Dinghies in 2020

 

From memory I think there was a tornado or a C class powerd by kites for speed week back in the 80's. I think it was called Jacobs Ladder or something like that so using kite power aint that new.

Originally posted by Prince Buster I think the big push forward in watersports in the next 20 years will be in kites.  We're already seeing the technolgy of kitesurfing being used in some of the leading speed record attempt crafts.  I don't see why the kitesurfing technology can't be incorporated into sailing.  IMO the real high performance sailing boats will look something like an hyrofoiling 18ft skiff powered by a large kite on short lines.... Why not merge widsurfing, kitesurfing and sailing into one sport (they're not so different are they?).  We could have a super light, hydrofoiling board with a big kite that you can kind of get inside and have a craft that can skim across the water and then power up and glide for a while and then come back down....................I don't want to say batman suit but yeah.....it's pretty feasible.....

Have you been talking to Doug Lord?
Foiling kiteboards have been about for a while but much like the foiling windsurfer its a bit of a gimmick and much slower than a normal speed board

Originally posted by redback Surely clothing can't get much better than it is, except maybe cheaper.

Well saying that, spray tops over the past 2-3 years seem to have their own small leaps, more efficient, better fitting.  Wetsuits have developed better stitching processes so we dont end up with those terrible after sailing seem scars.  Tops like the aquafleece keeping us warmer whilst maintaining flexibility.  I think sailing clothing will continue to progress as materials are always being made more effecient, lighter and more flexible. 

I would also like to think that the general sailor will become better and better over time.  Certainly over the past few years coaching has seemed to become ever more readily available to the weekend club sailor.  Hopefully the RYA will develop a programme where by they have a team of coaches they send out round the country to all the small clubs for coaching weeknds. 
I think it would be a great step to make readily available coaching the 'norm' in sailing.  That way the standard of the average sailor going up and up and boat designers, manafacturers and class associations wouldnt be afriad of development because they would know that their newer faster designs WOULD be sailable. 

And with fastsail and TASA in mind, dont forget the newly organised, Symmetric Hikers Challenge!  Prizes such as masts and new suits of sails up for grabs as prizes, thats a pretty good sponsership deal if you ask me. 

Doug.H

It may seem an odd thing to say but sailing is cheap, compared to motorsport. Now, if you are an adrenalin junkie and wish to get your fix you can probably compete in a season of highly competative skiff racing for a fraction of the cost of a minor car or bike series. There will always be a hard core of young chaps (and chapesses) wishing to push the sport forward and because of its relative cheapness and given a few saccrafices they can do it. Fast boats will carry on getting faster and more technicaly advanced and these advances will carry along development on more prosaic classes. Even the humble Graduate has Mylar sails in its hottest form and most GP14's are frp., Phantoms have developed within their class rules to become a modern well sorted boat and Tasar(which needed no development being perfect already) has see through sails. When taking an overview of the sport this forum is probably not the best guide to its health and development as most of its participants are young and keen, not me! There are 10 sailing clubs in Derbyshire and on Sunday all of them will be club racing. The boats racing will be of varied class age and cost. Somwhere on the deep blue sea there will be a group of fit bronzed young athletes trapezing into the sunset. There is a niche for us all and gradualy redundant boats will gather in the nettles at the back of the boat park whilst new ones turn up on the water slowly developing until eventualy they too take to the undergrowth.

Rotomoulds and more Carbon, will have to wait and see.

Besides boats, what are we going to be wearing on the water??