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What is a Yacht?
Originally, a yacht was describes as a light and fast sailing vessel
used to transport
important people. Later, it came to mean any vessel, larger than a
dinghy, which was used for pleasure cruising and/or racing.
The length of a sailing yacht varies from about 6 meter or 20 feet to
over 30 meter or 98 feet. Most private owned yachts will fall between 7
to 14 meters or about 23-46 ft in length. The price and cost of
constructing and maintaining a yacht increases, as the vessels get
bigger.
The debate over which is better a Monohull or Multihull yacht will
continue as long as we sail. The difference other than the obvious is
Monohull vessels have a fixed or adjustable keel below the waterline for
counterbalance against overturning forces.
Multihull vessels such as a catamaran or use multi hulls, which are
separated from each other, this wide space stabilizes the vessel, thus
reducing the possibility of overturning.
Yachts were made of boards of wood until 1950s. Today, yachts are
constructed out
of a verity of materials, the most common being fiberglass. Fiberglass
may be the
most common building material, but steel, aluminum, and Ferro-cement or
ferciment
are used as well. With all the modern materials available, wood is still
traditional used for building individual boats, where as steal is used
for industrial boat building. The sailing yacht depends on the
wind for propulsion, making sailing more economical
and environmentally friendly than any other means. Motor yachts rely on
an internal
combustion engine, which burns fossil fuels for propulsion. Because of
fuel cost and the large engines, motor yachts are more expensive than
sailing vessels to operate. Economical hybrids have emerged which are a
combination of both motor and sailing
yacht. These hybrids can use wind power for propulsion, or motor.
Formerly yachting was the realm of the wealthy due to expenditure and
the manpower
required to operate the large vessels. Today through charters, yachting
has become
a pastime of many around the world.
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