Greenheart
Well-Known Member
The Portsmouth yardstick rating for the Olympic heavyweight singlehander, the Finn, estimates that it's no quicker than the not-particularly-rip-roaring Albacore two-hander.
As a Finn-fan, I tend to infer that the Albacore is no slug even as standard, and in particular, may be an interesting choice for serious modification.
I've bored readers before, with the restrictions of my garage-space. Bigger, more thrilling boats are overlong; but a 15' Albacore would fit inside, just fine.
The limits on the standard boat's usability seem to stem from the class rules, which I can cheerily ignore; I like to go fast, but competition seems to me to destroy a pleasant day's sail in the same way golf has been said to affect a good walk.
The Canadians routinely fit their Albacores with a trapeze. This surely allows her to hold up for longer in upwind situations. Seajet recently mentioned (and I certainly believe) that the Alb wouldn't suit the singlehander's needs...presumably because the 90 square foot mainsail is more than one man, hiking, can keep upright. But if one may push one's righting-force three or four feet out to windward...
And, the racing Albacore has no spinnaker! Is there any obvious disadvantage (not obvious to me) in fitting a sprit and asymmetric cruising chute to this little boat? Not in order to break sailing speed records, but to get the most out of a comfortable, practical design that seems to have had its performance-evolution deliberately halted, decades ago.
I often get replies recommending that I consider the Contender. For a long time that was my conclusion too, but the design is too performance-minded. There's no stowage, no room for friends or rowlocks or a boom-tent or even a dry towel; it's not a performance cruiser, it's a drip-dry racer. So alas, it's not what I want.
The Albacore, though, with a few modifications, and decked in gleaming varnished ply... What would the Portsmouth Yardstick people make, of a singlehanded Albacore, with the helmsman on the wire and a hundred square feet of spinnaker, haring along beside Fireballs and Laser 2s? Any estimates on the rating it would get?
As a Finn-fan, I tend to infer that the Albacore is no slug even as standard, and in particular, may be an interesting choice for serious modification.
I've bored readers before, with the restrictions of my garage-space. Bigger, more thrilling boats are overlong; but a 15' Albacore would fit inside, just fine.
The limits on the standard boat's usability seem to stem from the class rules, which I can cheerily ignore; I like to go fast, but competition seems to me to destroy a pleasant day's sail in the same way golf has been said to affect a good walk.
The Canadians routinely fit their Albacores with a trapeze. This surely allows her to hold up for longer in upwind situations. Seajet recently mentioned (and I certainly believe) that the Alb wouldn't suit the singlehander's needs...presumably because the 90 square foot mainsail is more than one man, hiking, can keep upright. But if one may push one's righting-force three or four feet out to windward...
And, the racing Albacore has no spinnaker! Is there any obvious disadvantage (not obvious to me) in fitting a sprit and asymmetric cruising chute to this little boat? Not in order to break sailing speed records, but to get the most out of a comfortable, practical design that seems to have had its performance-evolution deliberately halted, decades ago.
I often get replies recommending that I consider the Contender. For a long time that was my conclusion too, but the design is too performance-minded. There's no stowage, no room for friends or rowlocks or a boom-tent or even a dry towel; it's not a performance cruiser, it's a drip-dry racer. So alas, it's not what I want.
The Albacore, though, with a few modifications, and decked in gleaming varnished ply... What would the Portsmouth Yardstick people make, of a singlehanded Albacore, with the helmsman on the wire and a hundred square feet of spinnaker, haring along beside Fireballs and Laser 2s? Any estimates on the rating it would get?
