Newly-constructed and delivered to Europe this July, the brand new Paralympic class SKUD-18 featured for the first time at the Skandia RYA Sail for Gold Regatta, during which the first ever SKUD-18 European Championships were also held.
Five SKUDs are currently in circulation in the continent, and all five turned out for the regatta at the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy home of the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic sailing events from 12-15 October, with Sweden s Gustaf Fresk and Annika Lindgren crowned the first ever SKUD European Champions.
The SKUD-18 is both a modern and innovative dinghy and is the result of a collaboration between B & B Technology and Innovation - Julian Bethwaite/Bethwaite Design in Australia and Argentinian naval architect, Martin Billoch, along with Access Dinghy's Chris Mitchell.
Sailed by two disabled crew (one will be classified with an IFDS International Classification 1) with at least one female on board, the boat will be an exciting addition to World and Paralympic competition.
The SKUD brings more power to Paralympic sailing, said designer Julian Bethwaite. No keelboat will ever be able to plane upwind, but the SKUD certainly brings a new element of excitement, speed and power to disabled sailing.
The boat is really functional, responds extremely well and steers easily and doesn t broach. We ve tested it in really strong breeze and we can t get it to broach.
Bethwaite s enthusiasm for the new class is matched by the sailors who had the chance to test it in anger at the European Championships.
It s a brand new boat so there always a few teething problems with it, but it s fun to sail, it s really fast and is probably the most high performance of all the Paralympic classes. I m sure it s going to provide some exciting competition over the next couple of years.
said SKUD helm Alexandra Rickham, who sails with 2.4mR convert Michael Cogwell - competitive sailor for the past five years.
As Bethwaite explains, the SKUD will test Paralympic sailors to the limit.
The boat will be a challenge to the sailors as it will be unlike any Paralympic boat they have sailed before. The challenge will be in learning to treat the SKUD like a skiff and not like a yacht it is a skiff-talent boat and we ve found that the best way to learn is to have disabled sailors learn from sailors who have lots of experience in skiffs.
When they being to swap positions and learn from each other it really works. To learn how to sail the SKUD skiff sailors will have to impart their knowledge.