Vago in flesh

Don't knock the Mirror, it has many virtues, although I concede speed is not one of them.

I would like to point out that sailing a 4000 or 800 is much easier when you are not racing.  I have observed many people return from a great time sailing these boats at Menorca Sailing and having a torrid time when they find themselves having to sail, tack and gybe in gusty winds and in close company with other boats.

Woops! I'm getting off the point - the Vago sounds like a good choice by Sumo.

Exactly, I want to sail a dinghy where I can concentrate on my technique rather than just going from one swim to the next without understanding why.

With regard to the Mirror, I have sailed one once in the mid seventies, I haven't even considered it. I like a dinghy with an asymetric, so much more fun going downhill, so I'm afraid it is no to a Mirror.

Zig-zaging downwind is not nonsense - no more than zig-zaging upwind.  However you'll find the Mirror surprisingly responsive and rewarding and also very versitile.  Small kids love them because you can row and paddle them and the sheet loads are light.  They carry an adult and a couple of kids quite well and if you take the rig off and row it you'll find you can comfoatably carry 2 adults and 2 kids.  We used to car top ours since the spars are short and the hull is light.  A brilliant boat and when cruising down rivers there's no need for that zig-zaging nonsense since the spinnaker is conventional.

However the wooden ones have thin floors - so adults should resist jumping up and down on it and always leave the boat so that water does not collect.  I drilled a hole just aft of the centreboard case and put a bung in it.  Then in the dinghy park with the bung out it always drained.

Getting back to the Vago.  This sounds like a good trainer for teenagers and with the suggested yardstick it has about the same performance as a Buzz which also makes a good trainer for teenagers.  The Buzz seems a highly underated boat and is a bargain because of it.  Don't try to compare either with the Laser 4000.  Neither have enough performance to "apparent wind" sail regularly whereas the 4000 has just enough to make it a common occurence - and that is a whole different way of sailing.

I'm wondering how it fits in with the Laser 3000 which must have similar performance to the Buzz and has the pedigree of being a Bethwaite hull.

Having sailed the L3000 I can say that the Vago is a much better boat, faster, more stable and more comfortable.

In reference to the earlier comment with regard to Symetric versus Assymetric, the key advantage of the later is that you can sail single handed.

As we're all leaping to the defense of mirrors, always felt that singlehanding in a breeze, you hardly seem to notice that you're the slowest thing on the water.  Planes ridiculously easily (fireball-esque hull maybe?), kicks up huge amounts of spray and the whole rig hums.  Fair enough, if your after being first back to the jetty after each race, you might have problems, but if you're just out for a laugh sailing (and something that pops up easily when you capsize it), mirror's still up there.

Anyways, sorry, what were we talking about?!