Design Brief & Intent
Steve Thompson designed the Thompson 590 to act as "gennakers made easy". Recognizing that many sailors wanted to transition away from single-handed dinghies like the Laser but were put off by the complexity of traditional multi-sail sportboats, he prioritized simplicity. The boat was built to be sailed by a crew of two to four, making it highly versatile for family daysailing, club racing, or shorthanded bay blasting.
Structurally, the hull is manufactured using female molds with vacuum-bagged E-glass, vinyl ester resin, and a lightweight foam core. This high-tech, composite approach ensures an exceptionally stiff platform while keeping the dry hull weight remarkably low. Unlike larger sportboats with complicated cabin spaces, the T590 is entirely open, featuring wide, flared gunwales that act as hiking wings to maximize crew leverage without the discomfort of traditional trapezes. The deck layout is clean and uncluttered, with high-quality Ronstan hardware positioned to allow the helmsperson and crew to control all major lines directly from the hiking straps.
Rigging & Hull Engineering
The defining characteristic of the Thompson 590 is its highly efficient rig and lifting keel system. It features a fractional cat-marconi rig with a high-performance carbon fiber mast and boom. The absence of a traditional jib simplifies short-handed maneuvers dramatically; upwind, the crew only has to trim the heavily roached, fully battened mainsail. The mast is designed with a specific flex profile, allowing the upper section to bend and dump air automatically in sudden gusts, acting as a natural governor.
For downwind runs, a retractable carbon fiber bowsprit extends from the bow to fly a massive asymmetric spinnaker. This gennaker is launched and retrieved from an integrated cockpit retrieval bag, keeping the foredeck clear and safe. Under the water, a vertical lifting fin keel carries a heavy lead bulb. Crucially, this bulb is pinned directly to the carbon-reinforced fin and can be fully raised using a trailer-mounted or deck-mounted keel winch. This allows the boat to be ramp-launched and recovered like a standard dinghy, while still offering the stabilizing righting moment of a true keelboat.
Sailing Performance & Handling
On the water, the Thompson 590 behaves like a pure thoroughbred. With an incredibly high sail area-to-displacement ratio of 50.94, the boat boasts an immense power-to-weight profile that guarantees near-instant planing in moderate breezes. A displacement of just 794 pounds means the hull responds immediately to the slightest puff of wind or helm input. Despite this light weight, a ballast-to-displacement ratio of 38.92 percent—provided by the low-slung lead bulb—ensures that the boat remains remarkably stiff and self-righting, neutralizing the capsize risk associated with high-performance skiffs.
Upwind, the narrow waterline beam reduces drag, while the flared topsides allow the crew to sit well outboard, generating significant righting moment. While its capsize screening ratio of 3.94 indicates that this ultra-lightweight boat is not designed for offshore ocean voyaging, it thrives in protected harbors, lakes, and coastal bays. Downwind, once the asymmetric spinnaker is deployed, the T590 breaks free of its bow wave with ease, offering a highly stable, finger-tip control helm even when blasting through heavy chop.
Market Dynamics & Maintenance
As a low-volume, semi-custom build primarily produced in New Zealand and Australia, the Thompson 590 is a rare find on the global brokerage market. When they do appear, they command a dedicated following among sportboat enthusiasts who value their ease of trailing and rigging. Because they are constructed from high-grade foam cores and carbon spars, secondary owners should carefully inspect the hull for any signs of delamination or moisture ingress, particularly around the high-stress areas of the rudder gudgeons and the lifting keel trunk.
Over years of hard racing, owners frequently modernize the running rigging with high-modulus Dyneema to handle the high loads of the asymmetric spinnaker. The lifting keel winch mechanism and the structural locking pin must also be maintained to prevent play in the keel while sailing. Overall, the T590 remains an economical entry into high-performance sailing, offering low maintenance overhead compared to larger sportboats that require slip fees and complex inboard engines.
The Verdict
The Thompson 590 is a masterclass in extracting maximum speed from minimal complexity. By marrying a high-tech carbon cat-rig with a ballasted lifting keel, Steve Thompson created a boat that delivers the pure, raw joy of skiff sailing with none of the swimming. It is an ideal platform for couples, small families, or shorthanded racers who want high-performance planing speeds without the physical punishment of a trapeze.
Pros
- Exhilarating planing performance with a massive power-to-weight ratio.
- Exceptionally simple cat-rig eliminates the complexity of a jib for easy short-handed sailing.
- Self-righting stability provided by a heavy lead bulb keel, reducing the fear factor of high-speed sportboats.
- Fully trailerable and ramp-launchable via a clever lifting keel system.
- Robust, lightweight vacuum-bagged foam-core construction.
Cons
- Extremely rare on the brokerage market, making parts and sisterships difficult to locate.
- Completely open cockpit offers no shelter or interior accommodations for cruising.
- High capsize screening ratio limits the vessel strictly to inshore, harbor, or lake racing.
