Naples Sabot

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Naples Sabot
Current Specifications
Crew 1-2
Type Monohull, Pram dinghy
Design Plywood; Fiberglass
Construction One-Design
Rig Bermuda (Cat rig)
Keel Leeboard
LOA 8 feet (2.4 m)
Beam 4 feet (1.2 m)
Hull weight 95 pounds (43 kg)
Mainsail area 38 square feet (3.5 m2)
Development
Year 1946 (official plan released)
Designer Roy McCullough and R.A. Violette
Location Naples, Long Beach, California

The Naples Sabot is an 8 feet (2.4 m) sailing dinghy.[1] The class was designed by Roy McCullough and R.A. Violette in 1932, although official designs were not made available until 1946. Based on the Balboa and Sabot dinghies, the Naples Sabot takes its name from Naples in Long Beach, California, where it was developed.[2]

Design

The Naples Sabot differs from the McGregor through the use of a leeboard instead of the Sabot's daggerboard.[1] By removing the daggerboard the boat gained additional versatility, making it function as a rowboat and thus permitting it to be used as a tender or for fishing.[2][3] Along with the leeboard the boat gained a small fixed keel, and this assists when rowing or towing the dinghy.[1]

Traditionally the hull of the Naples Sabot was built from plywood, but modern boats are produced in fiberglass. The boat uses a cat rigged mainsail which must be made from dacron or nylon, and the mast can be made from a variety of materials, including wood, aluminum and carbon fiber.[4]


Racing

The Naples Sabot is used mainly (if not only) in Southern California. Regattas are held by International Naples Sabot Association (INSA) in various locations in harbors throughout Southern California.

A sabot Junior "Nationals" is held by INSA every year in August. The location of Nationals alternates every year, mainly between Balboa Bay, Newport Harbor, and Mission Bay in San Diego. Almost all INSA sailors are associated with a yacht club, either because they are a member or a parent is a member, or because they participate in a club's junior program, as sabots are sailed largely by children because of their small size and simple design. In nationals (including tryouts), there are weight guidelines, which require the lighter (younger) skippers to carry weights in their boat, to make it fair for older skippers who inevitably weigh more, thus disadvantaging them.

Nationals consists of a two-day tryout regatta, to determine which sailors will compete in the actual competition. Skippers are divided randomly (versus by class) into color-coded fleets. After the two days of racing, the alotted number of skippers have made it into the actual competition. Then, the next day, another series of races are held to determine which class each sailor will compete in: irons, bronze, silver, and gold. Gold fleet sailors are automatically invited to the next year's regatta, and do not have to try out. However, they do have to race to determine which fleet they will race in.

Sailors of Naples Sabots can range from ages 5 or 6, as beginners, to older teens. There are also adult classes. Junior regattas are divided into classes according to level of ability/experience: A, B, and C; and sometimes in larger regattas there are classes C2 and C3, to allow for more specific differentiation between the most advanced and the most novice.

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 "The Naples Sabot". YACHTe. http://www.yachte.com.au/classes/sabot_naples.asp. Retrieved 16 February 2010. 
  2. 2.0 2.1 Kober, Adra Merrill. "History of the Naples Sabot". International Naples Sabot Association. http://www.naples-sabot.org/about.htm. Retrieved 16 February 2010. 
  3. Hanson, Eugene M. (1949). "Budget Sized Yachting". Popular Mechanics 91 (5): 92. 
  4. "Naples Sabot Yacht Specifications". International Naples Sabot Association. May 1, 2008. http://www.naples-sabot.org/about.htm. Retrieved 16 February 2010. 

External links