How long does a boat stay fast?

Originally posted by stuarthop what i've found is that as long as you look after most grp boats properly and dry them out after sailing keep them in a garage whenever possible they stay competitive for nearly as long as a wooden boat

therefore defeating the object of a grp boat in the first place

how are they more versitile or easy to repair?

which is the same or harder than just shoving paint on em

filler

How competitive a boat stays is decided under a lot of parameters. Hull construction is the major consideration but that is also coupled with crew competence. As a class becomes more developed, it is is more dependant on hull integritory as the crew competance generalises at a higher level. However certain curcumstances may buck the trend. Within my sailing experience, classes like the Laser 5000 (my old class) and the 4000,offer the best playing field with older boats beating the newer boats. Laser 4000, 4015 has always been one of the top boats in Europe. 5071,my old boat was always quick due to good boat handling and tuning although being an "older" boat. We also beat many new 420s  in a 20+ year old boat purely through good boat handling skills. When we sailed a 3 year 420, we beat all the skiffs across the water due to the prevailing  conditions. I can see your point when you ask how long does a boat stay fast? But you have to consider how well it has been sailed, in what sort of conditions and how well you are going to sail it plus all the structurioral details aswell..........

Edited by 49erGBR735HSC