Why does the Laser exist?

Originally posted by zeon Believe what you want .

Indeed you can and will. But if you go and watch, say, a Laser Masters event in breeze you will see plenty of sailors who are no longer capable of that sort of effort somehow contrive to get round the course.

Arguably the question that one should ask is what the difference in performance is between sailing at 100% of an Olympic sailor's physical capabilities and say 75%, 50% or whatever is within a given sailors own capabilities. In serious breeze just about any unballasted sailboat will make demands beyond any sailor's physical capability.

We all have to back off a bit in extreme conditions. The ultimate question, I suppose, would be whether you are still having fun backed off like that, or has it become an unremitting struggle for no reward. And only the individual can answer that for themself.

Edited by JimC - 18 Dec 19 at 8:38am

Originally posted by tink Originally posted by zeon [QUOTE=sargesail]And I put it to you that with that background he’d have looked much the same whatever he was sailing. It’s about effort levels. Believe what you want . If you think all boats take the same effect to get round a race course that’s fine .  I don’t .

Obviously all boats require different efforts to get around a course but the comment earlier that in a breeze a Laser can’t be got around a course are not correct. Getting going again after a capsize is equally part of it and the Laser does better than most in the OP list in that regard [/QUOTE

Originally posted by zeon Two weeks ago on Sunday it was very windy , our race was won by our only regular laser sailor. He is in his late 30s, the perfect size for a laser, very very fit , has been though the squad system to a very high level and is probably the best sailor at the club. After the race he looked like death warmed up , he was a broken man. I base my view on my own experience and what I see with my own eyes. I rest my case and will not comment again .

He is undoubtedly an excellent sailor, but I suspect until joining our Club he will have had very little experience of the funeling effects and impossible to predict major headers we get on our little tree lined water, which when blowing seriously hard will wipe out most if not all boats that are being hiked properly. I am not surprised if he looked broken.

Did any other boat finish that race?

Quality of of the film not up to modern standards but still awesome 

Originally posted by tink Quality of of the film not up to modern standards but still awesome  https://youtu.be/6p0ILgwKD8o Obviously he is messing about but on a whole that boat is almost always close to flat and yes athleticism but nothing super human. Tom is in control of the heel and constantly adjusting the main.  Like the answer to most people’s sailing issues, time on the water makes you a better sailor. .... and in context, this is design is 1/2 a century old