Also welcome to John Wyles, who transferred from Zimbabwe. John will be racing his late model Rondar in the NY area; we brought his boat back from the Worlds in the US container. Chris Museler borrowed Ali's boat for the Florida Sailfest, and finished 2nd, DEFEATING an unnamed former 505 World Champion! Chris is chartering another boat for the Midwinters and looking for a 505 to buy when he graduates from school this spring.
We have sold so many used boats that competitive 505s for sale have become scarce! Apparently at least one new Waterat is on order and there a rumors of more. One new Rondar has been ordered, with rumors of other new Rondars coming. Rondar will be sending a container to the East Coast in early '96 with new boats and any used European boats that people are interested in. If you are looking for a competitive plastic 505 in the $5000 - $8000 range, used European boats via Rondar may be the best choice! Class officers are receiving all sorts of phone, fax and e-mail inquiries about the boat from interested prospects, so if we can come up with the boats, the rapid growth will continue.
The 505 Class will be back at SAILEXPO again this year. Mark you calendars and represent your boat and class! Free hotel and show admission if you help out. We have an even better location this year, very close to the pool. Contact Ali Meller for more information.
Turnout for major events was mostly up, and the racing was better than ever. The Midwinters moved from Eau Gallie to St. Petersburg, and is now held in conjunction with the Flying Dutchman and the One Design 14 Midwinters. Now we get to do our thing were other people can see it. We had 12 teams for the January '95 Midwinters, and are hoping for over 20 this year.
We are looking forward to great racing in '96, with a North American Championship in Kingston, an East Coast Championship on Buzzard's Bay, a Canadian Championship in Ottawa - did you know that Vancouver and Ottawa are two of the largest 505 fleets in North America - a Pacific Coast Championship in the Gorge and much more. We also hope to schedule a week long training session in a location where most of us can get to it.
The 505 class is 41 years old, and going strong! The 505 is raced in at least 18 COUNTRIES on FIVE CONTINENTS, making it one of the strongest, if not the strongest, two person high performance dinghies. The 1995 Pre-World Championship at Mount's Bay in Cornwall, England, was the largest 505 regatta ever, with ONE HUNDRED AND FORTY 505s! The limit for the World Championship was increased, so we also had 106 teams racing at the Worlds. Fortunately for the 505 class, we adopted gate starts many years ago, so we get these huge starts off with minimal problems. Speaking of the '95 worlds, if prizes for average score by country were given, the US would be first, and Canada second!
Five to nine North American boats are expected for the '96 Worlds in Townsville Australia. There is room in the container if you are interested, contact Bruce Edwards for more information. Apart from great racing and great times with 505 sailors from around the World, Townsville is ideal for seeing the Great Barrier Reef!
The '97 Worlds are in Denmark, and the organizers are including accommodations, food and beer in the entry fee! What a deal! The '98 Worlds are in Hyannis, on Cape Cod, a great opportunity to race in a big 505 fleet, and party with a fun crowd from around the world.
Speaking of Hyannis, from a standing start a year ago, we expect a fleet of a dozen boats based out of Hyannis before the Worlds. The Texas fleet is also growing rapidly, the Alberta Canada fleet received its fleet charter, and the West River fleet grew by four boats!
Numerous people have told us that the 505 class web page is the best class association page on the web. Check it out at URL:
http://www.paw.com/sail/int505/
IYRU President Paul Henderson awarded the President's Award for Class Association web site to the 505 class web site in February of '96. In addition, we receive lots of compliments from people who browse it. Quite a number of people who recently joined the class have cited the home page and the e-mail list as part of the reason they joined.
The 505 e-mail list is growing rapidly and is now over 200 people in at least 9-10 countries. To subscribe, send a message entitled
subscribe
to the address: 505world-request@andrew.cais.com
Lots of interesting 505 topics are discussed on this list.
The International 505 Class Association will be mailing a new International 505 Newsletter to class members, shortly. Make sure you are a class member so you don't miss it! Mail class dues and forms to Ken Elliott.
SAIL FAST, TURN LEFT!