Optimist (dinghy)

Encyclopedia : O : OP : OPT : Optimist (dinghy)

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Specifications Under Current Rules
Number of crew 1 LWL 7ft 7in LOA 7ft Beam 3ft 7in Hull weight (with fittings) 77lbs Sail Area 35 sq. ft

The Optimist is the standard of small, single-crew sailing dinghy. Mainly because of its economical simplicity and the practical size and weight restrictions it places on any skipper, it has become the most popular craft for introducing children to the sport of sailing. In some parts this boat is commonly called the "Opti." Below is a leading Irish Optimist Sailor in action during the 2005 End of Season Championships.

Origin

It was designed in 1947 by Clark Mills. The hull can essentially be characterized as a contoured box made of glass-reinforced plastic or plywood. The Optimist is sometimes mocked lightly as a "pram" or even derided as "a sailing bathtub". But although it breaks many of the principles of good boat design, it has surprisingly good handling characteristics.

Description

Sail

The single sail of the Optimist is sprit-rigged. Two battens stiffen the roach. It is secured evenly with ties along the luff to the mast and along the foot to the boom, pulled down tightly by a vang. The light, slim third spar, the sprit, extends through a loop at the peak of the sail; the bottom rests in the eye of a short cable which hangs along the back edge of the mid-mast. Raising and lowering the sprit on these teeth or refastening the boom vang allow for adaptation of sail trim to a range of wind conditions.

Hull

Just in front of a bulkhead, which partitions the boat nearly in half, is the daggerboard. Right behind it on the centerline of the hull floor are attached a pulley and ratchet block. These anchor the sheet and its pulley on the boom directly above. At the bow resides a wooden thwart to support the mast which passes through a hole in its center.

As in some more elaborate types of dinghy, floats are installed inboard along each side in the front half of the boat to add buoyancy in the event of capsizing. Two straps run lengthwise along the floor from bulkhead to stern. These and a tiller extension allow a sailor to hang off the side for weight distribution--commonly called "hiking out". This can be crucial to maintaining the boat in near horizontal disposition during heavy air. A monograph-style "IO" insignia (after IODA) on the sail is common. Boats entering a regatta must also generally have an identifying number on the sail to facilitate scoring, dispute resolution and contestant interaction.

Introductory sailboat

Optimists are among the only boats well-suited for complete beginners to intermediate sailors between the ages of 8 and 15. Very small children are sometimes "doubled up" in Optimists but in general the boats should be regarded as single-handers - it is in this mode that children gain the most in terms of confidence and improved skills. Most sailing schools have a number of them and they are the first boat most beginners will sail.

First-timer classes offered teach the rudiments of sailing technique in a variety of conditions depending on regional weather patterns but many also offer immediate immersion into competition within the topography of a standard race course.

Optimists are also the main training ground for future Olympic sailors. Over 60% start in the boat and over 40% of them are already international competitors by the age of 13-15. By December of the year in which they turn 15, Optimist racers are said to "age out"; that is, they become too old to continue racing.

Racing

The Optimist is the biggest and most competitive youth racing class in the world. Regattas can easily draw fleets where 150+ boats start at the same time. Many of the top world Optimist sailors immediately become world class Laser Radial or 4.7 sailors after their age-out, and even average Optimist racers later do well in the "more advanced" classes.

Optimists provide real international competition as they are sailed in well over 100 countries. Because they are manufactured to the same specification by dozens of builders, thousands of kids take part in the big program of regattas worldwide.

The first World Championships were held in Great Britain in 1962, and has since been arranged annually. For the first 20 years, the class was dominated by sailors from the Scandinavian countries, with 13 world champions. In the 1990s, Argentina was by far the dominating country, and has together with Peru ever since been the best team racing countries in the world (the two togehter having won 12 team racing championships (IODA Challenge Cup) since 1990). Since the turn of the millennium, Croatia has been a dominating country on the individual side.

Optimist World Champions since 1962:

• 1962 A. Quiding SWE
• 1963 B. Baysen SWE
• 1964 Poul Andersen DEN
• 1965 Ray Larsson SWE
• 1966 Doug Bull USA
• 1967 Peter Warrer DEN
• 1968 Peter Warrer DEN
• 1969 Doug Bull USA
• 1970 James Larimore USA
• 1971 Heikki Vahtera FIN
• 1972 Thomas Estela ESP
• 1974 Martin Billoch ARG
• 1975 Hans Fester DEN
• 1976 Hans Wallen SWE
• 1977 Patrik Mark SWE
• 1978 Rickard Hammarvid SWE
• 1979 Johan Peterson SWE
• 1980 Johan Peterson SWE
• 1981 Guido Tavelli ARG
• 1982 Njaal Sletten NOR
• 1983 Jordi Calafat ESP
• 1984 Serge Kats NED
• 1985 Serge Kats NED
• 1986 Xavier Garcia ESP
• 1987 Sabrina Landi ITA
• 1988 Ugo Vanello ITA
• 1989 Peder Rønholt DEN
• 1990 Martin di Pinto ARG
• 1991 Agustin Krevisky ARG
• 1992 Ramón Oliden ARG
• 1993 Mats Hellman NED
• 1994 Martin Jenkins ARG
• 1995 Martin Jenkins ARG
• 1996 Lisa Westerhof NED
• 1997 Luca Bursic ITA
• 1998 Mattìa Pressich ITA
• 1999 Mattìa Pressich ITA
• 2000 Sime Fantela CRO
• 2001 Lucas Calabrese ARG
• 2002 Filip Matika CRO
• 2003 Filip Matika CRO
• 2004 Wei Ni CHI
• 2005 Tina Lutz GER

Manufacture

Over 4,000 boats a year are produced by nearly 40 builders worldwide. A list of them is available at [www.optiworld.org/ioda-builders.html]

External links

• [Optimist Class Association]
• [McLaughlin Optimist]
• [Vanguard Sailboats Optimist website]
• [Optimist Class Association, South Africa]
• [Optimist Class Norway]