The Mirage 5.5 is an American trailerable

sailboat A sailboat or sailing boat is a boat propelled partly or entirely by sails and is smaller than a sailing ship. Distinctions in what constitutes a sailing boat and ship vary by region and maritime culture. Types Although sailboat terminology ...

that was designed by Ken Fickett as an

International Offshore Rule The International Offshore Rule (IOR) was a measurement rule for racing sailboats. The IOR evolved from the Cruising Club of America (CCA) rule for racer/cruisers and the Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) rule. Rule context - past and present rating ...

Mini Ton class Mini Ton class was an offshore sailing class of the International Offshore Rule The International Offshore Rule (IOR) was a measurement rule for racing sailboats. The IOR evolved from the Cruising Club of America (CCA) rule for racer/cruisers and ...

racer and first built in 1975.Henkel, Steve: ''The Sailor's Book of Small Cruising Sailboats'', page 108.

International Marine McGraw Hill is an American education science company that provides educational content, software, and services for students and educators across various levels—from K-12 to higher education and professional settings. They produce textbooks, ...

McGraw-Hill McGraw Hill is an American education science company that provides educational content, software, and services for students and educators across various levels—from K-12 to higher education and professional settings. They produce textbooks, ...

, 2010.

Production

The design was built by

Mirage Manufacturing A mirage is a naturally-occurring Optical phenomena, optical phenomenon in which light rays bend via refraction to produce a displaced image of distant objects or the sky. The word comes to English language, English via the French language, Fre ...

, founded by designer Ken Fickett in

Gainesville, Florida Gainesville is the county seat of Alachua County, Florida, United States, and the most populous city in North Central Florida, with a population of 145,212 in 2022. It is the principal city of the Gainesville metropolitan area, Florida, Gainesv ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. The boat was produced from 1975 until 1983, with 550 boats completed, but it is now out of production.

Design

The Mirage 5.5 is a racing

keelboat A keelboat is a riverine cargo-capable working boat, or a small- to mid-sized recreational sailing yacht. The boats in the first category have shallow structural keels, and are nearly flat-bottomed and often used leeboards if forced in open w ...

, built predominantly of

fiberglass Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English) is a common type of fibre-reinforced plastic, fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened i ...

, with wood trim. It has a

masthead sloop A masthead rig on a sailing vessel consists of a forestay and backstay both attached at the top of the mast. The Bermuda rig can be split into two groups: the masthead rig and the fractional rig. The masthead rig has larger and more headsails, a ...

rig; a

raked stem The stem is the most forward part of a boat or ship's bow and is an extension of the keel itself. It is often found on wooden boats or ships, but not exclusively. Description The stem is the curved edge stretching from the keel below, up to ...

; a

reverse transom In some boats and ships, a transom is the aft transverse surface of the hull that forms the stern of a vessel. Historically, they are a development from the canoe stern (or "double-ender") wherein which both bow and stern are pointed. Transom ...

; a transom-hung, lifting

rudder A rudder is a primary control surface used to steer a ship, boat, submarine, hovercraft, airship, or other vehicle that moves through a fluid medium (usually air or water). On an airplane, the rudder is used primarily to counter adverse yaw ...

controlled by a

tiller A tiller or till is a lever used to steer a vehicle. The mechanism is primarily used in watercraft, where it is attached to an outboard motor, rudder post, rudder post or stock to provide leverage in the form of torque for the helmsman to turn ...

and a retractable

swing keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element of a watercraft, important for stability. On some sailboats, it may have a hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose as well. The laying of the keel is often the initial step in constru ...

. It displaces and carries of ballast. The boat has a draft of with the keel extended and with it retracted, allowing operation in shallow water, beaching or ground transportation on a trailer. The boat is normally fitted with a small

outboard motor An outboard motor is a propulsion system for boats, consisting of a self-contained unit that includes engine, gearbox and propeller or jet drive, designed to be affixed to the outside of the transom. They are the most common motorised method ...

for docking and maneuvering. The design has sleeping accommodation for four people, with a double

"V"-berth A sleeping berth is a bed or sleeping accommodation on vehicles. Space accommodations have contributed to certain common design elements of berths. Beds in boats or ships While beds on large ships are little different from those on shore, ...

in the bow cabin and two straight settee berths in the main cabin. The

galley A galley is a type of ship optimised for propulsion by oars. Galleys were historically used for naval warfare, warfare, Maritime transport, trade, and piracy mostly in the seas surrounding Europe. It developed in the Mediterranean world during ...

is located on the starboard side aft of the bow cabin. The galley is equipped with sink. There are no provisions for a

head A head is the part of an organism which usually includes the ears, brain, forehead, cheeks, chin, eyes, nose, and mouth, each of which aid in various sensory functions such as sight, hearing, smell, and taste. Some very simple ani ...

. Cabin headroom is . The design has a

PHRF Performance Handicap Racing Fleet (PHRF) is a handicapping system used for yacht racing in North America. It allows dissimilar classes of sailboats to be raced against each other. The aim is to cancel out the inherent advantages and disadvantages ...

racing average handicap of 240 and a

hull speed Hull speed or displacement speed is the speed at which the wavelength of a vessel's bow wave is equal to the waterline length of the vessel. As boat speed increases from rest, the wavelength of the bow wave increases, and usually its crest-to- ...

of .

Operational history

The boat is supported by two active class clubs that organize racing events, the ''Mini Ton Class'' and the ''Mirage Owners Club''. In a 2010 review Steve Henkel wrote, "The ad copy (in 1987) said that this is 'a roomy small cruiser that can be easily trailerered and rigged ... should perform well in light wind ... built and equipped with the best materials available and modestly priced.' We would argue with the word 'roomy' and perhaps the word 'cruiser,' but the rest sounds plausible; we see her as a pure racer. She is named the '5.5' presumably in meters, but that's eighteen feet, which is neither the waterline length nor the LOD nor the LOA. Go figure. Best features: The swing keel on the '5.5' seems to us to be more manageable than the lifting keels on both her comp titor he Hotfoot 20 and the Holder 20">Hotfoot_20.html" ;"title="he Hotfoot 20">he Hotfoot 20 and the Holder 20]. She features a galley and sink in a cabin with more elbow room —but with headroom of only three feet, who would want to stay below to cook? Her fittings (Harken, Barient, North) are all top-of-the-line, and she comes as standard with internal halyards, boom vang, 3:1 outhaul, cunningham, jiffy reefing, and a perforated toerail. Worst features: With performance numbers so close to her comp titor, we question why her PHRF would be 240 versus 168 and 183 for the other two comp titor. That could be considered as a 'plus' to some. but for those who don't want their race course buddies to shun them, maybe it should be counted as a 'minus.'"

References

{{Trailer sailers and Trailer yachts worldwide Keelboats 1970s sailboat type designs Sailing yachts Trailer sailers Sailboat type designs by Ken Fickett Sailboat types built by Mirage Manufacturing

Production

Design

Operational history

See also

References