Bart Senior wrote:
The Soling keelboat beat out the Etchells and other keelboats to
become the Olympic three man keelboat, despite the fact the
Etchells, a similar design, is a faster boat.

Etchells historians will say that the Etchells class was ripped off,
since the Etchells is a faster boat because its greater waterline
length. This is true.

Well, it's faster for a couple fo reasons but a longer waterline sure
doesn't hurt.


I feel the Soling won the Olympic three man keelboat competition
because of a fundamental design difference between the two boats.

What is the most fundamental and significant difference between the
Soling and the Etchells keelboats? [10 points]

The Soling is smaller, has less form stability, a spade rudder, a higher
& smaller transom (indicating a less full & flat run, which is another
speed factor favoring the Etchells), and is cheaper. This last is the
reason the Olympic committee *said* they selected it. IMHO since the
selection board was 100% European, there was no chance an American boat
would be selected no matter good it was.

Bonus question- why hasn't the 505 ever been selected as the Olympic boat?

Fresh Breezes- Doug King