Which Solo?

   I understand Charlie C is 90kg's and just won the windy nationals in a Winder II. I sail on the sea so usually more wind and the phantom is too 'on the knees' for me- there are a couple at my club but bigger guys than me! 
 I am just trying to work out if a winder II or a boatyard at beer is a good starting point. The winder is good for weight, but says its optimised for inland. The BY@B boat is the most recent iteration and seems to be well thought of. I realise its all marginal, just don't want to start with the wrong hull for my weight.

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Woodman Send Private Message Find Member's Posts Newbie Joined: 14 Aug 19 Online Status: Offline Posts: 19	Post Options Post Reply Quote Woodman Report Post Quote Reply Topic: Which Solo? Posted: 18 Aug 19 at 10:00pm
	I understand Charlie C is 90kg's and just won the windy nationals in a Winder II. I sail on the sea so usually more wind and the phantom is too 'on the knees' for me- there are a couple at my club but bigger guys than me! I am just trying to work out if a winder II or a boatyard at beer is a good starting point. The winder is good for weight, but says its optimised for inland. The BY@B boat is the most recent iteration and seems to be well thought of. I realise its all marginal, just don't want to start with the wrong hull for my weight.

davidyacht Send Private Message Find Member's Posts Really should get out more Joined: 29 Mar 05 Online Status: Offline Posts: 1345	Post Options Post Reply Quote davidyacht Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 19 Aug 19 at 8:39am
	I was about to say that Charlie C is 90kg ... Apparantly some of the Phantom sailors at our club are now talking about returning to Solos, because their knees are hurting ... in a Solo you can still sit on the side deck and heel to windward on the downwind legs rather than kneel. I wouldnt get too obsessed with what the builders publicity says; there are five significant production FRP Solos; Winder 1a, Winder 2, Boatyard at Beer, Ovington and JP/P&B. Each has their proponents, and each has achieved top results in recent events. A 10+ year old Winder 1 won a windy Salcombe Yacht Club Regatta last week sailed by a gentleman who I suspect was 90kg+ (I didnt ask). The amount of rocker tends to determine the weight carrying ability, in simple terms, more rocker lifts the transom out of the water, reducing drag. I believe that the Ovington has most rocker, the Winder 2 has plenty of rocker and the Winder 1a has least. I don't know about the Boatyard at Beer or the JP. The B@B boat is a really nicely put together boat with some good detailing. After several Winder 1a's I now have a Winder 2, which is a really really nice boat, is fast to windward and tacks beautifully ... I sail at 83kg. I sail on an estuary. There is a lot of comment about Solo boom height, and to pre-empt this, the more recent sails don't demand excessive amounts of kicker, this and decent tacking technique has vastly improved the Solo shoulder bruising/head banging experience.
	Happily living in the past

ColPrice2002 Send Private Message Find Member's Posts Far too distracted from work Joined: 25 Nov 08 Location: United Kingdom Online Status: Offline Posts: 222	Post Options Post Reply Quote ColPrice2002 Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 19 Aug 19 at 8:37pm
	While it's nice to have a new Solo, there are a number of s/h around. Swapping masts/sails is straightforward... If you can tack by crossing the dinghy "headfirst" - superman style - it's easy. The problem is gybing if you haven't eased the kicker. I found a modern slimline personal buoyancy aid (tapered back with no ridges) helps a lot. Colin

davidyacht Send Private Message Find Member's Posts Really should get out more Joined: 29 Mar 05 Online Status: Offline Posts: 1345	Post Options Post Reply Quote davidyacht Report Post Quote Reply Posted: 20 Aug 19 at 7:07am
	When tacking, if you delay crossing the boat until the boom has crossed the boat, you can stand up and sit on the new windward deck without banging your head or shoulders ... try it, it works! I have sailed Solos for twelve years and I don’t recall banging my head when gybing, mainly because I never have that much kicker on after rounding the windward mark. I totally agree that there are some wood bargains ... there are also some very affordable older Boon, Speed and Winder FRP boats on the Solo website at the moment.
	Happily living in the past