02 May 2008 07:19:01

clyde

Racerheads

Have you heard about the Formula One Design proposal? http://forums.windsurfingmag.com/showthread.php?t=429

02 May 2008 12:03:23

jeff feehan

Re: Racerheads

clyde wrote: > Have you heard about the Formula One Design proposal? > > http://forums.windsurfingmag.com/showthread.php?t=429 > interesting... of course, we've been through the "formula for olympics" debate before, but maybe it'll work this time. the 2012 olympics will be in england, and the sailing events will be held on the south coast, which i think has reasonable wind in the summer. the one thing that stood out in the equipment recommendation is the aluminum boom. the mens sail is proposed to be 11m^2, and i'm not sure an aluminum boom will work so well. i guess they want to save money, but I think that a carbon boom would be cheaper in the long run, because it will last so much longer.

02 May 2008 21:09:15

James

Re: Racerheads

Starboard's Formula One Design looks cool, and I think it could work. Although I agree with Jeff that the boom might be the weak link. I used to use a Chinook aluminum boom for my 10.6 formula sail and it worked ok, but not great. The FOD sails have a recessed clew, though, so that may lessen the problem. It makes good sense to me to use a popular, proven board and racing format for the Olympics. Basically anything but hybrid, which never became a popular racing class outside of Olympic competition. It's a tough call between formula and longboard, because you've got the most exciting performance with the former, but guaranteed competition (even in very light winds) with the latter. Of course, 6 knots isn't too hard to come by in most places that would host a sailing regatta, at least not over the course of a few days. I think total skunkings would be rare.

03 May 2008 06:51:55

Dan Weiss

Re: Racerheads

On May 3, 12:09=A0am, James <d0ugl...@hotmail.com > wrote: > Starboard's Formula One Design looks cool, and I think it could work. > Although I agree with Jeff that the boom might be the weak link. =A0I > used to use a Chinook aluminum boom for my 10.6 formula sail and it > worked ok, but not great. =A0The FOD sails have a recessed clew, though, > so that may lessen the problem. > > It makes good sense to me to use a popular, proven board and racing > format for the Olympics. =A0Basically anything but hybrid, which never > became a popular racing class outside of Olympic competition. > > It's a tough call between formula and longboard, because you've got > the most exciting performance with the former, but guaranteed > competition (even in very light winds) with the latter. =A0Of course, 6 > knots isn't too hard to come by in most places that would host a > sailing regatta, at least not over the course of a few days. =A0I think > total skunkings would be rare. There's much good within Starboard's proposal -especially in that it is a one-design class system. The big problem is one of "raceability". Olympic venues are not selected based on wind velocity or consistency in any way, while racing venues are always picked based on wind as a primary element. The flaw in Starboard's six-knot arguement is the supposition that a future venue will have decent wind. Sure, Weymouth likely will, but China likely will not. It's huge gamble to rely on such a wind minumum. As Jeff has said in previous posts about the functional speed of FW vs. keel boats, it is the inconsistency of the wind that makes FW a bit of a gamble. For example, a 6 knot wind average might mean lulls to 3 knots and gusts to 10. In terms of actual wind power, 3 knots is only 1/3 the wind power as 6 knots. There is no planing in 3 knots, for sure. If some racers catch the gusts, they are gone. Of course, that's racing. But the only real Formula racing is when planing, and non-planing Formula racing is worse than watching paint dry. It may be tactical, but you can't finish the race in the alloted time, so the race is abandoned. No score, nothing. That's the risk of a planing hull Olympic class.