How is your ulcer going!!!! In my region... the JO's rotate through the YC with Junior programs. ...Many want to have done their service before the JO's get to their club... Its a 48 hour headache with all of the kids running around. The limitation to including cats is first and foremost space... both on the club grounds... and on the water. Next... its' kids and boats who want to do the event. Finally, its not like kids are beating down the door for junior only regattas either.
We run a junior only Hobie 16 regatta at MRYC for the past two years. Best we have been able to do is 3 boats .... I tried to lend boats to CBYRA 420 and laser sailors. ( I solved the liablity issue once and still not much success) (Hobie 16's cause that is the cat that I can get).. No luck.... you can't even give a boat away.... WHY... because the schedule is SO Packed within a 2 month summer window and the top sailors that you want are heading north to Buzzards or nationals, etc etc. Also... the junior sailing directors have lots of influence over kids.... they are not getting the atta boys from parents if their kids move off the track and race a catamaran. They are an unexpected road block... in their Sail instructors world... a parallel catamaran program for their top sailors is a PIA and since their is no college level program, it must be a waste of time in their view.
So... My take is... we need to find a spot in the schedule... that has a lot of kids racing and show them the flag.... then we need this elite program where the good kids to take a cracK at racing a H16.... THEN the peice that I could not see how to make happen .... a development path while they are in college.... Finally, If you are still in the game and good enough.... you hit the Olympic development program. (of course... in the win now mentality of US Sailing Olympic.... the bucks go to this last step... I understand the limits... but... It means that local volunteers will have to make the previous levels of the ladder work. I think the F12 project is spot on..
The time to get the kids is at the 420 level.... they trapeeze and are not as fragile. A small cat is right there. BUT... It is going to have to be progrm driven.
Finally, the reality is... What 5 cats can you keep together ... At the regional level... It will be what you can get your hands on and keep going for a couple of years. SL16's would be ideal for 14 years old and up... BUT .... Hobie 16's no chutes is A GREAT alternative to nothing.
Still banging my head against the wall... one day I will break something...
