kids and lasers

B

Billups

New Member
My son is 12 and weighs 85 pounds. Is this too light to sail a laser safely? We sail a lot in Mission Bay in San Diego, Ca.
 
not at all. put him in a 4.7 and he should be fine. although i don't know how windy it is over there, because in San Fran's bay, it absolutely BLOWS like no other.
 
Go with the 4.7 and start in light winds, radually working up the wind range while other boats are out or wen you have safety cover from coach/support boat or race fleet safety/rescue boat.
 
4.7 are great...but for racing, 4.7 fleets are hard to come by. I started my radial at that weight and I am glad I did because in that fleet I learned so much more than I would have in the 4.7 fleet. Although it was throughoughly frusterating losing a lot it was good experience and now I am the best radial sailor on my team. So, if you dont want to spend all that money on different rigs that he will outgrow in a year, it's always an option. But if there is a nearby 4.7 fleet then joining that would be ideal.
 
That is the main problem with the 4.7 : it is still developing as a class. However, it has just been granted ISAF youth status so fleets should start to grow as national teams take on 4.7 status.
 
yes, 4.7 fleets ARE hard to come by, but his son is only 12, and i don't think that he will be racing ANYtime soon. at least 2 years. 2 years = more weight. more weight = radial/standard
 
That's another good point - don't throw kids in at the deep end, let them master sailing properly before doing any racing. It really kills confidence in kids if they are put on a race course with no idea what to do. I would suggest letting them crew on doublhanders for their first few races before taking up lasers to get used to the arcane flag signals and horns etc.
 
Sorry...I didn't realize he was not an experienced sailor. My bad, do what Will says : ) Oh, and phantom too!
 
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