GB Sailing Challenge - still confused

Originally posted by turnturtle Originally posted by Sam.Spoons Making line honours the aim in a mixed fleet would involve banding at a fairly narrow level or boats with a PN at the top of the band would have little hope of a result. The speed difference (to take an extreme example) in our junior fleet between the Optimist and Laser 4.7s is fairly huge. Likewise between a GP and a Merlin. I'd say a PN difference of 100 points would be more than enough to discourage the slower boats in each band from turning out. I should point out I'm not a 'winning is everything' type (just as well given my results these days though I've done my share in the past) but it's nice to know you might be in with a chance of the odd decent result if everything comes together. Let’s apply real world observations to that: Kids classes - typically sailed in class in many clubs.  the club is either a Tera club, Oppy club, mirror club, cadet club etc.  Or if it really is a hotch-potch, do yourself (and your kids) a favour and move to one with some consistency.

 I don’t doubt that statistically accuracy can be validated as better now than then, however does that neccessarily translate to better quality of racing.... 

Edited by turnturtle - 26 Nov 18 at 3:58pm

A classic example of how the handicap system as it currently stands screws things up, is the relationship between the Blaze and the Phantom which in our world can rub along quite nicely scratch, indeed they were pretty much scratch until too many inland wallers saw the bandit capability of the Phantom in light weather, this was going on when I first started taking notice of all things handicap.
Yet a Blaze will absolutely destroy a Phantom once it's well powered and racked up, again weather driven, no amount of handicapping is going to alter that, yet they did just to placate the pondies. and along with a few other key favourites getting the slow treatment the Blaze now enters Bandit territory itself, a victim of selective handicapping. In a banding system they'd race together scratch.

Edited by iGRF - 26 Nov 18 at 4:41pm

Originally posted by turnturtle  I don’t doubt that statistically accuracy can be validated as better now than then, however does that neccessarily translate to better quality of racing....  I read H2’s last post- great stuff and a good read.  But out of that prose, nothing relating to the change of calculation formula, or indeed the handicap itself, suggested this played any part whatsoever in his enjoyment of the day.... therefore could it not be better than those boats closest enough ‘in category’ were actually racing for line honours, rather than some retrospective calculation? I dunno ... but my point is that that would actually be a qualititive experiment to genuinely carry out before writing off the concept altogether as ‘unworkable’.

Originally posted by H2 Originally posted by turnturtle  I don’t doubt that statistically accuracy can be validated as better now than then, however does that neccessarily translate to better quality of racing....  I read H2’s last post- great stuff and a good read.  But out of that prose, nothing relating to the change of calculation formula, or indeed the handicap itself, suggested this played any part whatsoever in his enjoyment of the day.... therefore could it not be better than those boats closest enough ‘in category’ were actually racing for line honours, rather than some retrospective calculation? I dunno ... but my point is that that would actually be a qualititive experiment to genuinely carry out before writing off the concept altogether as ‘unworkable’.   But hang on - if it was not for some form of Handicap system I would not have been out sailing against 100+ random people on Draycote. It was the handicap system that enabled me to turn up and take part, otherwise it was just a random days sailing on a lake in the midlands. However flawed the system is it enabled me to have a great days sailing!

Edited by turnturtle - 26 Nov 18 at 4:55pm