Wouter: Why fix something that is not broken ?
I dont find the Tornado so expensive, considering that it has a competitive lifespan of 10 years or so. The used market is also quite good (at least in Europe).
I dont know how long a Formula cat is competitive. But i know Formula windsurfers changes equipment 'all the time'.
If F-18 became olympic, would that promote F-18 or scare people away from F-18 ?
I think the australian A-class is on the right track, avoiding olympic dreams and disappointments.
In my opinion, you have to make a conscious desision to get into olympic class sailing. If you decide to get serious about it, the price of the boat is not your greatest cash drain. Travelling/living abroad and lost salaries due to a lot of sailing instead of working is what makes it expensive.
Wouter: Over 100 teams for the F-18 worlds. At the Tornado worlds 2003 at Cadiz there are over 70 teams. Starting 18.09.03.
http://www.cadizworlds2003.comMany Tornado sailors also participate in the F18 class..
I dont think the number of boats competing should decide what classes to use in the Olympics. We would all be sailing Optimists if that was the case
The Tornado was specifically designed for the Olympics (i.e. it won the Olympic evaluation event in '67), and has since then been refined to todays standard. Since then the Tornado has been the Olympic multihull.
These days the IOC wants to cut down on the number of sports and athletes competing. The Olympics has become so big that very few countries are able to host the games.
I'm more worried that IOC decides to drop multihull sailing, rather than which multihull sails the Olympics.
(But of course, I can not and will not deny that the Tornado is a beautiful boat to sail)
Rolf
Tornado NOR-10384, so of course I'm biased
