Which skiff to choose

Originally posted by grimupnorth but on the water you will go steaming past RS400s and other sit-in craft

See i hear this all the time and I cant say i have seen it in pracitice ever! I have raced against some very well sailed 4k's (Craig Heppilwhite and Colin Greer and the likes) in the 400 and I have never seen one go steaming passed and have only rarely been beaten on the water by them.

Simple

B14 innit

Originally posted by Rupert  I'd not agree with the comments earlier about the RS500 at all. We now have several at the club, and they are a joy to sail. Up wind they are Fireballish speed, downwind somewhat quicker, so not so fast as to need big water, but plenty fast enough to be fun. No "oddness" with the rudder - very well balanced. Well thought out for the crew, too. You might find them a little small for you, though, as the hull might lack a little volume? <

i was sailing RS prototype at Burgfield and the centre board wasnt perfect to say the least. this might have made the rudder feel odd but id still say youd get bored with it quickly. my other major dislike with the 500 wsas the stupid jib system, it has a 2:1 on the jib but the sheets are led straight through the clew and there is WAY too much friction in it making taking and bearing away a right pain.

I'd say bite the bullet and go straight for the 49er. At 160 kg, you are probably too heavy to be competitive in the RS800 or 29erXX (we were told by an RS rep that 150kg would only be fast in heavy conditions fleet-wise). The 5000 consists of more "grunt work" than the 49er, due to sheet loads being heavier, kites having to be bagged, the weight of the boat and the rig being less well developed. We are currently sailing as a mixed crew, weighing between 135-140kg and have had no problems with boat handling even although we are at the bottom of the preffered weight range and feel that agility and proper boat tuning has more affect on the boat than weight and brute strength. The 49er also has Sport (cut down) sails, so they may be an option if the boat is too much of a handful initially. There are also quite a few mixed crews within the International 14 class.

Originally posted by mike ellis i was sailing RS prototype at Burgfield and the centre board wasnt perfect to say the least. this might have made the rudder feel odd but id still say youd get bored with it quickly. my other major dislike with the 500 wsas the stupid jib system, it has a 2:1 on the jib but the sheets are led straight through the clew and there is WAY too much friction in it making taking and bearing away a right pain.

The 2:1 jib system has been taken off all the ones at Whitefriars. Not sure why anyone would have thought you needed it. I guess whether someone would get bored with the boat would depend upon what they are after in a boat. It is much less twitchy than a 29er, so it is possible to get on with the tactical side of things much earlier, and it is possible to collect a crew off the shore with little experience and still get round the course. It is probebly more suitable to the average club racer who's idea of training and practice is to get on the water 5 minutes early, rather than the youth squad training weekend type.