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After the success of the Hornblowers in 1972, people were standing in line for my next design, even before it was off the drawing board in the winter of 1972/3. Twenty boats were ready for the new season - all bought in the belief that I would produce another winner.
Fortunately the punters were proved correct, and the Hexagon became probably my most successful and versatile design, and certainly the most successful new Merlin Rocket design of 1973. It was during this period that in one particular month my income from design royalties exceeded my salary as a systems analyst. 1973 could easily have been the year of the breakthrough, but it somehow did not happen.

Patrick Blake led the pack with his 'Mythelated Spirit' (MR 2713), a dark purple Hexagon from Spud Rowsell which was completed in time to be exhibited at the Dinghy Show at Crystal Palace in March. We won the Silver Tiller Series in this lovely boat in 1973 and 1974, but the Nationals eluded us: we were 2nd by 1/4 of a point behind Alan Warren and Gerry Rooke at Poole in 1973, and third at Pwllheli behind Spud Rowsell/Jon Turner and Lawrie Smith/Neil Thornton in 1974. The only consolation was that Lawrie was also driving a Hexagon. The 1973 championships were such a close run thing, and it could be said that they were denied us by a Hornblower - Tony Lane had bought 'Myth Isle' from us at the end of 1972, and beat us into second place in the first race at Poole (we were just 3 seconds behind him!). Thus 'Myth Isle' had won two consecutive championship races with different helmsmen, because we had won the last race at Falmouth in the previous year.

As Patrick was so successful in 1973, he decided to keep Mythelated Spirit for the 1974 season - a decision which he more than justified. The design won 12 of the 34 Silver Tiller events (the same number as the increasingly popular Morrison designed "Smokers Satisfaction"), two National Championship races (with 2nd and 3rd overall), and was 2nd at the Inland Championships that year. But I did not stop the annual design process. The result was Hysteria.

A total of 26 Hexagons were built. I think that the Hexagon was my best all-round design for medium/heavyweights.