Olympic Moth?

During this first week of Olympic Frenzy (at least in the media and at sports other than sailing) Scott has blogged a long and considered post regarding the nomination by Hong Kong (where there are no moths racing) of the moth as one of the single handed classes for the London 2012 Olympics. Of course the worlds loungeroom internet experts have been advocating an Olympic Moth for a couple of years but this time the nomination is apparently real.

The comments and discussion following his post shows some diversified thinking within the existing class and my contribution will be seen as negative to those who think an Olympic Moth would be progress.

The way I see it Olympic selection would be good in these aspects:
a. Olympic sailing might actually get on television instead of gymnastics, swimming or synchronised drowning.
b. Some small number of highly slilled sailors (some existing mothies, but mostly existing olympic aspirants) will get full time funding to raise their standards even higher.
c. Some builders will get heaps of orders from government subsidised organisations who are willing to pay above the market price of present moth sailors for something which is marketted to them as slightly better than the rest
d. There will at least initially be more moths sailing.
e. Some people might actually consider a sport exciting enough to take up after watching it on TV. (I included this one because other people believe it but I do not)

Against this I see these negative points with respect to the moth class:
1. The influx of new numbers and the pressure from IOC/ISAF/Govt funding/full time sailors will all change the culture and direction of the class.
2. Events will need to be of higher standard than our present amateur run affairs, requireing professional PROs and better venues than we enjoy using in Aust and I suspect in other moth racing countries. (The countries with fleets not the ones with a few individuals)
3. I forsee pressure to change rules in areas like, a lower wind limit to make all racing on foils, one design to cut development costs.
4. If the IMCA members are reluctant to go with these changes a one design split will happen, just as it did before, the Europe in the 60s and less successful ODs in other countries.
5. An ultimate reduction in numbers because as the full timers and their backers raise the standards, the part timers and amateurs will loose interest and drop out. This happens in Aust will all classes selected for the olympics, even the laser numbers are propped up by the masters circuit, not olympic aspirants.
6. In a while the numbers lost will exceed those gained.
7. A one design moth will still only have a limited life before either
. sailing gets dropped from the games because it is too expensive to run with limited TV money returns, or
. something newer and flashier comes along to replace it, or
. the troglodites revive themselves and vote the Finn back in.
8. So the next step is the moth class ends up loosing the olympic full timers and the amateurs and vanished into a puff of ego.
9. And I doubt any of the TV lounge lizards will last long in a moth.

Think about it?

Do the IMCA members really want to be lead on by the armchair internet sailors, a blinded media or an ambitious few mothies at the risk of killing the classs?

My vested interest is that I like designing and building my own boats, I am not interested in one design, nor in buying other peoples products, (even if I do at times buy components).

I think also that the class has come such a long way in the past 75 years and really has lead the way in so many aspects of sailboat design. It would be a real shame if this move were to curtail that development when there is so much further to go.

Sidetracked

I have spent most of the last month working on my big boat. Sorry about the lead poisoning of a Moth blog but long years of poor maintenance meant that a big job was needed.

Breakfast is 31 years old and I designed and built her initially as a 1/4 tonner but it has been subsequently altered to better suit its main purpose as a fun day sailor or weekend camper on the Harbour.

It has been completely repaintd and all rigging replaced. There might be some twilight racing coming up for the old girl next summer.