The first five Loch Longs were presented to the world on George VI's Coronation Day, Wednesday May 12th 1937. They were built from Oregon pine on elm timbers by Robert Colquhoun of Dunoon and proved to be the star attraction at the Cove and Kilcreggan regatta organised to honour the new king.

At a cost of 66 pounds they were in the league of a sailor on the tightest of budgets. The same holds true today with rules that strictly limit expenditure and rigging variations. Perhaps one, but certainly not the only, reason the Loch Long has thrived for so long and still competes in races on the Clyde and also at Aldeburgh in Suffolk.

The origins of the first design can be traced back to 1936, when the Loch Long Sailing Club looked for a one design to replace their fleet of handicap dinghies. A Mr Ian D. Campbell came back from Scandinavia with a likely candidate in mind, the Stjarnbat, designed by Janne Jacobsson sometime before the First World War. However, the craft wasn't deemed suitable until James Croll had worked on the plans and came up with the first design Loch Long. Colquhoun of Dunoon was commissioned to supply the first five boats with Croll providing all the finance.