International 14 Mailing List
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From: Keith (keithl@ozemail.com.au)
Date: Sun 10 Sep 2000 - 14:28:12 BST
Warren
I vote for option 2. Why? Because unless there is something I don't
understand, wings on foils or the daggerboard at least, have every
appearance of being a complete pain in the butt to sail off the beach .
It's as simple as that.
On the implied question of development in general; surely radical,
unduly rapid or unconstrained development cannot necessarily be "a good
thing". We are obviously a development class and as someone in the UK
once said, "develop or die". However, there has to be a balance between
the pace of development and encouraging people to join or continue to
sail, the world's leading dinghy class. This is probably particularly
true now that the International 14 Class has a much wider membership
than a few years ago.
The real issue is not so much one of the technical merits of any
specific development proposal, but one of whether there is a "market"
for it in the Class's present and potential membership. If someone
has a burning desire to build say a 8ft wide, hydrofoiled, lightweight
14 foot long dinghy with a sleeved main and rotating mast, for example,
there is nothing to stop them. I daresay we would all be queuing up for
a go in it. But whether the majority of the 14 fleet internationally,
would happily junk/rebuild their boats or be consigned to a penultimate
fleet if a major rule change is intoduced every couple of years, is a
different matter.
I have only been sailing 14s in Australia for a couple of seasons but it
seems to me that in Victoria at least, there haven't been many new
members since the worlds here. The local market for second hand boats
has doubtless seen more lively times too. Insufficient opportunity to
spend money on development probaby isn't a reason for this. In reality
its how people might vote with their feet that counts.
Regards
Keith Lockey - AUS 280
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