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An open letter to all would-like- to-be contender-sailors and current non-sailing owners |
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Written by Stephanie Mah
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Sunday, 06 May 2012 |
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It would appear that
current demand in North America for our little boat is outstripping supply,
which is a good thing for anyone either looking to sell or anyone who happens
to be sitting on a boat which isn’t doing much but collecting dust. American
Contender guru Gil Woolley has been digging boats out of garages from around
the USA, but I know there are more boats that aren’t seeing much daylight,
never mind water. I would urge you to contact me to post your boat for sale if
the thought has ever crossed your mind (and just think of the space it would
free up!).
To the WLTBCS – patience is a virtue, but let’s face it,
virtue, like the now dead Canadian penny, isn’t worth what it costs to produce. If you’re really intent on sailing a
contender, you may have to take things into your own hands. With the current
disasterous state of the Euro and the Pound, buying a new boat from the
excellent builders we have overseas is not out of the question. A brand new race-ready
Harpprecht, in a four boat container, would be in the ballpark of $15k CDN; Luca
Bonezzi has also started building epoxy Bonezzis.
Joachim Harpprecht’s site: http://lightskiff.de/
Bonezzi boats: http://www.bonezzisailing.it/
Used boats are also posted on the International site: http://contenderclass.org/en/the-boat/get-a-used-contender.html,
and the UK has a good second hand market worth looking at: http://www.sailcontender.org.uk/index.php?option=com_adsmanager&page=show_category&catid=1&order=0&expand=0&Itemid=62.
There are always containers coming back and forth from other dinghy classes,
and it’s always possible to hitch a ride…
To my knowledge, North America has never had a successful
North American builder, but that didn’t stop the NA fleet from being massive in
the early 90s. With the internet, email, and constant flow of containers from
the UK and Europe, there’s no reason we can’t do it again.
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The 2012 Contender Worlds |
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Written by Stephanie Mah
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Sunday, 06 May 2012 |
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Greetings all !
Well spring is finally here, and several North Americans got
a head start at the 2012 World Championships in St. Petersburg, Florida. The
St. Pete Yacht Club did (as per usual) an outstanding job of hosting and
running the regatta, and somehow talked the Tradewinds resort into allowing us
to sail from its private sandy white beach. With the exception of a couple of
days (which were lay days), we had sun, hot weather, and a nice breeze (if a
bit light for the more well proportioned folks). And the food was something to
talk about - post racing we were provided with pasta, and there were over four
buffet dinners with unbuffet-like food (i.e., high quality).
The North Americans
had a great showing, with Ethan Bixby (in a new Larry Christian yacht) placing
an impressive fifth, and the Toronto fleet showing an improvement from the 2008
Worlds.
Next year the Worlds are at Lake Como in Italy, where the
breeze is a guaranteed 12 – 18 knots, and I suspect the Italians (who
outnumbered all of us this year) won’t let 2012 be known as the regatta with
the best food.
Results are available here: http://www.spyc.org/default.aspx?p=v35ArticleView&itemID=270502
Photos from photoboat are here: http://www.photoboatgallery.net/contender-worlds-2012
Photos from the lovely Trish Birkenstock are here: http://www.spyc.org/Default.aspx?p=DynamicModule&pageid=341846&ssid=242763&vnf=1
And photos from the legendary Gil Woolley (and Trish) are
here: http://www.zangzing.com/gilwo/2012-usa-open-st-petersburg-tricia
Happy sailing!
Your-still-removing-sand-from-her-crevices-Secretary,
Stephanie
CAN 2525
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 06 May 2012 )
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Written by Nikky Evans
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Sunday, 09 October 2011 |
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Play it again Roger! Canadian Champion for a second year
Unfortunately, the 2011 Canadian championship was held in
conditions that were less than ideal.
In fact, it was so far from ideal
that we wouldn't have been able to find ideal with a GPS system. With
about 2 knots (in the puffs), it was frustrating for all (you could hear
crying from the laser and skiff courses), with some real shake ups
during racing.
Nevertheless, Roger Martin conquered and retained his
Canadian Championship title. Congrats!
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 09 October 2011 )
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