[quote=tiger2216]Of course only a one-design fleet will allow boats to be as equal as possible but for a formula fleet the F18s have done quite well keeping it even.
On the club level any of the F18 versions can be competitive. Conditions of the sails will have a much more significant impact than the particular hull design. Each design has its pros and cons depending on prevailing conditions, crew weight, personal sailing style, etc. and in our club any of the more experienced sailors can be found leading the pack (but some have many years of experience on their particular designs). Some designs might be "easier" to sail fast and could be more forgiving. Its hard to tell since most of us don't rotate through boats very often. I went from a Nacra 20 to a Tiger and hated the Tiger. Just didn't fit my style. I now sail a Capricorn and have not found any conditions where I felt that any other design was faster, but also don't go out in 20+ knots. Around here its usually light /medium air and can be quite choppy and we are right at the minimum crew weight for the big sails.
Now when you are talking about racing at the national and international level, then the sailors will have the ability to eek out every last benefit and the newer design will have benefits over the older ones especially when the wind picks up. The designs are more and more optimized for the high wind locations that attract the big regattas. But as stated in other posts, this creates compromise and evens the playing field for the recreational racers.
You should be able to find a good F18 for under $10K.[/quote]
No HTML tags allowed (except inside [code][/code] tags)
