sidewinder
Member
I'm pretty new to the class. I've, owned a boat for about 1 year but have been an avid sailor for ~15 years. I read TLF approximately daily.
Maybe it's just me, but the plot of age vs. members in The Laser Sailor looks really really strange. I'm 31, and It looks like there are maybe 4-6 other members my age (in all of NA!), yet there are 10x as many people at the age of 50.
I understand the big spike in the late teen years through age 20 due to high school/college programs, but in the early 20s there is a huge drop off. People in the 20-35 range should be out there in great numbers.
Think about it:
-You probably have found yourself a real job, or at least one that could support a club-racing program.
-You have amassed (at least in my case) enough man-fat to allow you to sail a full rig.
-Any car can tow the laser, any beach can launch one.
-Fleets everywhere, and all the other mantras that laser sailors repeat....
Are people in that bracket simply not supporting the class?
Or is this chart just a snapshot of sailing as a whole?
Has the graph always showed this trend?
Is the class going to Implode once the "baby boom" crowd starts leaving the class?
Is there an existing perception that joining the class provides no real value other than allowing you to race sanctioned regattas?
I realize that most of these questions are highly rhetorical, and I'm not really expecting much in the way of answers, but feel free to comment.
Maybe it's just me, but the plot of age vs. members in The Laser Sailor looks really really strange. I'm 31, and It looks like there are maybe 4-6 other members my age (in all of NA!), yet there are 10x as many people at the age of 50.
I understand the big spike in the late teen years through age 20 due to high school/college programs, but in the early 20s there is a huge drop off. People in the 20-35 range should be out there in great numbers.
Think about it:
-You probably have found yourself a real job, or at least one that could support a club-racing program.
-You have amassed (at least in my case) enough man-fat to allow you to sail a full rig.
-Any car can tow the laser, any beach can launch one.
-Fleets everywhere, and all the other mantras that laser sailors repeat....
Are people in that bracket simply not supporting the class?
Or is this chart just a snapshot of sailing as a whole?
Has the graph always showed this trend?
Is the class going to Implode once the "baby boom" crowd starts leaving the class?
Is there an existing perception that joining the class provides no real value other than allowing you to race sanctioned regattas?
I realize that most of these questions are highly rhetorical, and I'm not really expecting much in the way of answers, but feel free to comment.