I have a Calvert dacron square top for my 5.8. It must be 8 or 10 oz material - weighs a ton. I think the original owner must have asked for a sail that would outlive the boat. It goes like snot in light and medium air , but I have difficulty controling it in heavy air (15 mph +) - that might have more to do with me than the sail design though. In very light air it makes the boat almost unbeatable.
Luiz,
My feelings about "rigid" sails vs. "flexable" sails are this. Sail technolory has come a long way from the cross cut dacron days. The computer generated load maps of sails, has resulted in triradial cuts, 3DL,and tape drive sail constructions. All in an attempt to more acurately oriant the cloth fibers along the lines of stress, or loads on the sails. Materals have also gone from polyesters to Pentex, Kevlar, and more recently Carbon Fiber. All of this technology has resulted from the need to build sails that maintain their designed shape longer.
We build dacron sails only for durability and cost. Most of our customers are racers, and want the best performance for their money. We try to build the lowest stretch, lightest, most durabil sails for their budget. Sails that are "rigid"
and hold their shape over a wide wind range, are, in my mind the objective. We come up with the best design that we can for all conditions,and try to select a material that will maintain that shape. Most beach cats have numerous adjustments to alter the shape for differant winds. If we build sails from stretchy materal, the overall shape will be flatter to begin with, to account for the stretch, resulting from increased wind loads. There is more guess work involved.They tend to be too flat in light winds, or too full for high winds If the proper cloth is selected, the sails should maintain their designed shape for the life of the cloth. I don't know of many top racers, that are buying several sails, to meet the various wind conditions.
In fact most regattas restrict changing sails.
I hope this helps.
Dave
Dave,
Thanks again! I am not sure if I understand it all, but it makes sense to me.
I have excelent news:
The author of the article that started this discussion, Arnaldo Andrade, sailmaker in Cognac/Brasil (and also a physicist), sent me two replies, one of them quoting your words.
He wrote them fast after a day's work and asked me to edit, but I will just correct the typos. Some parts are marked "to be completed" and I will leave them as they are now.
[color]I will post both replies on his behalf as new replies to the initial post, so please go on with the discussion from there. I am sure that we will all benefit from the interchange of ideas.
Cheers,
b]The post Arnaldo is replying to:
When Dacron was used, the rig was easy to overpower and had a very narrow wind range…the Dacron/Mylar laminate was better…then battens were added which helped increase the range, then camber inducers to force more shape into the sail. All these things helped, but when the sail manufactures started to use Mylar film and scrim/Mylar sandwich things really started to happen…all the sudden one sail could cover the wind range of 2-4 Dacron old school sails.
The designer could then design the shape into the sail and be sure it would keep its shape in a wide wind range, if set on the correct mast and used with low flex carbon booms…
The sails became much more responsive to tuning…if you set the down haul or out haul a certain place, it stayed there until you changed it…the wild fluctuation of center of effort in the sail was now gone…as the wind picked up by proper adjustment of the down haul and out haul the center of effort could now be brought down lower and moved forward on the sail making it more controllable, with the head bleeding off excess power that would slam a sailor with similar size old school sail under equal conditions.
You can’t keep the design foil in as wide of wind conditions if you have a fabric that is constantly changing shape. Dacron is generally cheaper, and more resilient to rough handling, although I have had just as many Dacron/Mylar windsurfing sails delaminate as I have Mylar, mylar/scrim/mylar sails.
Bob
Arnaldo's reply
I think the main question is simply "what instruments do we have to change sail shape?"
Nowadays people think that the only way to alter sail shape is through (a) sheet tension, (b) halyard and outhaul tension and (c) mast bend. The sail is considered basically a passive subject and would just suffer the consequences of the changes in trim. In this sense, the more stability the sail had, the less it would impart the efficiency of the mentioned trimming resources.
This idea is not illogical, though I find it far from luminous. It is, nonetheless, very widespread. Why is it so popular? You have pointed to some of these reasons, which include commercial interests and profit. But there are other reasons of a more human nature that may account for the popularity of the concept:
(a) Boats became quite fast in the last decades. Fine tuning of the rig and of the sails are a time consuming task. Many yachtsmen think that tactics, for instance, are more important than yet another little pull at a downhaul or a bit more tensioning of an outhaul. Windsurfers are the quintessence of this new concept. You trim the sail once and go racing. The mast and a clever geometry of the sail will do whatever may be necessary as sail trim goes. Many fast small boats are raced in the same way.
(b) Sail shape is, in fact, something VERY elusive. It may be easy to state that a certain mainsail should have 5% camber here or 10% camber there. A totally different issue is to determine these numbers by just looking at the flying shape of a sail. Most yachtsmen simply cannot state what cambers or twists their sails show in a certain moment. A dare say the error are no less than 50% in most guesses. Thus, if a sailmaker is able to make a somewhat "rigid" sail with a preformed shape, everyone will be happy. At least one will know that the flying shape at any given moment will be not dramatically different from the initial shape. With a help from the rigging the boat will probably have sails that will change shape in accordance with the accepted paradigms (flatter sails and more twint in a breeze, for instance). For those unable to precisely evaluate sail shape, a discussion about the whole issue is like hearing to a speech in greek. Sails that boast "a predetermined shape" end up as quite wellcome.
(c) Racing results tend to confirm the idea that "rigid sails" are unsurpassed. Of course this should be so, anyway, since they represent an ample majority of the sails presently racing. Not many mathematicians are asked for an evaluation of the technical consequences of such a biased test.
In a continuous feedback system, sailmakers and yachstmen have reinforced the concept of the rigid sails. In the beginning it may be that sailmakers did not fully believe the story. They demonized flexibility to be able to convince people to buy sails made of rigid cloths like "yarn tempered Dacron". Very cumbersome, these cloths profoundly displeased people used to cotton or to soft Dacron. But little by little the better performance of these sails finished convincing everybody they were better suited for racing.
(I will add a couple of paragraphs here later)
Most yachtsmen don't know much about sailcloth. In general they simply know what they read in magazines and technical sites. Since quite often the text is accompannied by an appraisal of the authors, the readers "buy" the whole idea and are unable to discern what is just technical data and what is bias.
Arnaldo Andrade is a sailmaker in Cognac/Brazil and also a physicist.
I disagree. There is no "best design" for a wide wind range. The more it is "best" the narrower is the wind range. A good example are Zuccoli sails for the Tornado Class, particularly the jibs. They are numbered and cover VERY LIMITED wind ranges. Zuccoly Dacron tri-radial sails still show some desirable geometric changes as the wind increases but their mylar counterparts are really good for their designed wind range, whis is generally a narrow one.
Sails that can be used in a wide wind range are precisely those that do change their shape, though very slightly and "in the right way" (that is, "self-flattening" in the breeze). Aided by important trim changes at the rig level, these sails can perform reasonably well ove a wider wind range.
I agree, the performance life of a Dacron sail, for instance, is usually 1/10 of its "mechanical" life.
The question is "why". It's dangerous to take for granted that only low stretch, light weight materials can make fast sails. In some cases, as for bigger multihulls, other factors become more important. Some self flattening ability, for instance, is highly desirable, since masts on these boats tend to be almost non-flexible.
This may be true for jibs but is not true for many mainsails. The Tornado mainsail, for instance, is cut almost totally flat, whatever the cloth used. It's the mast and the battens that give the sail its final shape. Although enormously successful, the Tornado mainsail is a blatant contradiction to the concept of the "preformed" sail.
This is true, particularly for beach cat mainsails.
Battened jibs (of Tornados' , for instance) can be made of Pentex, too. Other laminates, as the Brazilian Prolam, are made in a different way and resist in a better way the abuses that jibs experience.
Arnaldo Andrade
adrianno@openlink.com.br
Thank you Arnaldo,
Your comments reflect your vast experance with physics, and sailmaking.
I still dont understand why you would disagree on the concept of a "best" all around design, for a given boat.
We have gone thru extensive on the water testing for various class boats. Much like what we would do during our windsurfing sailmaking days.
We would try differant luff curves, twists, draft positions, etc. Than we would switch boats, and sailors, to eliminate variables, and often arrive at a shape that would best perform over a range of conditions. Granted, as wind, and sea conditions change, the shape of the sails should change as well.
But, most of our customers here, don't want to hear that they should be buying not one new main, but two or three to be more competitive in all conditions.
If the sail is very flat, (like the Tornado main that you mentioned)there will be a lack of power, in the light air.
This will result in the boat not being to fly a hull as quick as the competition. This is a disadvantage, like a windsurfer not being able to get on a plane as quick as other competitors. As the wind builds, the mast will bend from the added mainsheet loads alone. This will further flatten the sail, by taking out luff curve. If the mast bends as much, or more than the luff curve in the sail, the sail will distort, the draft will move aft, and performance will suffer.
For these same reasons, a fairly full sail, with stable sail cloth, will automatically self flatten as the mast bends under increased mainsheet loads. The modern downhauls can further flatten the main as needed. In fact we have been suscessful using the downhaul to flatten, and add twist to mainsails in light air, extending their range even further. Jibs, are another story. The jib adjustments are very limited. But again, most racers that we deal with, want one best suted to the local conditions.
You asked, "why" to my statement, "In most cases,materials that have low stretch, light weight, and good durability are most perfered".
Multihull sailors in general, go thru extremes to reduce weight, especally aloft. A light sail, reduces weight, and makes the boat easier to right. Most of the advances in racing sailcloth has been aimed at reducing weight, and stretch. From windsurfers, to America's cup, to the Maxi catamarns, this applies.
My question is, "how"
How can a flexable sail be self flattening on a large multihull, with a non-flexable mast? My experance has showed me that big multihull sails just keep getting fuller, as the wind builds, especally if the material is not stable enough, or the mast doesn't bend.
These are my opinions, based on personal experance with small to maxi multihulls.
Cheers,
Dave
Mr. Calvert,
Can your loft make me a sail like on that tornado that I posted earlier in this thread?
Yes,
We can, and have made cat sails out of monofilm. The Tornado main sail, in the photo, is probally a 6 or 7 mil monofilm.
We made a square top main like this for a Stiletto 23, about 10 years ago. The materal is low stretch in all directions but, not very durabil. I don't recomend it.
Dave
You're probably right. I don't have a very good history involving sail durability 
Hi there,
(translated from Portuguese)
Luiz, please check if my answer is worth posting. I'd rather not start too serious a controversy - only healthy discussion. I'd really have no time for it and it is not without a certain sacrifice that I write those texts. Please use a spell checker in my replies because I have none in my computer. My English is rusty because most of the texts I've been writing lately are in French.
If you find anything too strong, please take it out.
Regards,
Arnaldo,
(end of translated text)
> Your comments reflect your vast experance with physics,
> and sailmaking. I still dont understand why you would
> disagree on the concept of a "best" all around design, for a
> given boat.
(follows a description on how he developed such a sail)
Dave Calvert’s paragraphs on the way he arrived to a best all around design are perfect. They help us in understanding that there is no basic contradiction between the quest for an “all around sail” and the creation of a sail with the ability to change its geometry. Such a sail would also be “an all around sail”. The difference is the following: whereas Dave’s way considers the sail geometry as essentially fixed and relies on the rigging for sail shape control; I believe that the sail itself can be part of the solution.
In his description he says:
> the shape of the sails should change as well.
A sail that could self flatten in the breeze would enlarge its useful range, possibly to a wider extent than could a “fixed geometry” type of sail (since the latter would rely only on rigging changes for shape control).
He then follows the thread by saying:
> hear that they should be buying not one new main, but
> two or three to be more competitive in all conditions.
Whereas PHRF sailors may refrain from buying many different sails, a great number of classes indulge in a frenzy of specific sails. Tornado is one of these classes (especially for jibs), but even old designs as the Snipe do follow this trend - not that I agree with it. I'd rather keep sail inventory to a minimum. What I say is that nowadays many classes admit that a great number of sails may be necessary for a boat to be adequately competitive.
Then the question of the Tornado sail comes back:
> mentioned)there will be a lack of power, in the
> light air. This will result in the boat not being to fly a
> hull as quick as the competition.
> This is a disadvantage ...
First of all, a correction and an apology. I wrote that Zuccoli Tornado sails cover a very limited wind range. I was referring to the jibs. The mainsails do show a wide range of use, for reasons explained below.
In fact, if the Tornado sail I mentioned (99% of the boats use it) WERE flat, I would totally agree with Dave. It happens that a Zuccoli mainsail is NOT flat when set on the mast. It’s just its construction that is flat. The flying shape is not, due to the battens, to the mast and to a small number of almost secret details. The conclusions are far reaching, as they mean that you don’t need to put draft in a sail to see draft when the sail is properly set (*). Zuccoli mainsails are reasonably full in light winds and no one can deny they are a blatant success. But since they are (1) radial and (2) built flat, they respond much better to luff tension, outhaul tension and mast bend than previous sails. It was Dave himself who wrote:
> will automatically self flatten as the mast bends under increased
> mainsheet loads. The modern downhauls can further flatten the
> main as needed. In fact we have been suscessful using the
> downhaul to flatten, and add twist to mainsails in light air,
> extending their range even further.
What he is describing is - precisely - a sail that has variable geometry, that is, a self-flattening sail. The only mistake, in my opinion, is his reference to a “stable cloth”. Is is precisely because the sailcloth stretches that the sail geometry changes. The merit of Zuccoli and some other sailmakers, is to have devised a construction of sails in such a way that cloth flexibility is an aid in the control of sail shape, rather than an enemy to fight.
> are very limited. But again, most racers that
> we deal with, want one best suted to the local
> conditions.
Keeping with the example of Zuccoli sails, it seems that the self-flattening ability of his mainsails could not be emulated on the jibs. The reasons may not fit in the present discussion, but the absence of an efficient way to tension the luff, together with incorrect cloth choice, may account for it. The fact is: one needs to have as much as four different Tornado jibs to work with a single mainsail. For me, this is a clear demonstration that these jibs could profit from a different approach, as construction techniques go. Of course the boats might also have to sport new trimming resources.
The subject than changed to low stretch and low weight:
> cases,materials that have low stretch, light
> weight, and good durability are most perfered"...
Dave correctly states that low weight is always better and that is a sought-after characteristic in most sailboat classes. But my question was rather: why BOTH characteristics (lightness and low stretch) at the same time? I still think that a careful choice of sailcloth flexibility, with more stretch on the leach (for instance) may widen the useful range of the sails.
Then comes a new question:
>How can a flexable sail be self flattening
> on a large multihull, with a nonflexable mast?
> My experance has showed me that big multihull
> sails just keep getting fuller, as the wind builds,
> especially if the material is not stable enough,
> or the mast doesn't bend. > These are my opinions,
> based on personal experance with small
> to maxi multihulls.
I'd rather refrain from commenting on the exact details, but as you can certainly figure, building features like this into a sail requires a lot of skill and is a labor intensive task. Basically, one has to start by abandoning the pre-conceived idea that cloth flexibility is always bad. Once it is assumed that flexibility can be put to play in your team, instead of against you, the rest will follow - not necessarily in an easy way. But with a researcher’s mind and A LOT of experimentation and hard labor, one can eventually develop a consistent way to create self-flattening sails.
Remark: it may is interesting to note that also on the boats side some improvements are necessary. The powerful purchase on the luff tensioning system of the Tornados is one of these changes.
Cheers
Arnaldo
(*) I said above “you don’t need to put draft in a sail to see draft when the sail is properly set”. This is not new, of course. It has been known for about 3000 years. But the submission of human intelligence to sailmaking softwares is somehow erasing this information from the minds of otherwise well informed sailors.
Arnaldo
There is nothing illogical about wanting to have control over the shape/foil of your sail under as wide a range of conditions as possible. Just because the sail material has less stretch does not say the sail doesn’t move…the whole point is to control the movement…to have it attain and retain the designed shape…not just randomly respond to the conditions.
A hypothesis is one thing…real world sailing is a different proposition. When a sailor’s career lives and dies on his/her race results, they are going to use the fastest equipment they can get their hands on. Windsurfing has never been shy about taking on the most radical ideas and putting them to the test. If your design ideas are all that you purport them to be we should be seeing a shift to more flexible sail material in the future. Good luck. It sounds an awful lot like 1985 technology to me.
Personally I have been hard core windsurfing for 26 years, I have used all the different type sails that I spoke of earlier. There is no way you can equate a top of the line soft sail design that was popular when I started with a top of the line sail of today...been there done that!
I designed and built high performance sailboards (till about 2000) that hung in there with just about anyone’s with an equivalent rider. All my attention was on performance increases… board, fin, sails, masts, booms and the interaction between them, getting the feedback first hand...Bottom line is …The only thing that counts, is performance on the water…all the rest is just batting the breeze…regardless of who it comes from. Show me measurable advantage in real world conditions (against the industry standards) and then I will consider adopting your position.
Bob
Gee, Sharky, look what you started. I went back to your original question and noticed it doesn't say what kind of boat you sail.
Remember, on some boats (like mine) you can change the shape of your sail with enough downhaul to bend the mast. If you are using dacron, you have to be careful not to rip the sail in half with a 16:1 downhaul. It doesn't seem to be an issue with the Pentex. (yet) I just got new square-top Pentex sails for my P19. They're great.
My opinion is: Pick your sailmaker, then follow their suggestions on fabric.
Edited translation of Arnaldo's reply:
This system, however optimal for windsurfers, doesn't seem to have real possibilities to work reliably in a bigger boat. The closer matches to be found here (and with many restrictions) are in the Moth or in the old Finn. But the manual trimming is not abandoned, even in this cases .
That's why you are correct only with regards to windsurfers and not to bigger boats.
One detail: the technology does look with that of a 1985 windsurfer, but while windsurfers basically stopped there, we have evolved for another 20 years.
Cheers,
<<”Basically, sails with variable geometry require a good eye and active trimming. Many of the resources that my sails use wouldn't make sense in a windsurfer. This is the exact reason why windsurfers evolved into a system that modifies the sail shape more or less automatically.”
What I am beginning to see here is, this is as much a philosophy of what sailing entails, as it is a discussion of sail design. I see setting a preshaped sail with stiffer sail material, one, which automatically adjusts in the gusts and maintains its designed airfoil as a major advance and advantage to sailors who want to concentrate on maximum performance. Call it the KIS principal (if you add the second S you are making it too complicated). If major portions of sail trim can be automatic, that frees the sailor/sailors up to concentrate on other aspects of performance. It is not as if there are not enough duties in sailing fast to fill your time. It is in no way an autopilot. It just takes some of the variables out of the equation to bring the whole performance level up a notch or two across the board, it might help to close the gap a bit for those who are not “Rock Stars” of sailing. Heaven forbid… it might make it a little more enjoyable…
I cannot understand why sailing is always binding itself with artificial restraints. Some where along the line... the goal of building the fastest boat/sail took the back seat to self-imposed rules, and the fascination of making things more complex for no other reason than to make it more complex…as if doing things the hard way is something to be admired and embraced as “better” “more noble” or a sign of greater skill.
<<”This system, however optimal for windsurfers, doesn't seem to have real possibilities to work reliably in a bigger boat. The closer matches to be found here (and with many restrictions) are in the Moth or in the old Finn. But the manual trimming is not abandoned, even in this cases.”
Why not? Bigger boats? Most of the Cat Sailors on this forum sail boats that are between 14'-22'long. What are you including when you say trimming?
The windsurfer still sheets in and out…When he/she rakes the sail back and closes off the foot…isn’t that some what comparable to playing the main sheet line and the traveler? What about some of the racers using adjustable outhaul? Down Haul? How much more do you want tweak?
Don’t get me wrong…I don’t want to take away your lines to adjust this and that endlessly…if that’s where you get your joy far be it from me to rain on your parade.
Just a different philosophy…there is plenty of room for both approaches.
<<”That's why you are correct only with regards to windsurfers and not to bigger boats.”
<<”One detail: the technology does look with that of a 1985 windsurfer, but while windsurfers basically stopped there, we have evolved for another 20 years.”
I think it is just the opposite…Windsurfing has always been very tech driven…the rebel…the cutting edge…no rules…absolutely rabid about performance increases. Because of this mentality and the ability to crank out so many proto types due to the smaller size and lower cost (when compared to sails for most boats). In its hay day, Windsurfing Sail design was evolving so fast that a sail over a year old was no longer competitive, all other things being equal. In some cases the new sail designs were so much faster and controllable that a decent average short boarder could hang with, and sometime out run a more experienced rider (in a straight line) for no other reason than a superior sail design just one generation newer. Can you say that about Cat Sails year after year?
I would have to respectfully disagree with your statement that soft sails for boats have evolved for anther twenty years, while windsurfing stopped there. I would be more inclined to say that soft sails were one of the first stepping stones to be used by the windsurfing industry but they quickly evolved to more and more advanced rigs in an effort to satisfy the hunger for faster sails that covered a wider wind range and were more controllable/less tempermental.
Unlike "most" of the boat building community … which seems to say, “this is what you’re going to get and your going to like it!”
… Windsurfing was/is very consumer driven…and extremely responsive. A company would come out with a sail or board, and before it even hit the market they were finishing up the testing of the next generation, addressing as many issues as possible that the market brought to light. The improvements were/are amazing. And while many in the windsurfing community have defected to Kite Sailing, or moved on to other sports, to ignore the lessons learned in the accelerated R&D within the Windsurfing community would truly be a crime.
One interesting spin off from this discussion has been to remind me of Dave Calvert’s expertise in designing both Windsurfing sails (He was building some world class smoking fast race sails) and the Catamaran community…It puts him in a unique position, and the logical choice to go to when new sails are needed. (By the way I have never met Dave…but I do know his work…it speaks for itself…on the water…where it counts.)
Bob Hall
<<”Basically, sails with variable geometry require a good eye and active trimming. Many of the resources that my sails use wouldn't make sense in a windsurfer. This is the exact reason why windsurfers evolved into a system that modifies the sail shape more or less automatically.”
What I am beginning to see here is, this is as much a philosophy of what sailing entails, as it is a discussion of sail design. I see setting a preshaped sail with stiffer sail material, one, which automatically adjusts in the gusts and maintains its designed airfoil as a major advance and advantage to sailors who want to concentrate on maximum performance. Call it the KIS principal (if you add the second S you are making it too complicated). If major portions of sail trim can be automatic, that frees the sailor/sailors up to concentrate on other aspects of performance. It is not as if there are not enough duties in sailing fast to fill your time. It is in no way an autopilot. It just takes some of the variables out of the equation to bring the whole performance level up a notch or two across the board, it might help to close the gap a bit for those who are not “Rock Stars” of sailing. Heaven forbid… it might make it a little more enjoyable…
I cannot understand why sailing is always binding itself with artificial restraints. Some where along the line... the goal of building the fastest boat/sail took the back seat to self-imposed rules, and the fascination of making things more complex for no other reason than to make it more complex…as if doing things the hard way is something to be admired and embraced as “better” “more noble” or a sign of greater skill.
<<”This system, however optimal for windsurfers, doesn't seem to have real possibilities to work reliably in a bigger boat. The closer matches to be found here (and with many restrictions) are in the Moth or in the old Finn. But the manual trimming is not abandoned, even in this cases.”
Why not? Bigger boats? Most of the Cat Sailors on this forum sail boats that are between 14'-22'long. What are you including when you say trimming?
The windsurfer still sheets in and out…When he/she rakes the sail back and closes off the foot…isn’t that some what comparable to playing the main sheet line and the traveler? What about some of the racers using adjustable outhaul? Down Haul? How much more do you want tweak?
Don’t get me wrong…I don’t want to take away your lines to adjust this and that endlessly…if that’s where you get your joy far be it from me to rain on your parade.
Just a different philosophy…there is plenty of room for both approaches.
<<”That's why you are correct only with regards to windsurfers and not to bigger boats.”
<<”One detail: the technology does look with that of a 1985 windsurfer, but while windsurfers basically stopped there, we have evolved for another 20 years.”
I think it is just the opposite…Windsurfing has always been very tech driven…the rebel…the cutting edge…no rules…absolutely rabid about performance increases. Because of this mentality and the ability to crank out so many proto types due to the smaller size and lower cost (when compared to sails for most boats). In its hay day, Windsurfing Sail design was evolving so fast that a sail over a year old was no longer competitive, all other things being equal. In some cases the new sail designs were so much faster and controllable that a decent average short boarder could hang with, and sometime out run a more experienced rider (in a straight line) for no other reason than a superior sail design just one generation newer. Can you say that about Cat Sails year after year?
I would have to respectfully disagree with your statement that soft sails for boats have evolved for anther twenty years, while windsurfing stopped there. I would be more inclined to say that soft sails were one of the first stepping stones to be used by the windsurfing industry but they quickly evolved to more and more advanced rigs in an effort to satisfy the hunger for faster sails that covered a wider wind range and were more controllable/less tempermental.
Unlike
most
of the boat building community … which seems to say, “this is what you’re going to get and your going to like it!”
… Windsurfing was/is very consumer driven…and extremely responsive. A company would come out with a sail or board, and before it even hit the market they were finishing up the testing of the next generation, addressing as many issues as possible that the market brought to light. The improvements were/are amazing. And while many in the windsurfing community have defected to Kite Sailing, or moved on to other sports, to ignore the lessons learned in the accelerated R&D within the Windsurfing community would truly be a crime.
One interesting spin off from this discussion has been to remind me of Dave Calvert’s expertise in designing both Windsurfing sails (He was building some world class smoking fast race sails) and the Catamaran community…It puts him in a unique position, and the logical choice to go to when new sails are needed. (By the way I have never met Dave…but I do know his work…it speaks for itself…on the water…where it counts.)
Bob Hall