LaLi
Well-Known Member
It's what the Laser class is supposed to be: one-design. It has been highly "sustainable" so far, and this "bold step" away from that - the creation of a de facto whole new line of classes - is a big risk. This sounds sickeningly conservative, but it's a fact. Of course the new rig looks extremely interesting... this is one of the countless things about which I'd like to be totally wrong!All the gradual changes in the past have taken years to implement and have had to try to match the performance characteristics of the superseded equipment. This isn’t sustainable. A bold step that will position the class for the next couple of decades is what’s needed.
As I've understood it, the 4.7 rig was never meant to form a racing class, but rather something relatively cheap that kids could stick on their parents' boats to have fun. The fact that such a "reefed" rig has become this popular is proof of how attractive the Laser class is. 4.7 sailors could choose boats like the Byte, Splash, Zoom8, etc, but those classes enjoy only a fairly limited regional success. The kids think it's cool to be a Laser sailor; they don't think they're making a compromise. (Although they probably won't have anything against new flashy sails either.)ask the kids currently sailing 4.7s what they think. They’re the future of the class, and they’re having to use a silly sail shoehorned onto the existing spars. It’s not fun. The C5 is a new rig from the ground up, not a compromise like the 4.7 was.
The weight range of top Radial sailors is about 58 - 72 kg, which covers pretty well reasonably athletic adult females of European ancestry. The "potentially huge" market is the enormous not-yet-sailing pool of Asian women. But will a million Chinese girls start sailing only because you change to a different-looking sail on an existing boat? People like Takao Otani and Julian Bethwaite may be optimistic, but that's their job!The average healthy woman around the world is about 5’3 and 58-60kgs. To be competitive in a Radial you need to be at least six inches taller and 8-10 kg heavier than that. If the Laser class can create a new, top quality rig that caters for the average weight and height then they’ll be able to tap into a potentially huge market.
The intent should be replacement: what if the "market" as a whole doesn't grow but is split into incompatible fleets nonetheless?The intent isn’t to replace the 4.7 but to provide an alternative choice. I suspect the market will quickly decide which they prefer.
It's an interesting thought that has crossed my mind, too. It may be telling that none of the "C" sails we've seen have had the Laser insignia on them. Maybe ILCA is actually considering doing what Bruce Kirby tried to do, and what the Sunfish class almost did: dropping the class name to free yourself of a problematic rights holder. But you'd have to call the hulls something else, too...I suspect that if the rig doesn’t use the Laser branding/trademark, then all the builders don’t need to agree. The class can do whatever they like with their class rules, etc, they just can’t violate the trademark in doing so.
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