edward mason

precision 16, precision 18 (centerboard model) or Boston whaler

zipper luff should make it easier to leave your boat tied up while you take a break, eat , etc.--(still should leave the boat head to wind.)The difference is that with the zipper luff you can drop sail without taking the mast down. Its almost as good as having a conventional sail with a boltrope that fits in a track, and is raised and lowered with a halyard.

the term "assault weapon" is a misnomer.Any weapon you use to assault someone is an assault weapon--even a twenty-two pistol.

p. s. Here are some small boats with a halyard: Beetle cat, international penguin,and Tech Dinghy' There are several other older small boats which use halyards but are mostly sloops such as the blue jay, Rhodes bantam,420, javelin and Lido 14. The sleeve over mast is a relatively recent concept considering the hundreds of years since man learned to sail--I first heard of it when the laser first appeared.(late 60's, early 70's ?). Up until then, virtually all boats had halyards.

Actually ,cat rigged usually refers to being rigged with a single sail--so you could be cat rigged with a bermuda,(marconi ),gaffsail, (like a gaffed rigged CATBOAT for example) or even cat rigged with a lateen sail. So why would you say the sunfish is not cat rigged? The op was right--it doesnt become a sloop till you add a jib.All una rigged boats, are in fact, cat rigged. the most common rigs are Cat, Sloop, Ketch, Yall , and Schooner. Rig designations usually refer to the number and location of the mast(s)--not the type of sail the masts are carrying---it would be possible, for example to have a lateen schooner, or a gaff rigged ketch.

hey mikewof: I concur

I've never liked the sleeve over mast idea for just the problem you mentioned, (although I've owned both a laser and a force 5 and enjoyed them both despite that dumb handicap.) Don"t know the luff measurement on the Capri so I'm not sure this will help, but if its similar to the force five you might look into purchasing a Force 5 zipper luff sail-(once and possibly still available from Intensity Sails).Also available from Weeks boatyard---(latest manufacturer of the Force Five).To use it, you attach a single block,( pulley) to the top of your mast and run a halyard through it and attach to the sail.Hold the zipper in one hand and the halyard the other and the sail"zips itself" around the mast as you pull on the halyard.Of course if you plan to race other Capris you will have to use the stock sail, but for taking a pause during a daysail this is the best idea I've see to get around the sleeve over mast handicap.

I have a whole "heard" of elk and not one of them has ever had their heads explode---(well ,except for that one time that old "mail" chewed on a shotgun shell). Guess one of his teeth hit the primer!

It seems to me this whole dust-up misses the point.The obvious solution is simply not to play the National Anthem at silly mass entertainment sports diversions such as football games and stock car races in order to confer an importance upon them which they do not deserve in the first place. When did observing the spectacle of a bunch of over- grown millionaires running into each other become a patriotic act ? And playing the Anthem at a stock car race? OH, PU-LEESE. This "sport" grew out of "them good ole boys who soup-ed up their old cars so they could run moonshine and out run the po-lice". The National Anthem, If it's meant to instill a sense of patriotic duty should be reserved for solemn occasions as for example- when soldiers are shipping off to war or presidential inaugurations--or events that have actual National Importance. Playing the Anthem at every table tennis championship and junior tiddly-winks contest does not make you a patriot-- it only cheapens it. Please, people, this is our NATIONAL Anthem. Lets reserve our anthem for occasions of NATIONAL import. And no matter how big a football fan you may be, remember, it really does'nt matter a FUCK who wins the superbowl ! It's a GAME for Christsakes.

Sorry it took so long to respond. I was out single-handing my sloop -rigged "couch" so I had neither the time nor the inclination to indulge slow-yacht--I mean fastyacht- in this little mini shitstorm. But I'm back now so I'm happy to oblige for awhile --at least until he becomes even more unjustifiably pedantic than he already is. I had to give up the popcorn --I found it impossible to hold the bag, the tiller, and still hand hold the mainsheet in puffy conditions. Fastyacht, if you too will give up the popcorn so you wont have to cleat the main so much you may find it will really help with that capsizing problem you're having. After I returned and read your last post I thought you had accidentally posted to the wrong thread. With whom were you agreeing? I went back to the beginning and searched the entire thread and was unable to find ANYONE who said it was wrong to race.You seem to be blaming racing for your capsizing problem instead of your own poor judgement or slow reflexes. It is NOT wrong to race.--- though perhaps foolhardy to do things in a race that you would'nt do anyway.IF, as in the above-referenced "cleat the main so I can hold my popcorn/beer/whatever" is not something you would normally do while day-sailing, Why the hell would you do it in a race?

I never said my experience was universal---in fact I even stated the information was "my 2 cents worth."(see my post on 7-17) If your're not familiar with the term look it up. Means something similar to" take this info for what its worth-may or may not be applicable to your situation." If you would bother reading the original post, Rekaneva specifically asked about anyone having experience in ballasting dinghies and I had that experience so I posted it.By the way, If you've turtled every dinghy you've ever sailed then you're doing something wrong.

When is the last time you lifted 50 lbs of gravel-- the Tasar ,being a planing hull has a deep vee forward--the bags sit in that vee. They are very hard to move.Congratulations on being able to sail a 505 single-handed, but you are simply wrong about ballast shifting--at least in my case. I've had my boat heeled about 90 degrees and the bags have never moved. Also my boat is is not slower with the ballast. The boat was DESIGNED to be sailed at that weight (or even more) Capsized and upside down is NOT fast.The only time ballast might be a slight disadvantage is in very light air-and in that case in can be removed--no need to screw it to anything.You told me --as if you were some sort of authority-- that it will shift- but that is as presumptuous as if I told you Fastyacht ,without ballast you *will* capsize--at the most inopportune time.You simply don't know what you're talking about when it comes to MY boat and MY sailing style. Do not presume to tell me what the "problem" is. The only "problem" is self appointed experts like you.

for ballast, I like rocks better than water and lead better than rocks. I like using full sail with proper weight so no loss of performance. Thanks for the clarification on weight of Imperial gallons.My bad---I should have looked at your location.

why would you feel more comfortable with 2 five gal cans of water? Weight is weight whether its cans of water, bags of gravel or lead.The only difference is the amount of space it takes up due to the different densities of the materials. Incidentally, if I needed to add 100 lbs to bring a boat up to recommended weight, 10 gallons of water would take up a lot more space and still not weigh 100 lbs( unless the cans themselves were very heavy). Fresh water weighs 8.34 lbs/gal so 10 gals=83.4 lbs. Salt water is only slightly heavier @8.6 lbs/gal so still only 86 lbs.The best material for ballast which was found out years ago is lead. If I had a good source I would have used it instead of gravel--100 lbs of it would have taken a fraction of the amount of space of virtually any other material.This is why it is used in sailboat keels.

well,you're much less likely to capsize with the proper amount of weight in the boat. Its no more difficult to right than a heavier dinghy.Of course, if you turn turtle they will fall out anyway.It may SOUND wrong but having barely prevented a capsize before proper ballast and having never even come close afterwards--well you should see why I'm advocating this.