18' Payor Muscongus Bay 18 Sloop (2011) - TRACIE

As a young lad, the two best weeks of every year were spent summering in Maine, and of course the highlight of these two weeks was being out on the water in boats. Countless magical adventures were launched from an old 16 foot lapstrake runabout with a classic ’57 Johnson 9.9 hp that we used to explore the beautiful, and virtually untouched islands of Muscongus Bay. I was also privileged to spend entire days in my dad’s canvas-over-ash Old Town canoe while fishing Kezar Lake. After college, I moved to Maine, and sometime later was fortunate enough to purchase a small camp on the shore of Damariscotta Lake. It was absolute serendipity when I discovered that the body of water our camp was perched on was also called Muscongus Bay, just like the one on the ocean where so many of my favorite memories had been forged. I was ultimately bitten by the sailing bug, and my first (usable) sailboat was a Buzzards Bay 14 that had been built by the Eastport school. After a fairly extensive rebuild of the deck and coamings, it was a very lovely little craft, but at 2,000 pounds and with only 140 ft.² of sail, it just wasn’t properly suited for the relatively light summer air on the lake.
So, I began working on plans for a lighter displacement, more modern underbody yet classic looking daysailer that would be perfect for Damariscotta Lake. Unlike most boats of this length whose hull designs are optimized for maximum water-line length, I thought it not too impertinent to allow for a slight overhang forward, and a proper counter at the transom. The hull has a relatively firm turn at the bilge, and 740 pounds of lead bulb on the keel, so it’s quite forgiving in most weather, even with its fairly high aspect ratio rig. I was a little leery when Ed Joy (of Ed Joy Design) recommended modifying the rig to its current height and assured me the hull would handle the rig just fine. He also made some other incremental, yet important changes in the keel fillet and lead bulb, all of which contributed to making it a better boat.
The hull and deck are cored, carbon fiber/epoxy construction, as is the rudder. The mast is also carbon fiber, although it’s cleverly disguised to look like laminated Sitka spruce. The bronze blocks and cleats are all from JM Reineck & Son, and I designed and had custom machined the bronze mast tabernacle, tiller head fitting, and later added a jib club bearing and escutcheon plate for a furling system on the headsail.
“Tracie” was launched in 2011, and two years later a good friend of mine commissioned Hull #2 to be built, so now there’s a Muscongus Bay 18 class of sorts on Damariscotta Lake.