# Outrigger > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Outrigger > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Outrigger.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outrigger > Source revision: 1351340177 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) This article is about a structure fitted onto some boats. For boats fitted with this structure, sometimes also called "outriggers", see [Outrigger boat](/source/Outrigger_boat). For the hotels and resorts company, see [Outrigger Hotels & Resorts](/source/Outrigger_Hotels_%26_Resorts). For ski equipment, see [Outrigger ski](/source/Outrigger_ski). For the video game, see [Outtrigger (video game)](/source/Outtrigger_(video_game)). For the Swedish metal band, see [Outtrigger (band)](/source/Outtrigger_(band)). An **outrigger** is a projecting structure on a boat, with specific meaning depending on types of vessel. Outriggers may also refer to legs on a wheeled vehicle that are folded out when it needs stabilization, for example on a [crane](/source/Crane_(machine)) that lifts heavy loads. ## Powered vessels and sailboats See also: [Outrigger boat](/source/Outrigger_boat) An outrigger describes any contraposing float [rigging](/source/Rigging) beyond the side ([gunwale](/source/Gunwale)) of a boat to improve the vessel's stability. If a single outrigger is used it is usually but not always [windward](/source/Windward).[1][why?] The technology was originally developed by the [Austronesian people](/source/Austronesian_people). There are two main types of boats with outriggers: double outriggers (prevalent in [maritime Southeast Asia](/source/Maritime_Southeast_Asia)) and single outriggers (prevalent in [Madagascar](/source/Madagascar), [Melanesia](/source/Melanesia), [Micronesia](/source/Micronesia) and [Polynesia](/source/Polynesia)). [Multihull](/source/Multihull) ships are also derived from outrigger boats.[2] In an [outrigger canoe](/source/Outrigger_canoe) and in [sailboats](/source/Sailboats) such as the [proa](/source/Proa), an outrigger is a thin, long, solid, [hull](/source/Hull_(watercraft)) used to stabilise an inherently unstable main hull. The outrigger is positioned rigidly and parallel to the main hull so that the main hull is less likely to [capsize](/source/Capsize). If only one outrigger is used on a vessel, its [weight](/source/Weight) reduces the tendency to capsize in one direction and its [buoyancy](/source/Buoyancy) reduces the tendency in the other direction. On a [keelboat](/source/Keelboat), "outrigger" refers to a variety of structures by which the [running rigging](/source/Running_rigging) (such as a [sheet](/source/Sheet_(sailing))) may be attached outboard (outside the lateral limits) of the boat's hull. The [Racing Rules of Sailing](/source/Racing_Rules_of_Sailing) generally prohibit[3] such outriggers, though they are explicitly permitted on specific classes, such as the [IMOCA Open 60](/source/IMOCA_60)[4] used in several major offshore races. ## Fishing In [fishing](/source/Fishing) from vessels, an outrigger is a pole or series of adjustable poles that allow boats to trawl more lines in the water without tangling and simulates a school of fish. It is attached to the fishing boat's sides in front of the hull. They are typically made from metal or plastic and provide stability for the fishing boat and fishing platform[5]. ## Rowing In a [rowing](/source/Watercraft_rowing) boat or [galley](/source/Galley), an outrigger (or rigger) is a triangular frame that holds the [rowlock](/source/Rowlock) (into which the [oar](/source/Oar) is slotted) away from the saxboard (or gunwale in [gig rowing](/source/Cornish_pilot_gig)) to optimize leverage. Wooden outriggers appear on the new [trireme](/source/Trireme) around the 7th or 6th centuries BC and later on Italian galleys [around AD 1300](/source/Galley#Middle_Ages_2), while [Harry Clasper](/source/Harry_Clasper) (1812–1870), a [British](/source/United_Kingdom) professional rower, popularised the use of the modern tubular-metal version and the top rowing events accepted the physiological and ergonomic advantages so acceded to its use in competitions [citation needed]. In recent decades, some manufacturers of [racing shells](/source/Racing_shells) have developed **wing-riggers** which are reinforced arcs or flattened tubular projections akin to aircraft wings, instead of conventional triangular structures. ## See also - [Outrigger canoe](/source/Outrigger_canoe) - [Catamaran](/source/Catamaran) - [Outrigger canoe racing](/source/Outrigger_canoe_racing) - [Racing shell](/source/Racing_shell) - [Sailing canoe](/source/Sailing_canoe) - [Training wheels](/source/Training_wheels) ## References 1. *Early Ships and Seafaring: Water Transport Beyond Europe*; Sean McGrail; Glossary 1. Texas, Edwin Doran Jr. (1974). ["Outrigger ages"](https://web.archive.org/web/20190608182436/http://www.jps.auckland.ac.nz/document/Volume_83_1974/Volume_83,_No._2/Outrigger_ages,_by_Edwin_Doran_Jnr.,_p_130-140/p1). *The Journal of the Polynesian Society*. **83** (2): 130–140. Archived from [the original](http://www.jps.auckland.ac.nz/document//Volume_83_1974/Volume_83%2C_No._2/Outrigger_ages%2C_by_Edwin_Doran_Jnr.%2C_p_130-140/p1) on 2019-06-08. Retrieved 2018-05-28. 1. [[http://www.sailing.org/tools/documents/WorldSailingRRS20172020-](http://www.sailing.org/tools/documents/WorldSailingRRS20172020-)[20946].pdf#page=35 "The Racing Rules of Sailing 2017-2020"]. Retrieved 2016-11-12. 1. [[http://www.sailing.org/tools/documents/IMOCA%20CR_2008-](http://www.sailing.org/tools/documents/IMOCA%20CR_2008-)[5871].pdf#page=14 "Class Rules - IMOCA 60 (Open 60 Monohull)"]. Retrieved 2016-11-12. 1. ["Fishing Boat Outriggers: Do You Need One? | Discover Boating"](https://www.discoverboating.com/resources/outriggers). *www.discoverboating.com*. Retrieved 2025-12-13. --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Outrigger](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outrigger) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outrigger?action=history)). 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