Where have all the Slow Boats Gone?
Printed From: Yachts and Yachting Online
Category: Dinghy classes
Forum Name: Dinghy development
Forum Discription: The latest moves in the dinghy market
URL: http://www.yachtsandyachting.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=1535
Printed Date: 15 Aug 25 at 9:12am
Software Version: Web Wiz Forums 9.665y - http://www.webwizforums.com
Topic: Where have all the Slow Boats Gone?
Posted By: Chew my RS
Subject: Where have all the Slow Boats Gone?
Date Posted: 13 Mar 06 at 4:22pm
|
The slowest 2-man boat raced at Chew is a RS200 (with the honourable exception of one Mirror which ocassionally goes out). Is this normal? No Ents, GPs, 420s, Larks, N12s, Miracles etc, which must have made up the majority of the fleet in years gone by - especially as we are a relatively small, shallow lake. I know these classes get good turnouts at their nationals, so are they sailed elsewhere or is it just that the die-hard few who own them make the effort to go to the big events? The only reason I can think that Chew would be much different from anywhere else is that you go to the top of our waiting list if you have been a member of another club - meaning we don't get many novices joining. PS JimC and Chris249 - did you get my PMs? |
Replies:
Posted By: tack'ho
Date Posted: 13 Mar 06 at 4:41pm
|
Thats a good question. Might be related to the way people look at the sport nowadays. Slow boats are less crash bang but, in my opinion, require a little more tactical approach to sailing. And i'm not sure that is why a lot of people are now getting into the sport. After all how many people move on to faster boats prior to ever showing any real placing at national level in the slower boat they learn't (or started to learn?!) there craft in. My justification look at the winners of the Endeavour trophy. ------------- I might be sailing it, but it's still sh**e! |
Posted By: Rupert
Date Posted: 13 Mar 06 at 5:53pm
|
We are out there! Just avoiding Chew Valley... ------------- Firefly 2324, Puffin 229, Minisail 3446 Mirror 70686 |
Posted By: Rob.e
Date Posted: 13 Mar 06 at 6:03pm
|
The most active dinghy class at HISC is the Solo, and at Portchester, probably the Laser (with a Laser 2000 fleet just starting) so I guess it depends where you sail! ------------- |
Posted By: wetandwindy
Date Posted: 13 Mar 06 at 7:40pm
|
Unless you are sailing in a large fleet of similar boats then a slower boat just is not as much fun. At Herne Bay we sail on large sea courses and unless it gets windy sailing around in an ent or a radial can get a bit dull. I now sail a 59er; much more exciting! If no one wants to be at the back of the fleet then the boats sailed will tend to get faster. ------------- RULE 99.9 section A: Fast boats with big spinnakers have right of way. |
Posted By: les5269
Date Posted: 13 Mar 06 at 8:36pm
|
The most active fleets at Grafham are Lasers and flying fifteens.Slow enough ? ------------- 49er 531 & 5000 5025 and a mirror(now gone to mirror heaven)! http://www.grafham.org/" rel="nofollow - Grafham water Sailing Club The greatest inland sailing in the country |
Posted By: laser47
Date Posted: 13 Mar 06 at 8:42pm
|
at hawley we used to be big on solos mirrors GP14s and bosuns. now the focus is shifting off more towards lasers and omegas which aren't really that slow but slower than all you skiff guys ------------- |
Posted By: E.J.
Date Posted: 13 Mar 06 at 8:46pm
|
Having grown up near Chew I would say that by English standards it is a big lake, certainly the biggest Inland venue in the south west. For this reason anyone wanting to sail fast boats with the easy life of Inland sailing would be attracted to Chew, However there are many small lakes and gravel pits (e.g Frampton, South Cerney or Wimbleball) in the area that can only cater for slower craft and therefore offer more competiton to this type. ------------- |
Posted By: rogerd
Date Posted: 14 Mar 06 at 8:59am
|
A friend of mine was a novice sailor at Chew. Unfortunately being shouted at rather than encouraged made him move to another club. As Rupert says we are out there just not at Chew. |
Posted By: Chew my RS
Date Posted: 14 Mar 06 at 9:01am
|
We've got active Solo and Laser fleets, but its the 2-man boats that seem to be getting ever quicker. I guess you're right, its the biggest bit of water in the area so it may attract the speed junkies, I'm just surprised that no-one sails a 'traditional' boat. It means there is no fleet (or even a slow handicap fleet) for parent/child combinations or 'summer sailors' or those that just want to race a more sedate boat, which seems a pity. |
Posted By: Living in a box
Date Posted: 14 Mar 06 at 9:08am
|
I think it must be a situation specific to Chew. I hear that Bristol Corinthian still has active Solo and Ent fleets and is less than 30 mins drive away.
|
Posted By: Pierre
Date Posted: 14 Mar 06 at 9:11am
| So perhaps people in "slow" boats aren't made to feel welcome at Chew, based on the above comments.? |
Posted By: Chew my RS
Date Posted: 14 Mar 06 at 9:39am
I hope that's not the case. We ARE a friendly club  and I for one would welcome a return of boats that are more suited to family participation. I've nothing against the quick boats, I just think a more balanced mix would be better.
|
Posted By: Rupert
Date Posted: 14 Mar 06 at 9:52am
|
Funny, isn't it, that not long ago a "slow" boat was a Mirror Dinghy, a "medium" boat was a Firefly and a "fast" boat was a Merlin Rocket, and a "really daft" boat was a 505. Now the Mirror appears to have dropped off the bottom of the measurement scale, and everything else has moved down a place to make room for 49ers and such. And as I've seen 1st hand that sailors really aren't any better than they were 25 years ago (it is still possible for me to win the odd race) are many of the sailors of the new generation of boats just giving up the "traditional" skills in order to go faster from point A to B, when infact the desination was point C, where they couldn't actually go? ------------- Firefly 2324, Puffin 229, Minisail 3446 Mirror 70686 |
Posted By: Pierre
Date Posted: 14 Mar 06 at 10:18am
|
Fair point Rupert. It's a kind of Drag Racing vs. Track Racing type scenario I suppose. Trends come and go, but at the "quick" end of sailing life it seems to be heading the same way as the windsurfering fraternity, which is fine, but not too representative of the general dinghy sailing fraternity. Plus the interests of the family type sailor are not exactly highly visible in forum type environments. |
Posted By: yellowhammer
Date Posted: 14 Mar 06 at 12:11pm
|
Picture yourself as a novice helm + young child in a Mirror approaching the leeward mark, in a good natured battle with another Mirror, but with a swarm of RS400s or couple of 49ers bearing down on you. It's horses for courses, Chew haven't necessarily got it wrong. ------------- Laser 3000 @ Leigh & Lowton SC www.3000class.org.uk |
Not much fun, I'd be top of the list to find another, less extreme club.Posted By: patched pig
Date Posted: 14 Mar 06 at 1:21pm
| Don't need to imagine it!! lee mark in a mirror with 7 year on his first proper sail. 5 Rs 400's in their own little world demanding room in what was supposed to be a friendly, family regatta race . Not funny!! It's not necessarily horses for courses, more like having a little respect and remembering that everybody has got to learn at some stage. |
Posted By: Pierre
Date Posted: 14 Mar 06 at 1:24pm
There we go. I think that about sums it all up nicely. |
Posted By: rogerd
Date Posted: 14 Mar 06 at 1:34pm
|
That is just about the scenario and a week later port boat calling starboard on him and confusing him. The boat was leading and he was beeing lapped. Hardly sportsmanship or welcoming. This was a few years ago so I hope things have improved since. tp be fair to Chew they are a big piece of water and attract serious racers. There are plenty of smaller ponds with windshifts that performance boats couldnt cope with around. Thats where you will find the Geeps Ents and Larks and that is where they come into their own. |
Posted By: jeffers
Date Posted: 14 Mar 06 at 2:12pm
|
I would agree with roger on this. It only takes 1 person to upset a novice and they do not come back. We had an incident a few years back with a more experience sailor shouting (and swearing0 at novices. He was spoken to formally by the commodore and warned about his conduct. He is still a member of the club and sail regularly. The people he shouted at were also given assurances the matter had been dealt with, it took then a while but they now also sail regularly. We do pride ourselves as being a friendly club, things do sometimes get heated on the water but 9 times out of 10 they can be sorted by an off the water chat (which we as a club support) and maybe a beer or 2 ;-). I think in the case of Chew they need to clean things up (not knowing the details but thats the impression) and make it public that they are acting on these criticisms. I know a fair few people who sail at Chew, they are all freindly folk so it is possibly only a minority (but you always hear the bad stuff never the good stuff). Just my 2p.... ------------- Paul ---------------------- D-Zero GBR 74 |
Posted By: Rupert
Date Posted: 14 Mar 06 at 2:44pm
|
All clubs, from the smallest puddle to the biggest sea venue, can site occasions when things have got heated on the water and novices have been shouted at, I'm sure. This is certainly not unique to Chew Valley, and probebly no worse there than anywhere else, especially other clubs where there are many high performance boats in a small space. It is easy when on the shore to see the error of one's ways - more difficult when in a panic trying to get a kite down and a much slower boat appears from behind it! Doesn't mean it should happen, but it is easy to understand. ------------- Firefly 2324, Puffin 229, Minisail 3446 Mirror 70686 |
Posted By: nathan
Date Posted: 14 Mar 06 at 2:59pm
|
I can't remember the last time I saw an Ent/GP sailing at Chew. That said there are plenty of them in various states of repair around the boat park. At Chew, the slowest boat in the main handicap fleet (with 700/800/int14/49er at the top) is a 200- the other fleets do tend to do different course, often with a different leeward mark. In the last 2 months there have been 4 new 800s at Chew- owners switching from a Merlin rocket/ RS200/ Buzz and Laser4000- so even fewer slow boats now!! |
Posted By: Living in a box
Date Posted: 14 Mar 06 at 4:39pm
| I has been freezing recently. I know I am generalising, but perhaps the weather has been putting the less experienced sailors who GENERALLY sail slower boats off??? |
Posted By: E.J.
Date Posted: 14 Mar 06 at 7:49pm
|
You would think that Chew would experience a drop in new members if novices are confronted with demon Fast fleets and frightening race situations, as it is they have one longest waiting lists so they must be doing something right. ------------- |
Posted By: jpbuzz591
Date Posted: 14 Mar 06 at 8:44pm
|
i have seen the odd enterprise out around chew which normally appears around early summer and is raced by a gd sailor and his children even thought he seems to do most of the work. There are a few slow boats out there with the wayfarers coming out during the wednesday evening series. So they are out there, just sometimes a bit shy. ------------- Jp Indoe Contender 518 Buzz591 Chew Valley Sailing club Bristol |
Posted By: tack'ho
Date Posted: 15 Mar 06 at 8:18am
|
Fair enough but how many of us then have the good grace to go and apologise to the novice/slower boat after the race and chat through the situation with them? ------------- I might be sailing it, but it's still sh**e! |
Posted By: Matt Jackson
Date Posted: 15 Mar 06 at 5:44pm
|
Just a point about claims of being a friendly club or class. It's virtually impossible to be objective about this if you have been a member of said club or class for more than a few years. I have been to a few clubs and opens in different classes and most really aren't that friendly unless you already know some people. IMO it's a meaningless phrase. When looking at new classes or clubs I now ignore claims of friendliness until proven. ------------- Laser 203001, Harrier (H+) 36 |
Posted By: laser47
Date Posted: 15 Mar 06 at 7:11pm
|
well there are clubs where people come up and introduce themselves straight away does that count as friendly. obviously you wont know people automaticly and it'll be a bit unfriendly seeming at first. isn't that the case with everything (sorry if this post makes no sense, it makes sense to be but yeah)
------------- |
Posted By: Matt Jackson
Date Posted: 15 Mar 06 at 7:30pm
|
Well obvously, but I've joined clubs (which claim friendlyness as an asset) where not one person has spoken to me several weeks after joining and that's within my own class! ------------- Laser 203001, Harrier (H+) 36 |
Posted By: timnoyce
Date Posted: 15 Mar 06 at 7:49pm
Do you look incredibly menacing? Could answer some questions about friendlyness!  ------------- http://www.facebook.com/bearfootdesign - BEARFOOT DESIGN Cherub 2648 - Comfortably Numb |
Posted By: Blobby
Date Posted: 16 Mar 06 at 5:53am
A good point well made. I couldn't agree more. |