I have to agree with Bob that US Sailing is the problem with there rules and fees. Sailors don't attend the qualifiers in my opinion because of the extra fees at least I don't any more and won't in the future. I remember driving to a qualifier and paying 70.00 for a family membership so my wife could race with me in one event which we won but did not go to the Altercup because of cost and time. I personally won't go to another qualifier or Altercup because of cost and value. There are so many more events to go to that are funner and don't have the added US Sailing cost. How many boats were at the F16 Nationals the week before ? I guess the cost was less is why it was attended more. This years Altercup just tarnished the trophy with no past champions and such a small turnout. I do give the sailors that went kudos for going, but I don't think you could call it a real Altercup with so few of the best sailors in the US attending. Also did want to say thanks to all the past and current chairmen and volunteers for your time and efforts on putting on the events.
Mike why don't you poll the question about the event leaving US Sailing and there rules and see what you get or was that in the survey you already did.
+1. I agree with Dave on all his points. I used to love the Alter Cup. It was a real honor to just qualify and be there with the best sailors and I thought the format was great fun and unique.
Unfortunately my distaste for US Sailing currently exceeds my desire to fork out extra money for their events. That is just how it is. This is an association that will need to work harder to gain the trust and loyalty of the multihull community.
Originally Posted by brucat
US Sailing membership was required at the Worlds. Individuals belonging to a member group (class association) did not have to prove individual membership.
You really would have stayed home from the Worlds if you had to join? That actually says more about you than it does US Sailing...
BTW, everyone has a bad day occasionally, even ROs. Certification and experience can mitigate, but only so far.
Mike
Hmmm, it really should tell you something about US Sailing. He is not alone in that thinking. Whether you think it is justified or not you should not ignore the fact that sentiment is quite wide spread currently indicating something is wrong.
I'm curious about something since my experiences with US Sailing are not so recent any more... Back about seven years ago US Sailing's designated multihull coach told me that he had never sailed a cat and did not really have much interest in the class. Is that still the case? Because you can't expect much in terms of youth development when your national organization shows that much lack of interest.
Maybe it is not just bad attitude towards multihulls? Based on our [lack of] success in London are there other underlying issues within US Sailing that need to be addressed?
Regardless, it is a shame that the turnout was this low this year. Maybe the trophy should be retired.
