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Editorial Andrew Hurst It’s the courses, stupid*


On page 26 Rob Weiland revisits the increasingly relevant issue of splitting serious racers away from the pack. Increasingly relevant as the past five years have seen a long-awaited re-appearance of boats ‘pure’ bred for racing as opposed to the cruiser-racers that previously dominated. Divided fleets were standard fare in the days


of the well-accepted IOR system, except IOR raceboats evolved directly from the cruiser-racers of the time, more specialised and much better crewed and equipped but not that much lighter in displacement (rather than construction) nor much faster. Back then the two IOR types were divided by event, with serious


teams focusing on big regattas and races while only occasionally dropping into the domestic fleet for a bit of pot-hunting. The two types were both heavy, sailed almost always in displacement mode and sailed at similar angles on the racecourse. Today is different. Cruiser-racers slowly continued to evolve and


improve – the boats are much better than 20 years ago although to the untutored eye the years of development are identified by styling details more than by overall look. But now the ‘race fleet’, as we will call it, arrives from the opposite


direction. Once taboo box rules have given us boats that are minimally constrained by ratings, are orders of magnitude faster than their predecessors, they are lighter, more generously rigged with higher stability and they sail completely different angles to the cruiser-racers around them. Two yacht types that diverge far more dramatically than was the case 10-15 years ago. But while Rob is right that it’s time to focus on giving each category


its own arena there is another aspect we shouldn’t overlook. Today’s two main rating systems continue to favour what are by modern standards heavy yachts. While the ‘unlimited’ race fleet gets faster and faster and uncovers new design tricks, the wider fleet sees no benefit from this development. Go too light – otherwise described as too fast – under IRC or ORC in the popular range 28-48ft and you will get penalised (for now that’s not entirely a bad thing). But at last there are signs that a few of the tricks of those bad


boy raceboat designers are filtering through to make some of the latest cruiser-racer offerings similarly lighter, better and easier to handle. It is not a revolution we need here (yet), but there is an obligation to speed up the pace of evolution. Contrary to what some may think, there are those in cruiser-racer


fleets who do want to go a bit faster, particularly offshore with lots of reaching! Heavy upwind-downwind rating-optimised designs are downright terrible at reaching. (A racing family with a nice cruiser-


racer forced to manage a spinnaker and pole… what did they do to deserve that in 2017?). I’m not asking for wholesale change to rating formulas in favour


of ‘much’ lower displacement and cleaner hulls. Those improvements are underway and will happen on their own given an occasional helpful nudge from rating managers. Rather what we should get onto as a way to speed up the natural


process are the race courses themselves. Most accept there is a limit to how many windward-leeward


courses anyone can cope with – some course variety should not be unwelcome. Offer more reaching and those who put their heads above the parapet with boats that are a little lighter and flatter than the norm will finally receive some reward (they will also be having more fun as they sail knots faster under easily handled A-sails… and they may tell their friends). Encourage design improvement through imaginative race


management and we all win. Punish the few cautious pioneers too much and you will be stuck in leadmines for ever. If the next generation of cruiser-racers can be influenced a little


more by the better elements of contemporary raceboats, then those boats will also steadily get faster and more interesting to sail, more boats will be sold and the cycle will repeat itself. We don’t need to get dramatic with the formulas, just set a better


‘ Huh?


Given the recent acrimonious events, it’s hard to believe that the America’s Cup can also bring out the very best in sporting spirit. These Aussies are about to welcome in Dennis Conner’s Stars & Stripes – which has just beaten their defender Kookaburra 4-0


mix of courses and a wider mix of boats will win prizes. It all flows from there. Is that a silly way to encourage progress? * With apologies to the other Clinton


In their defence (sic) the crew of Scugnizza (page 41) said they could get the correct sailing trim by moving heavy items such as anchors into the forepeak while racing


Tells a story We have moved 250g more into the centre of the boat and the fibreglass we use is 50% more expensive


than other brands… – Optimist sales brochure DUBYA


I think we all agree the past is over... Will the highways of the internet become more few?


AMERICA’S CUP 35 Ain’t my daddy’s sport


no more – Cliff Russell, Sailing Anarchy


SANGUINE


First thoughts are, you could be sinking here


– a major concern – Recent Mapfre Volvo Ocean Race recruit Neal McDonald, chasing the Jules Verne in the Southern Ocean


SUBMARINERS Every time we go to sea


we’re not pretending – Commander Irvine Lindsay, Royal Navy


– We look a bit scruffy, there’s a swagger that probably irritates and we’re rubbish at


– with thanks to Bruce Kirby!


NICELY PUT At the elite level there may be a problem attracting women [to sailing] but here at sea level it looks very encouraging


– Robin Knox-Johnston HOLD!


Mother & calf inside us – Rob Kothe’s bowman, Hamilton Island


marching – Cdr Lindsay


– Cdr Lindsay


But we’ll sink a ship for you


CALL ME BOYO Welsh TV presenter Steve Jones:


Mark Webber:


Seahorse magazine and our associate raceboatsonly brokerage site are both at: seahorsemagazine.com The editor is contactable by email at: andrew@seahorse.co.uk


SEAHORSE 9


What’s Bernie Ecclestone going to do now?


It’s tough, he’s got to retire with only £2.5 billion… You couldn’t spend that in Wales, could you?


q





GILLES MARTIN-RAGET


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