RS500 (Again)

Three of us went to test the 500 - and the test took most of our day, so I
can honestly say we put plenty of resources into sailing it for ourselves
and making our own minds up about what we thought of it.

Why was one of the boats we compared it to the 200? - because I'm a 200
sailor and I have sailed the 200 with a lot of people who have, like me,
sailed a variety of trapezing boats in the past haven't felt there was
anything we liked enough/quite right as an alternative. The 200 is a boat
a lot of people know, we have tried to mention boats which people are
very familiar with to endeavour to give a bit of a feel for what the boat is
like.

We work very hard to maintain our independence from advertisers, it's
not about that, it's more about the nature of our sport.

Is an RS400 better than a GP 14? A 200 better than a national 12? A Laser
2000 better than a Wayfarer? A Byte better than a Laser Radial? Depends
what you want it for, the right choice for one individual is not necessarily
the right one for another. Our sport has so many variables and few
concrete things to measure one model against another. The weather,
location, breeze, sea conditions...

The approach we take with our tests is the most important thing is to
leave the reader with a good idea of what the boat is like. There may be
fttings which are in the wrong place, or some things which don't work as
well as they could do and we'll mention those if we come across them. if a
boat was completely awful of course we wouldn't ignore that... but pretty
mch all the new launches have been well thought through.

There are plenty of boats I'm not crazy about personally, the Laser Vago
does nothing for me, but last week I witnessed plenty of people having a
great time in the boat. I never thought much of Picos until I sailed one in
big seas and lots of breeze and had a great time. The RS400 annoys me
after the 200, I really hate tacking backwards, but I'm a bit light for the
boat anyway! I don't personally like the pump system on the 700, the
Musto Skiff's system seems much simpler to me, but there are others who
prefer the 700. I love the SB3, but don't see the point of the K6... plenty
of people would disagree with me.

So much of it is about what you want the boat for and individual tastes
and needs. We try to be aware of that in our tests and give a picture of
what kinds of people the boat might appeal to, rather than basing it
purely on our personal taste.

Gael

Valid points Gael.

However there is a gulf in the way a dinghy is tested and reviewed by publications such as Y&Y and the way that, for instance, cars are reviewed by industry journals. (i.e. Autocar etc) Cars are similarly open to opinion - some people love 911s, some people detest them. This is why more than one person should test it.

Perhaps there is a real step forward to be made for the dinghy sailing market if a magazine were to benchmark itself against a different industry and put forward a new type of review rating things like rig adjustability, stability, responsiveness, power, control etc etc. 

When I was choosing a replacement for my Laser (moved to a bigger pond and got bored with Laser sailing) there was absolutely nothing in the way of proper reviews of different boats, so, and I'm sure I'm not alone, I ended up buying a boat based on specification alone having not been able to have a decent test sail.

Imagine buying a car without driving it and not being able to see an independetn review of it?!

Perhaps a monthly comparative group test for a different market segment? We all realise it's open to opinions but I think it would be worth doing and would make great reading too.

Incidentally, I got lucky on the boat - bought an RS300 and still laugh every time I sail it in a blow. ;)

To be honest in Y&Ys defence they don't always use people from the mag to test the boats. I was somewhat (pleasantly) surprised to see and old clubmate pop up testing a boat around a year or so ago. They also tend to get people who are knowledgable on the class to be there to provide direction to the test.

I do find the reviews informative. Whilst I really do not like the new breed of rotomoulded boats they have their market, I always read the reviews that way. I would say someone who is looking for their first boat would find these useful but of course they would have to subscribe to read them (or know someone who subscribes).

I think the reason that boats don't get panning review unlike cars is because (just perhaps) there are no truly awful boats being launched these days and they all 'do what they say on the tin'.

Just my opinion of course :-).

Paul

Originally posted by jeffers I think the reason that boats don't get panning review unlike cars is because (just perhaps) there are no truly awful boats being launched these days and they all 'do what they say on the tin'. Just my opinion of course :-). Paul

However, when was the last time you saw a car get absolutely panned? There are no shocking cars any more. My point is more from a positive perspective; there are some absolute gems out there, which just don't seem to sell in any number, yet the design deserves to.

Secondly, if a set of criteria are drawn up for reviewing a boat (boat speed, pointing ability, stability, responsiveness etc for example) then it also allows an at a glance review of the boat which tells us what it's like, rather than whether it's any good.

Originally posted by fizzicist However, when was the last time you saw a car get absolutely panned? There are no shocking cars any more. My point is more from a positive perspective; there are some absolute gems out there, which just don't seem to sell in any number, yet the design deserves to. Secondly, if a set of criteria are drawn up for reviewing a boat (boat speed, pointing ability, stability, responsiveness etc for example) then it also allows an at a glance review of the boat which tells us what it's like, rather than whether it's any good.

Watch Top Gear....when Clarkson and co dont like a car they let their opinions be known.

The problems with what you may think is a gem of a design and what someone may think is a gem of a design are 2 different things. However the classes which best fit a persons needs tend to be popular, classes where the market gets flooded have to fight for survival. It is my opinion that the Blaze may face serious competition from the Solution at the lighter end of the weight range however I believe the class will continue to be strong as it already has a loyal following and a large demand at this moment in time.

Whether the Solution will suceed or not time will tell but it is a well designed little boat and I look forward to trying one in due course.

Rotomoulded boats are aimed as pleasure/cruising/family sailors. They seem to fill the brief well, I think they are rather too many of them about right now and in time only the best will survive.

Again just my 2p....