Cornish Pilot Gigs

The Cornish pilot gig is a six-oared rowing boat, clinker-built of Cornish narrow-leaf elm, 32 feet (9.8 m) long with a beam of 4 feet 10 inches (1.47 m). It is recognised as one of the first shore-based lifeboats that went to vessels in distress, with recorded rescues going back as far as the late 17th century.

The Pilot Magazine
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There is a comprehensive history of pilot gigs in this edition of The Pilot.
Also (on P8) there’s an article about Devoran boat builder Ralph Bird who is widely credited with leading the renaissance of interest in gig building and racing in the 1980s.

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