Laser 2000, Stratos or RS200 or?
MarkN
last couple of years, now has more time but a slightly unreliable helm. I've
persuaded him to get himself a dinghy and have a go at helming. We need
something that's as well behaved as a Wayfarer - too many dips in the North
Sea will soon dampen his enthusiasm. I was thinking in terms of an older
design, something like a GP14, but these newer boats seem to have a lot
going for them - light weight; high boom; lots of space; asymmetric;
'self-emptying', etc. etc.
Are they as good as they look, and which of the above would be best suited
to the purpose? Are they going to be a shock after a Wayfarer,
stability-wise? We'll start with some practice on the local pond but
eventually get him racing in our mixed handicap fleet off Southwold, so any
extra speed would be handy (so we don't have to wait too long for our next
race :-)
Thanks,
Mark
Chris beddow
roomy cockpit.,a high boom, a proper spinnaker requiring skill to handle,
stable to sail ,can be sailed in all wind strengths unlike many of the newer
boats , and with a well balanced trolley are not heavy onshore.There is a
large second hand market with prices ranging from £500 to £5000.
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Bernard Kerrison
delight to sail. It was the only dinghy I sailed in this year and I loved
it. I would be happy to put my 80 year old dad in the middle seat if he
were not up to helming.
Good luck.
MarkN
I've only seen pictures of the Stratos. From the specs, it looks as though
it's a bit bigger and heavier than the L2000. Have you been racing it? I
couldn't find a PY handicap number for it - do you happen to know if it's
quicker than the L2000 (PY 1090)?
Thanks,
Mark
Bernard Kerrison <beker...@kfc.uk.com> wrote in message
news:9436968...@news.uk1.vbc.net...
Pete Fletcher
Hi,
Both the laser 2000 and the RS200 will be a nasty shock in the stability
departement after a Wayfarer.
I would have though they would be a bit on the cramped side as well for
someone of his age.
Have you looked at the RS 400? Very nice boat, lots of room, good manners,
really good performance,but still unstable in relation to Wayfarer.
Of course he could always stick with the class he's used to.
Cheers,
Pete
Bernard Kerrison
well-sailed Wayfarer. It is certainly bigger than a L2000.
No I wasn't racing, I was pottering, but that genniker was certainly fun!
PS The middle seat is on the centre console fwd of the mainsheet hoop and is
a very nice passenger seat.
MarkN wrote in message ...
Robin Gray
McCready Sailboats - and I would have thought it a little small and
definitely more tippy than the Wayfarer. We have been racing it in a mixed
handicap fleet with loads of Lasers, Laser Radials, Toppers, an EPS, GP14,
etc. In Force 3 and above it is a lively planing boat that is easy to
handle and fly the assymetric, (care needed to get the downwind angle
right), and we are faster than most of this fleet with lots of fun. In less
than F 3 it sticks like glue and the radials pass us. Having said that it
is easy to sail and very rewarding in F 3 and above.
Robin Gray
robin.gray @dnet.co.uk
Trevor Smith
Have a look at an Albacore. There is a new plastic version coming out for £5000
ready to sail but there are many good old wood boats about. The Albacore is
definately faster than the Wayfarer but provides good stability and is kind to
the older sailor. Avoid anything with wings, long tiller extensions and
trapezes.A friend of mine close to bus pass age was persuaded to sail a B14E
but had to give up after many swims because sprinting from rack to rack was too
athletic! RS 400 is nice but the assymetrics at my local club (where there are
fixed marks) suffer from not being able to get the right angle to fly the kites
in some wind directions. They then flounder a bit.
Look for a ride in an Albacore - there are some at Halfway near Southend,
contact Alex Moon at the club.
Mike McNamara is the Albacore national and world champion and he is deeply
attached to his. As you know he sails Wayfarers as well and he may be able to
give you advice if you call him at his sail loft (mention my name),
regards
Trevor Smith
AL7754
Mike Easley
year they got 4 laser 2000s. I've taken one for a spin a few times this
summer, and I'd make the following observations:
Smaller than a Wayfarer, with little stowage.
More complex to rig.
Very rewarding to sail in moderate conditions, exciting when it gets
choppy, not much use in light airs.
VERY sensitive to overloading - more than 2 adults, (3 lightweights at a
push) and it just doesn't want to know.
Genneker is dead easy to use and good fun (forget all those old
spinnaker nightmares)
Despite the drawbacks, I'd buy a laser 2000. The Stratos looks even
better, and will address most of the issues that I have with the 2000.
takes a while to save up £7500 though....Pity!
Mike.
Mark Bluemel
> I've only seen pictures of the Stratos. From the specs, it looks
> as though
> it's a bit bigger and heavier than the L2000. Have you been racing
> it? I
> couldn't find a PY handicap number for it - do you happen to know
> if it's
> quicker than the L2000 (PY 1090)?
PY is probably not out yet - it's a brand-new boat. We had a ride on
the keel variant at the Southampton Boat Show and thought it seemed
very good. The chap demonstrating it was an instructor from the
Southampton Waterborne Activity Centre and he seemed to like it. He
said that the L2000 was considerably more "tippy".
I'd love a Stratos, and my 8 year-old goes on and on about it, but
they're quite pricey and second-hand won't come up for a while yet.
--
Mark Bluemel
* Sent from RemarQ http://www.remarq.com The Internet's Discussion Network *
The fastest and easiest way to search and participate in Usenet - Free!
MarkN
discuss with my father now, and he's the one who'll write the cheque!
A couple of respondants have confirmed my vague notion that a genniker is a
good thing in that it maximises the fun (and competitiveness) of a novice or
inexperienced crew. I personally like the flexibility of the conventional
spinnaker on my Javelin but then my crew and I have spent long hours trying
to get our spinnaker handling _nearly_ right - we still frequently get it
wrong. My father may get himself a regular crew (my wife?) but I suspect
it'll more often be an assortment of grandchildren and friends.
So, whilst there's a GP14 and an Albacore that I think we may try locally, I
reckon we'll be looking for somewhere as close to home (Suffolk, UK) as
possible to find out just how scary one of these assymetric things are,
probably the 2000.
Thanks again,
Mark
Demon's News Server
smaller). However, the RS400 isn't too difficult to sail. The RS400
circuit is a lot more active (L2k opeing is non-existent to my knowledge).
And if you are very interested ina RS400, I know where you can get a very
competitive one for much less than the market price (we've just traded our
L4000 in for a RS800 and don't think we'll use our RS400 now!)
MarkN wrote in message <9CO04.2036$A8.23990@stones>...
Jim Champ
>A couple of respondants have confirmed my vague notion that a genniker is a
>good thing in that it maximises the fun (and competitiveness) of a novice or
>inexperienced crew. I personally like the flexibility of the conventional
>spinnaker on my Javelin but then my crew and I have spent long hours trying
I *used* to think that... Right up until the time I swapped the
conventional kite on the Cherub for an asymmetric. A couple of years
later I took off the last of the fittings for the conventional because
they had never been used in the meantime...
Jim C
-- NO.UnsolicitedCommercialMassEmail.PLEASE --- remove between ** to reply
jimc@**no.ucme.please.**hjones.cix.co.uk
MarkN
conditions. I agree it would be a much more exciting sail than the L2000 but
I'm really looking for a "starter" dinghy here and I don't think the RS400
qualifies. However, I've an open mind and if I can persuade my father to get
into a RS400 I'll gladly give it a try. I guess if the conditions are
marginal then you've always the choice of not using the kite, without which
it would be reasonably tame? Isn't it fully-battened, and will that not give
him extra trouble?
Surprised you say the L2000 is smaller - it looked a big lump to me. No-one
has mentioned the RS200 - would this not be a better bet than the 400?
RS800??
Mark
Demon's News Server <j...@skiff.demon.co.uk> wrote in message
news:943983220.130.0....@news.demon.co.uk...
Mike Bees
> Hmm... I've seen some good sailors swimming from an RS400 in moderate
> conditions.
Really? Maybe they were hot... (:-)
> Isn't it fully-battened, and will that not give him extra trouble?
Yes & no. It makes the sail last a lot longer.
> No-one has mentioned the RS200 - would this not be a better
> bet than the 400?
It's quite a small boat, National-12 sized. Smaller boats are
tippier than bigger boats, all other things being equal.
Mike
Simon McNamara
My 78 year old Grandpa and I sail an Albacore every week. We both recommend them
to you. The old GRP boats are cheap and there are plenty about. If a 78 year old
can sail one anyone can.
Simon McNamara.
Trevor Smith wrote:
> Mark,
> Have a look at an Albacore. There is a new plastic version coming out for £5000
> ready to sail but there are many good old wood boats about. The Albacore is
> definately faster than the Wayfarer but provides good stability and is kind to
> the older sailor. Avoid anything with wings, long tiller extensions and
> trapezes.A friend of mine close to bus pass age was persuaded to sail a B14E
> but had to give up after many swims because sprinting from rack to rack was too
> athletic! RS 400 is nice but the assymetrics at my local club (where there are
> fixed marks) suffer from not being able to get the right angle to fly the kites
> in some wind directions. They then flounder a bit.
> Look for a ride in an Albacore - there are some at Halfway near Southend,
> contact Alex Moon at the club.
> Mike McNamara is the Albacore national and world champion and he is deeply
> attached to his. As you know he sails Wayfarers as well and he may be able to
> give you advice if you call him at his sail loft (mention my name),
> regards
> Trevor Smith
> AL7754
>