Nemo is my personal runabout / camp cruiser. She is the result of blind chance, opportunism and intuition rather than engineering and design. Nemo started life as the Hexcel Ultimate 30 professional racing skiff designed by Ian Murray of Australian 18 fame and built in carbon/nomex by McConaghy in Sydney Australia. After the boat sat in storage for several years, Jonathan McKee purchased her in order to scavenge parts and sails for the Riptide 35 that I designed for him. When that was finished I could not bear to see the beautiful hull broken up so Jonathan gave it to me. There was not enough volume in the hull to allow sufficient ballast for efficient sailing so I decided to turn it into an efficient powerboat. In a grass lot, with nothing but a sawzall and a grinder, some plywood, foam, glass and epoxy I “chopped and channelled” the boat into her current form. Although a bit quirky to handle and wet, she is fun, efficient (9 litres/hr @ 15kts), and a great source of conversation.
-Paul
