It adds a little bit of illumination on the subject of Mylar v Dacron, but the overall download article is actually excellent. Read the lot!!
You have to allow for the fact that H and I were lucky enough to get a good go in the sail testing session which VC arranged at Datchet - the very first Rig Testing session. H & I were pretty impressed at the time, but I'm beginning to wonder how much of that was being carried away by the whole atmosphere that weekend. I think we should go to the new designs of both jib and main - I thought that then and still do now. But lets get back to this issue of the switch to mylar mains.... Now why was that again?? We are just tumbling into a five year period of this parliament where cash for many will be severely constrained. Check the price of fuel next wednesday, and see what I mean. Now VC says he's been told that one of these new mylar mains will last 18 months, but what kind of 18 month period is that??
How many races do the big boys sail in 18 months on the circuit? Just work out your own estimate for the moment. Lets say 6 open meetings plus the Nationals. That's about 40 races perhaps? So 18 months could be 60 races - stay with me here .... If you race regularly with the Datchet Fleet, how many races do you sail in a year?? It would be in the range of 60-80 ... lets call it 80 for the minute - i.e. we take 12 weekends off in a year. So in 18 months, we race about 120 races on our sails. So if a Mylar main lasts 60 races, I have to replace it once every 9 months on average?? They would be 20% more expensive. I have a feeling that I just bought a Goacher Main a year ago and including delivery, it was the best part of £700. I expect it to last two years, maybe three. Lets look at two years - so that's £350 per year for dacron mainsails. The new mylar main is going to be around 20% more expensive - so maybe £830, but it has a life of 9 months??!! So that gives me an annual cost of mainsails running at around £1080. Have I got that right?? TRIPLE THE COST???!!! Have I got that right ?? None of this "20% more expensive" idea??!! My cost goes from £350 a year to £1080 a year?? Note that Non-Dom makes his Dacron main last 5 years, so imagine what his comparison is like!!!
How does this look to a prospective FF new comer (as opposed to us that already have one....), considering buying a good second-hand boat for maybe £5,000 ??? "Prohibitively expensive and out of proportion" is how that looks. Very off-putting - maybe "go and sail some other class", is the answer....
So suddenly with the help of several Blog contributors, my voting intentions in 2011 are now clear. For primarily the benefit of attracting newcomers to Club Racing, but also to the rest of us, I'm thinking I should vote "Yes" to the new jib and main designs, but "NO!!!" to the move from Dacron to Mylar.
Who's with me on that??
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