I think that it is somewhat ironic that this weeks Amercias’ Cup really looked like the big brother of the little Americas’ cup. I think it was great to finally have what is supposed to be the technical pinnacle of the sport, finally be the actual technical pinnacle of the sport. Now we just need to keep it that way, an just have an anything goes box rule, it just needs to be done without all the legal bullshit.

I also noticed this morning that there is a discussion on the UK moth mailing list asking the question ‘Could a wing sail be made for a moth?’.

I’d be lying if we all didn’t dream of plugging in a wing and being heaps faster than everyone else, but there is something to consider.

Wings aren’t new. They have been around for ages, and the one class that sails them is almost dead. The main thing that I hear about wings essentially boils down to being great to sail on the water, but a logistical nightmare off.

So if you are considering that a wing for your moth might be a good idea, maybe you should just consider building a C-class instead, because that is the amount of work and logistics you have ahead of you.

To go to a good home … my 1st get square rudder and CB, including carbon tiller, aluminium extension but no adjuster. They will need some work to get going and make them look pretty again. They won’t win anything, but they will get you up and foiling.

Local pickup only $500 ONO for the lot.

The christmas break is over … for me and the family it consisted mostly of a trip to New Zealand around the North Island.

I did manage to pop out for a sail with Dave Lister though on my return, to test the new wand and engage is some boat swapping.

Dave and I were both amazed how different the boats felt, and you would never guess that they were from the same mould, not better (although Dave’s boat is obviously better than mine), but just different. Wing angles and the boat’s controls seem to make all the difference here.

A couple of things were immediately obvious though. A CST mast and boom are a must-have piece of kit. My c-tech rig, although it looks good, simply isn’t anywhere near as stiff, My mainsheet angles were wrong as well, something I have rectified since.

My new wand is working a treat, and the boat has never felt higher or more comfortable, and the adjustable length is a nice complement to “the dial” as they do different things.

So more tweaks are going on already for the next time out, to be followed by a big one … the BR main foil, then it is time to get back to making foils again, and turn my 2010 design into something real.

Well it’s 2:30am as I write this but I have just finished putting my foil into mould form in Rhino. This process can be very finicky as it involves pushing one object into another, and if your surfaces aren’t 100% it will most likely fail.

Anyway it’s done now which means that we can start cutting … well actually no … we can start creating tool paths and spending a few hours on that process, then we can produce come g-code then start cutting.

Well Saturday’s race was a blow out, but following my usual pre-race sail plan I still managed to get an hour in on the water before heading back to shore when the breeze kicked up to 25+

With SIRs Sail Sydney done, my self imposed no new gear ban has been lifted and items are being put on my to-do list, starting with a new adjustable wand, which I decided to video whilst making it … enjoy.