Exchange of Views & Reading
Junior World Championship - 10 Entries per Country
Monday, 14 May 2012 18:05
Nicola Gerin about the amended Junior Worlds Deed of Gift.
During the last Junior Worlds in Denmark only two boats were allowed per nation, with the right for the host country to line up one more boat on the strarting line. In Denmark, there were around twenty boats, a fleet with an excellent level. Youth World Champions from the Optimist class, Laser and 420 were sailing. In a fleet so deep you paid for every mistake more severely, than, for example, in the Europeans in Spain where there were many more boats but the fleet was much less homogeneous.
The new class rule provides for a maximum of ten boats per nation, always with the clause for the host country to line up one more boat. This change to the Deed of Gift will definitely increase the number of competitors at the Junior World Championship, which is good news for countries like Spain and Brazil, where fleets of junior teams are numerous. The news is somewhat frightening in other nations like Italy, where the number of competitors in these events is always small.
Championship helps start a new great fleet
Wednesday, 18 April 2012 21:59
Snipe South Americans 2012.
Congratulations Snipers!
Congratulations Amiguinho & Coveiro! Alexandre Tinnoco and Gabriel Borges closing a great season by winning this year’s South American Championship, keeping the cup in Brazil once more. It was disputed in Manta, Ecuador, during Easter week. The Brazilians sailed to the top 6 positions, including top Junior team with the Sabino brothers and top Female team with Juliana Mota and Larissa Juk. The top Master team was won by the Chilean Tomas and son Sebastian Rodriguez. The winner in mixed division was the debuting couple of Ariana Villena and Jose Ferretti from Ecuador, who finished seventh overall.
Driving (a car) and Steering (a Snipe)
Friday, 13 April 2012 19:22
When I think of the (little) time we spend racing, compared to the (much) time spent traveling, loading boats, rigging boats, waiting for the wind or waiting until the wind decreases--in a busy life with not a minute to spare, sailing is the “sport of waitings.” The waitings, however, are amply compensated by the fun at sea.
In terms of time and effort, we spend a lot of time on the roads and, in rare cases by plane. How much time is spent traveling? I think it is difficult to calculate the hours that each of us has spent driving a car or van towing a trailer with a boat. I am often inclined to think that those who race dinghies, more than being sailors, are professional car or truck drivers!
Invite Them…. And they Will Come
Thursday, 05 April 2012 17:51
A Simple Lesson in Class Development
Class development is a concern for most countries. How does any one-design class compete, when there are so many boats for people to choose from? In my experience, the most successful way to introduce sailors to the Snipe Class is simply to invite them - provide them with a good crew/skipper and a boat for a major regatta.
This was my own experience. Andrew Pimental (owner of Jibe Tech) and I raced in the same Laser fleet in Newport, Rhode Island. He was looking for a crew for the 2003 Pan American Games Trials and someone in the fleet suggested me. Andrew asked me and I said “yes.” It was an important regatta and an opportunity to race with a great skipper. At the time, I was sailing Europe Dinghies and was looking for some good cross-training.
Classic Snipe "Veloce" and the Criterium di Primavera in Sanremo
Tuesday, 03 April 2012 19:42
The interest generated by the classic 1963 Snipe “Veloce” I-14858 at the Yacht Club Sanremo and the curiosity of seeing a 50-year-old boat on the starting line perfectly in shape was enough, the race results don’t matter.
It means that the sitka spruce wood mast is beautiful but not as powerful as a modern aluminum one with a four to one purchase on the jib halyard! Or that the 32 kg bronze pivot centerboard is a little bit heavy!
