Rod Macalpine-Downie and Dick Gibbs, Designed the Buccaneer in 1966 

Dick Gibbs formed Gibbs Boat Company in 1950 when he was 21 years old. Dick built wooden and later fiberglass boats in his plant in LaSalle, MI. The Gibbs Boat Company had produced some 6,000 sailboats by 1972 when he sold the business to MFG in Union City, PA. The principal boats built during this time period were Y-Flyers, the Rhodes Bantam, the Shark, Phoenix, Dingo catamarans and the Thai MK 4 catamaran designed by Rod Macalpine – Downie.

Rod Macalpine – Downie was a brilliant King’s Scholar at Eaton College who had no formal training in yacht design. Rod had seen the Shearwater catamaran, which was the latest rage in the UK, and felt that he could do a better job. The Thai MK 1 class B catamaran was the first boat Rod designed. Rod handily won the UK One of a Kind Regatta with ‘straight bullets’ in 1961. Shortly after, Rod Licensed Dick to build the Thai MK 4 for the U.S. market. Dick had built about 100 Thai MK 4’s by the time they first met in person.

Their business relationship was a simple one, begun with a handshake and based on a steadfast trust in and respect for each other’s talents. Both men were competent designers. Rod’s strength was in hull form and Dick’s in production engineering. While both participated fully in all deliberations of design, they agreed early on that in areas of disagreement Rod had the final word in hull form and Dick in production engineering.

Dick fully appreciated that it was Rod’s genius in hull form design that made the Buccaneer (Mutineer)
the fineboat that she is.

Chrysler had purchased in 1964 or 5 the Lone Star Boat Co. in Plano, TX and in addition to the
Lone Star 13’ and 16’ they had added a Gus Linell design; the ‘Barracuda’, a 13’ dagger board,
cat rigged scow. There had been a major surge of sailboat production during that decade and
demand for Chrysler’s sailboats was dwindling. In (1968) the Marketing Director of Chrysler
Marine, who had recently moved over from MFG, employed Rod Macalpine-Downie and Dick
Gibbs to submit designs for sailboats that would help bolster Chrysler Marine’s position in the
sailboat market.

In 1962 Dick and Rod finally met at the First International Catamaran Challenge at Sea Cliff,
Long Island, NY, 

https://sailboatdata.com/designer/gibbs-dick
https://sailboatdata.com/builder/gibbs-boat-co-usa

Harry Sindle 1989 ~ 2005 Gloucester and then Cardinal

Harry Sindle 1929 – April 2020       Obituary

Sindle competed in international boat races with sailboats including Lightnings, Thistles, Comets, and Flying Dutchmen (all one-design dinghies).[2] He was a six-time national champion in the Flying Dutchman class.[2] Sindle competed for the United states at the 1959 Pan American Games, where he won a gold medal in the Flying Dutchman class.[2] He went on to compete at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome, Italy.[2] Sindle sailed in the two-person Flying Dutchman event alongside Robert Wood and placed nineteenth.[1]

In 1963, Sindle moved to Gloucester, Virginia, to work with Roger Moorman. Moorman designed and built the Mobjack sailboat design.[2] Sindle designed several sailboat classes for the Mobjack Manufacturing Company.[2] Mobjack Manufacturing Company was purchased by Browning Arms Company, where it was renamed Newport Boats and later Gloucester Yachts.[2] Sindle designed sailboat classes such as the Blue Crab 11, Skipjack 15, Newport 17, and Holiday 20. He later built the Buccaneer 18.[2]

Sindle died in April 2020. He was 91 years old and had Parkinson's disease.[2]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Sindle

David E. Nickels  2006 ~ 2016 Nickels Boat Works

David E. Nickels   December 20, 1940 - June 7, 2023 Obituary

David accomplished numerous feats both on and off the water that profoundly influenced our sport and enriched our lives through his kindness and skills. David possessed a near-photographic memory of his races, dating back to sailing with his dad. He applied this remarkable memory to construct and improve One Design boats, including our Buccaneer, Lightning, and Rebel, elevating them to new heights at Nickel Boat Works. He truly was one of a kind."