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wrote:
I care so little about phrf that I put on a fixed 3 bladed prop.

That could actually help, if it was the right prop.

The nature of PHRF ratings & racing is basically perverted &
backwards... the goal of the individual sailor is to have a
boat that is faster than it's rating (like *all* rating
systems), not to have a fast boat. It doesn't matter if the
boat is a snail, for the purpose of racing under handicap,
as long as it's rating puts it ahead of the competition.
It's a numbers game.

Some handicap (rating) systems use a complex system of
measurements of the hull & rig, the newest twist on this is
to use a "secret" Velocity Prediciton Program on a fancy
computer. The way the PHRF system works is that the boat is
a assigned a number which factors how many seconds behind
another boat it can be, and still beat that boat. So lower
numbers = faster... somewhat counterintuitive... and the
number is subject to review at the end of the season. Thus,
a boat raced under PHRF that consistently wallops everybody
would have it's rating adjusted downward until the rating
reflected it's actual performance, thus making the race more
"fair."

There are tables of corrections for ratings, obviously
adding a 3-blade prop makes it slower so you would get some
time added to your rating... but if you add a very small
3-blade prop with very high pitch, then it might not slow
you down as much as the rating allows for, so you gain an
advantage. See?

This kind of game is one reason why I can't bring myself to
take PHRF racing seriously. It can be a lot of fun, but
one-design racing is a sailing competition.

Fresh Breezes- Doug King