hills said...So Paul, can I just confirm this... again, as I'm still a little confused.
Promo is better than class V because the restrictive rules mean that it can be competitive yet built to a budget and gives the edge to the better sailors, not those who can just throw the most money at their yachts.
Class 6 is bad because it has too many rules and doesn't allow you to to apply all the changes that will give the person the edge who can throw the most money at their yacht, like wheel chair wheels and wing section mast etc.
I'm not trying to be faceticous or argumentative, I am just genuinely confused. I originally disagreed with you in the OFFICIAL LAKE LEFROY LANDSAILING CLUB MINI SPECS thread and thought the promo rules were too restrictive compared to class V and you and Susan changed my mind, such that I found myself pushing your point myself in a different thread, in fact this thread, see above. Now you're telling me class 6 should have minimal rules so that I can now go and buy my $2k carbon fibre wheels and $200 tyres. It seems whats good in class V/promo is bad on class 6/mini and visa versa.
There's more twists and turns here than a... really twisty turny thingy
Hi Hills, good questions. I am sure Paul will answer later with his thoughts on the matter...heres mine.
I like the idea of Promo class, the idea of the class rules are not one design so you can still play and experiment however the restrictions on the building materials do limit the $ arms war - yes more chance of even racing with pilots skills - we did have some frustrations whilst overseas the English, French, Spanish trainslations of the rules are not quite as clear as they could be what we thought was not allowed in the English rules appeared ok via the French rules. The tubing sizes are also a concern as they appear only to be availble via manu****aturers however I personally see these as teething problems and slight changes to clarify interpretations/translations I beleive are likely to occur in the future. Basically if you want a change you send a formal motion to the FISLY General Assembly with your arguement and it will go on the agenda for discussion amongst all the member countries.
Class 5 is dying out in the rest of the world, mostly due to its extreme expense. Australia is one of the exceptions here, however our yachts whilst doing us nicely here on a local and national field would not stand a chance of being comptetative on the international playing field.
Class 6 should really be called Australian Class 6 as we are the only ones who recognise class 6 and this is only a recent phenomonan again. The last time in Australia that class 6 raced was in 1988 at lake Finnis (I am happy to be corrected here if I am wrong). Bill Finches wooden chook yacht blitzed anything else and was great fun to sail. In more recent times with the introduction of Blokart the need for smaller yachts that people can fit in their boot of their car and not need a trailor for became apparent. So we started constructing mini yachts on Lake Lefroy with similar dimensions to Blokarts. This saw the expansion of the sport on a local level you had a choice, race big class 5's and have a trailer, have a Blokart of the shelf if you had the money and were not interested in building your own or if you are short on the money build you own mini for a fraction of the cost and still get away without needing a trailer.
It was only after we started sailing the mini's that we realised that they fitted into the old class 6 specs. Class 6 was lots of fun it had minimal rules (mostly just length, width and sail area - just like class 2 and 3) and was great for trying out and developing new ideas. Yes you can throw lots of money into it but history has shown that often very cheap home made yachts perform much better in this class than ones with expensive componenets. Bill's wooden chook was built from a wooden chicken packing crate! Pauls Lake Lefroy mini was built for under $500 and goes like the clappers. Because the material restrictions are not there anything goes.
Personally I think we need a mix of classes some strict, some partly flexible and some completely open. This gives us a bit of both worlds and people are free to choose which area they like to participate in. The more open classes really allow for imagnination to take place and who knows what might eventuate!
Also worth remembering that classes do not have to be exclusive on one another. Promos do fit into class 5. Also Blokarts, Ludics and many other yachts fit into class 6 so those that have a commericial, restricted or one design yacht can race with other similar yachts and when numbers permit be scored seperately as a one design.
Personally I am not happy with the *new* posted class 6 specs - it has destroyed what class 6 was and has made it into a slightly smaller class 5 and I see more danger in class 6 becoming an $ arms race now that materials are restricted than when it was open. Great little yachts like the wooden chook just would not have had a chance.
Anyway thats my opinion, I am not sure if I have explained myself well as I hoped please ask if you need me to clarify
Promo girl
PS FISLY is now talking with the Olympics people.
but I must admit I wouldn't like to be in a class where someone who can't sail very well is winning all the trophies purely because they have more dollars than sense. 
