STEN ODIN and Pipers

As this view shows well, the Clyde is not only host to commercial shipping traffic such as the tanker STEN ODIN, seen off Gourock this afternoon as she was on passage from Clydebank to the Norwegian port of Slagen for her next cargo. The three yachts in the foreground are all members of the Piper One Design class, taking part in the Piper Championships being hosted by the Royal Gourock Yacht Club. These yachts were designed locally, and many were completed between the mid-1960s and the mid-1970s by the world renowned Robertson's of Sandbank, on shores of the Holy Loch. In all, 57 of the 7.4 metre boats were built, with several still sailing on the Clyde to this day.