This may be a topic that will get me flamed, or it may be something that's already been beat to death, but its something I've been thinking about.
Browsing the US Sailing pages, I came across the information that Darline Hobock has pulled together regarding the number of participants at each of the Area Qualifiers - at least the ones that have been sailed to date. I noticed that some Area's participation only included 6 boats or so. I also know that here in Area D, our participation is strongly influenced by geography - our Area includes NC, SC, GA, TN, FL, AL, MS and half of Arkansas. It may simply be a function of finding a club willing to host the Area Qualifier, but it seems that the race has historically been combined with another event, and held in Florida. I KNOW there are other sailors in the Southeast that would enjoy the chance to compete in the event - there are some great sailors from the Carolinas, the Savannah area, along Mississippi's Gulf Coast, and all the way down to the Keys. We had a Qualifier down at Rick's Place a couple of year's ago (THANKS Rick and Mary) that was combined with the annual Tradewinds regatta - how many Area D sailors couldn't make it to that end of the world? I've not seen any of my OBX buddies at an Area D event... This year, I know there were a couple of hot South Florida teams that really wanted to come, but couldn't make the 10-12 hour trip to the Panhandle for the weekend.
I know that there is a sentiment of
well, if they want to compete, they should get in the truck and start driving like everyone else.
I suppose that feeling has some merit, but what if there's a way to increase participation at the Area Qualifier events across the board, not just here in D? Look at Area F - its HUGE. How many competitors are they anticipating, and from where within that Area?
What do the sailors think? Some of the folks I talked to at the Ds this year seemed to think a reorganization of the Areas is warranted. It was tough to follow the logic sometimes while we were talking, and it seems tempting to draw lines with regard to specific sailors (which should be avoided!), but despite these pitfalls, there has got to be a way to maximize participation in the Area Qualifiers.
There are 20 slots for the Alter Cup - one of the reasons that multihulls didn't make the cut when US Sailing reduced the number of full-on
championships
was the manner in which these 20 slots are filled - maybe a different way of filling the slots combined with redrawing the Area boundaries is a path to greater participation from cat sailors and greater recognition/endorsement from our half-boat-sailing bretheren.
I'm looking for ideas here, not a bunch of bashing or anonymous flaming... our sport is in decline.
John
I had a big long post written for this, but..... I decided not to get flamed for all my thoughts, soooooooo
John, I couldn't agree with you more. I definatly think that US Sailing gives very little consideration to our end of the sport. Just glance at the new rules and tell me that they were not intended just for mono hulls. I think the area divisions are lopsided for sure, but
fixing
the problem would upset just as many people as it pleased. It's a lot like PHRF or Portsmouth... you can please some of the people part of the time, but you can't please all the people all the time.
What should we do? I have some ideas, but anything needs to be an organized effort to better our sport.
Will
This may sound naive, but I think that one way to get U.S. Sailing to pay more attention to multihullers is for more multihullers to join. Things they do are biased towards monos because membership is almost all mono. So, we either try to form our own organization and build up our own infrastructure to address things, or we get everybody we know to join U.S. Sailing and make their voice heard. When I make this pitch most people say
what's the point, they do nothing for us
, but in this case maybe there's a bit of the chicken and egg thing going. My $0.02
Keith Chapman, Annapolis, Md.
H-18
Northstar 500 (monoslug)
WRCRA - www.wrcra.org
If you all recall about a year ago Catamaran Sailor Magazine reminded everyone of NAMSA (North American Multihull Assn.) that once kept all the multihulls together.
So, Mary and I paid for incorporation to revive this organization if ever needed. It is standing by in the wings.
It is not in opposition of the Multihull Council, but it would act rather as a unifier of multis and would enhance the MHC.
Or maybe it would be just another org. wanting more money. It is all up to the sailors.
Rick
Rick White
Catamaran Sailor Magazine
email: rick@catsailor.com
Since the board got sick and barfed out the last couple of months, I thought this could use a lift to the top. Maybe because I asked for ideas rather than anonymous flaming it scared everyone off. Or maybe the people who are members of US Sailing on this board don't have a preference either way. I still would like to try and get the Areas pared down a litlle so more people could participate.
Last try, then I'll drop it.
John
Hi John
Great discussion topic.
I think that one of the problems is that the Area championship is a step child in Area C. If you have maintained, or built, or race in a one design racing structure in a region, racing portsmouth is a bit alien. (Div 11 has strong Hobie 16 and Hobie 17 racing) The one design oriented clubs and their ordinary members are not motivated to put the event on or to turnout in great numbers. Frequently, their plate is already full. Couple this with a bias that portsmouth racing is fair /unfair for any number of percieved reasons causes lots of one design racers to pass. The open class clubs such as CRAC have half their membership interested in distance racing and the other half interested in triangles. Again, the average member course racer is not motivated to travel to the event, just because its the Alter qualifier. Over the past several years, we have tried to move the event north and south in the Area in alternate years and can't find a lot of evidence that moving it helped the turnout from the local sailors.... rather... the turnout is the usual small group of 8 or so teams (several are single handers).
One other factor to consider is where to place the event in the calender. The prime regatta dates and venues are taken. Creating a new event during an off weekend forces many sailors to choose one or the other and they usually go with their one design regatta as opposed to the Alter event. Consequently the Area C winds up in October (after all of the nationals. Many of the bread and butter racers have already geared down for the season as the weather turns sour.
Recently, lots of discussion was started about how you can fairly race H17's, A class's, Inter 20's with chutes, Tornado's with chutes and Hobie 16's AND Sloop rigged boats Specifically the course selection can often determine the outcome. Reach legs and upwind or down wind finishes favor one design or the other. This debate also tends to discourage turnout.
My suggestions are:
Perhaps, the Alter champiosnip should alternate between spin boats, single handers, and sloop boats in successive years, the quailifiers would then be restricted to that type of boat. Handicaping similar types of boats is much much easier. The winner of an area qualifier would then be racing for a spot at the championship with sailors of similar experience. They might be motiviated to compete for this slot. For instance, I would bet that an Area C for Unirigs would get 10 Hobie 17 racers plus a couple of A cat sailors in the area and one or 2 5.5 uni sailors. (I have no clue what to do with the I17Rs and Hobie FX ones though probably put them with spin boats)
A leadership role must be taken by the one design class leaders in the area. They would build the event up as an appropriate and important championship event. The fleets that are not competing that year would be accountable for running the event.
What do you think
Mark
"The one design oriented clubs and their ordinary members are not motivated to put the event on or to turnout in great numbers."
Interesting thought, Mark, especially since the majority of the events held in Area C are organized and run by one-design fleets.
Hi Tracie
The Alter cup date/regatta and support is never a big issue at the Div 11 meeting. It has not been popular with the Va Beach racers even when its held in that area.
Do you think John's proposal to create smaller areas would draw a lot of interest for an Alter cup qualifier. (For instance, Area C+ = DC down to some point in North Carolina) Area C would then be Annapolis to NYC. The Travel time to the center of the exisiting region is about 5 hours. Personally, I don't sense that the distance to the regatta is the major reason that support is quite low. For instance the largest one design fleet Hobie 16's rarely turn up in numbers of greater then 3 or so at the event..
While I am sure we could do a better job of promoting the event, The regatta is at the end of the season and after most classes hold their nationals. This is a time when lots of folks are tired or out of money and time.
Any thoughts on how to improve the structure for this event?
I think a format change would inject new life into the championship.
I don't think distance is the problem either. When the Area E championship is held in conjunction with another regatta, only a small portion of those in attendence actually sign up. There is no extra effort required on their part, just a scoring thing. So I think the problem is that most do not consider they have a chance to win or would actually go to the Alter Cup if they did.
I agree - I think the reason a lot of people don't participate is that these kinds of events are percieved as being for the "big shots" and not for the regular joe.
Great discourse! I'm really glad to see what others are thinking about this. I had no idea that the distance wasn't the issue for everyone - here in the South, it's probably the biggest limiting factor. The Area rep has been from Florida for some time, so the Qualifying event usually winds up here - as a result, we don't see any of the Carolina sailors, and only one or two guys from Tennessee, Georgia and Mississippi. Smaller areas seem to be the answer for us.
As for the perception that the Qualifier is only for the big dogs, I'm not sure what to do - we only had two boats in our fleet of 25 that didn't sail in the Qualifier fleet. There was someone at the registration table with applications and a list of current US Sailing members that explained what you got for the $40 bucks annual dues - the magazine, discounts, insurance, coupons, etc. Seemed like everyone wanted to play...
As for scheduling and venue - I hope to move it around a little more in the future rather than default to the same regatta here in Pensacola every year. I think that by selecting an already scheduled regatta with good attendance, and being there to provide the scoring and work the registration table with the organizing authority, we have a better chance of increased participation. Something else worth working toward - selecting the next-year's platform before the qualifying events are sailed. That would allow some people to plan better if they want to participate or not - maybe stir up a little anticipation if there's a boat out there you've always wanted to sail - you get a new one for a week!
Bottom line - 20 teams go... the Olympic medalists and National Champions don't make it every year. I think anyone who's gone and placed 20th would still tell you it was a unique experience and a lot of fun.
Hope the good discussion continues -
John
I really don't believe distance is the problem here for Area C, though it might be for the area where John lives - It looks awfully big.
I can tell you why we did not attend last year's qualifiers. It was printed in Cat Sailor Magazine that the Alter cup was to be held on the Hobie 16. Knowing we had no interest in competing on this boat, we opted not attend the qualifier. ..of course, now we are kicking ourselves in the butt. Not just because it is going to be held on the Tiger, but the actual event is close to us. We'd have loved to have the chance to go to the Alter Cup on just about any boat but the Hobie 16. So for us, the boat is (usually) not the issue.
This is the issue for us. (Dennis and I) We can't do the "Rock Star" thing and fly across the country to go compete in the Alter cup, especially when at the time the qualifier's are going on; participants usually have no idea WHERE the Alter Cup is going to be held. That for us is a big deterrent. You are committing to something that you don't have all that much info on.
I don't think small turn outs for the qualifiers are not all that unusual. Sailors know that if they compete in the qualifier they had best be prepared to attend the Alter Cup should they qualify. I would imagine this is a big commitment for most weekend sailors.
Tracie