Ok, fairly sure I know the answer here, but can really do with a sanity check 😊 In Melbourne, Australia, been sailing for over 45 years, casual in dinghys (including Laser) and catamarans, then serious offshore, now about to retire (Male, 60) and looking at getting a Laser..sorry ILCA, for some healthy fun in between working on the house 🙂 All the ILCAs I see for sale are ILCA 6s (had to do my homework to see what the 4, 6 and 7 meant), can't see any 7s/Standard. I do see these numbers:
- ILCA 4 (formerly Laser 4.7) weight range is 45kg-60kg
- ILCA 6 (formerly Laser Radial) weight range is 60-75kg
- ILCA 7 (formerly Laser Standard) weight range is 75-90kg
I am carrying a bit of weight for my height, about 85kg and on the shorter end at 5' 8" (or about 175 for you metric folk), but really fit so expect to drop some of that in retirement. Would I be better just buying one of the 6s then spend the money on the new lower section and 7 sail for when the wind is on the lower end? Would I be better off with the 6/Radial rig when the wind picks up or would my weight still allow me have it under control? If I had both rigs, what would the wind "cutover" be? Or would I just have to find that out myself by heading out in some stronger stuff with the big rig and finding out when I get wet? Thanks for any input 🙂