We came across Ken's posts regarding outboard motors on the Sailnet Dolphin Forum archives from 2006. Someday, we will get to Ken directly and find out more about Charisma.

Here is what he had to say about his 9.9hp Yamaha:

I shoe-horned a Yamaha 9.9 four stroke long shaft, high thrust, electric start  (I am now spoiled) into Charisma. I do not rotate the motor to navigate, I use only the rudder. I find it very easy to negotiate in and out of my slip. You just need to understand that the Dolphin is not a power boat or a dinghy -  they maneuver like a larger, say 34’ boat.

I run the motor with the well cover open and push the outboard control arm into the down position to close the cover while sailing. Having the control arm sticking out into the cockpit doesn’t seem like a good idea to me, seems like it would be in the way as well as something for the main sheet to hang up on.

The 9.9 generates way more power that the Dolphin needs, 1/3 throttle keeps us at 4.5 knots with enough extra power to buck the current at our bar during an ebb tide. Last year I filled the 3 gallon tank and at the end of the season had a gallon left over. I know some of the earlier Dolphins had inboard engines; I would love to see some photos if anyone has them.

Ken Thompson