SV Tenacious
 SV Tenacious at the starting line for the last leg of the STI Historical Seas Festival 2010 from Istanbul to Lavrion.
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | Tenacious |
| Owner | Jubilee | Sailing Trust (Tenacious) Ltd |
| Builder | Jubilee Yard (Merlin Quay), Southampton |
| Laid down | 6 June 1996 |
| Launched | 3 February 2000 |
| Commissioned | 1 September 2000 |
| Out of service | December 2023 |
| Identification |
|
| Status | Operational |
| General characteristics | |
| Tons burthen | 586 tons |
| Length | 54 m (177 ft) hull, 65 m (213 ft) including bowsprit |
| Beam | 10.6 m (35 ft) |
| Draught | 4.58 m (15.0 ft) in summer |
| Propulsion |
|
| Sail plan | Barque (three-masted)) |
| Speed | 11 knots (20.37 km/h) under sail, 8 knots (14.82 km/h) under power |
| Complement |
|
The SV Tenacious is a modern British wooden sail training ship, specially designed in the 1990s. When completed in 2000, it was the largest wooden ship to be built in the UK for over 100 years.
Design and construction
[edit]The ship was built by the Jubilee Sailing Trust (JST) and designed by Tony Castro. With STS Lord Nelson, the pair are the only tall ships in the world that were built so that both disabled and non-disabled people can sail as crew, not passengers. Features that cannot be found on other ships include wheelchair lifts throughout, a unique ascender systems that allow wheelchair users to go aloft (either assisted or by their own efforts), a speaking compass for those with visual impairments, hearing loops, adjustable furniture for those with mobility difficulties, and a joystick to help individuals with dexterity limitations to steer the ship. Everyone plays a full and active role in the voyage. The JST is a UN-accredited charity offering sailing adventures to people of all abilities and backgrounds. The ship is owned and operated by Jubilee Sailing Trust (Tenacious) Ltd.
Launched in 2000, the sailing vessel Tenacious is the largest wooden tall ship built in the United Kingdom in the last 100 years. It is 65 metres (213.25 feet) long including bowsprit, and it is rigged as a three-masted barque with two mizzen gaffs. Its deck is 49.85 metres long, its hull is 54.02 metres long, and it has a beam of 10.6 metres at its widest point. Tenacious displaces about 714 tons (summer draft). A press release from the Belfast Maritime Festival on 22 June 2006 announced that the Tenacious was "the largest wooden ship still afloat".[1]
History
[edit]The ship's maiden voyage was on 1 September 2000 from Southampton to Sark, St Helier and Weymouth before returning to Southampton. The ship is owned by a UK-based charity, the Jubilee Sailing Trust, which also owns the 42-metre-long tall ship STS Lord Nelson (length including bowsprit is 55 metres and waterline length is 37 metres).[1][2]
Tenacious featured in the first series of Channel 5's Sea Patrol UK, when one of the crew members had fallen ill and needed to be winched into an RAF Westland Sea King and taken to hospital. Due to the height of the masts and rigging, this posed a challenge to the helicopter's pilot and winch crew but the rescue attempt was successful and the crew member survived a potentially fatal condition.[3]
In December 2023 the JST announced that Tenacious's owning company was insolvent and had been put into liquidation and that all future cruises had been cancelled.[4]
In 2024, a campaign group called 'Save Tall Ship Tenacious' was formed to save the ship.[5]
References
[edit]- ^ a b World’s largest wooden ship berths in Belfast for maritime celebration Archived 29 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine, accessed 10 December 2018, press release of Belfast Maritime Festival, organised by Celebrate Belfast and the Port of Belfast, 22 June 2006
- ^ Jubilee Sailing Trust official homepage jst.org.uk, accessed 10 December 2018
- ^ Sea Patrol UK - Season 1, Episode 3 Episode Summary: Andy commences the dangerous 170ft winch down to a casualty... tvbuzer.com, accessed 10 December 2018
- ^ "Jubilee Sailing Trust: Tall ship company goes into administration". BBC News. 15 December 2023. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
- ^ "Campaign launched to save tall ship for sale". BBC News. 13 March 2024. Retrieved 14 March 2024.