Vago in flesh

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.

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.

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.

Re: cartoping, will post the pictures here. By putting it up on its stern and the sliding on the racks upside-down, it's a one-man effort (some physical aptitude required of course).

Re how much a trapeze worth: since there is no keel, the righting moment you generate is equal the heeling moment generated by the sail. The boat is 150cm wide. This means that by hiking you have 75-100cm times you weight as the righting moment. By going out on the trapeze you double your righting moment since you centre of gravity shifts about 75cm out (depends on your height). So for some tacks in strong wind you speed can theoretically double (in practice less, because drag increases more than linearly with speed). So across all tacks and wind conditions, I'd say trapeze is worth 25%. Skiff sailors can add more insight off-course.

Re: speed - there is no magic in making a boat and calling it "racing" - just put a bigger sail on. Don't think anyone can argue that either Vago or RS400 has a more efficient hull shape, not until there are a few years of data and like-for-like testing to make a claim. RS400 has 14.75m main+jib and 14m spi. Vago XD is at 12m and 13m. There you have it, less sail. Probably means that downwind in light wind and double-handed, RS400 is faster. Also means that upwind in strong wind and single-handed Vago can maintain a more efficient sail shape and likely be faster.

Vago is also smaller and cheaper. There are many definitions of "better" in boats. It may turn out that more people will have more fun with Vago, and this means better in my book.