Hello everyone!
First, I would like to personally thank the small core group for taking the time and effort to come up with the class rules!!
[color:"red"]First, I would like to ask who was this small core and how were the below conditions decided upon? I sure don't remember voting on or having a back-and-forth debate on each aspect of the F14 restrictions. A lot of what I see below does not seem to go along with what sparked interest in the original thread on the Open Forum. What I see below looks just like someone wants to sail a H14 and not get beat.[/color]
Attached below are the rules for the Formula 14 Class! They are for the most part open with a few restrictions. Like my previous post on another thread, we have to start somwhere and take small steps. This forum allows us to communicate where and when we can get together as a group. I look forward to having a lot of fun with you! Please forward your questions/clarifications and I will try my best to answer each in a timely manner. Let's go sail and have fun!!
Respectfully,
Bob Curry
Formula 14 Class Director
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FORMULA 14 ASSOCIATION CLASS RULES
Mission Statement: “Promote fun sailing for all ages!!”
Safety: Wearing a life jacket/PFD is recommended. Any type of righting device, anti-turtleling device is legal. It is the responsibility of the skipper to conform to all national safety rules.
Rules
1. Maximums:
Boat Length: 14’ 3”.
[color:"red"]How about "14' maximum for all new boats, while grandfathering in all older models advertised at "14s".[/color]
[color:"red"]What is the point in having a boat that is less than the legal US road limit width? It doesn't make them faster, it doesn't make them more stable, and it sure doesn't make them easier to sail.[/color]
[color:"red"]This is the first time I've seen this particular length mentioned. It seems that almost everyone on the original F14 thread was shooting for an even 24' (which should be the actual extrusion- not the endcaps)[/color]
Sail Area (main or main/jib): 160 sqft
[color:"red"]How was this area derived? If an otherwise standard Wave with 187sq.ft. of sail (Rick's Wave) isn't overpowering in 12knot winds but keeps pace with H16s, why go for less area on boats that could be build wider and will have someone trapezing?(Hobie Wave having only a 20' mast) I'd lean more towards 200sq.ft. of sail area, by running a square-top main on a 24' mast and sending the rest to a roller-furling jib on a pole.[/color]
2. Minimums:
Boat Weight: 240lbs.
[color:"red"]Let's see...the Cheshire Cat is advertised as weighing 170lbs all-up. The Quattro 14 is advertised as weighing 80kg (176lbs), and the minimum weight for the Hobie 14 is... 240lbs! Let me reiterate what I'm trying to get across: I don't want to sail on '50s-60s technology and limits. Small boat- YES! Slow, heavy hunk of crap- NO! I'm sure women and children would appreciate 70lbs less boat to drag across the beach. I'd suggest a 150lb minimum, which could possibly be attainable by home-builders. That's only 20lbs less than the Cheshire or Quattro, and I'm sure crew weights will vary by much more than that.[/color]
Skipper Weight: 150 lbs.
Corrector weights may be added and attached in any fashion.
[color:"red"]I don't think this is going to get women and children into the sport! Not many athletic (or at least semi-athletic) women/children weigh 150lbs. I'm 5'10" and athletic- I spend most of my sailing time soloing an 18' catamaran, and until recently I only weighed 145lbs. How about "if you can right your boat you can race your boat"? That sort of encompasses a greater spectrum of potential F14 sailors.[/color]
3. Boat Components: Hulls, mast, beams, rudder system, sails, rigging,
sheeting systems, trampolines, battens, booms, boomless sails, downhaul,
outhaul, mast rotation systems, tiller extensions are open and can be made of any material. Components can be hand built or purchased from any manufacturer.
4. Sails: Pinhead, elliptical, or squaretop mainsails. Headsails/jibs may be
rollerfurled. Headsails/jibs may be mounted on short/long bridles, foils, or on
pole systems.
5. Single trapeze or hiking rack system is legal.
6. Singlehanding is the method of sailing in the class. However, in the case of a very light skipper, additional crew may be added to conform to the minimum weight.
The intent of these rules is to be a work in progress. As the class grows, additional refinements of these rules may become necessary.
Annual review date: February 8, 2005.
[color:"red"]I'm not trying to bash and flame, just debate. However the set of rules listed above does not seem to have been very thought-out, and certainly not as "all-encompassing" and semi-performance directed as the original F14 thread. I don't want to build a 100lb all-carbon boat that costs more than my truck, but I don't want to neuter the potential of future boats by making them conform to archaic standards. This is, after all, the formation of the FORMULA 14 class, not the CLASSIC 14 class[/color]
