in 2020 by the website PlugBoats.com, the awards were created to "recognize the inventors, designers, builders, and visionaries who are making advances every day to develop clean, quiet, zero emission technologies to reduce the reliance on fossil fuel for marine propulsion."

 

Please vote for the Tartan Fantail to win the electric sailboat category here: https://plugboats.com/2021-gussies-electric-boat-awards-electric-sailboats/ 

 

What Makes The Tartan Fantail So Spectacular? Check out this video walk-through from SAIL Magazine that awarded the Tartan Fantail as a "Best Boat" when it launched in 2013.

Designed to deliver rewarding, comfortable, and predictable performances while sailing, the Fantail from Tartan Yachts strikes a perfect balance. The Fantail Series are built with low HAPS resins and processes that not only provide great physical properties but are also environmentally conscious. The Fantail continues to offer a green advantage as a daysailor/overnighter with non-polluting electric propulsion. 

Specifications:

  • Length Overall: 26 feet
  • Length at Waterline: 22' 2"
  • Beam: 8' 5"
  • Displacement: 3,425 lbs.
  • Ballast: 1,325 lbs.
  • Draft: 4' 6" with Standard Fin / 3' 6" with Shallow Fin

The Fantail Series is available in three configurations; The DS (Daysailor), WE (Weekender), and the ST (Sail Trainer). All three feature classic good looks, “sit in” not “sit on” sailing, efficient high performance and a “green” sailing experience. Here are the sail dimensions for the Day Sailer.

  • I, self-tacking jib 34 ft
  • J, self-tacking jib 9 ft 10 in
  • I, asymmetrical spinnaker sprit 12 ft 4 in
  • P 33 ft 9 in
  • E 11 ft
  • Mainsail area: 185.63 sq ft
  • 100% foretriangle: 167.11 sq ft
  • Upwind sail area (main & self-tacking jib): 352.74 sq ft

Performance Ratios:

  • Ballast/displacement ratio 34
  • Displacement/length ratio 136
  • Sail area/displacement ratio (upwind) 25.3

 

So, who exactly was Gustave Trouve?

Trouvé was an electrical engineer and astoundingly prolific inventor with over 75 patents to his name. He came up with the prototypes for the metal detector and the endoscopes used in medicine today, an electronic musical keyboard, portable microphone and much more.

He took one of those inventions – an electric motor for a bicycle – down to the Seine River on May 26, 1881, connected it to a battery, attached the contraption to his boat ‘Le Teléphone’, set off down the Seine and made history. This was the world’s first outboard motor, attached to one of the world’s earliest rechargeable batteries, transporting a boat in silence along one of the world’s great waterways.

 

How did the "Gussies" come about?

The idea for the Gussies started to come together in late 2019 and the initial plan was to have The Gussies include a combination of juried voting by a number of international electric boat experts with public polling and have the award presentations at the 2020 Venice Boat Show and e-Regata in early June.

Unfortunately, some unexpected circumstances that we are all painfully aware of got in the way. So, like many other events in the past few months, The Gussies went online and virtual. Like anything online, there have been some advantages and some disadvantages to doing it his way.

In the end, it seems The Gussies have thus far established that: A – the time is right for awards that recognize electric boats as a standalone type of marine transportation and not a sub-category and B: many more people are becoming interested in electric boats every day.

 

We hope that you will take a moment and vote for our Tartan Fantail designed by Tim Jackett. Seattle Yachts is proud to carry premium brands like Tartan Yachts and provide exceptional brokerage services for pre-owned sailboats for sale. On the west coast of the U.S. and in British Columbia, Seattle Yachts also carries Hanse, Dehler, and Moody Yachts.