Cruiser/Racer Dinghies

In "Sail & Oar, etc", Summer Bulletin 1990, Len Wingfield quotes me out of context. He says that I recommended everyone with lighter dinghies to sell them. I said that if one bought a dinghy which one found unsuitable by virtue of being designed for more numerous or fitter/younger crew, then the easiest advice to give was to sell it. It was in response to request for advice from people in such a situation, but who were unable to afford a more suitable craft that I wrote the article.

I am supposed to have said that "reducing the sail area of racer/GP boats made them dull performers". This statement is a broad generalisation of the type that I just would not make. I said "..can make it a dull performer", which infers a possible happening to a specific boat - a very different meaning.

Eric Coleman is both misquoted and out of context. What he certainly said was that there is no 'best type' of cruising dinghy. If you wanted to enjoy the delights of a high performance boat, even an extreme racing type, with its responsiveness and speed you had to accept the disadvantages too. Because individuals vary in this approach to sailing, every person has a different idea of their perfect craft.

No DCA advice is against cruiser/racer dinghies as such. The only specific advice given by the DCA is the guidelines on safety. Quite rightly, this puts the accent on stability in dinghies. This is only being responsible.

When I am asked for advice regarding suitable boats for someone, my dictum has always been 'Horses for Rider' first, 'Horses for Courses' second. I own a Roamer (and a little 10' lugsail dinghy) because they suit me, but I have never damned cruiser/racers. In fact, I had to defend the owners of Wanderers and Wayfarers when Len Wingfield, in an earlier article, stated that they were unsuitable for the less experienced, even if they had been on a sailing course. There are far hairier machines they could have chosen as a first boat. I have helmed or crewed a number of racing dinghies, from Graduates to Hornets and Flying Dutchmen and I know that some people buy such craft for the strangest reasons

There are a greater variety of dinghies around now than even a few years ago. The public is becoming aware of it and the cruiser/racer type doesn't suit everybody and is bound to lose ground. The Southampton Boat Show showed this. At one time a sailing dinghy meant to the general public and Enterprise, GP14 or similar type. Len Wingfield would better serve the type of dinghy he favours by an article on why he delights in this choice, which would be helpful to those considering such boats. Peter Bick