Single handed combat.
A look at the newcomers to the 'top of the mid range' single handed scene.
Three years ago, Dinghy Sailing Magazine conducted an analysis of the available single handed dinghies and found that the market place was clearly becoming split into clearly defined sectors. The most competitive area covered the small to medium boats, where the Laser, Solo and OK were joined by boats such as the Supernova, Byte and Splash. Then there was the mid range market, where the Olympic status of the Finn was competing against Phantom, Blaze, Vareo, RS300 and Solution. Top of the range boats were again clearly identifiable, with the established International Canoe and Contenders trying to defend their position against the Musto Skiff, RS 700 and the Vortex.
The analysis also revealed that today’s single handed sailor is likely to be far more sophisticated and technically aware than any of his earlier counterparts. Physically, the modern sailor is also likely to be bigger, stronger and fitter, a trend the scientists predict will become even more apparent in the next generation. Dinghy Sailing Magazine went on to predict that the next wave of ‘new’ boats would be aimed at what could be seen as a new and emerging ‘mid range’ single handed sailor, with a skiff style boat that would carry weight, yet would not be dependant upon the use of the trapeze. To succeed in the aggressive commercial market of today, such a boat would need to appeal to a wide range of sailors from across all of the previous divides. With the potential sales that such a boat could deliver, there was little surprise that the race was soon on to fill this new market sector.
The first of these new boats to hit the water was a clever development of an established class. Since escaping from the Topper family, the Blaze has enjoyed something of a renaissance, with its reputation as a sparkling performer in breeze. Many sailors who have raced the Blaze believed that the Howlett designed hull would comfortably carry more sail area, either in the form of a spinnaker or a larger main. Mike Lyons, from Cirrus Raceboats, who now market the Rondar built boat, was concerned that any development along these lines could be detrimental to the health of the existing class in the UK. However, when an opportunity arose to look at a ‘big brother’ rig for the North American market, the HALO (Heavy And Large Option) was conceived. Everything below the mast heel was standard Blaze, but from the heel up the rig was all new and exciting. The first Halo rig was based around a rotating wing mast, on which was stepped a large fat head sail. Subsequent development saw this concept dropped in favour of a small diameter carbon mast, partnered with an advanced design for a large, semi fully battened sail.
Photo coutesy Mike Lyons.
The HALO tramping along upwind with Mike Lyons doing what he does best - sailing flat and fast.Careful application of the calculations used in the Bethwaite book, High Preformance Sailing, suggest that the HALO has the potential to be the fastest of the three new boats - upwind.
The power to weight ratios suggest that the HALO rig should allow planing performance upwind, yet the simple sail plan should equally allow for exciting downwind sailing. Mike Lyons holds the view that not everyone wants to sail windward-leeward courses, nor do a lot of sailors want the complexity (and expense) of sailing single handed with a spinnaker. That is not to say that the door is closed to further development, for Cirrus are clearly keeping all their options open. However, as Mike points out, a severe financial crisis may not be a good time to launch a new class. The beauty of the Halo is that if a sailor re-steps the standard Blaze mast and sail, the boat will be back as part of an existing and buoyant Class Association.
If the HALO is the ‘develop an existing class’ route to enhanced single handed performance, then at the other end of the spectrum is the all new Devoti D-One. Building on Luca Devoti’s Olympic success, both as a helmsman and as boat builder, Devoti Boats have invested time, effort and reputation into the creation of a new breed of single handed dinghy, that fuses skiff style sailing together with a manageable spinnaker rigged single hander. The intention of Devoti is to make a boat that will restore the fun factor to sailing and with an impressive spread of sail, set on a lightweight all carbon fibre hull, in breeze the boat delivers thrills a plenty (for a fuller description of the D-One check out the boat test in last months DSM).
Photo courtesy Suntouched UK
In just 12 knots of wind the D-One was already delivering the sort of excitment that comes when sailing a good boat on a windy day. Despite the test boat on the day being an early prototype, the D-One never felt out of balance, whilst the setting of a spinnaker on an unstayed mast seems to be a winning combination.
That is not to say that the D-One is an easy boat to sail well, for the Devoti offering is a focused, no compromise race boat aimed squarely at those with the resource and ability, to dedicate the time and money that mastering this boat will take. Despite the size of the sails (especially the spinnaker) the carbon mast on the D-One is unstayed, which for Finn and OK sailors looking for a lot more fun downwind will present few problems. For those sailors more used to a conventional set up, learning how to control such a powerful rig may be a steep learning curve, but one well worth sticking at, for this is very much the boat for the sailing purist.
Neatly positioned between these two boats is the latest offering from RS. There are few secrets in dinghy sailing and the rumours that the team at RS were looking at a new single hander have been doing the rounds of the dinghy parks for a long time now. With two existing single handers, the RS 300 and Vareo, already in their current product range, it was always going to be interesting to see how RS could squeeze another design into the portfolio without displacing an already established favourite. In the end RS have cleverly pitched the new Paul Handley design to occupy a slot in the market that may (or may not) be vacant. Like the D-One, the RS 100 is clearly a no compromise racer, with its slim bows and narrow waterline which quickly flares out into a wide, raised hiking area. RS have eschewed the skiff style hull and instead have gone for a boat that should do well across a range of conditions, as the hull carries more rocker than both the Blaze and D-One.
Photo courtesy RS/LDC
The RS100 looks neatly positioned for the UK market, where the ground for a hiking asymmetric boat has already been broken by the Vareo. Lke the D-One, the RS100 is innovative and attracting a good deal of comment
The rig chosen by RS is an interesting hybrid, as it uses shrouds but no forestay, whilst the spinnaker is smaller and less demanding than that of its Italian rival. The last of the new single handers to hit the water, the RS100 is currently being refined out on the waters off Hayling Island, where it has attracted a fair degree of comment.
It is still too early to say which of these three new boats will prosper, either as a domestic class or on the larger international scene. Despite the lack of a ‘big name’ backer, the Blaze could still be the surprise package, as it has simplicity and speed working for it, yet in a package that could prove attractive to the club sailor wanting a bit more of a challenge. The D-One on the other hand is clearly at risk of suffering from the effects of the slump in the £/€ exchange rate, as with both the equipment levels and the build quality at the top end of the scale, the D-One is never going to be the cheap option. However, for those who can afford it, this is may well be the boat that not only promises, but delivers the most. Finally, the RS 100, with the backing of RS and some hugely attractive deals for the first 100 boats purchased, will surely find a place in the RS racing scene.
There is no doubt that these are three very good, well developed boats, all worthy of consideration for the single handed sailor of today and also of tomorrow. Maybe then, instead of “which boat will succeed”, the big question should be, “which of the established UK classes will move aside for the newcomers”.