World Council News - Part 1

The World Council met in Victoria on June 23, 2003.  Minutes are available here on the WTCA website.

Here are some of the more newsworthy items.

Next Worlds
The next Tasar World Championships will be held in Darwin, NT, Australia in July or August, 2005.  Based on presentations made by Chris Parkinson, this promises to be a great event at a superb venue.  Check for further details as they become available.

Hull Weight
The World Council considered the issue of hull weight, and voted not to propose any change in the interim minimum hull weight (class rule D.3.2) at this time.  The minimum hull weight remains at 68kg, at least until after the next Worlds.

Proposed rule changes
The World Council is proposing four changes to the class rules. Each change will be voted on by all 10 regions and/or districts, and a majority of 7 districts must vote in favour if a rule is to be approved.  The approval of the Advisory Council and the ISAF is also required.  The proposed changes are discussed below (the actual wording of the proposed rules has not yet been finalized)

1.  Hounds to deck measurement and top mast support
A rule specifying the minimum measurement from the hounds to the deck will be proposed.  There have apparently been some instances of people reducing this measurement (by shortening their lower mast) to increase rake.  This is difficult or impossible to detect by inspection.  If this is a problem, The only way to address this problem (if it is considered to be a problem) is by specifying the minimum hounds to deck measurement.

The World Council was aware that an earlier hounds to deck measurement was declared to be unenforceable by the Jury at the International Regatta in Melbourne in 1998, because the Jury believed that the measurement could change during sailing, as the top mast, or a fitting on it, bedded into the lower mast.

To avoid this problem, and to improve the durability of all Tasars, the proposed new rule will require that the topmast is supported on an insert held in place inside the upper mast by the top anchor bolt for the diamonds. The insert is made from the same section as the topmast sleeve.  This is the way the top mast is supported on all current Australian and North American Tasars.  It is a simple, cheap and elegant solution to the problem of providing a durable support for the topmast, and avoiding the bedding in, and related damage to both mast sections, that can occur when the topmast is supported either by the hounds fitting or by sitting directly on the diamond bolt.

Inserts are available in North America for less than $10 US.  They can also be cut from an old topmast sleeve, using a table saw with a metal cutting blade. The insert can be postioned in the lower mast in the required location to support the top mast (and hounds) at the correct height, before a hole for the diamond bolt is drilled in the insert.  If necessary (e.g. to correct a measurement problem), the height of the top mast & hounds could be increased by cutting a shim from the same section, and dropping it in on top of the insert. 

Reading some of the correspondence generated by the earlier hounds to deck rule suggests that there may be opposition to this proposal for two reasons.  Some people feel a measurement to control modifications to mast height is unnecessary, and some will resist a requirement to retrofit old lower masts to provide the proposed method of support.  Debate on this will be useful. If the rule is adopted, it won't be enforced until the next worlds

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Revised 2003-08-04

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