Old sailors. Cool boats.

by John Curnow on 3 Apr 2016 It was whilst walking on the beach the other day that a very interesting thought came through my mind. It was fairly quick to materialise and pretty poignant, as it turns out. Here were Sabres, Contenders, Optimists, 420s, even a Mirror and then newer craft like, RS Aeros and 29ers, all going for a sail.

So what was it? What could have been so revelatory? Well, quite simply, pram bows and the need to bail had not turned me, or many other far more versed than I, off dinghies or sailing for that matter. Phew.

So before every Association writes in, this is about the future and competing with far cooler things ranging from computer games to the Interweb.

Having taken sailextreme.com’s delightful X3 for a jaunt, I seriously do wonder if we have missed the point.

And that is, learn, race and have fun, all the while taking anyone interested enough on to bigger and better stuff, and yes these days that does mean faster!

It’s one boat that can take a Tacker through to teenager and prepare them for skiffs like 29er via learning about the art of sailing, then hoisting, trimming and retrieving the Ace.

You do not have to waste time bailing and the X3 has a swinging centreboard and rudder for easy beach access. Also, as it is roto-molded polypropylene, the heat gun can repair a lot of bangs in a flash. The X3’s different rigs and attendant sail plans take care of the skill and age curve. PS. It is all-Australian, so that means it is built properly and lasts like things used too.

Right. Enough banging on about that, and now back to that question of finesse. In 1969, a thing called the ‘Weekender’ was considered to be state of the art by its designer.

Today, that man (Bruce Kirby) says that the Laser, as we now know it best, would be made in carbon and be something like 25kg lighter, no doubt costing a bit more as well!

So here we have smaller sailors in Laser 4.7s, which to them is like sailing a ship that they simply cannot throw around (let alone the remainder of the boom hanging around like a bad clothes line).

Then they learn sailing again as they grow, and this is especially the case downhill. No wonder all the kids in Bic O’pens have such a ball…

One would not want to start on World Sailing’s choice of vessels for the Olympics, but just by that very statement I think I have.

In any case, I am not talking about making that regatta country v country in TPs. That would mean there is just the one sailing medal, given the restrictions on the number of sailors per team. Anyway, perhaps the jackhammers will finally reach that point of the World Sailing structure and the renovation will see some far more interesting choices being offered. Hhhhmmmm.

At any rate, how this spiel came about was because after racing with friends one day, I commented on how I would love to sail a 49er. It was not long before I remembered the body might just not able to do it. I am not on my own in the DOB disease arena, either.

The guy with the helm has just added another purchase to the main traveller in order to make that more tolerable… He was also the one who pointed out that after four hours I was taking longer and longer to get out from under the fence for tacking!

See, if you consider that when learning the foiling Moth, one Nathan Outteridge went for a swim 11 times when competing in the One Lap dash on Lake Macquarie, then you get that you need to be young to do that.

I might get to the start of the 49er race, perhaps even the top mark, but sooner or later it would end in tears. Qingdao anyone?

And there it is. I would have to set up a 49er Veterans Division, where it was just a reach out to the wing mark and back again. The one gybe would enough to take care of anyone, and in that way, you have just removed the drag race element!

All of which brings us to our final point. It was about then that I remembered those new(ish) multi-person production foiling cats. Say GC32 or SL33. It is quite hilarious to use 'thought' and 'Jeremy Clarkson' in the same sentence, but that's exactly what happened for me.

When he did his first test of the Ariel Atom he was a few years older than I am now, but he nailed it. 'This was as close as an old man can get to a Japanese or European super bike.' Yeah! That’s what I want.

So they’ve successfully taken the little bumps out of bay sailing and ocean foiling will happen. Franck Cammas has already taken us ‘round the Horn on foils, but how long before it is part of Jules Verne?

That will be something. More than a weather eye on the French and also Lake Garda and Foiling Week me thinks…

Anyway, elsewhere in the universe, please avail yourself of the terrific material from the Trofeo Princesa Sofia Iberostar, (Rob Kothe spent quite a lot of time with our Aussie sailors and we will see that over the next week) and then back in the Land of Oz, the F16 Cats on the Gippsland Lakes, the F18s from Southport and Barnes Bay Regatta in Hobart.

So do keep a weather eye on Sail-World. We are here to bring you the whole story…