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We have been away a few years and looking forward to sailing the old boat round at Saclombe once more but just over a week to go and only a dozen entries!!!! - what's happened? I thought there would 2 or 3 times as many.
Dave C

Intersting topic.
Here are a few more for you - Waterloo Sunset - designed by Mervyn Cooke Int Moth champion and designer of the Magnum series of moths which dominated that class in the 70's. I think there were two built - Waterloo Sunset and Pinball Wizard (can't remember the numbers).
What happened to th "The Wedge" seen in early 70's once or twice - it has a reverse rocker!!!

......and 12 sailors always say Merlins aren't tippy!!

Hi Steve,
My first 12 was a 1965 Mk12 bought in 1971. It came with spreaders and I would be fairly sure they were original fit. Diamonds are good for controlling sideways bend but do nothing to prevent fore and aft bend whereas spreaders do both. If you feel the mast is a bit too bendy for the sail you are using then spreaders would be the way to go otherwise there would not be much point. Some years ago I put an old Proctor Mk11 back on the water. It has some horrid fully-swinging spreaders. I decided to fit the more modern type but it was an expensive business.
Dave
 

http://www.higherrew.co.uk/ - run by the Squire's family who are very nice and members of SYC
- Regards, Dave

I am fairly sure China Doll was blue - one of the Pevensey bay crowd would remember.

We have been using Dynamic sails on the children's Cadets for the past two years with excellent results including a winning the 2011 Inlands and several race wins in the champs over the past couple of years. Dave is well into development classes and has his sails on a number of top Merlins. He races an Int 14 and B14 skiff. Currently we are working with him on a new design-for-lightweights spinnaker for the 420.

Dave is very helpful and his work is top-class. If you have some ideas about sails and sail development i would recommend you have a word with him
 
Dave C

Looking back to when I were t' lad (and yes dinosaurs roamed the earth...), I remember a number of my pals who were "encouraged" to crew for Dad and as a result happily gave up sailing a few years later. My parents encouraged me to sail and importantly to sail my own boat which worked for me and has worked for both my children who are now pretty much grown up and live to sail.
Certainly the best thing we ever did was to buy an old Cadet at the club for a few hundred pounds (The same boat went to the world championships last year in GBR team so you can get a cheap boat and make it competitive). The children just loved sailing their Cadets and they have made some great friends of their own age who they regularly see, sail against and communicate with (across the world in some cases). Don’t underestimate the friendship part, it’s key to having fun and wanting to go an sail on a cold, windy winters day. Remember in other sports you don’t see 10 year olds playing football, hockey, rugby etc., with 40 or 50 year olds!! I am sure this camaraderie with their peers has cemented their love of sailing so I would encourage anyone with young children to try this approach. Both my children still like to crew for dad and others occasionally and they don't mind a spot of cruising either. We have left Cadets now but I look back on the class and our experience there as a golden time.
My advice would be: by all means take them out in the 12, let them crew, teach them but also let them sail their own boats too with and against people of their own age and then do what we all love and race against our pals and enjoy the breeze, hopefully for many years to come .... 
 

Yes, the point here is if it's not 100% legal either ask the race organisers first or use the kit at your club or class meetings. I feel a bit sorry for the Merlins as the fall out seems to be disproportionate but there is a valuable lesson to be learnt here and one the development classses should note. These big winter meetings are high profile and a show-case  they get a lot of publicity. Ironic also that the Merlins are rather conservative (small c) in their approach to development.

I agree with Mike, thay do look good and a line of development that should be encouraged. I just think we all need to take heed from the Merlin experience on this and not use experimental stuff in major handicap events!

Interesting thread on the Merlin site but they seem to be getting a bit jumpy and have closed the thread!
Equipment rules of sailing is clear on secondary reinforment. I would have expected a sailmaker to at least get a ruling from the class measurer before trying a new construction.

Hi Alistair,
Well done to find that trophy, a bit naughty of someone selling it!!!
Can you tell us what that trophy was for? I wonder because many years ago the TYC Cadet Trophy went missing. A number of us tried to trace it (with no luck at the time).
Dave

Hi Alistair,
Yes a very nice day, perfect wind and direction and lots of sun, even a high tide to confound the drinkers in the White Swan and amuse the sailors! River sailing doesn't get much better than that.
We are looking forward to reading the report.
Regards, Dave

[random-orbital]

My advice is to get yourself a good quality random-orbital sander (that's the type with the round discs with holes in not the cheap rectangular type). This will save you hours of work and when you have put the last coat on you can put a polishing sponge on the random-orbital and get a perfect finish

Hi Alistair,
Current plan is that Abigail will sail Close to the Edge and her sister Caroline will crew for Arthur Henderson (assuming she recovers from a bang on the head she got in a 420 last week-end), so that's two more boats for you.
Dave