D-Zero

The comparison took place in a light F2 with occasional puffs to F3. The helms doing this were myself and a guy I usually have a close fight with on the water in his Laser.

Upwind:

Upwind it was immediately noticeable how much higher the D-Zero would point than the Laser, a good 5-10 degrees. It did not slip sideways as quickly as the Laser either and did maintain boat speed better when the wind dropped off. There was no way the Laser could get to a windward mark faster unless they nailed the beat and the D-Zero got it wrong. It was also noticeable how much easier the D-Zero looked to sail and the lack of fuss when sailing. In the puffs the boat heeled and accelerated and came flat with a little trimming.

Tacking the boat seems to tack very quickly indeed with very little loss of speed. Acceleration out of the tacks were noticeable even when there was no ‘pump’ from a roll tack.

We also started with the D-Zero some 10 yards downwind of the Laser. In a very short space of time the D-zero had climbed above the Laser and was some 10 yards upwind and going faster despite the high pointing angle.

Offwind – Reaching

Reaching the boat was a delight. Accelerating quickly in any puff even without taking a pump. The transition to planning was very smooth, soon leaving the Laser far behind. Which could get planning but had to be worked much harder. When it came to gybing the boat was much better mannered than the Laser, a bit of heel to windward to induce the bear away and the boat gybe smoothly, inciting confidence as the sail popped across to really get the boat moving on the exit of the gybe.

Offwind – Running

This was the only point of sail where the Laser boat speed was anywhere near the D-Zero. The D-Zero accelerated much quicker in the puffs due to the light weight but did slow down quicker in the lulls. The Laser (by virtue of being heavier) took much longer to slow in the lulls so would catch up. The D-Zero felt much more secure downwind with the sail kited up though (sitting on the chine) and was also a lot more comfy even when you moved well forward to be alongside the daggerboard case. Whilst the Laser tended to rock around unless you really were in control the D-Zero felt as if you could almost let go of the tiller and the boat would not change course.

Other observations

The rudder loads were light and the cassette rudder arrangement is great for coming ashore as you can raise it half way ready for the shallow bits.

The sail controls were nice but it was felt that they should be a little longer so they can be tied off further back so they are in reach and ready to adjust (a Laser sailors opinion, Adrian did say that Dan usually attached his to the daggerboard).

The hiking position was very very comfy. Even after several sails (in varying winds) I felt very little fatigue in my calf muscles despite not wearing my hiking pads.

Overall the boat was a joy to sail. Everyone who got out came back with a big smile on their face. We even had one visitor who could not sail due to a foot injury but had come to have a look and speak to people prior to ordering one for himself.

It is worth noting that I did spend a fair amount of time in the boat on the Demo day (when others were not waiting) and once the wind built to a steady F3 with gusts into the F4 range the boat flew and felt very secure inspiring confidence even on a shifty inland puddle.