Hier ist ein Post von unserem australischen F16 Klassenobmann Beau White, den wir Euch nicht vorenthalten wollen:
The Future is NOW!
Imagine the „official“ Youth boat was as fast as the „Olympic“ boat? Imagine 29ers were as fast as 49ers, Optis could train against Lasers and N15s could burn to the bottom mark at the same speed as Waterhouse and Darmanin.
Eye rolling, iphone instagramming teenagers with ramp model skinny crews would be flocking to the yacht club and tearing the arse out of the creatine gorging gym beefcakes and pie noshing open class heavyweights no matter the conditions.
Nobody would be safe. Juniors, old farts, olympic hopefuls, it would be open season with no age or weight restriction- YEEEEEEEEHA!!!
But its not like that is it………………..
Or is it?
We F18 and F16 class sailors have been gifted the best boats in the world. And if you don’t like them you can change whatever is irritating you, the trampoline, the sails, the mast, the boards, the sheeting position, hell you can go build your own boat if you are that good. Ultimately you get exactly what suits you and it’s something to be proud of. Funny thing is, on any given day the boats all go about the same speed. But that’s a blog for another day.
Back to our big news! My full crew weight with the young Jedi hopeful on board is 125 Kg – we are even too light for a Hobie 16! He wants to go as fast as the millennium falcon and be taken serious – yo! No amount of ballast, youtube, steroids or lead impregnated wetsuits can get us to F18 weight and strength. Although he talks like 50 cent, wins his beep test at school (I wondered if that was a swearing contest – subsequently I found out it is a fitness strength thingy) He just does not have the muscle or weight to handle the big dog, the king of the hill, the big kahuna, the F18.
F18 – that’s where the fast dudes are, that’s where the big fleet is and where the wily old sea dogs that know stuff to make boats go faster than fast live. They hang out and splice their own ropes while picking up cars and other heavy stuff. Each grey hair and forearm vein a mark of a saved pitchpole. So while AS (Im sure there’s an S missing in that) lure and send our youth teams off on „Pathway boats“, far away from the salt blooded, suntanned wise men of the F18s they preclude the youth from the transfer of hard earned knowledge and practice against experienced racers.
The wise F18 sea dogs know only too well what will happen if the enthusiastic, sparkly eyed two hulled riding youth and women are left alone. Cast adrift in a world of Optis, spirals and 470s while the real war rages mercilessly, without end in the F18 traveller series and state championships. They will be coerced onto boats with over inflated yardsticks. Overinflated yardsticks tend to help catalogue sales and Olympic bids……. till the truth comes out. When our young aspirational hopefuls pluck up the courage and venture out into open fleet against the yardstick toting hordes, they stand paralysed, wide eyed and quivering as they are smashed mercilessly to the bottom of the results page. They cannot hang on the coat tails of the seniors and thus learn nothing from them, castaways, left cold and alone on a one design shitbox.
So, heres an idea said the wizards of two hulls while basking in their auras of speed. How about we make a baby F18? Something for the more nimble warrior. Something almost as fast as our steeds – we don’t want to get beaten by the fruit of our own loins after all. Something we can pick up and throw on the back of my fire breathing dragon when traversing the country looting and pillaging regatta silverware. Something that will keep the women and children close at hand so they can fetch me drinks and get off their Xbox.
And I! Master of the flying hull assisted by my trusty comrade Tamer of the Spinnaker, can impart our hard won knowledge, piece by piece. Dueling, teaching and watching them develop exchanging blows around the race course. In this way, when the time comes, they too shall be feared warriors of the two hulled realm.
A marvellous perfect storm of legacy rules for the F18’s, the taipan, new materials and design concepts brought about the birth of the Viper. A clever little Aussie that even with its diminutive size was nimble, light and strong enough to give the F18 a bloody nose. Now lighter warriors can get into the ring against the mighty F18. A boat that complies to F16, 104 in Europe and can be built at a reasonable price. “Reasonable” being subjective for many folks. BUT! compared to our carbon masted, Olympic, Mark VIXXVMCL Cat is cheap as chips!
Thus the inner sanctum of F18nism in the fabled lands of NSW have struck the gavel and declared that skinny sailors, maidens, the meek and offspring will now be conscripted onto the real battle field. Invited to join the warriors on their F18s – head to head. On condition they come suitably armed with a Viper or F16 compliant warhorse.
Silence befalls the audience as they try to digest the gravity of the situation. So while you sit open mouthed, stunned as your biscuit drops into the tea, I’ll give it to you in bullet points.
1. F16s are now invited to join the F18 traveller series. One BIG start, a charge down the hill shouting wild eyed.
2. F16 wont score against the F18s or be eligible for F18 silverware, but they will be in the scuffle from the first trow odf the gauntlet.
3. The F Catamaran fleet just got bigger, the fight tougher, the comradery stepped up a notch.
4. Expect smack talking teenagers and bikini clad goddesses in the rigging areas. We have a fleet that caters for a much wider demographic now. Shure, the new guys won’t win the arm wrestling or tug o war.
5. The F Class catamaran sailors are going to remain the fastest cat sailors in the country – why? – because we have the biggest most competitive fleet and the best boats.
6. F16 and F18 are the perfect combination to years of sailing enjoyment, great regattas and rapid skills improvement.
What are you umming about??
So, if you were wondering what class to enter, which boat to buy for you, your kid, your girlfriend, your boyfriend (it’s a brave world). If you feel the NEEED FOR SPEEED!!!!
Pull your finger out your Australian Sailing, get an F-class catamaran F16 or F18 whichever suits you. Dust off the old juggernaut. Rig the kite and come blasting at the NSW traveller series.
YEEEEEEEHAAAAAAA MOFOS see you at the Speers Point Cattagatta!
In diesem Sinne erfolgreiches Einwintern! Für diejenigen, die bereits auf die Saison 2019 schielen: die IDB wird voraussichtlich am 25.5/26.5 am Walchensee stattfinden, die Termine für die Syndikat stehen ebenfalls fest: 6.7/7.7 beim DSC. Die weiteren Termine findet Ihr demnächst auf der internationalen Website im Kalender.
Euer Vorstand
