Dinghy development: RS Tera

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RS Tera

Printed From: Yachts and Yachting Online
Category: Dinghy classes
Forum Name: Dinghy development
Forum Discription: The latest moves in the dinghy market
URL: http://www.yachtsandyachting.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=11597
Printed Date: 12 Jul 25 at 8:49pm
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Topic: RS Tera

Posted By: craiggo
Subject: RS Tera
Date Posted: 12 Aug 14 at 10:56pm

So at my clubs annual club week, last week, my 6yr old daughter had a couple of goes in an Oppie and loved it, managing to tack & gybe and sail up and down the narrow inlet where all our cruisers are moored, all on her own. She is now incredibly keen and wants to sign up for Oppie training at one of our local inland clubs.
The main issue I have is that Oppies just dont work in the strong tides at our club and clearly a Topper is going to be too much for a 6yr old, so I'm wondering how a TERA would work.
Are there any TERA sailors on here who could comment?

Cheers

Replies:

Posted By: GarethT
Date Posted: 12 Aug 14 at 11:10pm

At that age I think a tera might be a bit of a handful. I know at our club a lot of the smaller sailors struggled to get back into the tera after a capsize, and they do capsize more than an oppie.

Teras do seem great once they're bigger, but I think they're closer to a topper than an oppie size wise.

Posted By: gordon1277
Date Posted: 13 Aug 14 at 1:21pm

Dont forget they now do a 4.2rig for the Topper. this could be an option.
Good getting her out there.
Why not buy a Fever and ask her to crew for you for a couple of years.

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Gordon
Lossc

Posted By: craiggo
Date Posted: 13 Aug 14 at 5:44pm

Thanks Gordon. My daughter already crews for me in our Graduate, but I'm happy for her to develop her helming in something smaller and more manageable. She also has friends who are doing Oppie training but they currently go to Frampton SC as Oppies are too slow to work in the tide at our home club. My current thinking is to try and join Framptons Oppie training next year and have the Tera for sailing at our home club when she doesn't want to crew for me. I can then either sail with the wife, my son or take my 700 out!

Tera with sport rig (dacron) is my thinking. My daughter is pretty big for her age and doesn't look out of place amongst 8-9yr olds. I'm keen to get a demo in a Tera and if successful she may persuade some of her friends to get the same.

I'm interested to know how other 7yr olds have got on with Teras. Gareth comments suggest they are a touch too challenging at that age?

Posted By: GarethT
Date Posted: 13 Aug 14 at 7:27pm

From what I've seen at our club, I'd say that learning in a tera for kids younger than school year 6 is a bit of a handful.

Those that learnt first in an optimist can probably cope a bit sooner.

This is just my observations though - my kids learnt in optimists from about 4 years old. If anyone can give you feedback on their own children's Tera experiences it's probably worth more than my view.

Posted By: NickA
Date Posted: 13 Aug 14 at 8:12pm

Isn't the Tera RS's copy of the Pico? Defo more topper sized / powered than oppie replacement. Topper Taz? Think you can even drop an oppie rig in one of those ... but no idea if they're any good.

I opted my (twin) sons out of the RYA "pathway" classes by buying a pico instead of two oppies / toppers.

Wins and losses ... in the pathway classes you get better race training and don't feel left out at mixed events (eg NSSA) where everyone else is in a different boat. Outside the pathway classes, you get to sail a decent boat!

The best (and probably happiest) young sailors at my club started with their dad in a K-6, sailed a vario together and now have a 29er, they race against the grownups and ignore the kids club!

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Javelin 558
Contender 2574

Posted By: winging it
Date Posted: 13 Aug 14 at 8:32pm

All of the six and seven year olds I have had on courses have been very happy in oppies, and I am very sure none of them would have coped all that well in a Tera. The Tera is just that bit bigger and more powerful than an oppie; it's just too much of a handful. If the oppie doesn't work in the tide because it's too slow the Tera won't work either because she won't be able to sail it well enough.

Six is still pretty young to be thinking of her going solo, most don't start until at least seven or eight. I would let her stick with crewing in something like a pico, grad, mirror etc then bring the helming in later, maybe with just the occasional trip in a borrowed or club oppie.

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the same, but different...

Posted By: Bootscooter
Date Posted: 13 Aug 14 at 8:49pm

I like Oppies, but can understand your tidal issues.
I like Teras (much smaller than a Pico BTW) but they can be challenging in both power and tippyness.
I like Topper 4.2 rigs for the smaller ones, but the topper is a lot of boat for a little'un to lug around ashore.

Best answer.... have a go - I bet there's loads around that'd be happy to let you trial.
Another point of view is that perhaps the venue isn't suitable for a solo 6 yr old if the world's best selling kids boat isn't right for it...

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Posted By: craiggo
Date Posted: 13 Aug 14 at 9:10pm

Thanks for your comments guys very much appreciated. She'll be 7 in February and I dont envisage getting anything until next summer at the earliest.
I have only seen the Tera at the Dinghy show (never on the water) so without trying it out its difficult for me to determine its suitability. RS blurb suggests it would be fine but your collective knowledge is far more useful than RS marketing brochures!

I fully intend to get her out for a go to see what she thinks, and her friends who are generally 9 or nearly 10 will I'm sure be interested in also having a play.

Id just like to also point out, Im not pushing her into racing a youth class, Im not even pushing her into racing as she can do that crewing in our Grad, Im just looking to give her a boat to have a bit of fun in initially and if she gets keen on racing it then so be it.

I never did the whole squad thing as a kid even though I've been racing since I was 4 and certainly have no desire to push her in the squad direction unless she specifically asks.

Posted By: Rupert
Date Posted: 14 Aug 14 at 11:42am

I'd agree that the Tera might be a bit much at that age - better once they are 9 or 10. How about a Bug?

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Firefly 2324, Puffin 229, Minisail 3446 Mirror 70686

Posted By: RichTea
Date Posted: 14 Aug 14 at 4:11pm

Craig, where are you?

We have a Tera club running every Saturday she could "try" the boat/club on one of those sessions. We are in West London. It's a small lake near to Datchet.

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RS200

Posted By: craiggo
Date Posted: 14 Aug 14 at 6:57pm

Rich Tea, I'm in North Bristol.

I have some friends at LDC so organising a demo might be possible at my home club but thanks for the kind offer.

Posted By: Rupert
Date Posted: 14 Aug 14 at 7:12pm

Whitefriars is less than an hour from you, if you can't get one to your club - I'm sure we could organize something, but RS pretty good at sorting stuff like that.

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Firefly 2324, Puffin 229, Minisail 3446 Mirror 70686

Posted By: craiggo
Date Posted: 14 Aug 14 at 8:07pm

Hi Rupert, Whitefriars is indeed close, in fact myself and most of our original club safety boat team did our initial RYA Powerboat courses at Whitefriars with Pete Bone back in the day.

Certainly an option that I will keep in my back pocket.

Cheers

Posted By: sargesail
Date Posted: 18 Aug 14 at 3:01pm

Originally posted by Rupert

I'd agree that the Tera might be a bit much at that age - better once they are 9 or 10. How about a Bug?

Craiggo - first thing. Good advice given to us by someone who had worked at the centres was on no account get a Bug, due to the lack of any airspace underneath them. I have checked this and foung it to be true.

I think Nessa is right about the tide. The Tera is some 15% faster than the Opi, and that isn't enough to make a difference.

We have both for our kids (Johnny just 7, Gwen nearly 9). They first had them 2 years ago (Gwen went solo then, Johnny last year at just 6). But we did a lot of work with them over the winters to ensure they had the dagger grip sorted, before they started helming.

Johnny can now right the boat by himself and can get back in (at a struggle). We are planning to work on technique to help that (push down and use the bouyancy to help get himself up).

Up to a F3 it's fine in the Tera. Anymore and they struggle for weight and reaction time. Johnny is confident in the Opi, but more nervous in the Tera, but he likes the Tera more. It seems to me that the Opi box shape has a lot of form stability, whereas the Tera sails like a proper boat! (Gwen's Tera is called Aunty Pantie because it isn't like a pants draw!).

On the Opi route you do need to check that she has arm length enough to be able to put the tiller in the middle when sat on the side. Don't even try unless she has (but at 7 she should have). The Tera doesn't suffer from this issue.

While the Tera is very definitely not a Pico, being smaller, lighter and less rounded, it is big enough for even me to sail with Gwen or Johnny, with either them or me steering. I can't do that effectively in the Opi, especially in the winds in which I might want/need to.

So nothing conclusive.....but I guess at Thornbury the last paragraph could be a factor?

Posted By: craiggo
Date Posted: 18 Aug 14 at 6:01pm

Matt, thanks for your great advice. Izzy can definitely get the tiller to the centreline in the Opi. She went sailing with a friend at Frampton on Severn SC yesterday in her Opi and loved it. Initially she wanted to tack facing backwards, but by the end of the day she'd sorted herself out and was tacking properly. We'll keep the training going in the grad on the way to and from the race course and I'll try to get her onto FOSSC Oppie training next year then I'll look at getting a Tera if it suits. You are definitely right about liking some space to sit in with her. I'm 6ft 2" so it's a bit tight in the front of an Oppie!