Islamorada.Fl. Islander hotel.

Glad to hear it. I've gotten worse since you left, so ya didn't miss anything in our competitions.

Bill, I would also love to hear what your thoughts are on the mast set-ups.
Todd, do you remember Ben's mast lecture at Admiral's Cup? This is what Im referencing as an "eye opening" talk on what someone needs to do to pick a mast and sails.
Maybe I misinterepreted the talk, but basically you cannot go buy a mast and sails off the shelf. Some serious testing needs to be done when you are at the top level(not my level Karl) so what can the rest of us do to get the right combo?

Todd, did you get worse or your competition better? The boys around here are racing very regularly. Im relegated to Laser sailing every Thursday night, which aint a bad gig, but its no A cat!

Ive heard someone say, "if your competition is getting better than you, faster than you, then you are getting worse"
Maybe thats me and you Todd!

Karl, everyone chooses to play the game at the level they choose.... Not necessarily at the level of "every thing in his power"

This is why we have a pecking order in A, B and C fleets. Healthy classes manage all of these factors. The A fleet in the A class frequently have done Olympic campaigns and compete world wide. The B Fleet have won National Championships in other classes... and the C fleet are weekend warriors with modest aspirations in the class.

Healthy classes manage all levels of the sport. In a development class like the A Class, the judgement and experience to manage big jumps in technology are part of the game. This is what Dave is speaking about and he has set his personal standards.

A question for you A cat guys who have made the jump to curved boards; what I understand, they are only "faster" for going downwind, and then only if the skipper has the skills to make it work (ie. exceptional ballance), kind of like sailing a foiling Moth. Is that about right?

Thanks Mark, you are exactly right.

Not exactly. The boat doesn't ride up on the curved foils and they didn't provide the big downwind advantage at first until the guys started figuring out that they could trapeze downwind with them.

They do provide some lift and reduce the wetted surface area of the boat through the water. More importantly, they provide enough lift that the limited floatation available from the hull shape can support the additional leverage sailing downwind with a sailor on the wire.

On my older A-cat, if it's really breezy, wild thing downwind is for survival. I have to get my weight inboard and heel the boat to take pressure off the bow and keep it from wanting to pitchpole...it's a little backwards to have to power up the boat to survive - but that's how it works.

I'm at the end of the process right now. I'll let you know after I get to race it.

A LITTLE BACKWARDS.... I still have not reprogramed my reactions from spin sailing... See puff coming... prepare to accept puff and bear off and get depth while keeping hull flying..

In an A cat... that will kill you in big breeze... If you don't make the boat go faster in the puff ... you will bury the bow... the wind comes aft and you drive down the mine.

So...with the A cat/curved boards, downwind in a puff you...?

Head up, trap out, go fast then bear off?

Don't know... in race 9... the only one I watched... the leaders were not trapped out going down wind in 15 to 18 (reported) with a 2 foot chop.

They were standard wild thing...mode (and very smooth)

Like it matters? You're only going to confuse yourself on your Blade, Timbo...

Yeah...and BTW, I was in Naples looking for you last Sunday, I even went out on the peir at 12th street. There was only one kite out, and a couple of leaners, no cats. Which side of town are you on, North or South of 5th ave?