Classes sailed

12FT Skiffs         

Coordinator  - Peter Hill        Association contact - 12FT Skiff Association - https://skiff.org.au

12 Foot skiffs are a fast developmental class sailed predominantly in Australia and New Zealand. The class has a long history in Australia (and at A 12' S.C.) going back some 80 years or more. 

The class rules permit a great deal of lattitude when designing the hull shape and there are no restrictions on sail size, shape or number. Modern boats of this class are typically constructed out of carbon fibre including the mast and boom. To facilitate sailing in different wind conditions, 12 foot skiffs can have different size rigs that can be chosen depending on the conditions.

The boats carry two crew members (skipper and sheet hand) who both use trapeze harnesses to balance the boat. Some skill and strength is required to sail a 12 Foot skiff so most boats are crewed by experienced adult sailors.

A complete skiff outfit can cost as much as $40,000 but older (and still competitive) boats can be purchased for as little as $6,000.

Cherubs

Coordinator - Anne Vervoort & Huon Saul         Association contact - www.cherub.org.au                                       

Cherubs are a double handed, 12 foot class.  They differ from 12’ skiffs in that they have a single, size restricted, suit of sails & a single trapeze.  There are also hull design restrictions which make them reasonably stable.

The limited sail area & wider hull, suits a younger, lighter crew.  Although there are many parent - child crews & the class also has a strong female crew following.

They are typically constructed from a carbon fibre / foam sandwich, making a very strong light boat that will last for several decades.

The class has a high power to weight ratio, making them exhilarating downwind & able to plane upwind.

A reasonable Cherub can be purchased between $3,000 - $10,000

ILCA/Lasers

Cordinator - Garry Robberds & Lees Dewane           Association contact - NSW & ACT District Laser Association  laser.asn.au   

The International Laser Class (ILCA) is a popular international class of sailing dinghy sailed by a single crew member. The Laser is an Olympic sailing class.

Lasers are constructed of fibreglass and have a single sail. A Laser hull weighs around 60kgs and is 4.2m long. The Laser class permits three different sail sizes to accomodate different size/age/weight sailors (4.7, Radial and Full Rig). Consequently a Laser can be sailed by anyone from a teenager throught to a large adult.

The Laser class rules are very strict on both the manufacturing and rigging of the boat. One result of this is that Laser racing is very tight as there are few variations between boats. Even quite old hulls can be competitive in the hands of the right sailor.

Beginning sailors find the Laser an attractive option as there is no crew required. Lasers however can be difficult to sail down-wind in strong conditions and do take some time to master.

Although most of the Laser has remained unchanged since the 1970s, there was a change to the sail controls in the 1990s that introduced the 'turbo' kit. A turbo can be retrofitted to an older Laser but the cost usually makes this prohibitive. 

A new Laser costs aroung $12,000 but a competitive second hand boat can be purchased from between $2000 to $6000.

Flying 11s

Coordinator - vacant                 Association contact - Home - Flying Eleven Association of Australia Inc - revolutioniseSPORT

A Flying-11 is an Australian designed class intended to be sailed by two twelve to seventeen year old children. Flying 11s are fast for their size and carry a main, jib and a kite. The boats are nearly exclusively constructed out of fibre glass and the minimum hull weight is 39kgs 

The class is used as an intermediary step for sailors progressing from smaller boats such as sabots but who are not big or strong enough to sail a skiff. 

The Flying 11 class association is quite strong even though the boats are mostly sailed in NSW, Victoria and Tasmania (with some in Queenslad and some from Western Australia). 

The numbers of Flying 11s at the club varies greatly from season to season as children tend to grow out of them quickly as typically they are sailed by teenagers.

Flying 11s cost around $13,000 new but second hand ones can be purchased for as little as $1500. A reasonable and competitive Flying 11 can be purchased for between  $4000 - $6000

Open Coordinator - Jacob Smith 

Any other monohull class can be sailed as part of the open fleet. The club publishes results for each class as well as a 'fleet' result where each vessels time is adjusted by her relative yardstick.

In the past boats such as 29ers, MGs and Moths have been sailed as part of the open fleet. Currently the class has a number of pacer dinghies competing every week.

JUNIOR CLASSES

Sabots  AND Optimists

Coordinator  - Vacant            Association contact -        https://.sabot.com.au    or      https://optimist.org.au/

Sabots are raced by children between eight and 16 years of age. The class rules permit the boat to be sailed by two younger children (less than eleven years) or to be sailed by one child. 

Sabots have a single sail and are commonly constructed from fibreglass (foam sandwich). 

Sabots are sailed in Queensland, NSW, Victoria and Tasmania. While the class has suffered a little from the introduction of the Optimist, the national championships still commonly see over 100 boats enter. 

The Optimist is a small, single-handed dinghy for use by young people up to the age of 15. The Optimist is one of the two most popular sailing dinghies in the world, with over 150,000 boats officially registered with the class and many more built but never registered. It is sailed in over 120 countries.  

The hull is constructed from fibreglass and weighs around 35kg. It is a sprit rigged single sail craft and is ideal for beginner sailors.

New and used dinghies can be purchased and club members are willing to assist new buyers.

Many Australian Olympic and notable international sailors began their sailing careers in Sabots and Optimists.