Laser 4000s leave the start-line at the ever-popular Lake Garda venue. The Portsmouth Yardstick (PY or Portsmouth handicap scheme is a system of Handicapping used in Yacht racing. Lake Garda ( Italian Lago di Garda or Benaco) is the largest Lake in Italy.

The Laser 4000 (aka 4K, 4-tonner) is a well known racing dinghy crewed by two persons. A dinghy is a type of small Boat, often carried or towed by a larger vessel Its one-design weight-equalised system enables physically differing sailors to compete on a level playing field. One-Design is a Racing method where all Vehicles or Boats have identical or very similar designs or models It is most popular in Europe, particularly the UK, France and Italy.

The 4000 is a fast, planing skiff-style dinghy with a trapeze for the crew and trampolines for the helm. In Sailing, the trapeze refers to a wire that comes from a point high on the mast, usually where the shrouds are fixed to a hook on the crew member's harness Upwind, the boat does not point especially close to the wind, but its fully battened sails give enough power to keep up with similar-sized boats. A sail is any type of surface intended to generate Thrust by being placed in a Wind &mdashin essence a vertically-oriented Wing. Downwind, however is where the boat excels due to its asymmetric spinnaker (aka gennaker). A spinnaker is a special type of Sail that is designed specifically for Sailing off the wind from a reaching course to a downwind i A gennaker is a recently-developed Sail used when Sailing Downwind; it can be described as a cross between In a force 3 the 4000 will plane and the crew will make full use of the trapeze wire. planing Boat 's hull skims across the surface of the Water rather than pushing through the water in the way a traditional Displacement hull However, force 4-5 is when the boat performs its optimum. The 4000 is fast enough to make use of the apparent wind to reach the bottom of the racecourse sooner. Apparent wind is the wind experienced by a moving object Apparent wind in sailing In Sailing, the apparent wind is the actual flow of air acting upon a

In lighter winds, many crews make use of the jibing gennaker pole when sailing downwind. A jibe or gybe is a sailing maneuver where a Sailing vessel turns its Stern through the wind such that the wind direction changes from one side of the A gennaker is a recently-developed Sail used when Sailing Downwind; it can be described as a cross between Sailing is the art of controlling a Sailing vessel. By changing the Rigging, Rudder and dagger or centre board a Sailor manages the force This allows them to show a larger part of the spinnaker to the wind whilst sailing further away from the wind direction.

Features

The Laser 4000 was designed in 1994 by yacht designer Phil Morrison. Phil Morrison (born November 1946 is a British Boat designer and racer rendered notable by the success of his many designs in many classes since 1967 as well as his It is a sloop rigged dinghy made out of fiberglass. For the military definition of sloop see Sloop-of-war. For the open learning project see SLOOP Project. A dinghy is a type of small Boat, often carried or towed by a larger vessel Fiberglass (also called fibreglass and glass fibre see Spelling differences) is material made from extremely fine Fibers of Glass. It features a single trapeze as well as an open, self-draining cockpit. In the Royal Navy, the term cockpit originally referred to the area where the Coxswain was stationed Instead of a conventional kicking strap it features a gnav system, which pushes down on the boom from the top, instead of pulling from the bottom. A boom vang (US or kicking strap (UK is a line or piston system on a Sailboat used to exert downward force on the boom and thus control the shape This allows greater space for the crew to move from side to side.

Friendly competition

Over the years the Laser 4000 events have given the fleet a reputation as competitive but friendly, with the day's racing followed by lively evening socials. The equalisation system coupled with relatively low sheet loads mean that a good variety of people are able to sail the boat.

Equalisation system

A long-running problem in dinghy racing is that light sailors are faster in light winds due to their lesser displacement and heavier sailors gain speed in stronger winds due to their increased righting moment. A dinghy is a type of small Boat, often carried or towed by a larger vessel In the early 90s Laser addressed this problem with their equalisation system for the Laser 5000 and Laser 4000.

When racing one of these boats, lightweight crews are required to carry up to 4 lead weights in their boat (securely fastened in the centre). To compensate for their lack of capsize-preventing leverage, they are also allowed to extend the boat's rack outwards, effectively making the boat wider. The common definition for capsized refers to when a Boat or Ship is tipped over until disabled Conversely, heavier crews will carry fewer weights, but must sail with narrower racks. Thus each team's total weight and leverage is equalised. The Laser 4000 equalisation system accommodates helms and crews weighing from 59-94kg (130-207lbs) each. Beyond that range the traditional wind strength advantages and disadvantages come into play.

Years of competitive racing have proved the system to be effective with all sizes of crews winning in all wind strengths. Several other racing dinghy classes have adopted a similar equalisation systems.

As with many modern racing dinghies, the Laser 4000 is one-design, meaning that strict rules govern the modification of the boat, its sailing and equipment. One-Design is a Racing method where all Vehicles or Boats have identical or very similar designs or models This is to prevent an expensive competition of "modification racing", where only those who could afford the latest gadgets would stand a chance of winning.

Laser 4000s planing downwind with kites up.

See also

Official Laser Website

Laser 4000 UK Class Association

France Laser 4000&5000

Laser 4000 Italian Class Association