I know allot of you don't race. I hear all the time I am a cruiser not a racer this is great but allot can be learned from racing. Us racer's are way out numbered here and we tend to jump in all over the place on all kinds of stuff. Alan and I do race and we love it. We try and pass on what we know hoping we can get anothe Hunter on the race course. The mid 80's design like my 28.5 is a great boat. I have yet to find a better boat that suits my needs. The new breed of Hunter boats are also great boats and every so often a guy jumps into the raicng scene like Mike with his 336. I think this is great, Alan and I jump in and try to help with as much as we can. It takes some time to get the boat up to speed. Getting the rig tuned and getting the boat into racing condition take's time and money. The sail's that come on the boat are ok for crusing but for racing they need some help. Looking at the 336 it looks like it can be a great boat. Haivng the biggest head sail that can be sheeted with in the rig is what it will take. The current Hunter boats have a rig that does not really allow for a over lapping head sail. The rig just makes it not work, it will work for off the wind but not for pointing. You just can not get the sheeting angle right. So one needs to work with what they have. A blade jib that is a deck sweeper is what is needed. The biggest sail that will fit and still be able to be trimmed inside the shrouds. These boats with out a backstay can give max roach a whole new meaning. This is where the loss of a 155 needs to be made up. I think a 336 with a nice UK Tape Drive head sail and a Tape Drive Main with MAX roach could be a real tough boat to beat out on the course. These 2 sail's is all that would be needed for racing JAM. We race JAM and have a very tough fleet. Jumping to the Spinnaker fleet is something I want to do but we are working on crew and getting good crew is tough. The mid 80's boat's with the Mast head rig and the frac rig boats are some of the best on the race course. When set up to race these boats are very fast boats. But it takes time and money to get them to this point. It has taken me 5 years to get to the point we are now and I am always looking for more speed. I work every year trying to make the boat faster and I do a little at a time. I am like most when it comes to $$ spent on the boat owing a boat is expensive and trying to justify buying new racing sail's in hope of winning a $20 flag is tough. But when you do win and you have crushed all your buddies now it all seems worth it. It does not take allot of money to have a 400 grit smooth bottom just time. You can buy allot of sand paper for a $50.00. This is what I am doing in the off season while some I race against are sitting at home thinking about the up and coming season. I start thinking about it when we haul the boat in the fall. Buying a new racing sail in the off season when the discounts are the best is the only way to do it. You will be amazed at the difference between a stock head sail vs a racing sail that is maxed out for the boat. These sail's can then be used just for racing and they will last a long time. Using the stock sail's for banging around will makes those racing sail's last a very long time. Cliff
- Status
What I learned from racing
After fighting other boats for air, covering and being covered, trading alwgrip around the marks, yelling and screaming between other boats and crew. I learned that's there's always better air somewhere else, and life's too short to worry about missing the next header.
After fighting other boats for air, covering and being covered, trading alwgrip around the marks, yelling and screaming between other boats and crew. I learned that's there's always better air somewhere else, and life's too short to worry about missing the next header.
Some people drive sports cars...
others drive SUV's. It is fun though to watch the SUV's try to act like sports cars. I guess the real racers will race anything and getting a stock Hunter, like our 356, which I don't think was designed for racing, into a racing mode seems a real challenge...but some live for the challenge. We have been in only two local club races, which were fun, and we learned a lot, especially that we agree with Kevin.
others drive SUV's. It is fun though to watch the SUV's try to act like sports cars. I guess the real racers will race anything and getting a stock Hunter, like our 356, which I don't think was designed for racing, into a racing mode seems a real challenge...but some live for the challenge. We have been in only two local club races, which were fun, and we learned a lot, especially that we agree with Kevin.
All I do is race
I am currently boatless and racing on a 1977 Nicholson 33. There is only one Hunter racing in our fleet, a 37.5, one of the backstay rigs from 1990. It does pretty well with the genoa fleet, but they seem a lot more casual than the spinnaker boats. Nearly all my questions on HOW, are with an eye to buying my next boat. Nearly all of these questions are based on my racing experiences regarding performance. I don't think I will ever race my boat competitively but I want the boat rigged for fast passages and controllable in bad weather. I think that may be one of the overlooked coastal cruising factors. Stock roller furling has real limits when the wind pipes up. It not a real reef (thats why they call it furling) and controls for both sails seem to be limited (sheeting angles, twist controls, winch power). Race boats generally are rigged with all of these controls and more prepared for emergencies since they happen more often when you stress the system in racing (oops, what broke now). When Hunter went to the full tripod rig, I think standard sail controls became less effective. Travelers are smaller (the ones on the binnacle). Sheeting between or outside the spreaders became more complicated. Addition of mainsail fulling made those sails non-standard with respect to the cut of the sail and how controls like vang, outhaul, halyard, leechline, (and of course no backstay.) I don't know enough about these rigs to say they can't be controlled effectively but how you acheive control must be different. Racing a boat involves a nearly infinite number of tweaks to optimize for angle, speed, and power. The gist of this is that racing a newer Hunter will provide a different set of challenges requiring some unique solutions. Mark
I am currently boatless and racing on a 1977 Nicholson 33. There is only one Hunter racing in our fleet, a 37.5, one of the backstay rigs from 1990. It does pretty well with the genoa fleet, but they seem a lot more casual than the spinnaker boats. Nearly all my questions on HOW, are with an eye to buying my next boat. Nearly all of these questions are based on my racing experiences regarding performance. I don't think I will ever race my boat competitively but I want the boat rigged for fast passages and controllable in bad weather. I think that may be one of the overlooked coastal cruising factors. Stock roller furling has real limits when the wind pipes up. It not a real reef (thats why they call it furling) and controls for both sails seem to be limited (sheeting angles, twist controls, winch power). Race boats generally are rigged with all of these controls and more prepared for emergencies since they happen more often when you stress the system in racing (oops, what broke now). When Hunter went to the full tripod rig, I think standard sail controls became less effective. Travelers are smaller (the ones on the binnacle). Sheeting between or outside the spreaders became more complicated. Addition of mainsail fulling made those sails non-standard with respect to the cut of the sail and how controls like vang, outhaul, halyard, leechline, (and of course no backstay.) I don't know enough about these rigs to say they can't be controlled effectively but how you acheive control must be different. Racing a boat involves a nearly infinite number of tweaks to optimize for angle, speed, and power. The gist of this is that racing a newer Hunter will provide a different set of challenges requiring some unique solutions. Mark
I have to agree with you Mark
I think that the "NEW" Hunters are set up as floating condos with an eye toward comfort not control. When things turn nasty, I would far prefer to have all those controls available. If you check in the other posts from those who have roller furling mains for example, you have to ask yourself 'How do they shape the main?'. I'm quite sure that many buy this kind of boat without knowing what to look in sail shape. If they knew, you have to ask 'Why'd you buy it?'. I suspect that's why so few Hunter owners race their boats(at least the newer ones)
I think that the "NEW" Hunters are set up as floating condos with an eye toward comfort not control. When things turn nasty, I would far prefer to have all those controls available. If you check in the other posts from those who have roller furling mains for example, you have to ask yourself 'How do they shape the main?'. I'm quite sure that many buy this kind of boat without knowing what to look in sail shape. If they knew, you have to ask 'Why'd you buy it?'. I suspect that's why so few Hunter owners race their boats(at least the newer ones)
Yep
I didn't know much about boats when I bought mine, but I knew it wasn't a racer and I have no interest in racing. I have an interest in comfort and relaxation. If I wanted intensity, power and speed, maybe I would have bought a powerboat, but definately not a hunter. So tell me, why is it that racers think we should all race? Sure, we may pick up a few tips here and there on how to add a tenth of a knot, but does a cruiser really care, especially a day/weekend sailer? So yes, I bought a floating condo and I love it. I sail every weekend and love it. I sleep at anchor or at the dock and it's wonderful. Someday I will take it long distance tropical cruising as a live aboard. May even cross an ocean or two depending on how she handles the tropics.
I didn't know much about boats when I bought mine, but I knew it wasn't a racer and I have no interest in racing. I have an interest in comfort and relaxation. If I wanted intensity, power and speed, maybe I would have bought a powerboat, but definately not a hunter. So tell me, why is it that racers think we should all race? Sure, we may pick up a few tips here and there on how to add a tenth of a knot, but does a cruiser really care, especially a day/weekend sailer? So yes, I bought a floating condo and I love it. I sail every weekend and love it. I sleep at anchor or at the dock and it's wonderful. Someday I will take it long distance tropical cruising as a live aboard. May even cross an ocean or two depending on how she handles the tropics.
Franklin
I like your answer!! There is definately something to be said for creature comforts. I wish they could build a boat that had all those comforts AND could have ALL the sail controls that are really needed. I wish you good sailing on your dreams. Alan
I like your answer!! There is definately something to be said for creature comforts. I wish they could build a boat that had all those comforts AND could have ALL the sail controls that are really needed. I wish you good sailing on your dreams. Alan
Martini or Gun
That's a tough choice...probably getting the gun because it doesn't happen as often. But for some reason I'm always hungry after a race and their grill was cooking sausages (drool). Mark
That's a tough choice...probably getting the gun because it doesn't happen as often. But for some reason I'm always hungry after a race and their grill was cooking sausages (drool). Mark
- Status