As Michael said, this subject has been discussed, agreed, changed, agreed again and generally pondered over for years.
@cweed
Yes, the original concept was that the cvrda should have no membership as such.....boats should be members, not people. Because we built the CVRDA around the concept of all communication being through the website and forum, we were able to offer this service to everyone for very little cost. The small costs for the ISP were met originally from the profit of running our national Rally. In reality, many people were not happy with this concept and wanted to contribute to the running of the CVRDA and be recognised for that contribution as being 'members'. For this reason, more recently we have had a voluntary membership for those who wish to contribute. But the original idea stays. You don't need to be a member to race with us, or join this forum. Both are free.
As for the question of elegibility for the CVRDA, it currently stands as you say: A class established before 1965 and boat built before 1985. We sail normally in three wings (and please correct me as these rules tend to change slightly):
Vintage:
Boats designed and built before 1965, and made from traditional materials, using traditional methods. Normally this will mean no glue in construction, wooden spars and cotton sails. A good example would be a Merlin, 14 or 12 from the 40s to 50s
Classic
Boats designed and built before 1965, and normally built with more modern methods. These boats are likely to have a range of modernisation from some sailing in original trim to others, which may of been more modernised. Handicaps are modified to reflect amount of modernisation. Would include most Fairey boats. Also Proctor Merlins, all clinker 12s etc
Old
Boats from classes established before 1965, and built before 1985. Pretty much anything goes, but handicaps modified to reflect heavy modernisation such as carbon rigs etc.
So, does the 1967 Contender get in? Well no, not as rules stand, hence the vast amount of discussion which this subject brings up. The contender is just one boat that misses out. So do the Phantom, the Unicorn, the Lark, the Marauder and many others. It is a hard call......and some would be far more easy going about the definition than others, but it is a slippery slope and that is where the boundary currently sits.
OK.....so what is it with Lost Classes?
As well as the core wings we use above, we also try to help the owners of any class which has now just died through lack of support over the years. The 'lost classes' wing has really, a pretty undefined and wide selection criteria, but loosley, the boat should of been built prior to 1985 and the class must have been totally wound up, for it to be considered 'lost'.
So, would a Laser Fun be eligible for sailing with the CVRDA.....no, not really...
However....
It is worth pointing out here that all CVRDA 'rules' are not set in stone. If you remember, we have no membership and anybody can race, so we have no way of enforcing any rules on clubs or sailors. Therefore all rules of elegibility etc are down to the Club offering the racing. The CVRDA offers these rules as a model for good racing between classic boats, but how they are used and how they are deciphered largely depends on the host club. Most clubs wish to stick pretty close to the rules, but there have certainly been times when clubs have opened elegibility to specific classes or boats from certain classes, such as Phantoms, Marauders etc....and if someone came to any CVRDA event I hosted with a 1967 Contender, I rather suspect we would let the boat race. But then, we have also been known to punitively handicap some boats which have turned up within the letter of the rules, but outside the ethos, think 1950s boat with raking carbon rig. It is also part of our intention to help other people to start their own classes or groups that support any 'classic' dinghy sailing. So currently we support both the lowrider moths and classic Finns associations and offer racing etc, even though the Moths may not be strictly eligible for CVRDA racing, by being newer than 1985. These boats normally race for their own prizes, either within the CVRDA fleet, or from their own start time. As I said above, this is all down to the host club.
But what has a Laser Fun got to do with the CVRDA?
Absolutely nothing.....except this forum is jam packed with dinghy historians, from UK, France, US and Australia, all of whom hold an immense expertise in all things to do with dinghy sailing of the last 50 years and the history behind it. If you have a question about any dinghy history, this forum is now known as the place to ask...so people do....and we all benefit from learning from the expertise of those willing to share their knowledge (thanks LaserTourist
). So nothing connected with sailing old dinghies is likely to be totally out of remit for us....and as long as you behave, us mods will leave you alone.....even if you do risk mass dissension by bringing up the old 'eligibility' discussion.
hope this clarifies things a bit.
cheers
eib
