Monday 11 February 2013

Paper Jet racing in the USA

Taken from the Dudley Dix blogspot.

We have developing news for the owners of boats to our Paper Jet design. We are in the very early stages of organising the first formal racing for the Paper Jet class. It will be part of a larger event and we need enough entries to have our own start. If we can get a large enough fleet of Paper Jets we can maybe have our own course. 

 
Boat number one and built from a CNC kit supplied by CKD Boats cc , Cape Town.
Skiffs are not happy on windward/leeward courses, so liked by dinghies with conventional spinnakers. They cannot be competitive against conventional classes when the emphasis is on beating and running. Skiffs prefer triangular courses, with reaching legs that allow them to sail at full potential. I am at my happiest on my boat when blasting at high speed on a beam to broad reach, when my PJ can really stretch its legs and fly past most other boats. Granted, I am sometimes on the extreme limit of control but the exhiliration of skipping off the waves and sometimes passing powerboats is worth the price of the not-so-occcasional capsize. It all helps to remind me that I am alive and enjoying the experiences of life.