K1 - Whats the point?

Originally posted by Stefan Lloyd Pretty dependent on being at a club with a crane I'd have thought. I sail a keelboat off a beach and you normally need two people to manage that process.

No that's the beauty of the design.

The keel is something like 60kg but with a lightweight resin infused hull and carbon spars the whole lot only weights the same as a big dinghy... and as the keel lifts
you launch and retrieve it in the same way.

I think there is a market for it

Ian

Personally, I do like the idea behind the K1.

Yes GRF, the keel can be raised and lowered (it's on some sort of pulley system).

I can see one major problem - not just the whole handicap dilution thing - but where WILL these be sailed? There honestly can't be that many clubs where keelboats are allowed (or at least compete alongside a handicap dinghy fleet. Don't berate me with a list of clubs that do allow keelboats, but I'm just saying that the market could be a fair bit smaller than expected. Plus, I doubt that this is the sort of boat you would tow to the coast just to sail on your own.

Originally posted by ifoxwell The keel is something like 60kg but with a lightweight resin infused hull and carbon spars the whole lot only weights the same as a big dinghy... and as the keel lifts you launch and retrieve it in the same way.

Sailing weight 125Kg. I reckon that's three people to pull it up the beach, maybe two strong people. Single-handed - you are having a laugh. It takes half a dozen people to pull a 300kg FF up the beach at my club and more is better.

I think there is a market for it

I'm not saying there isn't, I'm just discussing the issues.

Originally posted by Captain Morgan the keel can be raised and lowered (it's on some sort of pulley system).

Not a new idea: the K6 works like that and so do bigger boats like the Melges 24 and many others.

So you want to sail away and the wind's blowing onshore. That means you need the keel down and for that,  you need someone to hold the boat and give it a shove off while someone else steers and sheets in. Remember you can't drop the keel instantly like a dinghy board. Or to do it single-handed, you need pontoons so you can walk the boat along the pontoon into deeper water, keel down, sail away. I'm back to saying to operate single-handed, you need a club with a crane and pontoons. Such clubs do exist - they are just the minority.

Not planning to stay fit at 60 then Jimbo?

I'm 60 ffs and sorry no sign of flying fifteen premature ageing a la Mark
Woods here so far.. Premature other things maybe