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Twenty years from now
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davidyacht View Drop Down
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    Posted: 27 Jan 15 at 4:41pm
Well said Clive.

I don't think that you can say that everything is rosy simply if you have a strong youth section.  Our club has really good turnouts by the youths and by the age 50+ sailors.

Most of the age 50+ sailors have never stopped dinghy sailing, whereas the current youths pack it in for all sorts of reasons that did not exist 30/35 years ago.

When the current 50+ sailors hit physical barriers, maybe at 70'ish (our 20 year horizon), the current thriving clubs may well go into terminal decline.

We did a survey of member's ages a couple of years ago, and despite having loads of cadet members, and age over 45 members, out of a membership of around 1,000 you could count the age 22 to 40 members on two hands.  As a result we heavily cut the sub for this group, in the hope of hanging onto the cadets after their parents stopped paying the sub.  I am not sure that this has made much diference though.

I think that the RYA are aware of the problem, but I don't think anyone has an answer.

The sad truth is that our generation had a ball when we were in our formative years and made lifelong friendships which hold until today, and sailing remains the thing that glues us together.  

Maybe if the Drink and Driving laws had been better enforced in the late seventies and early eighties there would not be so many of us sailing today!  

Also, in the classes that we sailed, National 12's and Larks, it was a great opportunity to meet the fairer sex and have weekends away ... I am not sure that this is so relevent today ... I understand all you need is the right app!
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Riv View Drop Down
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Posts: 353 		Post Options Post Options   Quote Riv Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Jan 15 at 5:05pm
Clubs are the future of sailing, yes there will always be people in their vans turning up clubless to events or just to explore different waters however if more people are going to sail which is what our activity needs the clubs are still the most easily visible way in.

So the next 20yrs of sailing will be formed by what happens at the grass roots.

Here in the land of Far Far Away few people want to own boats but they want to sail so our club strategy is moving away from individual ownership to group ownership by providing safe stable easy to sail boats which you do not need to change your clothes to use. Ordinary walking gear and a BA are enough. (Think Devon Yawl)

As far as racing goes they're just as good as anything else, but more inclusive.

In Bethwaites Higher Performance book he talks a lot about sailing simulators. I have never seen or heard of one in the UK. There are loads of people flying flight sims in their front rooms some with full cockpits and 3D movement.

My prediction for the future is the rise of the home sailing simulator, literally a short section of boat that you can really sail, heel, rudder loads, main loads, trim etc. Sail in front of your new 4K  50" telly. All the software and control systems are there already. Buy one and really race at home.






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davidyacht View Drop Down
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Posts: 1345 		Post Options Post Options   Quote davidyacht Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Jan 15 at 5:30pm
Originally posted by Riv


My prediction for the future is the rise of the home sailing simulator, literally a short section of boat that you can really sail, heel, rudder loads, main loads, trim etc. Sail in front of your new 4K  50" telly. All the software and control systems are there already. Buy one and really race at home.

Cut to the chase, think "Total Recall" where you will have a sailing memory implant ... maybe there is hope for us when our knees wear out
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fab100 View Drop Down
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Posts: 1005 		Post Options Post Options   Quote fab100 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Jan 15 at 6:12pm
Originally posted by Riv

My prediction for the future is the rise of the home sailing simulator, literally a short section of boat that you can really sail, heel, rudder loads, main loads, trim etc. Sail in front of your new 4K  50" telly. All the software and control systems are there already. Buy one and really race at home.

Gawd help us, I hope not. Part of the idea is to get out in the fresh air and interact with nature and people different from those we spend our working and home lives with.
Great book for Club Sailors here
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fab100 View Drop Down
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Posts: 1005 		Post Options Post Options   Quote fab100 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Jan 15 at 6:16pm
Originally posted by davidyacht

 Cut to the chase, think "Total Recall" where you will have a sailing memory implant ... maybe there is hope for us when our knees wear out

I'm not sure implanted sailing memories would be my first choice for memory implants <cue Sid James cackle>
Great book for Club Sailors here
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Rupert View Drop Down
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Posts: 8956 		Post Options Post Options   Quote Rupert Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Jan 15 at 6:23pm
Its the only way I'd win the Moth Worlds.
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RS400atC View Drop Down
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Posts: 3011 		Post Options Post Options   Quote RS400atC Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Jan 15 at 6:37pm
Originally posted by SUGmeister

For what it's worth if you're looking into the future of sailing as a viable sport 20 years hence then in my opinion grass roots sailing needs to be serviced by cheap, really cheap boats. Forget about your foils and other high tech stuff make ok boats cheap. I don't know what the relative value of plywood boats were in their heyday but I can only see sailing surviving in quantity if you can have good supply of cheap durable low tech boats designed to carry weight.

Boats today are just too expensive, perhaps RS have cottoned on to that with their Aero, would it be any worse if it were made slightly heavier but more cheaply?

Is this the 20 to 40 generaton who only understand brand new toys?
At the current rate of decay, my RS400 will still be sailing in 20 years time.
The cost of the boat is a small corner of the budget in the long run.
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Vronny View Drop Down
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Posts: 121 		Post Options Post Options   Quote Vronny Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Jan 15 at 6:55pm
In 20 years time all those people now in their twenties who are too busy or financially strapped will hopefully have more free time and feel richer. If they fondly remember all the sailing they did as kids, whether in squad training or just at their home club, maybe they'll be ready to get back into the sport.
There again, if in 20 years time those same people are still too busy or financially strapped, then the sport will really struggle and the long term future of clubs will look very doubtful. 
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turnturtle View Drop Down
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Posts: 2538 		Post Options Post Options   Quote turnturtle Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Jan 15 at 7:02pm
The demographic who can afford sailing are generally sprogging-up later in life and have a prospect of not retiring until they're nearly 80.... i think it's fairly conclusive that the sport will contract dramatically over the next two decades, in the UK at least.
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Woodbotherer View Drop Down
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Posts: 192 		Post Options Post Options   Quote Woodbotherer Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 27 Jan 15 at 8:07pm
Originally posted by fab100

Originally posted by davidyacht

 Cut to the chase, think "Total Recall" where you will have a sailing memory implant ... maybe there is hope for us when our knees wear out

I'm not sure implanted sailing memories would be my first choice for memory implants <cue Sid James cackle>

You could have some of mine, it would be like getting a life. LOL
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