|
| Fairwind - One Design |
| More Information about this Class |
The Fairwind, Fairwind 900, Fairwind II, and Fairwind III model yachts are all included in the One design class.
The Fairwind One Design class is fashioned after IOR offshore racing yacht designs of the 1980s and 1990s. While these IOR designs were not as high tech as modern America's Cup yachts, they proved themselves in ocean racing circuits to be capable of handling offshore conditions and durable enough for long distance races. Similarly, the Fairwind is quite comfortable to sail in a wide range of wind and sea conditions. It can handle large waves that can prevail on sailing areas larger than ponds and it can perform well in a wide range of wind conditions. It also looks great when being displayed on the mantle.
The Fairwind is available in kit form in most hobby stores and from several internet hobby supply sources. The kit is easy to put together and quite inexpensive. Because of this there are a large number of boats that have been sold. Several large local fleets of 30 or 40 boats have formed over the years. The one design nature of the boat leads to close, competitive racing with exciting starts, mark roundings, and tactical sailing.
The boat is a comfortable size with 900mm (35.43") overall length and 8 pound race ready weight. It is small enough to transport and display, yet large enough to be easy to see from shore while sailing. The kit comes complete with many cosmetic features that can be added to enhance the looks of the boat, or deleted for simplicity. The large amount of freeboard keeps the boat surprisingly dry inside for a boat this size.
​
The Fairwind gained One Design class status in 2002 with the adoption of a set of class rules. The Fairwind One Design class rules control items that affect speed while allowing some degree of latitude in other areas. This targeted approach to the rules minimizes the number of things that the measurers need to measure and the builders need to control while still ensuring a level playing field for racing where the races are won or lost on the racecourse and not on the modeling table. |
|
|
| Footy - Developmental |
| More Information about this Class |
That photo isn't skewed, this boat is called a Footy and it's ...yup 12 inches long.
Sanctioned in 2006. Low cost, fun, easy to build class that puts to rest the theory that boats under 30" long don't sail well.
12" long (thus "Footy") is the smallest of the development class yachts. |
|
|
| Soling 50 - One Design |
| More Information about this Class |
The Soling 50 Class is a small-scale version (50 inches long) of the Olympic Soling three-person, 27 foot, 3 man, keelboat, sailed worldwide and also in the Olympic games since 1967. The original boat was designed by Jan Herman Linge of Oslo, Norway in 1964. The name "Soling" was a word coined by Linge.
In 1970, John & Laurie Converse, owners of Vortex Model Engineering saw a full sized Soling and developed and manufactured the radio-controlled model sailboat. It started out as the Soling M Class (Marblehead) and in 1972 it dominated the Marblehead Class ACCR 50/800 class. By 1975 the fleet grew into it's own class, called the Soling O/D (One Design) and it's logo the Greek letter 'Omega' was authorized by the original designer Jan Linge.
Today, the Soling 50 is one of 27 different classes and sizes of sailboats sanctioned by the national American Model Yacht Association and has very active fleets racing in California, Florida, Michigan and Texas and has individual boats scattered all over the U.S. The Soling 50 hulls are identical to the original Vortex hulls and are currently available from three (3) different suppliers in the U.S.
The Soling 50 Class is an AMYA one-design class boat. It is a great starter boat, easily transported with detachable sail rig weighing a minimum of 17 lbs. Radio equipment is an inexpensive 2 or 3 channel surface radio. The Soling 50 Class offers close and competitive sailing in moderate and stiff winds. It acts and feels closer to a full-sized boat than most other R/C model yachts. |
|
|
| Victoria - One Design |
| More Information about this Class |
The Victoria One Design is a simple, affordable, sailboat manufactured by the Thunder Tiger Model Company, and distributed world wide. The kit's low cost (about $150 for the kit, $250 to perhaps $400 ready to race), ease of assembly, and good sailing characteristics make it a great first yacht, while remaining fun to sail and race for old hands as well. It is easy to transport, fully rigged, in the smallest of cars. The emphasis of the Victoria is on SIMPLICITY and FUN, and to these ends check out the Victoria Class Information Center for the latest building, tuning, and sailing tips, along with other interesting and useful information about the boat.
The boat itself is made of ABS plastic, and is quite durable, capable of surviving virtually any mishap or collision. The kit also includes high quality aluminum spars, sails, and all necessary fittings. All you need to do is add a two-channel radio, two servos and you're ready to sail. Construction is generally a weekend project. The ease of assembly also makes the Victoria a great "club" boat, as new skippers can buy a boat and join the racing with a minimum of trouble and expense. Many clubs conduct "Silver Fleet" racing consisting of boats made entirely from all kit parts. |
|
|