Minisprint

So today, I picked up a Minisprint, partly driven by a desire to bother the woddbotherers in the CVDRA later this year and partly driven by the search for a windy weapon of mass bandit destruction down the lake.

So I went up to see it, took a trailer 'just in case' and dropped swmbo off at Lakeside with the credit card on the assumption if I spent money she would, hoping this time it wouldn't cost me a new kitchen.

For an old boat, it's got some up to date features, like a wash through hull, it also sports retracting centreboard and una rig, but with a luff sleeve ancient design sail, but it looks like fun, so what the heck, another boat.. a man can't have too many...

Wouldn't have driven up there all that way, to buy something I thought was trash...

I shall find out tomorrow though, then if it is trash I shall be nice about it and quietly flog it, but if it isn't then you might see me in it up your way later in the summer.

I'll have to work on it a bit though, can't have all this rear sheeting nonesense, I'm all over that, and the foils look a bit primitive, they could do with some work, then there's that mast, I've got a lovely carbon windsurfing mast that might plug in that hole nicely..

Edited by iGRF - 09 Jan 16 at 10:58pm

My old plastic boat took a Lightning rig quite happily, so there must be a bit of leeway there. The mast isn't great, but is a lot lighter than the Laser scaffold pole. Be good to see how a carbon mast works.

The rules didn't allow anRS 600 sail lashed to God knows what and bunged up, either, but it didn't stop Dean from trying it!

I think the Class Association needs to think of itself as an owners' group and support whatever gets done to boats, but at the same time try to ensure that when the boats race each other, they are all comparable. After all,if you put 4230 and 3446 next to each other, there isn't much similarity - different hull, different sail, seat/no seat,different boom, different sheeting, different controls, centreboard/dagger board, plus more, I'm sure. Even the mast may be different if yours has the bottle neck?

Experimenting with a different mast material, especially as weight-wise it will make no difference, really, seems pretty minor!I do agree it may be too bendy, having tried one on a Tonic, but there must be stiff ones out there!

Well I had a fun old time, first outing, in fact it's the first outing this winter with a dry suit which I always find a little constricting, but anyway here's my initial thoughts on it. It sits very low in the water which was the first big surprise, and this one has quite the worse foils I've ever sailed ever. It was one of those days when the wind was up and down like a whores draws. When I first took it out it was quite breezy, then as is customary with starting signals the wind just dropped, which was just as well because the centreboard made the most awful vibrating noise, not just the normal whine you get when you know your moving, this was a violent judder which slowed the boat almost to a standstill, the case needs packing and the foil needs shaping it's blunt both ends like circumference of a 10p coin blunt so it's no small wonder if reverberates.
I've never sailed a boat with such a high boom either, nice the clearance, but not so nice later when it howled, and it's off boom sheeted with loads of rope getting caught everywhere on everything down the back, it has all got to go. The seat has been rigged wrong apparently, the Commodore down the lake used to sail one so I have a mine of useful advice, after the event in this case, isn't it always the way? Oh he was 15 when he sailed it and so it seems were lots of other folk I speak to.
I couldn't work out the best way to tack it, looking back which was totally foreign to me seemes to work best, but coming out of a tack butt first just seemed so wrong, although it was so pleasant not having to worry about a full batten to transition, for most of the race it was relatively light with the occasional puff, I had a good start and a half decent lead halfway up the first beat, then it lifted from behind meaning I had to ride a knock to get to the first mark and dipping behind half of the late starters so rounded pretty much next to last, we were a couple of Miracles, a couple of Lasers, one a radial, and some getting too handy youngsters in something plastic with a kite, I managed to get back to third playing nip and tuck with a Laser radial and Miracle, there were seven of us, one Miracle got clear and was gone then a laser then three of us switching for third, then the girls in the tub.
I did get into a bit of a rhythm, used that seat thing to hike out but couldn't slide it, had to keep kicking the plate as it washed up but then again when it washed back it stopped making that awful noise, it's almost like a gybing centreboard without a securing knock, but I was having fun which was what's most important, right up until the last lap as I hardened up round the bottom mark misplace my butt and sat straight in backwards.. It all fell apart after that then a Squall came through which seriously tested my patience with another Chinese gybe thingy, I'm good at doing those at the wrong time, I was opposite the club when I finally got it all back together and cold and wet, not wishing to add to the rescue boats further worries I came in, trying to remember my snagging list. Two most important, the centreboard and centre sheeting and with those sorted I think it'll be fun.