I am looking to borrow a modern merlin rocket for the student nationals at Weymouth on the 4th and 5th november. I am happy to insure the boat for the event. I have crewed for Chris martin (3602) for a few years and i also sail a moth. Hope to hear from somebody willing to lend a boat asap. Phone me on 07910291507.   Cheers                                                                                                Chris Gould

Who is your crew Chris?

My crew is a friend also at portsmouth uni called sam. He has sailed merlins, contendors and is the hornet junior european champ. We will be sailing a 49er next year if we can find some money

I have watched the Uni action over the last 4 years and recommend that you get involved with the team racing scene rather than campaign your own boat.  Cheaper too.
Could you borrow a uni boat for the Nationals?

'Specially if you're at Pompey as they have Larks and do the class events and youth and national champs too.

Yeah, take a lark out, that'll be a riot.... not.

Good luck with the 49ing Chris - you'll swim a lot and you'll laugh a lot and you'll go really f*****g fast, about 3 times faster than a poxy Lark!

Yeah i could borrow a uni boat but it would be a dead lark and i would rather sail an topper than a lark. I will do a load of team racing which is ok but i like club racing too so i will need another boat such as a 49er to race against other fast boats.

At least the Uni ten to fifteen year old Larks are still competitive (yes I have seen them!) You've got the wrong impression of Larks. Go to a proper Lark class open and get your eyes opened - they really know how to sail and party - haven't yet been to a Merlin event as good!

In what way have we got the wrong impression of Larks?

Are we in fact wrong about the fact that a Lark won't do 20 knots?  Will they, in fact, plane upwind?  If we go to a proper Lark event, will people be twin-wiring, constantly on the apparent wind?

You wouldn't log onto a post about racing motorcycles and say "Hey you should get a moped, those guys really know how to party" would you?

Oh calm down everyone for goodness sake. You can tell it's getting towards winter - people are sailing less and have too much spare energy for arguments.

Please can we keep the class-bashing a bit more friendly.

hey chris i am at pompey uni as well, and will hopefully be doing the nats, crewless atm but hopefully representing the merlins.

'Please can we keep the class-bashing a bit more friendly'

Good point, but surely we do not want any class-bashing on this web site. Keep up the good work Mags but hey, why not moderate occasionally?

I don't think any of the comments on here represent proper class bashing. Even stumped's possibly less than tactful comments are only stating facts.

People are entitled to their opinions and personally i only moderate them when they start getting personal or out of hand, and I beleive Mags does the same. Neither has happened here hence why noone has done anything other than a little warning.

Finally thanks to Chris Brown for having the guts to post under (Presumably) his real name. A landmark event on this forum when offering constructive criticism!!

"Why not moderate?" - becuase people get the RIGHT HUMP when I do.

"class bashing" - I feel that light taunting is not detrimental...?

Student Nationals is fun, even if you're not sailing. Last year, we spent all the time upside down, racing was cancelled and we were in the pub by lunchtime! Ohh it was messy!

Unsurprisingly a Merlin is a good boat to do it in.  I borrowed the Matrix to do it in in 2004 and we thrashed everybody.  Quite entertaining getting to the windward mark at the same time as the 49ers in the lighter stuff.

"class bashing" - I feel that light taunting is not detrimental...?

Mags, I disagree - how does a bunch of negative comments about somebody elses pride and joy on this forum reflect well on the Merlin fleet?  This web site is the first point of contact for many potential Merlin sailors.  What impression does this "light taunting" give?  Would you want to join a fleet where this disparaging attitude seems common?  

Incidentally, I sailed my Merlin at the Final Fling down in Plymouth last weekend where there was a good sized Lark fleet.  Off the water, they proved a very friendly bunch and I'm sure any newcomer to their group would have been made welcome - a real credit to their fleet.  A lesson to be learned here perhaps?

But, after all, this is a Merlin Forum, and whilst we all probabaly sailed or sail other classes (I was doing spectactualirly badly last weekend in a laser at a lasr gp event), if people come on to a Merlin site expecting praise for other classes what do they expect?

(And those who know me know I'm pretty moderate)

I didn't intend to bash the Lark class or fleet.

I was bashing the person who didn't get the fact that if somebody is saying they're going 49ing they probably don't want to pootle around the harbour at 4-5 knots.

If you want to see Lark bashing, check this one out (and we're all mates)!

Ok, I'll rephrase my comment as, "I have no chance of making everyone be overly nice, in order to create a perfect impression of the class, just in case a newcomer doesn't like it....so I will encourage you to calm it down a bit, without completely banning the banter."

This is all a tangent as the poor chap who started this thread is still looking for a boat...

Hah! class bashing, you want to hear the comments in our clubhouse about merlins from the fireball sailors and vice versa! And even better is one fireball helms impression of a merlin beating in a chop. Still it's all in the best possible taste and the beers are alweays on them.

I want to know how a Pompey student can afford 49er sailing anyway - my Pompey student son certainly couldn't!!
And as yet another Lark sailor also owning a Merlin I was pleased to see the comments on the Final Fling - they're a great bunch and have good parties. Since the Lark came from a Merlin designer (Mike Jackson) there's lots of similarity - we regard the Merlin as a grown-up Lark and love both!!

I can afford to sail a 49er cos i am getting a job and my crew will also chip in for costs like insurance transport spares and repairs

Chris, speak to Alex Jackson. He has a spare 49er going begging. 

It's a good one. I part own it and have never lost a 49er Championship, European or Worlds race in it. I've also never lost any handicapped races sailing it either. 

I've never even capsized in it! 

Don't want to sound like a big head mind....

What about pursuit races? Is that your achillies heel?

When was the last time you sailed it then?

Isn't Dobby's post rather mendacious?

Mendacious ~ who's swallowed a dictionary then! It's all pucka info. 

Pursuits- Bring em on! in fact, I've never lost ANY races ever in the 49er. It's a great bit of kit. It's so faaaaast you just can't go wrong! 

Can't remember exactly the last time I sailed her. I defo haven't sailed it these last couple of weeks....