Mylne “Kelpie” Specifications
LOA: 63′ 6″ * LOD: 57′ 6″ * LWL: 38′ 0″ * Beam: 11′ 6″ * Draft: 7′ 6″ * Ballast: * Displacement: 20,800kg
Sail Area: * Identity No.: Y053790 * Yard Number: 85 * Hull material: Planked in pitch-pine fastened with iron dumps to grown oak frames at around 3’ centres and copper fastened to 2 heavy steam bent Rock Elm timbers between on an oak back-bone. The external lead keel is secured with bronze bolts. Iron strap floors on the grown oak frames. * Rig: Gaff Cutter * Designer: Alfred Mylne * Built by: J G Fay Co of Southampton * Year Built: 1903 * Restored By: Fairlie Restorations Ltd ( new wood keel, floors and lower frames, a new deck and deck structures to the original design; a new interior more sympathetic to the original intentions. extensive weight reduction exercise to the spars and rig. A new boom and gaff have been built by Nobel Spars and the yacht re-rigged by ‘Martins Rigging’* Current Name: Kelpie * Original Owner: * Current Owner: Pelham Olive * Sail Number:
Known Racing History: ?
KELPIE was designed by Alfred Mylne as a Solent 38 foot class to race with the 42 foot Linear Raters. The story goes that owners who commissioned the new class decided to do so with a dinner honouring the passing of Queen Victoria.
With the introduction of the Meter rule in 1907, she was classed as a 12 Metre and raced with the 12s well into the 1920s. In 1922 KELPIE was involved in the Erskine Childers’ plot to run guns into Ireland to use against the Irish Free State government. Childers was captured and executed but 600 carbines aboard KEPLIE were transferred to a fishing boat off Howth and she slipped away undetected.
