Each year our Sprint 15 coverage in the Dinghy Sailing Magazine disappoints me and I suspect other Catamaran Classes might feel the same. This year their effort in "What Dinghy" is even more pathetic than normal. There is just one double page (18 & 19) devoted to Catamarans. There are 68 line entries (one per catamaran format) of which the Sprint 15 get just one line entry (we should get 2 one for Sport mode and the other for standard mode). Many of the 68 entries are for catamarans that you will never see in the UK let alone have others to race against. There is no indication of:
How many boats have been made or sold
How big the Class Association is
How Active the Class Association is
How many competitors attended the Nationals
What/how many Open Meetings are organised
If training courses are available,
etc, etc.
Thus despite the fact that the Sprint 15  and the Sprint 15 Sport are regularly both the 2nd & 3rd biggest catamaran fleet in the country based on National Championships attendance, TT meetings, number of boats sold in the UK, and almost any other criteria there is no guidance to advise the punter of these important metrics. Indeed the Sprint 15 is the natural "starter" catamaran in the UK for punters who have not sailed catamarans before.
To add salt in the wound they (DSM) even get much of the data entered in the wrong columns!
They have even omitted to include our Supplier & Builder  (Windsport and Collins Fibreglass) in the Builder & Supplier database on page 48.
Do other catamaran classes feel neglected by DSM?

That rather assumes that they get asked in the first place...... At least Y&Y do things properly and contact the association or builder for up-to-date info. DSM is not a magazine that has ever impressed me though and as already mentioned here, I'm sure the Y&Y team will be pleased to see such constructive criticism!

Thing is Helen, the Bloody Mary does not allow Cats. 

I agree with Shadowman, Cat sailing is not getting the appropiate exposure IMO.  

I agree with shadowman that Y&Y and even Dinghy Mag do little in reporting grass roots of cat sailing. Even with Helen sarcasm and trapezing tips from Hugh Styles, which you already probably covered the year before the mag only wants to report the in fleets and the big budget manufactures. 

So to finish on Helen comments that we might miss bits while glansing at the newagents. I hate to say thats all you need to do if you are reading the multi section looking for grass roots cat sailing.

These are just my thoughts

What size of event do you need to have before Y&Y will give more than a cursory glance?

If we have 60+ boats at the Hurricane Europeans this summer, will Y&Y send someone to cover it or, better still, enter a boat? I know it's Northern Ireland but flights are cheap and, if it helps, I'll pick you up from the airport. Canvey is only 50/50 at the mo so you could borrow his boat. (Mark, the commute from Algeria to Canvey must be a cow-son).

Didn't catch the Hugh Styles article but I'm guessing that it went along the lines of "Crew lower than helm, trap high in medium winds and waves, low in a flat breeze. Forward upwind but move aft downwind to keep the trim. Crew and helm stand together to reduce windage." If there was more rocket science to it than that then I apologise.

To save the busy reader time in the newsagents here's the Ben Ainslie guide to hiking in full: "Lean out in the gusts."

I think I read that in a Magazine somewhere

THe thing is that we did send you umpteen reports (form the Grafham Cat open for example) that ended up on the Website, but never made it into the Mag - How did that happen ?

Thats because you never took out a big advert.

I know our fleet use to send in reports all the time, but never really made the grade until we sent in a funny report from our own Major Eyeswater. Still makes me laugh today

Funnily enough I did read the bloody mary report in the que. But then put it back. As for the trapezing article: its one of those things that to get better at you need to be on the water not reading about it in the bar. Yes there may have been useful coments for some, but if you've read one of the articles on trapezing...

One of the articles I used to find interesting to read was the 'Dinghy Forum' written by both cat and dinghy sailors if I remember.

Yes, Dinghy Forum was great, but my favourite bit of the mag was Pit Stop; I even used to save those pages - sad, I know...

Helen

Not only did we put umpteen reports from GWSC on the web site, we also emailed you before pointing out that the event was attracting a huge turn out and that there were about 5 championships being decided.

If you want an example about how you are not covering grass roots sailing, the revival of the A Class in the UK is striking and not seen that noted at all.

Can you tell us who writes your regular 3 page features with pics on RS nationals and equivalent if you don't send reporters to events ?  Notice you are happy enough to send an ex employee of the company in question  to write a report on its new holiday site.

If you really want the feedback and leave us with a warm feeling, then maybe your cat correspondent should post in response to these crits. Y&Y is undeniably the premier mag but I am clearly not alone in thinking that it is getting out of touch with its core readership.

Hi HelenF,

I'm with Sprint Bob on this. You will be pleased to learn that Bob has recommended the latest Y&Y issue on the UK Sprint 15 Association website.

It goes to show that if there is coverage on the most numerous single-handed cat in the UK, the members will buy the magazine. I have never purchased DSM, and I'm unlikely to do so, if I feel that I am not being catered for.

Soggy Doggie. 

Hi

I would like to applaud Y&Y for continuing to print race reports in it's magazine.  It is often the only way that some of the established classes get exposure in print. Sailors who have taken part in an event like to read about it after the event - particularly if their name is mentioned or if there is a picture. I know many sailors who buy the magazine to get a permanent record of their endeavours. The only possible complaint is the delay in printing the reports, sometimes. In 26 January issue there were 6 reports from the Grafham Cat Open which happened on 21/22 October - I don't know if they got forgotten about and were woken up by this forum - but it is fairly rare that things get missed out in my experience.

The Y&Y website is very fast and efficient in its reporting and has recently been much faster than our own class website in reporting our events. The only problem is that the web site is so popular that reports soon disappear off the top page and have to be searched out. It is well structured and grouped to collect class history as well as the future programme for the coming season.

Generally, it is my experience that catamarans are well covered in Y&Y (magazine and web site).  What has to be remembered is that for coverage to occur someone has to intitiate it. Generally, this is in the form of sending in an event report or some newsworthy item. If some catamaran classes are not getting proper coverage I suspect that they are not sending stuff in to Jeremy Evans or to Clubs and Classes.

Keep up the good work Y&Y. You get my vote.