What next?

Single hander or two hander really is a key decision. I don't know of a boat that you can really satisfactorily sail with a crew one week and not the next.

Then if you are going to sail with pick up crews then the maximum level of complexity you want to have is a sit out asymettric boat. Performance trapeze boats really need the two of you to be sailing as a team. My pic, actually, if the requirement was to sail a two handed boat with pickup crews would be a quicker two handed boat, something like a Tasar, but I'd probably not bother and get a singlehander...

The most important thing I think you need to do is to jump in every boat going and get a feel for what you like. I like International Canoes at the moment for instance, but that means not a thing when it come sto what boat you should get...

The other thing is that the "get a boat like the ones at your club" is probably good advice if you have no particular preference about what sort of boat you sail. But if you do have a preference you'd better just get something you like sailing. If I owned a Laser I'd never go sailing even though there are loads at my club. I just don't enjoy racing one. But if you do enjoy racing one, and many folk do, then its a safe choice.

Edited by JimC

Another important factor when buying a boat is what other classes are sailed at your club. It is much more fun if you have a few boats to race against than going round on your own.

I suggest an asymetric scorpion

[QUOTE=Merlinboy]George i have read it and it says it took 30mins on a shifty lake (probably the hardest conditions to sail a 3 in) to sail a 300 at decent pace by a regular circuit sailor, thus suggesting that it is of open circuit decent pace! I was going to take mine to BBSc for the recent open but its a bloody long way to travel for a one day event for me![/QUOTE)

 Fair enough i could see how that could be read like that. In my honest opinion from the couple of times I've sailed the 300 i never really found it that challenging, but have always enjoyed sailing the 300, but for me i prefer the 600.

Ratface, i just sailed at crawley mariners, which is smaller still than where you sail, it was also so shallow that we could put the board more than half way down in the 200. As for the shifts, some of the headers actually tacked the boat, with us still hiking flat out Never ever ever going back there, ever


Edited by Smight at BBSC

Originally posted by Smight at BBSC Originally posted by Black no sugar Originally posted by Merlinboy Originally posted by Smight at BBSC Originally posted by tmoore i would second ratface with the rs300. it takes most people a year or so to get the hang of and most people (even on the circuit) will still go for a swim in 20knots +. but when you get it (im just about (?) starting to having bought the boat in august) then it feels so effortless as you fly past slower boats. if you want wet this boat will do that (not with spray). however it is very twitchy and very hard work to keep upright let alone race. i would say its as hard to sail as a single trapeze boat but without the hassle of hooking on etc. apart from that, try 420 if you want assymetric, i would reccomend the rs500 as a easier to sail 29er which will also take weight well. the 500's are nice and forgiving but still good fun in a breeze and i have been teaching new helms/ crews as school in them (straight after they come out of picos and toppers). i would say try each boat that you may like and make your decision based on a few sails in different conditions. took me 30 minutes out on the shifty bbsc to be able to sail the 300 at decent pace, this is according to the regular circuit sailor whose boat i was sailing, but that is after about 6 months in the 600.   You must be super human then because steve Cockerill found it hard! The 300 to sail at an open event pace will take 6 months to a year! FACT Yeah but you haven't met George! He only took so long because he didn't want the other guys from BBSC to feel inadequate, that's all. Thanks BNS All i'm saying is i didn't find the 300 hard to sail at all and that's on a shifty, gusty lake. I'm not claiming that i'm better than mr. cockerill because that's just not true, ps decent pace doesn't open event pace, before you have a go you might want to read what was said. You can bring your 300 down to bbsc and i'll prove it to you if you like

try sailing one on Bury Lake then if you think Bough Beach is shifty!