Located on the west coast of Canada, in British Columbia, Whitehall Rowing & Sail was inspired by the Whitehall skiffs to build high-end crossover dinghies for rowing and sailing.
In the 1960s and '70s, thousands of sailors took to the water with simple, exciting, affordable Hobie Cats. Today, the 14.5-foot trailerable Weta trimaran - conceived by a father-and-son team in New Zealand and built in Guangzhou, China - hopes to do it all over again.
Incorporating performance features into entry-level boats, U.K.-based RS Sailing has become the world's No. 2 builder of small sailing dinghies behind LaserPerformance.
Some of the "cruisiest" small sailboats are built by NorseBoat of Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, influenced by sea boats of the Norse sailors and beach skiffs that New Jersey anglers used in the 1800s. The company's most popular boat, the NorseBoat 17.5, debuted in 2004.
Not all small boats revolve around being stripped down. Case in point is the Ranger R-25SC, a single diesel tug that can be equipped with creature comforts: - air conditioning, generator, watermaker - all the stuff you'll find on a much larger vessel.
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