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Showing results for tags 'dinghy'.
Found 34 results
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Any class of boat that wishes to compete and race has a set list of class rules. These rules highlight any changes that are allowed, or not in most cases, to be made by the owner of the boat. For example the class rules could state “Additional purchase can be added to any control system but additional controls may not be added.” What I want to know is, who is in charge or writing these set of rules for a class? Is the class association responsible for any updates to rules or is it for the manufacturers of a class to decide?
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http://www.cirrusrace.com/icon
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Anyone have any crazy weight reduction stories? We all know how much weight matters but anything can be blown out of proportion. Ive see a lot, from dehumidifiers overnight in 14ft dinghies to drawstrings being removed from gear. A common one is switching trap harnesses between light and heavy breeze. I want to hear the stories you have.
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Just want to share my Youtube Channel, check out the playlists for videos of Musto Skiffs, RS800, 18 footers, National18's and more. I use a variety of cameras including 360 footage from on board International Moths.
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Hi, I have an old Laser 2, but am no sailor. It had one piece cast spreader on the mast and I broke it. It appears to be so out dated that no one I have found seems to be able to help or advise on it. The mast is 2" wide and 2.5" long. Can someone please advise me with a way to replace the spreader or add a new spreader bracket that will fit, or even a similar boat that uses the same size mast that I can get parts for. I need to bring this boat back to life. Thanks for your time Dry and Depressed.
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dinghy RS Vision not found on RS Sailing rssailing.com - status change?
AndrewYM posted a topic in Dinghy Anarchy
Does anyone have an update on the future of the RS Sailing RS Vision dinghy? -
I have a small sailing gunkholer in the San Juans that is kept on a buoy. We take a ferry to visit it and use the dinghy like a commuter car with a portable EPcarry motor. We use a Minto dinghy kept in the water at a local restaurant dock. Had to bottom paint it. Not as stable as an inflatable but- any inflatable owners have a similar use case? I like the stability of an inflatable but am concerned about beaching on rocks, swings in temp causing it to feel too tight in the day and then soft in the evenings, punctures, fowling over extended periods in the water etc. Looking for opinions and suggestions. Thanks, Joe
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Story via Down Under Sail So the question that gets asked at sailing clubs right around Australia has now been firmly put on the agenda – we find ourselves questioning the relevance of the Olympics and also bashing on the decisions by our international governing body. And here we sit in our own corner of the world, and ask ourselves, in a day and age where the commercial world is swallowing everything in its path, where does sailing fit in the Olympics? A number of key sailors on the Olympic circuit recently penned an open letter to the sailing community, asking World Sailing to reconsider its thinking for the Paris 2024 Games, which has placed classes such as the 470 (men and women), Laser Standard (men), Laser Radial (women), the Finn (heavyweight men), and the men and women’s windsurfer under review. These sailors raise important issues about the importance and relevance of the classes they have trained in for years, but let us take a step back for a short time and look at this issue with a wider lens. Olympian Ash Stoddart competing at the Australian Laser Nationals in Adelaide in the 2016/17 summer. Photo: Dave Birss, Epsom Rd Studios For years, sailors have talked about how hard it is to make sailing a television sport, how it is not attractive to sponsors and advertisers, and how the demographic is one of older well-off individuals who don’t need the corporate support. It’s also clear our qualifying process for the Olympics is a shambles, outlined by the last cycle’s decision to not send a 49erFX crew to the Rio Games as they were not seen as a realistic medal chance, despite qualifying to compete. We covered this issue in an editorial piece titled ‘Sold a dream with no reality’. There are now several professional circuits around the world enabling sailors to make a living in their dream job. The America’s Cup, Volvo Ocean Race, Extreme Sailing Series, World Match Racing Tour and SuperFoiler Grand Prix are examples of this. They are examples of how corporate funding and an industry-driven product can make it in the mainstream, so why is it necessary to slog away on a four-year cycle, fork out the big bucks and put yourself significantly behind in life. The SuperFoiler Grand Prix has taken sailing by storm in the last year. Photo: Michael Chittenden Not everyone has an opportunity to invest that much time, effort and money and to bounce back on their feet once it is all said and done – and we can all agree that no matter who you are you need strong support networks to undertake this challenge. It’s sad that we don’t have to travel far in our sailing communities to find the stories of those that were unsuccessful and drained their savings reaching for the proverbial brass ring only to fall short and feel like years have been taken off their life. As a parent looking out for your child’s future, especially considering the hours of coaching and travel at youth level that is an investment in itself, wouldn’t you rather choose to steer them towards professional avenues that give them some form of financial security and a return on their investment, away from the Olympic pathway? Sure, it can be argued that many of the professional sailors in our sport today came from Olympic backgrounds, however the only reason they are at this point is because of access to high performance programs through the Australian Sailing Team and Australian Sailing Development Squads. What if this sort of training was available without the Olympics? When we look deeper into other water sports as examples, there is a lot we can learn about the industry as a whole. Take a look at Surfing Australia as an example. While the jury is still out on whether adding the sport to the 2020 Olympics will enhance the product, surfing has historically survived and thrived through a number of strong industry partnerships, as well as the occasional grant. Its funding ratio is a lot different to sailing, which relies heavily on grants and AOC funding and is therefore built in reverse. Surfing built the Hurley High Performance centre, a facility that has become the centrepiece of Australian Surfing and has yielded numerous World Titles on the WSL. This example proves sports do not need the Olympics to provide a high level of coaching and support. Why can’t our best Moth sailors head to a World Championship with this sort of backing? Why can’t someone at the top of their game heading to the America’s Cup have access to a training facility like this? Why can’t a local Sabre group or sailing club pay to spend a weekend at the facility and get better at what they do? And why can’t a school group spend a week learning how to sail, discovering a genuine pathway with a job at the end of it if they are good enough? Surely the Olympics is not the reason why everyone sails? It is great to rub shoulders with Olympians, but Mick Fanning has never been to the Olympics yet he is idolised by millions, and Steph Gilmore and Sally Fitzgibbons have been role models for young women all around the world and have never been to an Olympics. The WASZP foiler is proving that sailing can be fun, accessible and cost-effective. Photo: Hartas Productions We have a sailing industry that is bleeding money and struggling to survive as evidenced by depleting membership numbers at grass roots clubs right around Australia and the ongoing struggle for those clubs to find viable revenue streams, but why is this the case when we are a sport that is represented at an event that is supposedly the pinnacle of world sport? This goes to show the Olympics is not a commercial venture, it was originally designed to be a competition for amateurs and not a cheque book war. Hell, the Olympic creed even states that the overriding purpose of the Games is not to win, but to take part. Sailing is awkwardly stuck in the middle, with sponsors struggling to find bang for their buck on an Olympic athlete due to limited brand awareness, airtime or the fact that they are blocked from third-party deals that conflict with the governing body’s partnership and sponsorship deals. They may get 15 minutes of airplay if their athlete wins a medal, but is that really worth it? Considering the dollars that are being spent to get these athletes around the world, it seems like a massive cost. We’re not knocking the Olympics by any means, but more simply asking the question of ‘if we did not have sailing in the Olympics, would it open up more commercial opportunities for the industry as a whole and drive the direction of the sport?’ … we believe that it absolutely would. The outcome? We end up with a thriving industry that starts to give back to sailing and make more money available to spend growing participation at club level right across the country and not just at the major clubs on the eastern seaboard. Rather than everyone fighting for their slice of the pie, we actually have the opportunity to make the pie bigger. Most businesses in our industry are fantastic supporters of local sailing, however there is no money in it for them and they find themselves doing it purely for love. We need our sport to be industry-driven and to gain rewards as a result, but unfortunately with the Olympics as the centrepiece and a governing body that needs to win medals to keep their 100 staff in jobs, we find ourselves running around in circles and slowly going nowhere as a sport. Have a think about why people sail in the first place. The Laser isn’t popular because it’s an Olympic class, it’s popular because it’s accessible. The WASZP has exploded onto the Australian Sailing scene in massive numbers and has proven it can harness the troublesome age bracket of 18 to 35. This is because the class itself is accessible, cost-effective and a bucket load of fun. 16ft Skiffs are going through another growth spurt in New South Wales and are again dragging 18 to 35 year olds back to a sport they had since been burnt out of. We ask ourselves the same question of why, and keep coming back to the fact it’s because the clubs are driving the participation and they’re in total control of the outcome, which creates financial incentive to them and the industry itself. The 505 is one of the strongest international amateur classes in the world. At the end of the day our respect level for Olympians is there in spades, they are fantastic athletes who have worked incredibly hard, spent thousands of dollars, and achieved their ultimate goal. To spend four, eight or even 12 years doing that has to be a brutal existence, so absolutely hats off. But out of the 10 disciplines we race at the Olympics, we see about 16 athletes from our country every four years that get to sail at the highest level – millions upon millions of dollars paid by tax-payers and sailors around the country to service 16 sailors. Where does a club like Port Kembla Sailing Club in Wollongong fit into this? Or Parkdale Yacht Club in Victoria? Or even the Port Lincoln Yacht Club in South Australia? All these clubs have produced champions at various levels, as well as exported sailors to the professional circuit. Yet on the same note, there is absolutely no high-performance funding available at these clubs for development, they do it themselves and they are surviving… just. Our opinion is that clubs and sailors should not be looking for handouts from Australian Sailing. The brief for them as a governing body is to win medals and provide education and training opportunities while also having a focus on youth sailing through a small selection of classes that find themselves on the same trajectory to classes raced in the Olympics. This hole that the grass roots of our sport is in, that is growing deeper and deeper from year to year, is not their fault, as they are judged on the outcomes set by their board and that their funding is dictated by. The sooner we all begin to look away from Olympic sailing and align our club structures with what is happening in the real world, the sooner the industry will be able to move forward. Take a look at the statistics from recent cycles of Australian class championships. The findings are damning. 49erFX: 9 boats (18 sailors) 49er: 12 boats (24 sailors) Finn: 29 boats (29 sailors) Laser Radial: 75 boats (75 sailors) Laser Standard: 30 boats (30 sailors) Nacra 17: 2 boats (4 sailors) 470 Men (2017): 5 boats (10 sailors) 470 Women (2017): 5 boats (10 sailors). The RSX even had an integrated event with the race board and formula windsurfing event and was outnumbered greatly by amateur formula and race board sailors. The Australian Sharpie Class always shows strong numbers at national events from year to year. Photo: Danielle Godden Now take a look at other senior class options that are not on the Olympic trajectory and the participation rates they create with no support from Australian Sailing. 16ft Skiffs: 57 boats (171 sailors) Sharpie (2017): 44 boats (132 sailors) 505: 39 boats (78 sailors) Sabre: 55 boats and sailors in 2018, 65 in 2017, and 130 in 2013 Impulse: 39 boats and sailors in 2018, 49 in 2017 A-Class Cats: 51 boats (51 sailors) Moth: 38 boats (38 sailors) WASZP: 36 boats (36 sailors) Etchells: 32 boats (100-120 sailors) One-design windsurfer: 49 in 2018, 80 in 2017. While a number of these classes are down on numbers from previous years and some have shown growth, what it tells us is that Olympic sailing does not keep people in the sport. Unfortunately we find newcomers are not being told of the different pathways they can take in the sport and find themselves with nowhere to go when the youth scene wraps up at 18 years of age. Some go surfing, some play team sports, and for others life just gets in the way, but who can blame them? The absolute last thing most of them want to do once they finish their junior and youth sailing is slog away for four years on a campaign trail that costs a bomb and has an extremely low success rate. We think clubs are the key to driving the sport forward. Photo: Down Under Sail This should be the most exciting time for a sailor, when you’ve finished school and have the opportunity to grab your boat and travel across the country with your mates having the time of your life, all the while enjoying everything a life around the water has to offer. It can be done economically, in your own time, and is a world away from the so called “pathway” we’re all told we need to be on. Down Under Sail is trying to drive the industry forward and needs your support. If you have retention issues or your class is looking for the exposure it deserves, let us know and we can help. Together with our industry partners we want to drive the direction of the sport and give it back to the everyday sailor.
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As many know, San Francisco's Clipper Cove is threatened by a developer proposal to convert the heart of Clipper Cove into a private marina, a marina dedicated exclusively to boats running 40-80 feet in length (and they would demolish the existing small boat marina dedicated to craft running 16-36 feet). Worse the local planning board recently gave the plan a thumbs up. Fortunately a resolution to protect the Cove has been introduced to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors by Supervisor Jane Kim. The resolution doesn't stop marina redevelopment/expansion in the Cove. It just sets reasonable guidelines. The resolution has been endorsed by US Sailing, Save the Bay, San Francisco Bay Keeper, Friends of the Sailing Center, and many others. Supervisor Catherine Stefani, who represents the City's northern waterfront, home to much of the City's sailing community, is in a particularly good position to help. Please consider emailing Supervisor Stefani and ask her to co-sponsor the Clipper Cove planning resolution (#180331) to protect the Cove. You can reach her at Catherine.Stefani@sfgov.org Clipper Cove at Treasure Island is a local mecca for small boat sailing and home to the City's only community sailing center. In the words of US Sailing the proposed marina "would dramatically reduce public access to Clipper Cove and significantly diminish the public recreation and educations programs operated by the Treasure Island Sailing Center, particularly the Center's youth programs. Clipper Cove, widely recognized as one of the best small boating venues on the West Coast, would be significantly and permanently diminished." A City Hall hearing on the Clipper Cove resolution is scheduled for Monday April 30. Supervisor Stefani can help send a strong message to the hearing by co-sponsoring the resolution now. To ask her to co-sponsor the resolution now you can reach her at Catherine.Stefani@sfgov.org
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Hey, I am currently sailing on a Laser and a Seascape 18. Now I want to buy a fast singlehanded foiling dinghy, just to have some fun and learn a bit about foiling. Now I don't want to spend a lot of money (<5000$). My original idea was to buy a cheap used moth, probably an older homebuilt one and gradually upgrade it with newer components (I am willing to spend some time in the workshop). Now that I´ve read a bit more on how to best get started with moth sailing, I am not sure whether this is the brightest of all of my ideas. Another option would be buying an A-Cat and upgrading it with foils later. Now as far as I know foils on A-Cats don't unfold their real potential cause of the class rule so its a foiler but not entirely and of course a moth is way easier to get from a to b via road. I have considered stuff like the UFO or WASZP (last one is a little too expensive) but I don't have a problem with things being complicating and having to figure stuff out, I would like a bit of a challenge and think that for example an UFO would get boring to quickly. So what are your thoughts? Is 5000$ to little for what I want and should I just wait until I have more to spend? What about Moth vs A-Cat? Is there anything else out there that could be interesting for me? Looking forward to good answers! Ben
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I'm new to this, all of this... I sailed sunfish at boy scout camp for a week about 15 years ago, then went on the Chesapeake for an afternoon in a beneteau. Now I'm crewing for a friend on his Pearson 424, and the first night out we had gusts over 35kts and a significant wave height of 10'. I want to get into single-handed dinghy cruising and I've been checking the forums. Most people don't have an interest in what I'm looking for, so it's hard to find. I want something comparable to a wayfarer, which is hard to say having never seen one. My neighbor has had an albacore parked in the driveway since his son passed almost 20 years ago. I'm thinking about making an offer, but want some input as to what might better suit my "needs." Models I'm considering: Wayfarer, Flying Scot, Buccaneer, Paceshup Alouette, Pumpkin Seed, and Albacore. I'm not looking for a racing boat like a laser, but something robust, fast, forgiving, open (no, no O'Days, etc.), 15+', trailerable, single-handed (even if it's with practice), and "spacious..." Does the albacore even come close? Budget is $1500, tops, but I'm willing to do some beefing up, re-rigging, modifying, etc. I've been looking into this for a bit, but wanted to put it forward. Is there something I'm missing? I'm looking to do extended offshore sailing, starting in the Bay, then maybe the Great Lakes, after I get off this roller coaster.
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If a club wanted to start a club fleet of 2 person dinghies, which has lots of used boats available and no trapeze. What would you choose? Thank you for your thoughts.
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We have a pair of Topper/Topaz Taz dinghies (one of which we pimped out with a crazy asym spinnaker recently ;-) ). Both have a lot of play in the rudder, the pintle/gudgeon coupling is very loose. It's simple sheet metal, afaict. Any suggestions on how to tighten the setup, _without replacing the parts_?
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Hello Everyone! I have been looking to get into sailing for quite some time now and would like to get my first sailboat. I have never sailed before but am looking to learn/practice on this boat. Since I don't have much money or space, I was hoping to get a boat that could fit a few adults and be sturdy to take out on the ocean rather than starting with something small like a sunfish. I found one on craigslist, but have no idea if its a good buy or is a good boat. I have searched around a bit and read that it should be sturdy for ocean sailing and holds up well with time? https://phoenix.craigslist.org/evl/boa/d/sailboat-discoverer-annapolis/6401854656.html So far, I've learned that sails, ropes, and pulleys all need to be in good condition (not sure exactly how to tell) and that a jib is very good to have for sailing. What should I be looking for when I go look at the boat? Again, I am new to this but am excited to learn!
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While in a conversation with a friend about how inferior the optimist is to the sabot (I live in California), we began to wonder how the opti spread along the east coast and how it ever replaced the sabot. It's crazy to me that people would use a boat with such a small sail in the light California breeze. But somehow it happened. So how did it happen? I'm really curious how the opti got to be as popular as it did. Thanks guys!
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I have a small sailing gunkholer in the San Juans that is kept on a buoy. We take a ferry to visit it and use the dinghy like a commuter car with a portable motor. We use a Minto dinghy kept in the water at a local restaurant dock. Had to bottom paint it. Not as stable as an inflatable but- any inflatable owners have a similar use case? I like the stability but am concerned about beaching on rocks, swings in temp causing it to feel too tight in the day and then soft in the evenings, punctures, fowling over extended periods in the water etc. Looking for opinions and suggestions. Thanks, Joe
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So with the worlds coming up in Annapolis at the end of the month who is in with a shot at the title? What kind of conditions will Annapolis deliver at the end of September?
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So my family just bought a 34 ft sailboat in Mission Bay (San Diego). The previous owner, unfortunately, sold his dinghy before we bought the boat. So we're in the market for an inflatable dinghy with an outboard we can use when we go tie up in the bay or go on trips to Catalina etc. So I'd love some advice from more experienced folks as to what makes a good dinghy for those purposes... I'm assuming hard bottom is the way to go? Is bigger better (9.5 ft vs 11ft or more)? What about HP? I see a lot of 4.5, 6 HP for sale. I also read this guy's advice saying 15+ as a minimum... (http://www.frugal-retirement-living.com/sailboat-dinghy.html). Typically (2/3 of the time) we'd probably just have 2 people needing to be in the boat, but it would be nice to be able to take 4. Looking forward to seeing what folks think...
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Hey Everyone, Our Laser Regatta in Westbrook CT at Duck Island Yacht Club is coming up on September 9th. Early registration ends tomorrow, so if you want to save ten clams, and get some free beer, sign up. Notice of Race and registration information are available at http://americanregatta.com/diyc/regatta.php?regattaID=103. I will say that Long Island Sound in September is pretty spectacular. Warm water, good breeze, and a great crowd. Hope to see some folks from out of town!
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Hello, At my local club there is much debate over the optimum course for fair racing between different boats (e.g. RS200 and a Laser). We use the handicap py system. Thanks
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Hello fellow sailors! I am thinking of buying a 5.90 meters (19 feet and 4.28 inches) dinghy with a Honda 150hp vtec four stroke 2005 outboard. The problem is that i lack experience with outboard motors. My questions are: Is it a reliable motor? Has anyone occured any problems with this motor? And finally whould you recommend it? Thank you in advance
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Hi guys Some background: Im new to this forum and to sailing. My wife and I are very interested in learning to sail. I found a few local dinghy sailing clubs and was planning on taking some lessons and renting a dinghy thereafter, but I met a keelboat sailor the other day, and he suggested that I just buy one and learn to sail it then. To get back to my question, what would you guys suggest to be a better buy? 420 or 505? I would be looking for something that I could use to learn on, but that would still be useful once we get better at it. I am rather tall, about 1.9m and together we probably weigh +- 160 to 170kg together. It would also be a bonus if I will be able to sail the boat by myself on the days shes not available to join, obviously not at a racing standard, but just so I can get out onto the water. As you guys can probably gather, I dont know much yet. The 505 I can buy is about half the price of the 420, but I know that the 420s are popular here as a training dinghy for double learners. I have no idea to what level either of them are kitted out, all I know is that they are both in good condition and have all their sails and a few extras. Thanx in advance guys
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Hello there! I am a sailor from Hungary and I've created an app be interesting to you all. It is completely free right now and I'd love to get some feedback! The app is available on both iOS and Android, and it has a lot of interesting functionalities. It allows sailors to keep their sailing diary on their phone, searchable and always organised. It can store all the repairs and jobs that need to be done on the boat, as well as keep track of sails. What I think is the most exciting: You can register on www.saillogapp.com as a coach and connect with your sailors online. You can see the trainings of your team and review their diary entries. This could be an excellent teaching tool for young sailors! Sailors can get extra, personalised feedback from their coach after training. It has been beta tested by a Hungarian team with much success, as it helps young sailors remember their coach's feedback. Have a look at it and if you have any questions or suggestions, please message me! More details here: Website
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Hi, I'm sailing a large regatta out of SDYC in mid-July. It is in the ocean near Point Loma, in FJs, and I hope to win it. In my previous experience, it's always been a tricky venue and I've never won there before. I know that if I know what to look for, I can succeed. How have you done well in San Diego? What should I look for to sail well? I would appreciate anyone's help. Micky
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The date for the 7th annual Connecticut River Dinghy Distance Race has been set! (Attached is the NOR) It will be May 6 this year. At little bit earlier than in the past, but due to scheduling conflicts, it has to be the first weekend of May this year. We had over 50 registered and 48 starters last year. I hope to have at least the same number, if not a few more. Also hope to have more breeze than last year. If you are interested in sponsoring the race, let me know. We don't want to raise the entry fee, but are hoping to give some more money to the Pettipaug Youth Sailing Academy this year. You can also find us on FB. I will post a link later as I cannot access FB at work. I just wanted to get this out. I hope to see a bunch of you there. Dan
