From Spark to Dart 15 and now Sprint 15, this 25-year-old veteran catamaran has been given a new name to signal its rebirth as a South African export.

In a ground-breaking move, the name was chosen by a ballot of existing owners, on the basis that satisfied customers would provide the best indication of what should appeal to prospective customers. Members of the class association were asked to pick their favourite from a short list of six names by electronic polling, with a postal option for those not on the internet. Half of the 300 members responded.

Releasing the results, Chairman Nick Dewhirst said that the most popular choice was F15, in recognition of the original promoter, Ian Fraser. However, taking into account possible confusion with other classes, the committee awarded the name to the runner-up, Sprint 15, which retains a link to the catamaran’s previous life, where this was the designation for the single-handed two-sailed racing format.

He says: “This shows that a true classic can live on and on. Nearly 2000 have been built in the UK, a third of which were exported. Despite its age, and a long list of challengers, it remains the most popular single-handed catamaran in the UK. Indeed its two versions accounted for the two best attended championships of all catamaran classes in the country this year.”

Newsletter editor, Paul Smith announced that the class magazine, Darticles would be in future be renamed NewSprint.

For more information, contact Nick Dewhirst, Tel 01227-282625, or visit the website www.dart15.com