Simplicity of construction, user friendliness (both for single or double) and high performance – all of this with reasonable costs. These are the main priorities which lie at the base of the DP 14’ design and which justify the main choices made, in particular: - chine construction with the “stitch and glue” method, that is also within reach of beginners; - “schooner” sail plan with free standing masts and battened sail, that, besides being simple and cheap, has the advantage of keeping the sailing centre low and facilitates control - even by a single person; - its reasonable beam, which allows sufficient maximum stability even without the use of the trapeze; flat bottom hull, with little rocker, large stern section and high prismatic coefficient. All these characteristics denote speed aptitude and tendency to plane. Water trials confirm the achievement of these objectives: the boat is fast, stable and planes easily. Obviously, every choice has a price: the schooner equipment is excellent unless you sail very close to the wind, (in this situation it cannot compete with the Marconi) with very light wind, one has to heel and trim the boat, in order to achieve good performance. There are various versions of sails, one of which also with a Marconi sail and jib. In a series of four articles for the magazine “Nautica”, I exposed the detailed design criteria, construction method and water trials.
