Vira is an Irwin Citation 34, built in 1978. Here is the model in numbers, a few facts about Vira herself, and what I think of the design after years of living inside her with a sander in my hand.
The Irwin Citation 34
Ted Irwin drew her, and Irwin Yachts in Florida built her from 1978 to 1985, about 305 boats. She's a masthead sloop with a solid fiberglass hull, a roomy 11-foot-3 beam and classic 70s lines. There were two keels: a deeper fin and a shoal keel with a centerboard.
| Irwin Citation 34 | |
|---|---|
| Length overall | 34 ft 3 in (10.44 m) |
| Waterline | 27 ft 4 in (8.33 m) |
| Beam | 11 ft 3 in (3.43 m) |
| Draft | 5 ft 4 in fin keel; about 4 ft shoal keel, board up |
| Displacement | 11,500 lb (5,216 kg) |
| Ballast | 4,100 lb (1,860 kg); 4,500 lb with the shoal keel and centerboard |
| Sail area | about 538–544 sq ft (50 m²) |
| Sail area / displacement | about 17 |
| Ballast / displacement | about 0.36 |
| Rig | masthead sloop |
| Designer and builder | Ted Irwin, Irwin Yachts |
| Built | 1978–1985, about 305 boats |
The numbers come from published spec sheets and boat reviews, and they differ a little from source to source: Practical Sailor review, sailboat.guide, Mauri Pro rig data.
Vira
| Vira | |
|---|---|
| Built | 1978 |
| Bought | November 2021, on Facebook Marketplace, for $5,000 |
| Keel | shoal keel with a centerboard, lead pellet ballast in epoxy |
| Draft | 4 ft 2 in with the centerboard up, measured on the hard in 2026 |
| Mast | a replacement mast from an Irwin 30 |
| Height | 46.2 ft, boat and mast together |
| Engine | Yanmar 2QM20, two cylinders, about 20 hp, converted to fresh water cooling, with a hand crank |
| Home | Lake Travis, Texas, until 2025; Kemah, Galveston Bay, since 2026 |
| Name and home port | VIRA, Houston, TX |
What I think of her
Was and now
The same places on Vira, the way I found them (in 2021, and the hull at the November 2025 haul-out) and the way they look now.