Donovan “Don” Shead, a dominant figure in offshore racing and performance-yacht design, died on February 3. He was 87 years old.
Shead was born on May 6, 1936 in Birmingham, England. He learned to sail as a child at the Midland Sailing Club in Birmingham, further receiving a sailing dinghy for his 11th birthday. Shead enjoyed racing sailboats, too. Because his father was passionate about both sailboats and powerboats, the young Shead further learned about bluewater cruising.
By his teens, though, Shead had a strong affinity for speed, and turned to hydroplane racing. He pursued higher-education studies in factory management, applied mechanics, and electrical engineering, all the while remaining an avid powerboat racer. In fact, he entered more and more competitions on the British and European circuits through the early 1960s. He set new course records a few times as well. Among them, Shead broke the B-class outboard-powered hydroplane speed record in 1958. Ultimately, Shead became in British racing what the late Don Aronow of Cigarette fame became in American racing.
Simultaneously, despite no formal training as a naval architect, Shead began designing modifications for racing boats. He was unhappy with the general designs being supplied in the industry. When a boat he designed earned acclaim at the London Boat Show in 1967, he and a business partner set up a boatbuilding business. Opening its doors in early 1968, it focused on waterskiing and powerboat racing. Multiple craft from its sheds went on to win significant races, too.
Interestingly enough, Shead’s experience in racing led to his entry into pleasure-yachting design. Tommy Sopwith, the racecar driver and powerboat racer (plus the son of J Class owner Sir Thomas Sopwith), asked Shead to design the family a luxury yacht. Not just any yacht, however. Philante VI was to be a 92-footer (28-meter), a significant size and style difference compared to what Shead had been designing. Launch occurred in 1967. Over the following decade, even more private clients and production-boat builders tapped Shead for their projects. Shead brought on additional designers to draft the lines of production boats, large motoryachts, and of course racers.
Arguably, Shead’s biggest break in yachting came in the late 1970s, when he became the naval architect and designer for Sunseeker. The first project for the British builder was the Offshore 28 in 1978, a cruiser intended for the Med. Her hull performance was a hit. Dozens of additional iconic Sunseeker projects ensued. They bore model names like Tomahawk, Predator, and Superhawk. Superyachts resulted, too, including the 105 Yacht in 2000, the then-largest Sunseeker.
Robert Braithwaite, Sunseeker’s founder, and his brother John acquired Shead’s design business in 2007. Shead remained a consultant until health issues forced him to step away. Regardless, Sunseeker’s current design team uphold his design values. “Don was an inventor, but with a ‘seat of the pants’ ability to intuitively know when something was right,” says Ewen Foster, Sunseeker’s chief technical officer. “He pushed boundaries in performance, style, and seakeeping in his racing life, and that distilled effortlessly into our production world.”
Furthermore, Foster notes that Shead was his mentor and friend from the mid-1980s onward. “Our industry has lost a giant,” he concludes, “both in stature and achievement.”
Drew Reyland
A true gentleman, He will be missed
Brian Marsh
Sad to just have learnt the news of Dons passing ,I last saw him back in the early 70’s . Although I had been with Allen Gears for some time as Plant Engineer ,due to the cancellation of 2 years gearbox manufacture for oil tankers ,as a result of the oil crisis , I was asked if I would be interested in joining their sales department, I accepted.
One of my earliest enquiries was from Don, for a gearbox for the king of Spains first gas-turbine yacht ,Fortuna 1.
As it happened Don,his Sister [Anita ?] and I were all at first school together , our fathers also were acquainted.
The order for the combined epicyclic gearbox was one of my first sales successes, which gave Allens an entry into the high speed craft propulsion in the future.
I have a school photo with Anita on but not sure about Don ,if she is still around and would like a copy.