Classes Table Discussion

I think some of the International classes were National at various times.
This would apply to Fourteens, Fireballs, Enterprise? others?

Have classes lost their national status?


But maybe we are drifting from the point. I think people want to keep an eye on trends in most classes, it doesn't hurt to have data from a few obscure ones. Webspace is not rationed like magazine pages.

Originally posted by JimC The supply of decent cars and bikes for track racing has never dried up but increasingly its from small specialist suppliers not the mass market. Don't see why racing boats should be any different in the long term. We've already seen most mass producers abandon high end racing boats.

AltOboats  is certainly a specialist supplier. It has been designed by dinghy sailors and is now being run by AltO owners.  No owners of new boats bought since launch of the prototype AltO in 2008, have sold their boat throughout our thorough two/three year testing period. I wonder what percentage of RS100 new owners have sold theit boat?
At the recent Pyfleet Week we, the class, were happy that the boat more than met the design criteria and that all systems were now fully tested and were without problems, unlike many of the recent flood of new mass produced classes rushed onto the market to meet accounting commitments.

We are now moving into our expansion phase. A facebook group is just being formed and the website now undergoing changes will reflect that we are a new niche class which is here for the future.

We would like to believe that the AltO class is creating a new specialist class format to be part of the twenty first century dinghy racing scene and the new financial climate.

Originally posted by oldarn I wonder what percentage of RS100 new owners have sold theit boat?

I'm afraid those stats aren't in the public domain, I'd guess 20-25% of the first 100 'special offer boats' are now onto their second owner within their second year, but I could be wrong.

What is in the public domain (and keeping within the class nationals stats) is that 25 of 43 sailors who competed in the nationals in 2010, have either sold on or choose not to attend the 2011 Nationals- that's a 44% retention rate from one nationals to the next

Fortunately RS sold enough to get the overall numbers for 2011 back to 46. Is this a high attrition rate... who knows, can't really tell much from nationals attendance, but a growth of only 3 net competitors despite another 150+ boats out there doesn't look great.

Edited by rogue - 15 Sep 11 at 2:24pm

Originally posted by RS400atC I think the Alto has an uphill struggle. It's a tough climate, and there are plenty of choices in the two handed, single trapeze field. I wouldn't mind being proven wrong, as it looks a nice boat.

Of course it won't be easy in the present economic climate and yes its tough out there, but,  I'm interested in your comment that there is plenty of choice. What choice sub PY 950 and asymmetric that is in productions, is it just the 5O5 at twice the price?

but the 100 had to morph into something that wasn't a vareo so it was always going to end up where it did - or am i being niave?