jeff feehan wrote:

i agree with the a.c. boats, but open 60's and similar boats
aren't designed for upwind work. neither was mari cha - the boat
that beat the transatlantic record recently.

The problem with IACC boats is that they are designed strictly for windward
& leeward VMG, and furthermore are highly optimized for winds between approx
5 to 15 knots. They don't plane and could not be made to plane, but they do
have long waterlines & tricky hull designs so they can get up & downwind
pretty fast. But they aren't drag racers, their top speed is low by even
planing dinghy standards.

The Open 60s are the opposite, designed to scoot downwind (or at least on
fairly deep reaches). Around a closed course or upwind, they are not slow
but not in the running for fastest IMHO.

Mari-Cha 4 (the 140'+ new record breaking monohull, a ketch no less) has the
same design issues, but is enough bigger (LWL approaching twice the IACC
boats) & more extreme that she would have to be a contender any place she
could fit on the course. Supposedly this boat can go 2X true wind speed
under a wide variety of conditions.... a chop isn't going to slow her down
much!

Besides if a windsurfer was on the same race course with any of these boats,
all the other skipper would have to do is blanket him

Fresh Breezes- Doug King

DSK wrote:

Mari-Cha 4 (the 140'+ new record breaking monohull, a ketch no less)..

Looks more like a schooner to me...

Besides if a windsurfer was on the same race course with any of these boats,
all the other skipper would have to do is blanket him

Good point! And could you imagine being dead in the water with a 140 ft
boat bearing down on you?

--
//-Walt
//
//

Wolfgang Soergel wrote in message ...
Harken Ronstan wrote:

What is the fastest mono-hull (non-sailboard)on a windward leeward or
triangle course these days?

I estimate: 505, Intl 14 GP, 49er, 18ft skiff are contenders.
Since they all plane up wind, waterline is less of an issue so I would
guess larger craft like an E scow, and A scow are in this class.

In light winds (under maybe 6 or 7 knots) AC type boats (long, narrow
keel yacht) are probabely fastest. A little more wind and i would
consider racing skiffs. Even more (12 knots and up) and Formula
Windsurfing gear has chances. But ultimately fastest are probabely big
(semi)planing racing yachts like the Open 60s or even bigger beasts.
Wasn't there a thread about a 150ft racing monohull shattering some
record a while back? Of course these boats aren't readily available to
most of us...


Oh, the speculation. Can we agree on some general principals? The
longer the course, the better shot a larger boat has. (There is a
reason that the 251' James Baines circumnavigated in 160 days, and her
record stood for 131 years.) The flatter the course the greater the
advantage to most windsurfers. The steadier the wind the better the
chance a windsurfer has. The lighter the wind the greater the benefit
of extremely efficient designs, like the AC class boats and FW boards.
The heavier the wind the better the more stable designs perform,
designs like offshre multihulls and massive monohulls.

Finally, the smaller my wallet gets the more I like FW boards for
their comparatively cheap thrill!
-Dan

On 1/7/04 9:42 AM Wolfgang Soergel wrote:
Harken Ronstan wrote:

What is the fastest mono-hull (non-sailboard)on a windward leeward or
triangle course these days?

I estimate: 505, Intl 14 GP, 49er, 18ft skiff are contenders.
Since they all plane up wind, waterline is less of an issue so I would
guess larger craft like an E scow, and A scow are in this class.

In light winds (under maybe 6 or 7 knots) AC type boats (long, narrow
keel yacht) are probabely fastest. A little more wind and i would
consider racing skiffs. Even more (12 knots and up) and Formula
Windsurfing gear has chances. But ultimately fastest are probabely big
(semi)planing racing yachts like the Open 60s or even bigger beasts.
Wasn't there a thread about a 150ft racing monohull shattering some
record a while back? Of course these boats aren't readily available to
most of us...

You mean my little weekend cruiser?
http://www.maricha4.com/
You're welcome to borrow it, if you scrub it down and fold the sails nicely....


florian