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12ft Skiffs... |
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Rupert
Really should get out more Joined: 11 Aug 04 Location: Whitefriars sc Online Status: Offline Posts: 8956 |
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Topic: 12ft Skiffs... Posted: 11 Sep 07 at 10:26am |
Maybe we could get people interested in downwind drag races, along the lines of the 100m. Gun goes, kite goes up, boats race on a broard reach for X no of metres (1km too far to hold interest?!), first past the post wins. All in 49ers, of course, and only sailed in a force 3 or above. Might get onto digital channel No793, or something, but would have ratings worse than "Ironing board covers with special bits on them" on the down market version of the shopping channel...
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Firefly 2324, Puffin 229, Minisail 3446 Mirror 70686
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MpHarris
Posting king Joined: 09 Jun 07 Location: United Kingdom Online Status: Offline Posts: 141 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 11 Sep 07 at 11:38am |
Just a thought but is it just me or is dinghy sailing a rubbish spectator sport? And i don't mean to get into some big argument as seems to be going on elsewhere, i absolutely love sailing i just don't think that its a very good spectator sport. If you look at things like you tube the only things that seem to have been watched regularily are the spectacular capsizes or bits getting broken. Sadly i think its one thing to be blitzing along on the wire wondering how long before you bin it in, but watching it from the side theres only so many times you can watch boats planning around a course. |
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Cherub 2663 "Sweet Dreams"
RS400 451 "IceBerg" |
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Ross
Really should get out more Joined: 02 May 07 Online Status: Offline Posts: 1163 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 11 Sep 07 at 1:16pm |
Good points, and well made.
http://www.blueboat.tv/video/12ftSkiff.mpg I'm not sure how they will achieve "The Concept", but if they did... If they got a big, popular sponsor (Red Bull for example) it would be great. Look at what it did for plane racing! Red Bull air race, I don't know a thing about it, but it was good watching nutters fly around with silly looking inflatable things all over the place. I think people still see the sport as something for the "upper classes" and that you need lots of cash in the bank to do it. If they realized that it a sport than can be participated by almost anyone. Men and women on an equal leval. Then I think there interest would quickly turn to the "higher octane/extreme" side of the sport. Thrills and spills is what people will get, and people love thrills and spills. Look at all the attention a crash gets a F1. "So&so won this race, but this guy crashed in ball of flames and took out 3 cars, a wall and exploded taking out a section of Silverstone..." **The icing on that cake would be if it did become as popular as motor sports, and a well known sailor went clubbing with his mates, hooked up with some chick a shagged her round the back of maccy D's, BUT got snapped buy a photographer for the Sun. People would then think "He's just a spotty youf (who's a good sailor) and just like any other person....blah blah blah"** It can't just be sailors who like to watch sailing. I've shown my friends some videos and they've all said "That looks mental!". Two of them asked if they could come and watch the cherub nationals from a power boat! **-**:Typical Ross rambling and complete bollocks |
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Ross
If you can't carry it, don't sail it! |
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English Dave
Really should get out more Joined: 10 Aug 06 Location: Northern Ireland Online Status: Offline Posts: 682 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 11 Sep 07 at 2:18pm |
Nice thought Ross but I don't think so! Windsurfing went down the same route and even had Red Bull as a sponsor. Slalom courses are all downwind blasts with carve gybes at each mark. It still sells a lot of windsurfing videos but windsurfing on the telly? Don't recall any recently. I'm not sure whether people care whether sailing is a rich man's sport or not. Motor racing is extremely expensive but people identify with it and go watch. Sailing struggles because you have to have done it to understand/appreciate what you are watching. So little chance of the spectacle appealing to the non-sailors. |
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Bram
Groupie Joined: 14 Jul 05 Location: United States Online Status: Offline Posts: 49 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 11 Sep 07 at 4:16pm |
The thing that challenges all of this is the fact that golf and professional poker take up 7 cable channels in the US on any given weekend day. Now, maybe it's just me, but I find lawn growing competitions more interesting. Bram |
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Bram
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Skiffybob
Really should get out more Joined: 04 Dec 06 Location: United Kingdom Online Status: Offline Posts: 842 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 11 Sep 07 at 7:29pm |
Interesting discussion thread. Perhaps I could interject to make a couple of points (seeing as it was me who had that video produced and brought the 12's into the UK)... 1./ With regard to TV et-al, there are now so many channels that they are all clambering for "good content", however this doesn't just mean that because something's exteme or fast that it will get airtime. There are a lot of ingredients that go into making something televisable (is that a real word?). 2./ Next year we are planning to run a series of joint events with the 12s and 18s, and will be doing corporate hospotality for sponsors and their guests. You'll all be very welcome to come along and watch. Interestingly one of the things we've been looking at is the course that we use to make the racing more exciting and easier for non-sailing people to understand (we agree with the points made about the sport being too technical). 3./ Ross, once you've mastered your Cherub, give us a call and we'll get you out in a 12. What Iain says is right, and although chucking big rags onto a Cherub will kind-of work, it's really not the best solution. Also, please bear in mind that there is and always has been an open invitation to ANY Cherub owner to bring their boat along to a 12 meeting and race with us (and if you win, we do give you the trophy, as happened at Datchet this year). Bob |
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Merlinboy
Really should get out more Joined: 03 Jul 06 Location: United Kingdom Online Status: Offline Posts: 3169 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 11 Sep 07 at 8:34pm |
Why cant the 14's come along to that event as well??
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tickler
Really should get out more Joined: 03 Jun 07 Location: Tunstead Milton Online Status: Offline Posts: 895 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 11 Sep 07 at 8:49pm |
Sorry if I am a boring old fart but back in the fiftes when sailing in the week long A class nationals (big model boats) at Fleetwood they put adverts on the Blackpool trams and in the local paper ect. It blew VERY hard that week and it was pre radio controll. Down wind those boats kite up, about 7' long and weighing up to 70lbs went as fast as you could run. Spectacular stuff and they were hard to stop at the downwind end. The Fleetwood Club had a commentator with a PA system. We drew quite a crowd of holliday makers allong the prom. I was probably about 15 at the time and felt quite the star when my name was mentioned when I jumped in to stop my boat before it obliterated its self on the bank. Mind you there was bugger all else to do on holliday in Fleetwood in those days.
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Ross
Really should get out more Joined: 02 May 07 Online Status: Offline Posts: 1163 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 11 Sep 07 at 9:33pm |
Because there not 12ft long. Cherubs measure as 12 foot skiffs, afaik. |
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Ross
If you can't carry it, don't sail it! |
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Merlinboy
Really should get out more Joined: 03 Jul 06 Location: United Kingdom Online Status: Offline Posts: 3169 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 11 Sep 07 at 10:02pm |
No the 12ft skiff and 18 ft event READ the other posts
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