In reply to David Parker,
With all due respect, I have to disagree with your general proposition as I see it expressed in the quotes following: "Speed is the addiction but you wouldn’t do it without the constant threat of destruction." And further, "The sixties folk song says, 'You must barter your life to make sure you are living.' If you don’t agree, don’t sail a fast cat." And lastly, "This is a testosterone sport…that’s why so few women are around. Stupid, reckless men do this stuff and like it."

I raced motorcycles in the 70s on sports car tracks up and down the east coast; going from fast amateur to novice and then expert level professional. I watched many amateur riders come into the sport with the above notions; if they were lucky they simply spent themselves out of the sport with the costs of fixing their crashed motorcycles. If they were unlucky they paid a serious price in the form of a lifelong injury for what was to be a "recreational" endeavor. When real danger is on the line, blind machoism doesn't get it; it tends to lead you to try to ignore physics, which will not be ignored--especially the part about kinetic energy.

Its true, when one wants to go faster, one needs to find the edge. The challenge in motorcycle racing (since there are no spinouts in that sport) is to "nibble" away at that edge, so your transgressions over are small and recoverable. The same principle applies in cat sailing. The closer to the edge you go, the faster you go (assuming conditions call/allow for such an approach). But you don't win races by crashing, even if its not as dangerous and paiinful as in motorcycle racing.

The genuine thrill of cat sailing (as it was for me in motorcycle racing) is to have the level of skill and control to run at that edge and to have your personal edge (because it is different for people of differing skills) further out there. It is the exercise of great control, finese, and precision in the midst of violent forces--being calm and precise in controlling these forces that gives great pleasure. In motorcycle racing, scaring oneself was for amateurs and macho men who didn't last long. When one is doing it right, one never scares oneself; one just enjoys exercising the control while playing on the edge. Winning, of course, helps. Just some thoughts of an older guy.

David N
H20