Olympics

Multihulls voted out of Olympics.What effect do you think this will have on the Hobie racing scene?
See petition http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/mult ... index.html

Slim to no effect. Nobody really pays attention to ANYTHING in the olympics anyhow. Sure you'll sit down and watching curling but you don't know the people, the scores, or much of anything else about it.

Now mmadge probably watches curling religiously.

Bad analogy Karl.Yes I do sometimes watch curling.Three Thunder Bay teams have won world championships.

I think world wide there will be some rippling effect (of the ISAF,s decision to eliminate multihulls)on all multihull classes.In some classes case it might have a positive effect.You might see some of the Tornado guys get more serious about an F-18 campain.It will obviously have the biggest effect on the Tornado class.Just look what happened to the Flying Dutchman class after it was eliminated as an Olympic class
Rumour has it that it was the American delegation that had the deciding vote that eliminated the Tornado

" That is backed by David Brookes (AUS), the ISAF Representative for Hobie Cats: “It is disappointing as we did have the votes until the US Delegation did a “dealâ€

Screw ISAF and screw the olympics

_________________
Tiger 947/2364

I think the only class that is going to really feel anything will be the Tornado class. Why else would you spend 40k on a beachcat if you weren't planning on an Olympic campaign? Really that is probably the only way that you could make a living sailing a small catamaran anyway.

The curling was just poking fun at the Canadians.

Hey leave us Canucks alone.We are too easy a target.By the way have you checked out the value of are dollar lately.I am looking for an excuse to come down so I can cash in on the deals.

Its scary how far the dollar has slipped. Heck, you might be able get those cabinets from me that your wife wanted.

I hear they leave the marks out on the Canadian lakes in the winter so they have targets to hurl the curling stones at.

I hope the Ice Road Truckers don't hit them.

_________________
Mike Hensel
'86 Hobie 18, '93 Hobie 14, '80 Hobie 14(restso in progress)
Wind in your sails, water in your shoes, great day!

Sign the petition http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/mult ... index.html

At least if will make you feel better that you took a stand.

Worked for me.

Caleb Tarleton (#310)

I agree with Caleb, sign the IOC petition.

For the reality side of things? Not many in the sailing world, outside of multi-hullers, were even aware of this vote, of the chance for multi-hull elimination. The majority of racing sailors don't pay attention to much more than what's going on in their OD class, and those that have been in the game a while are happier if their boat is NOT an Olympic class, it just makes it more expensive for everyone.

Multi-hullers have always felt like the bastard children of the ISAF, and from the standpoint of time (last 50 years) we are.

Make a statement and move on. Whining does not help. Support your class, support the youth, take a newbie sailing.

_________________
HCANA Class Member

I signed #366, keep signing people.

"As a long time multi hull sailor and the father of two young sailors, I am asking that the decision to allow the multi hull into the Olympics for 2012 be reconsidered.

As most young athletes who compete my children look to the Olymics as a ideal for any sport. Having the multi hull removed from that list detracts from the concept of striving to do as well as you can in the sport of sailing.

I know that not all types of sailing crafts can be represented in the Olympics, but at least one type of multi hull should be represented.

This sends a message to young people that thier sport is not worthy. I hope that that is not the goal that the ISAF has."

Leave a coment, let them know what you think.

_________________
Mike Hensel
'86 Hobie 18, '93 Hobie 14, '80 Hobie 14(restso in progress)
Wind in your sails, water in your shoes, great day!

It is more than a rumor that the US delegates were the key votes: none of the three US voting members voted for multihulls, and multihulls lost by 2 votes......we don't have to look far (or across the border) for the culprits!

The reason we (multihull sailors) lost is visibility. Fight back, invite every junior sailor you come across to take a spin on your cat. Put them on the wire, let them drive your boat, help to orgainize a regional college age regatta, an invitational highschool regatta. Invite your local media to come to the "learn to sail" day with your club, but make sure all the boats are catamarans. Take talented youth sailors out of their monohull path and place them in multihulls.

One other note: Petitions are great, but allowing a $40,000 elite boat that takes $250,000 a year to campaign to represent and dominate what multihull sailing is about, that is what killed our collective chances in the Olympics. There is no grassroots push to save the Tornado anywhere in the world of sailing. Few sail one, less care. We should have traded classes long ago to make the racing more inclusive and more representative of what we all really do.

We needed the F-18 or "A" class, or the Hobie 16 to be the boat. In all these cases the classes are more active, have more people behind them world wide with involved sailors who care. If we push to regain a multihull class in the Olympic games, push for a more popular world wide one design class, like the Hobie 16- stock. Look to the laser class, they didn't add a trap or a chute, it's all about sailing, not about expensive, go fast gadgets.

When we met at the US SAILING AGM in Phoenix last month and represented you, the Multihull Sailors, the Multihull Council was pleased to report, as noted in another post, the USA Olympic Sailing Committee submitted to the ISAF the recommendation for the 2012 Olympics to include two multihull classes.

The three USA ISAF members decided to go against the recommendations of US SAILING and voted to eliminate the multihull class in the 2012 Olympics.

You may wish to share your feelings with the three USA ISAF Delegates:
David Irish [email protected]
Charley Cook [email protected]
Cory Sertl [email protected]

Be polite, but let them know what you think of their decision.

Caleb Tarleton, Multihull Council

A reply from one of our Canadian Reps David Sprague

Thanks Mike for the note.

I am sorry that I was not able to vote for the Mens Multihull but I took my instructions from the CYA on positioning. They were clear in their instructions that the CYA position was to support the Keel boat first before the Multi and because the way the voting was going I had to vote for the Keelboat and not for the Multihull. A vote for the Multihull would have helped eliminate the the Keelboat based on the way the voting was going. In the voting, as I am sure you must have by seen now, it was really a fight between the Keel and Multi. If you wanted one the other should not get your vote.

In the Women's events I am sorry to say the Multihull really had no chance and a vote for it would have wasted Canada's vote (multihull got 3 votes, the lowest one to get a spot got 21 votes with the other one eliminated when they only got 20 votes). The battle there was between the High Performance 2 person dinghy and the Match Race, again there I had a difficult position, as did Fiona, because we had to vote for one or the other but not both. (There we/Canada lost the High Performance by 2 votes of 35).

I know that it was a disappointment for you and others including Oskar. I recognize the value that Multihulls have (I was the Canadian RO at Kingston for the Hobie - 29'r course at the Youth Worlds and a Race Official for the Qingdao Tornado Medal race in August). I am quite concerned that the ISAF have not seen the value of the very high performance boats like Multihulls and the 2 person Women's dinghy but that is another battle.

Feel free to call me when I am back late this week and I would be pleased to talk to you about ISAF and how the decisions are made. I know losing Olympic status is hard to accept but for some classes/disciplines it is a blessing. Not for all but sometimes it helps a discipline. Time will tell here.

Mike thanks for the note and I hope to talk to you later this week.