Don't be put off by people who tell you an amateur or a first timer can't
design and build a good boat. You can take a look at Paradox or Squeak
(read Ladd's "Three Years in a Twelve-foot Boat"), or Toad Hall if it's
still on the Internet. These are just a few examples of great amateur
sailing boat designs for coastal waters. Actually Toad Hall is supposed to
be offshore. The fellow who finally got the design of a trimaran right,
after so many professionals had tied and failed, was an insurance
salesman. Perhaps the most popular desinger of sailing catamarans for home
building (James Wharram) is an untrained amateur.

Some of Phil Bolger's boats may look like they've been designed by a first
time amateur but he's actually a fully trained professional with many
traditional boat designs to his credit. He just happens to design a line
of boats for performance and for ease of constrution by amateurs, rather
than for appearances.

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