Year of Design: 1934
Length Overall: 24.8 ft (7.6 m)
Length Waterline: 18.0 ft (5.5 m
Beam: 7.0 ft (2.13 m)
Draft: 3.2 ft (1.0 m)
Mainsail: 194.2 sq ft (18 sq m)
Jib: 63.3 sq ft (5.9 sq m)
In 1934, a committee was formed at the Royal Mersey Yacht Club to look into a new class of yacht to sail and race on the River Mersey. One of the members, a Mr S McLauchlan, had been on holiday in Scotland and seen a yacht built by D Monro and son, a small boatyard on the Clyde. This yacht was to be shipped to Egypt for her owner. Mr McLauchlan brought a half model of the yacht to show the members, who were impressed.
Alfred Mylne, the yacht designer, was asked to approve and modify the design, and an order for five boats was placed with Munro’s. The cost of the first boat was £185 ex-quay Glasgow. They were shipped down to Liverpool, and had their first race on the Mersey on 11th July 1935. The names of the boats all began with MER, and of the original five, four are still sailing today, Meryl, Number 2, having been lost.
In 1937, Trearddur Bay Sailing Club in Anglesey adopted the boat and had some built by Dickie’s at Bangor. All these boats had their names beginning with TR. After the war, the popularity of the Mylne Class at Trearddur Bay declined, and the yachts gradually came to the Mersey. Most had their names altered from the TR prefix to MER.
The original wooden Mylnes had oak frames and mahogany planking, but in the years after the war construction and repair costs escalated. In 1980 a mould was made and, in addition to the wooden boats, there are now four G.R.P. Mylnes racing, making a total fleet of fourteen boats. Racing on the Mersey and at the Menai Strait Regattas is as keen and enthusiastic as ever. The boats have stood the test of time as a classic yacht and are a joy to sail.
If you would like to join the RMYC Mylne fleet or find more information, please contact us using the form below.
