HURLEY 22
The Hurley 22 is a long established family cruising yacht that is available with fin or bilge keels. Introduced in 1964, the Hurley 22 became an instant hit. Quite aside from her pretty lines -she looked like a 'proper yacht' - she is solidly built and is a good performer. From the outset the Hurley 22 was intended to be raced as well as cruised. A 22 even won the Round The Island Race in 1967, and they acquitted themselves well on the JOG circuit. But it has been the 22's cruising performance that has won the respect of many yachtsmen over the years. Hurley owners speak fondly of the little boat's performance and sea kindliness. The boats have proved themselves on long cruises; several 22s have crossed the Atlantic, and at least one has cruised the Pacific.
In 1963 George Hurley provided designer Ian Anderson with a brief to meet the demands of the family yachtsman, essentially to provide a medium to heavy displacement, safe, seaworthy yacht in both fin and bilge keel form, with berths for four and being suitable for either inboard or outboard engine. T the same time retaining classic lines. The result was the Hurley 22. A classic in its time.The 22 went into Lloyds approved series production in 1964 and has been in almost constant production to this day (2006). You can buy a new one from Blaxton Boats of Doncaster, Yorkshire.
www.blaxtonboats.com
The ballast ratio of the fin keel yacht is very impressive at 40% but the bilge keeler performs very well with deep twin keels. Engines are mostly housed in a lazerette well. A plug can be inserted into the hull well aperture when the engine is withdrawn for serious racing. Some were fitted with inboard engines from new and some had engine mounts that are moulded into the transom. A modified hatch covered the engine's top. Rudders were of the semi-balanced scimitar type until the Royal Navy specified a skeg.
In the late 60's the yacht was very successfully raced and marketed by SHE yachts. The owner Derek Fitzgerald produced the 22s version with slightly taller Proctor rig, different winches and altered central cockpit mainsheet traveller and raced her under JOG rules. The Hurley 22 has been very successful in club racing and is raced to this day in Plymouth each year during the Hurley Owners Association rally, which is held jointly with the Silhouette Owners International Association.
By the early seventies production was running at three yachts per week and Hurley developed an excellent sales network throughout Europe and America. The yacht proved very popular in Holland, Denmark and Sweden.
In 1974 Hurley Marine went out of business and the moulds were bought by a management buyout called South Coast Marine. Another set of moulds were bought by a Dutch company who also bought the rights to the Hurley name. SCM subsequently produced new deck and hull moulds to maintain the high standards set by the original builders. A production level of approximately one hundred boats per year was set and many yachts were still being sold to Holland and marketed as the Hurley 700.
The moulds were taken over by John Rattenbury of Ravensail Marine in 1981 and production was moved from Plymouth to Okehampton. The new yachts were moulded by Marine Projects of Plymouth who built the Moody, Princess, Cobra and Sigma range of vessels. Selling to Hurlwind Yachts in 1989 who moved production to Crediton.
During the seventies the Royal Navy bought more than thirty Hurley 22's and used them for training purposes. They were mostly fin keelers and were given girls names. Most were painted blue and were sold off by auction in the late nineties. The Navy insisted that the Hurley 22 was given a skeg. Prior to that they had semi-balanced scimitar rudders that could be rotated through 360 o. However, the original rudder configuration was available as an option.
Many Hurley 22's were put into service as training vessels.
In 1976 Ron Potter, a retired college lecturer, won the 'Echo' Uffa Fox award for his voyage to the West Indies using only the stars for guidance.
In 1978 Dame Naomi James christened the 1,000th Hurley 22 in Plymouth as 'Millennium'. She is still sailing in Scotland.
In August 1980 Margaret Hicks completed a return single-handed Atlantic race competing in the Min-Transat and breaking existing records for single-handed crossings by women and establishing a record seven crossings of the Bay of Biscay. A truly remarkable achievement. Her Hurley was called 'Anonymous Bay'.
Tony Kennedy of Plymouth still owns the Hurley 22 that he and his wife bought in 1967. Tony rows out to it in his Hurley built GRP tender. Tony's wife worked or Hurley Marine as a yacht demonstrator and they bought several Hurley's new for their charter company.
HOA member Colin Simpson bought the first Hurley 22 built. Named 'Windermere' she was sailed in the Lake District. Colin still owns his Hurley 31 Motorsailer, also called 'Windermere' that he bought new in 1971.
