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"Kornuitje"

Midget 15

Year of build: ?

Home: Netherlands

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2023 marked the start of our Midget 15 adventure.

We were on holiday in Curaçao when I spotted a Midget 15 on ‘Marktplaats.nl’ that was for sale in Lemmer, Friesland. I was immediately taken with it. I particularly liked the teak covers on the cockpit – I’d never seen anything like that on any other Midget 15 before. The wooden mast and boom, with a total of five shrouds and stays, were also something special.

There was just one small problem: we were currently in Curaçao.

Fortunately, the owner was willing to bring the boat on its trailer all the way to Oostwoud. My neighbour Peter was already waiting for him there to help the owner launch the boat. Peter then drove it to our jetty right in front of our house. So when we came home, there was suddenly our very own Midget 15!

My husband and I had owned a company operating saloon boats in Amsterdam for many years and were therefore used to slightly larger boats. In 2022, we sold the company and our boats. But, of course, the desire to be on the water and go sailing quickly returned.

The Midget’s dark blue hull was still beautiful, but the gleaming white superstructure was a bit too white for my liking. So we painted it cream and fitted the deck with a teak-effect covering. That gave it exactly the look I’d imagined.

At first, we mainly used it as a small motorboat. Later on, we were able to replace the wooden mast and boom with aluminium ones, and since then we’ve been sailing it almost every week. And what great fun it is!

I’m particularly pleased that I’ve now passed on the Midget 15 bug to my neighbours Carola and Jolanda. We soon found a Midget 15 in Vlaardingen – complete with a trailer, aluminium mast and boom, and even brown sails. I was allowed to take the mast and boom, as the two of them mainly wanted to use their boat as a motorboat.

Their Midget looked rather neglected when we bought it, but was actually still in surprisingly good condition. For four weeks, I helped them restore the boat to its former glory. They’re now absolutely delighted with their Droopy.

Droopy;

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