Frankenboat - what's yours?

Having sailed 800 with wide racks to sit on as helm rather than twin trap.
I reckon its quicker movment for a good trapeze guy than slide back across a trampoline.
If the B14 had gone double trapeze it would have been up against the 49er/800/int14 and lost out to all. Wide racks and hiking gave it a USP and add competition with the Aussies.

Only a dozen races in the Blaze but so far, as one would expect, I'm finding the racks much more secure than helming from the wire. As Gordon suggests though, tacking feels quicker with the wire (but you need a high enough boom to cross the boat on your feet). Capsize recovery doesn't seem to be an issue with racks but only done it a couple of time so far.

Edited by Sam.Spoons - 23 Feb 17 at 10:05am

In fact it is actually much easier to recover form a capsize with the right type of racks in some classes.  You simply use the tubes as convenient handholds and step round the front as the boat goes over - it is instinctive.  Foot or feet on the centreboard and lean back, still holding onto those nice handholds.  Easy.  And as the boat rights itself (the tramps tend to slow/control the process) you simply step back over.  Much easier than trying to grip onto wet hull imo... or clamber around  a wide, 'flared' hull and you have those 'handholds' and righting leverage immediately to hand.

My own 'Frankenboat' ?  And this is one that might get built since there are 'doner' bits available.... narrowed Icon hull type with reduced freeboard - Blaze type wings but a bit wider and a Halo sized rig (so approx 11m) and just maybe a similar sided spinnaker.  Might be just as good with slightly less sail area as the hull is so easily driven and all the rest does work well and is proven over many years.   Apart from anything else I do think the 'hiking singlehander with spinnaker' slot an interesting one to play with.... if not ultimately attractive commercially, and this would just be a 'franken' project only.....     



Edited by Cirrus - 23 Feb 17 at 11:42am

Exactly so. 505s, Contenders and Javelins (Peter Milne's not yours), then along came an L4000 which seemed bit of shin clatterer and scaffolders solution on my single trip.

Edited by Do Different - 23 Feb 17 at 1:32pm

Thin people with wide racks on 600's can pass between rack and hull to re-mount.
It's amusing (for bystanders) when a larger person with narrow racks tries to copy this....