This past year the venerable and yet forever young Sunfish marked its 60th year and 50th North American Nationals regatta. Since Alex Bryan and Cortlandt Heyniger first created the 129lb, 13ft 10in lateen-rigged boat in 1952, it has introduced untold thousands of sailors to the sport and provided countless hours of fun.

Some other numbers to consider:

320,000

total number of Sunfish sold

838

distance in miles if every Sunfish ever made was lined up bow to stern

300

number of Sunfish fleets in the United States

74

number of sailors at the 2012 Sunfish World Championships in St. Petersburg, FL

16

number of countries with active fleets

5

the value in pennies of the coin that was reportedly traced to make the first Sunfish logo--just add a tail and fins and, presto!

Photo by JH Peterson