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[meech]

Recommend the slide show in this New York Times article about some quite awesome US America Cup machines:

Thirty Knots, With the Wind at Your Wings
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/09/science/09sail.html?ref=science

I wonder how mcuh lighter a sunfish could be made using carbon fiber?

 

[Wayne]

I wonder how mcuh lighter a sunfish could be made using carbon fiber?

Simply using canoes as a gauge, a 12' carbon fiber canoe is ~ 1/3 the weight of the same size canoe in fiberglass..., it's also about 4x the cost.

40 lb Sunfish (... and only $16,000) Your call...

... but hey, "Fluffy" sailors like me would now have an advantage



AC Race News: http://bmworacleracing.com/en/news/...uis_vuitton_pacific_series.html&track.type=sn

BMW/Oracle's 200' carbon fiber mast alone cost $10,000,000..., and they already broke one.

Crew members stand on one of the hulls as the mastless
BMW Oracle trimaran is towed back into San Diego Bay at sunset
after its mast broke during practice Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2009 in San
Diego. The mast is valued at approximately $10,000,000.
(AP Photo/Lenny Ignelzi)

​

 

[Webfoot]

Just use a line to tie about 40 weather balloons to the the top of the SF mast. That should knock off about 80 lbs. You also get the bonus of a self-righting boat. Might have a small problem with the mast pulling out of the mast-step, I'll leave that for others to figure out.

 

[Alan Glos]

If the carbon fiber mast in question cost $10,000,000, that's the equivalent of 2,500 Sunfish (at $4,000 per copy.) Next time I complain about having to pay over $400 for a new race sail, I will remember this statistic.

The sad thing is that with all these hi-tech boats competing for the America's Cup,
the winner, barring breakdowns and gear failure, will be known about 10 minutes into the first race as one of the contenders will probably be significantly faster than its opponent.

Alan Glos

 

[Wayne]

The sad thing is that with all these hi-tech boats competing for the America's Cup, the winner, barring breakdowns and gear failure, will be known about 10 minutes into the first race as one of the contenders will probably be significantly faster than its opponent.

So far, sea trials show both contestants pretty evenly matched, boat performance-wise. Much depends on the sort of wind they compete in.

Still, we must remember both boats have wind scouts reporting the shifts and puffs from various points around the course. And, both craft are equipped with enough sensors … performance oriented and boat stress monitoring … to rival the space shuttle. They are each wirelessly connected to follow boats that amount to nothing more than floating computer rooms.

Regardless, it will most likely come down to something computers have yet to master … the fake-out and the psyche-out. There’s also the probability this match will be decided not on skill and not on technology, but on the closing arguments of a couple of lawyers … the furthest thing from the logic of digital analysis or the skill of playing the wind.

I’m wondering if the next AC challenge will even involve boats at all.

Pondering the idea … perhaps the courts should place the skippers alone in two Sunfish to settle the contest.

Then again, that might be too much like sailing…, and anyway, the lateen sail doesn’t provide enough room for sponsor names in the style they are accustom.

 

[Wayne]

. . . before you start thinking I waited until after my 3rd martini to rant a little, here's today's Sailing Anarchy slant on the AC.

If you are looking to assign blame for the debacle formerly known as the America's Cup, look no further than this picture. The picture is pretty, but the story isn't. At Alinghi's insistence, they have made sure that this soon to be white elephant (if it isn't already) can't race in waves much over one meter high or winds that are 15 knots, limitations that are patently ridiculous. And that is precisly why there was no race yesterday. Alinghi (a made up word, btw, in case you have forgotten, and about as genuine as Bertarelli's intentions) has created a light air only cat that they want to be raced in light air only, so that they only can win. That's called stacking the deck, and that is why, in large part, this event is a joke. And a very bad one at that. And yet there's more. Based on the very suspect decision by the R/C to throw in the towel yesterday, one also has to wonder if EB has them in his pocket as well. We can't wait to be proven wrong on that.

the rest of the article is here: http://www.sailinganarchy.com/index_page1.php
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[Have You Hugged Your Sunfish Today]

 

[Wavedancer]

The second race turned out pretty interesting after all. But only for those who like sailboat racing.

First, Alinghi made what appeared to be a stupid mistake prior to the start. That cost her a penalty (which they took much later, on the final leg). The BMW/Oracle (BOR) trimaran won the start and was, what appeared to be significantly, ahead about halfway up the windward leg. But the Alinghi catamaran then got more pressure on her side of the course and pulled even, and then ahead. BOR caught up again later though, and was ever so slightly (20 sec or so) ahead at the windward mark. Then it was all over because BOR was appreciably faster on the next two reaching legs.

The winds were light and puffy, but both boats were going FAST. I think I heard the reporters say 30 knots on the reaches.

PS: Seeing the BOR trimaran with two hulls flying is just WOW!

 

[ivy]

I watched nearly all of race 2, and she hit 33kts in 10kts of air. (Keep in mind that this was the wind speed at the surface; BMWO's rig is as tall as a 20-story building.

The second race turned out pretty interesting after all. But only for those who like sailboat racing.

First, Alinghi made what appeared to be a stupid mistake prior to the start. That cost her a penalty (which they took much later, on the final leg). The BMW/Oracle (BOR) trimaran won the start and was, what appeared to be significantly, ahead about halfway up the windward leg. But the Alinghi catamaran then got more pressure on her side of the course and pulled even, and then ahead. BOR caught up again later though, and was ever so slightly (20 sec or so) ahead at the windward mark. Then it was all over because BOR was appreciably faster on the next two reaching legs.

The winds were light and puffy, but both boats were going FAST. I think I heard the reporters say 30 knots on the reaches.

PS: Seeing the BOR trimaran with two hulls flying is just WOW!