Does anyone have experience with sailing the WETA trimaran and does anyone race them in Jervis Bay.
I have heard they are fast! ?

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keensailor said..
Does anyone have experience with sailing the WETA trimaran and does anyone race them in Jervis Bay.
I have heard they are fast! ?

There is an agent that sails one in the JB sailing club or at least he used to. I raced against it in my Solo. He had a couple of kids onboard and was no where near as fast as the Solo or Lasers etc. One up might have been a different story.

Looks like we are moving to Callala Bay in September. What would be the best dinghy to race down there. Seems the spirals are popular but I'm unsure how they sail.

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keensailor said..
Looks like we are moving to Callala Bay in September. What would be the best dinghy to race down there. Seems the spirals are popular but I'm unsure how they sail.

JB sailing club is a "Run what ya brung" kind of club so it doesn't really matter what you want to sail, they will accommodate you. Just be advised that in the summer months the prevailing North Easter wind sets up a fearsome chop. The average depth of JB is about 45' and this can generate a chop of about 4' and sometimes even more, but you wouldn't out in those conditions.

What sort of dinghy performs better in chop

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keensailor said..
What sort of dinghy performs better in chop

I favour something with a nice pointy front bit and a narrow waterline beam with wings, eg. NS14 or MG, others of course may prefer something else.

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keensailor said..
What sort of dinghy performs better in chop

My son races my Corsair there. Like LooseChange I think an NS14 is about right, certainly not anything smaller. To win though you will need a Spiral. The Spiral has a very favourable yardstick! They sail alright but are physical and wet! If your not worried by the expense then I would go for a Tasar.

I found the Weta to be a bit disappointing.
For all the hype, they are slow (will never get close to an average 14ft cat) very heavy, rigging is a PITA, the sail controls are average and sailing is docile at best in normal conditions.
They are a great boat for fun on a weekend with a couple of kids.
It did become fun to sail once the breeze hit 30+ knots, but all boats do! The problem being racing is called off well before then. They are robust enough to survive and crack the kite for ****s and giggles to get it moving in big breezes.
It took a lot for me to capsize it, the recommended way to get it up is to pull a cap off an ama and sink it. I found it possible to flip it back over by standing on the transom with a jib sheet to pull the bow up and back over on top of me.
Callala Bay is a great place, if your small in stature the Spirals are a great boat, if your larger the laser or a NS/MG/Tasar are a good option if you have a crew.

Thanks gents

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brett221 said..
I found the Weta to be a bit disappointing.
For all the hype, they are slow (will never get close to an average 14ft cat) very heavy, rigging is a PITA, the sail controls are average and sailing is docile at best in normal conditions.
They are a great boat for fun on a weekend with a couple of kids.
It did become fun to sail once the breeze hit 30+ knots, but all boats do! The problem being racing is called off well before then. They are robust enough to survive and crack the kite for ****s and giggles to get it moving in big breezes.
It took a lot for me to capsize it, the recommended way to get it up is to pull a cap off an ama and sink it. I found it possible to flip it back over by standing on the transom with a jib sheet to pull the bow up and back over on top of me.
Callala Bay is a great place, if your small in stature the Spirals are a great boat, if your larger the laser or a NS/MG/Tasar are a good option if you have a crew.

Slow? Planing upwind at 10-12 Knots in 10 knots of wind. Faster than a Hobie 14 (and H16 when the wind gets up)
20+ knots off the wind - depending on your weight and ability.
Heavy? 120Kg fully rigged - the only parts you have to lift are the 17Kg floats (to inset the arms in the main hull)
Rigging PITA??? Less than 25 mins from stow to go - see the video below (you must have been doing it wrong!)

Average sail controls? OK so what were you expecting on a one design boat - and tell me again about the advanced controls on a Spiral?
Difficult to capsize (unlike the Spiral).
Uses modern materials like carbon and mylar sails (unlike the Spiral)
No death-roll (unlike the Spiral)
Can be used in almost any conditions and by up to 3 adults (unlike the Spiral)
19.5 Sqm sail area (vs 6.5 on the Spiral).
Will be used at the World Masters Games in Auckland in April 2017 (unlike the Spiral)
Designed in New Zealand (like the Spiral!)
Must try that quick capsize righting method though ;-)

Those WETAs look like a fun ride:



It's certainly a step up in performance from my old Corsair, although I consider the Corsair to be the Australian gold standard in safe, fun and reliable family dinghy sailing.

I have contemplated the WETA as a boat for when i want to go back and sail at OTB club. Looking forward to sailing one.

Seems easier to rig than the A class and guessing a whole lot easier. None of the fore mentioned boats really float my boat, but then guess it comes back to what your preferences or biases are.

Callala seems to sail what ever people like, even a moth. All about personal choices which is nice thing about sailing.

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Pewit said..

brett221 said..
I found the Weta to be a bit disappointing.
For all the hype, they are slow (will never get close to an average 14ft cat) very heavy, rigging is a PITA, the sail controls are average and sailing is docile at best in normal conditions.
They are a great boat for fun on a weekend with a couple of kids.
It did become fun to sail once the breeze hit 30+ knots, but all boats do! The problem being racing is called off well before then. They are robust enough to survive and crack the kite for ****s and giggles to get it moving in big breezes.
It took a lot for me to capsize it, the recommended way to get it up is to pull a cap off an ama and sink it. I found it possible to flip it back over by standing on the transom with a jib sheet to pull the bow up and back over on top of me.
Callala Bay is a great place, if your small in stature the Spirals are a great boat, if your larger the laser or a NS/MG/Tasar are a good option if you have a crew.

Slow? Planing upwind at 10-12 Knots in 10 knots of wind. Faster than a Hobie 14 (and H16 when the wind gets up)
20+ knots off the wind - depending on your weight and ability.
Heavy? 120Kg fully rigged - the only parts you have to lift are the 17Kg floats (to inset the arms in the main hull)
Rigging PITA??? Less than 25 mins from stow to go - see the video below (you must have been doing it wrong!)

Average sail controls? OK so what were you expecting on a one design boat - and tell me again about the advanced controls on a Spiral?
Difficult to capsize (unlike the Spiral).
Uses modern materials like carbon and mylar sails (unlike the Spiral)
No death-roll (unlike the Spiral)
Can be used in almost any conditions and by up to 3 adults (unlike the Spiral)
19.5 Sqm sail area (vs 6.5 on the Spiral).
Will be used at the World Masters Games in Auckland in April 2017 (unlike the Spiral)
Designed in New Zealand (like the Spiral!)
Must try that quick capsize righting method though ;-)

I love the Weta's but if you are beating a H16 in any breeze the Hobie is being sailed by a muppet ;)