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Paul Henderson is right - but rule 42 is wrong. (Finn) sailing is supposed to be a SPORT,so let us behave like athletes and not like elderly gentlemen annoyed by those unresponsible youngsters that come pumping by on a reach. May the best rocker, oocher, pumper, navigator, sailor, athlete and brain - be the winner!! Sorry gents':everybody to the gym!!

Two different opinions on the validity of Illbruck's 24hr Record

Jim Champ
Firstly there is probably no practical way of accurately recording what the current is doing for offshore records and it certainly hasn't been done in the past. Secondly making best use of the current has traditionally always been just as much a part of the sailor's skill of making best use of the wind. Finally offshore records are related to "making a passage" in real conditions. So it's valid.

Mike Peberdy
This record is not significant at all - a bit like holding the world speed record for walking! Especially when you consider that Laurent Bourgnon set a record of about 540 miles sailing solo on Primagaz many years ago.

Under the World Speed Sailing Record Council rules current is not taken into account

Daniel Garden Bergen from Norway on the performance of djuice dragons in the Volvo Ocean Race
I believe Mr. Frostad and his Dragons have made an major f***k up, going for another designer than the majority. In order to gain the loss this has caused, the Dragons have been taking huge risks throughout the race, making them lose further. If Mr. Frostad was a stock broker he would go bankrupt in no time. Team tactics were lousy. I hope he hasn't caused the Norwegian sailing environment too much damage - how will we ever get another sponsor?

Stefan Lloyd is keen on 707 sport boat racing
The 707s are definitely the best sportsboat class in the UK if you like close big-fleet racing. We had more than double the numbers of 1720s in the Warsash Spring Series, and with over 60 boats based on or near the Hamble, we sustain large numbers of boats in Solent regattas through the summer - which the 1720s don't - in the UK at least, their sailing seems to revolve more around a few big events.

There are also active 707 club fleets at Burnham and Port Edgar (near Edinburgh). The 707 championship is at Cork Week this year, where we are expecting a big turn out, and we will also have a large class start in Cowes Week. There will also be smaller fleets at Burnham Week and the Scottish Series.

With a range of abilities from ex-European champions downwards, the majority of helms and crews will find close racing at their own level in the fleet. Other reasons 707s are so popular - well keelboat racing is never going to be cheap, but the 707 class rules are framed to keep costs down as much as practical - compare the price of a set of sails on the 1720s versus 707s. If you have a sponsor whose name you need to splash on the hull, sail a 1720, but for the vast majority of sailors paying their own bills, the 707 has to be the best sportsboat class in the UK.

Following the RYA National Junior Championships Neil Marsden, Head Coach West Zone writes
The RYA National Junior Championships was a good event but disappointing that a prizegiving was not held. I felt that this should have taken place even though only two races were sailed. A lot of time and effort had been put in by both sailors and parents to attend this event (people attended from as far away as Shetland). This should have been recognised, if only to promote and provide good PR for future events. I'm quite sure the organising committee could have reached agreement with all concerned in order to award prizes.

According to Andy the International 14 class is still as great as it ever was
I'm a bit biased, being a 14 owner but what the article doesn't bring across is that there may be lots of different gear but when it comes to racing it is still unbelievably close. In the few days at Garda before the Riva Cup started last week, a lot of boats did speed work together. We did a 3 mile beat with 4 boats (between 5 and 2 years old) the speeds were virtually identical. Development classes have the advantage that the class will last longer (forever?) than a production one design and still produce close racing.

Paul Smalley feels the Optimist is not the ideal Youth Boat
NO! NO! NO! The Oppie does have a lot going for it, but at the end of the day it has a lot of negative points too. For a start the boat costs a helluva lot of money, especially if you want a top spec one. It is also incredibly slow and boring to sail. Kids want excitement! To my mind the Topper is the obvious choice for ages between 11 and 16. It's fast - the fastest junior boat in the RYA's program - it will plane in less than a force 5/6! And it's cheap to campaign, not to mention the advantages of having adjustable controls such as kicker, Cunningham and outhaul. There is no sprit though (very important in Olympic classes to know what a sprit does). Lots of people obviously agree with me what with nearly 250 Toppers taking part at this years inlands - let's see how many the Oppies get....

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