Where's Haggis?

The only reason I ask is that I have seen some quite good junior sailors jump into a 29er and really struggle to start with.  They then end up fed up and sail less.  I have seen some others who have cut their teeth in Fireflys and 420's hop into a 29er and go straight to the front of the fleet (at club level). I think you hit the nail on the head when you said you struggled to sail the boat and look for gusts, even if you were sailing single handed.  Learn to look for the gusts in something a bit taner than a skiff then when you progress all you have to worry about is learning to sail the boat.

If you are determined to get a skiff then also put as much effort into getting a regular crew as you do to getting the boat.

look brian alot of people think you have a attitude problem and people will start to get annoyed with this forum if u carry on as u are

please just use it like everyone else does !!!!!

Brian I want to apologise - I didn't want to stir all this up.  What I was trying to say is that there are some skills in sailing which help you win races and if you a wrestlng with a difficult boat you might never notice some important principals.  Also its more fun to be blasting around in strong winds than it is to be upside down with broken gear because you've gone out in a boat which is beyond your experience.

Now you may be able to handle a 29er for all I know but there is much to learn about sailing in lesser craft and lesser craft can be cheaper which means you stand more chance of getting on the water sooner - and there is nothing better than getting on the water to improve your skills.

Can I give you an example?  I remember turning up at an inland club in my Laser in which I had become quite good at my sea sailing club.  I blasted away from the other Lasers at the start and pulled out a 3 or 4 boat length advantage near the windward mark.  We were lifted and immediately one of the boats tacked off - I was dismissive (and probably thought "silly old codger, he's tacked on a lift").  meanwhile the lift continued and I sailed a great big circle around the mark - he meanwhile tacked back, rounded the mark and was halfway down the next reach.  He had wiped out my 4 lengths advantage and created his own 15 length advantage.  I was concentrating on boat speed he was concentrating on wind. 

You don't learn about wind in boat speed type boats (like 29ers) you learn about wind in boats where perfomance is not everything (like Lasers, Toppers and Wayfarers).  To be good at sailing you have to be good at wind and boat speed.  Its important to learn about wind first otherwise you sail very fast in the wrong direction in your 29er.

Sailing is such a demanding sport you have to be so good at so many things.  Physically good, and brainy, its such a challenge and that's why, like you, I love it.  Forget the 29er, get sailing in anything - there is so much to learn.  The 29er can come later.