K1, Solo, Ok, D-One, Vareo, RS100, H2.  Basically anything that has a relatively deep cockpit that while requires hiking doesn't require kneeling downwind (either because it has a kite of is relatively narrow.  

The laser actually falls into the comfy to sail downwind, but requires very straight leg hiking upwind so will hurt if technique is poor.

Almost any other singlehander will be an improvement for your friend, the most mainstream choice being a Solo.

I think  Dzero would be OK as you don't kneel when going downwind and ergonomic hiking upwind. Aero sailers use kneepads so might not be best.

Phantom is a kneeling boat downwind so probably not best.

... There is no such thing as 'unsuitable weather, just 'unsuitable clothing' .. as goes the saying.

Same thing with many single-hander classes.  Why on earth spend thousands on a decent boat and then not get the right clothing for the job ?  .. Many single-handers simply go faster if you do put a knee down when running very deep  - so just get a decent set of knee pads !  (Many on offer are lousy, never staying in place for more than a couple of outings - buy 'cheap' or unsuitable and you must expect to be uncomfortable.  Same thing with hikers etc etc.  Get the right stuff and you will rarely be uncomfortable .... if ever.

I've raced the Blaze for nearly 25 years now and do have a dodgy knee (but thanks to motorcycle v car incident over 40 years ago, ... the car 'won') But never had a knee  issue in the boat but then I've always gone for the right knee-pads etc - in comparison previous Lasers in particular were 'not good' for knees regardless of clothing over time !  BTW low free-board is your friend if you want to recover from capsize, quickly and easily and the inherent reduction in windage and lower centre of everything reduces the risk of capsize in the first place imo....

Very true . I always found my mine  very kind to my knees. But it’s worth barring in mind, that the newest version ( the mark 3) is less knee friendly .

The Solution is however not a Solution I would suggest from recent observations 

It has been repeated enough that truth seams unimportant 

 

I am going to upset you now but it based on your advice, that they are bandits, thinking of trading the Streaker for a Laser. 

Even the humble Streaker plays on a skewed field. At the Nationals I was told that I didn’t stand a chance unless I am sailing a new boat with correctors. Now they are changing the boom and who knows what next. A Streaker of carbon out of class though fun is a waste of time. Crew weight however is critical, the lighter I get the luckier I get.

So for a fraction of the cost of a competitive Streaker I can get a competitive Laser and see how I actually do on a level playing field.

If I had the cash and still lived in the windy North I would be staying with the Streaker mind.

 

Carbon masts would just create a divide. The mast is not tapered (again about to change) so if, like the boom, if carbon mast was equivalent to a tin not sure what it would offer. It is sealed so unless it is a violent capsize you rarely get into too much trouble due to weight righting.

The board certainly could be improved on but also cost etc etc. 

 

When I was considering a Streaker I found an article where the current or recent National champion sad (something to the effect of) "we all know the Streaker is 'difficult' offwind in a blow" so I decided not to buy one. If they had a carbon rig I may reconsider.

WRT carbon booms, they hurt a lot less if you get it by one and that's enough to convince me of their value.

Blaze introduced a carbon mast a few years ago, the manufacturer claimed it had identical characteristics to the M7 tin mast and would perform identically. I have both now and the same sail seems to work well on either supporting the claim that the bend curve is the same. But the carbon mast is narrower and much lighter (2kg lighter in fact). The downside of the carbon stick is that, while the M7 was sealed, the carbon mast is not with an internal halyard, holes for the rigging terminals and non-blind rivets (and has less volume to start with) on the other fittings meaning it sinks much more quickly in a capsize.

After talking to a long term streaker sailor and class committee member I believe there is quite a lot of opposition to the change to a tapered mast . Even though the choice is a tapered mast or no masts at all ! Sailors can be a strange lot lol 

Re changing to carbon masts, there is one very good reason for not changing and that is cost. I know from looking into it with my class a couple of years ago. A that time a aliminium m1 tapered mast was @800 while a superspars carbon mast was about twice that . That’s a lot of money to spend lose less than two pounds in weight and when the only proformance advantage only happens in extreme conditions when I wouldnt be sailing anyway . On the other hand I did buy a carbon boom at that time 

The advantages of carbon on unstayed masts are undeniable. To my mind the advantages on stayed masts are less clear cut, especially  if you factor in the extra cost. 

Most of the pointy end of the fleet are using boat out of the claridge/JJ boats mould. Other designs have their strengths but at the moment this design seems to be the best all round design .

Originally posted by zeon It’s no where near as clear cut as that with the British moth .

The carbon mast is roughly half the weight of the M7, I weighed mine with rigging and calculated the weight of the wire to get back to the mast weight. With shrouds, forestay and halyard the M7 weighs 7.8kg, the Carbon, 5.3kg.

Weight aloft does make a difference even when upright but I think the performance advantages are mostly that it's more forgiving rather than actually faster. I have no difficulty stepping the M7 but stepping the carbon mast is very noticeably easier.

Originally posted by ian.r.mcdonald My Osprey tin mast is still competitive inland against the carbon.  And not having to fret about varnishing against UV is good.  But perhaps the option of carbon repair rather alloy replacement may keep some older boats away from insurance write off?

Some Blaze sailors prefer the M7 and it doesn't seem slower than the carbon stick. I agree about varnishing too.

Totally true and several National and Inland championships have been won by alloy masts against carbon since they were introduced about a decade ago .... including this year.  There is a weight advantage for carbon but overall you would not know which is likely to prevail in any particular event in advance.  The standard North sail sits very well on both options

There is a Topic all about the how the Streaker mast which  I think is a new class of mast: the barely stayed mast. The shrouds are very slack. 

Don’t get me started, white pigment or paint them white. The dark side that is marketing has decided the must look carbon 

I haven't got around to it yet but will investigate car paints and rattle cans before I spend £70+ for the 'proper'stuff.

If you’re ever up in Harrtlepool you can drop in on the Huntsman Titanium Dioxide plant. You can also pop in in the Able oil rig recycling plant. 

Daniel Holman in this thread  https://www.yachtsandyachting.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=13135&KW=paint&PN=2&title=varnishing-carbon-masts-what-to-use" rel="nofollow - https://www.yachtsandyachting.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=13135&KW=paint&PN=2&title=varnishing-carbon-masts-what-to-use

Also somewhere else, facebook I think in the dinghy advice or Blaze group but not found it yet.

edit :- it was Pete Jary in my Jun 19th thread on the Dinghy and boat advice group, can't seem to link to it..... this might get you there   https://www.facebook.com/groups/DinghyAndBoatAdvice/permalink/2365825226796474/" rel="nofollow - https://www.facebook.com/groups/DinghyAndBoatAdvice/permalink/2365825226796474/

FWIW Jim, you agreed with me that car paint would work 

I'm a fan of 'thread creep' these things are a bit like a conversation in the clubhouse bar after sailing, nowt wrong with them wandering off the subject a bit. 

Neptune "I wear my spinlock ones under my hikers"

423zero

Haha...can't say I've noticed...but boats from Argos...there's a thought, a nautical sort of name and pick up the same day. Could be the answer to all our woes! Wonder if they do Merlin Rockets....

Next year they will do better with their 20 20 vision

He already has a Hobie Cat.

Maybe not rattle can delivered car paints but the OEM stuff should be at least as good as yacht paint, cars can be expected to see as much UV as boats and aren't routinely repainted every few years.

Argos do sell the Argo (Topper)

Avon ladies get very confused when you ask for a Scow

There is a hire care car company that will also lend you an Enterprise 

Sadly Comet when bust

You can get a dinghy from a Northern frozen food chain, right beside the chicken Bytes 

My GP looks 14 but sailing isn’t prescribed on the NHS

Don’t go on Boxing Day but Ikea do plenty of Mirrors and plenty of Lighting (368 different lamps I believe)

Waitrose have plenty of Albacore tuna in isle B14, but you will need to go to Tesco to get a four pack of Kestrel, it is selling fast so you will need to be up with the Larks.

Wouldn’t have a reference for that... I live south of the midlands

Weasels are for posh folk, a true Northern has a couple of ferrets in his long johns. 

If you’re at Halfords you can pick up some WD40 for your knees, 

the effectiveness of this cure isn’t approved of by WD40