Why not have FEWER open meetings - then perhaps 12 sailors would sail more often at their home clubs, and be more visible to new sailors/youth. This class does seem to be averse to handicap sailing, why?
Yesterday - at our annual sailcamp for the youngsters, we had 43 kids sailing. The boats that they were sailing broke down like this:
On the Friday afternoon - the kids got out boats they would like to sail and the favorite with the top sailors (14-15 year olds) was the contender.
My point? well - the boats represented were all made available by MEMBERS WHO ARE ACTIVE IN CLUB RACING. many of these same members are instructors at the clubs and were running the courses. I don't see any reason why 12's could not have been used for the stage 2 course - perhaps with a cut down sail depending on crew weight and conditions. If the 12's are absent from club racing, and the 12 sailors are not instuctors at clubs - then youth sailors will not be aware of them as a class and won't aspire to owning one. I'm in the class because my instructor was a 12 sailor. And I saw his boat at the club. I offered my boat for the stage 2 course, but this was not accepted, probably the feeling was it is not a 'youth' boat.
The albacores, RS200's, RS400's and international canoes at the club sail every week (often twice) and only seem to be away at opens infrequently. the albacores, RS200's and RS400's are sometimes helmed by youth sailors. in fact an optimist sailor aged 11, helmed an RS400 to second place in the annual persuit race this year, beating a 15 year old helming an albacore into 3'rd.
There is another point - there is little excitement for the crew in a national 12... Unless it is very windy. As this is a development class, surely something could be done about this - how about a single handed modification? the rs feva, topper topaz etc. can all be sailed in varying rig configurations with different handicaps...
Yesterday - at our annual sailcamp for the youngsters, we had 43 kids sailing. The boats that they were sailing broke down like this:
oppys/optimists/optibats - for stage 1,2,3 and racing
toppers for stage 3 and racing
mirrors for stage 4 (double handed)
laser 2000's, fireballs & topper Vago for sailing with spinnakers
wayfarers for seamanship
afternoon racing was held with lasers, laser4.7, topper, optimists
On the Friday afternoon - the kids got out boats they would like to sail and the favorite with the top sailors (14-15 year olds) was the contender.
My point? well - the boats represented were all made available by MEMBERS WHO ARE ACTIVE IN CLUB RACING. many of these same members are instructors at the clubs and were running the courses. I don't see any reason why 12's could not have been used for the stage 2 course - perhaps with a cut down sail depending on crew weight and conditions. If the 12's are absent from club racing, and the 12 sailors are not instuctors at clubs - then youth sailors will not be aware of them as a class and won't aspire to owning one. I'm in the class because my instructor was a 12 sailor. And I saw his boat at the club. I offered my boat for the stage 2 course, but this was not accepted, probably the feeling was it is not a 'youth' boat.
The albacores, RS200's, RS400's and international canoes at the club sail every week (often twice) and only seem to be away at opens infrequently. the albacores, RS200's and RS400's are sometimes helmed by youth sailors. in fact an optimist sailor aged 11, helmed an RS400 to second place in the annual persuit race this year, beating a 15 year old helming an albacore into 3'rd.
There is another point - there is little excitement for the crew in a national 12... Unless it is very windy. As this is a development class, surely something could be done about this - how about a single handed modification? the rs feva, topper topaz etc. can all be sailed in varying rig configurations with different handicaps...
