Following a super successful combined RS:X European Windsurfing
Championships with both the Youth Fleet and the Olympic Fleet
enjoying champagne racing conditions and excellent organisation
courtesy of the Bulgarian Sailing Federation and the city of Burgas on the Black Sea, it's time for a short report on the RS:X Annual General Meeting which took place on September 14th.
There were two key submissions to address. One dealt with future format. The other dealt with the possible evolution of the RS:X equipment.
So taking the last one first...
Neil Pryde Windsurfing have been working on the development of the RS:X equipment since September 2009. They have taken every element of the existing RS:X One Design equipment and worked on optimizing its performance without changing the current cost. The totality of their work was presented by Manu Messiaen to the meeting for its consideration.
Before we go into detail, it's important to realise that an evolution is something that happens over time. It's not done once and forgotten about. That would be better described as a revolution and we all know that these can be expensive, damaging and unsettling. The RS:X Class has been talking about the former - an evolution - for two years which is why the AGM decided to establish a working party to evaluate each part of the whole 'evolution package' and see what impact it will have on the performance of the existing equipment.
The goal is to ensure a well planned and cost effective evolution over time taking full account of the impact that possible changes could have on MNA’s, youth sailing and future class development.
Neil Pryde has made available the 10 compete sets of 'development equipment' so that we can stage 3 test events in Europe one each in January, February and March 2012. The technical testing will be managed by Bas Edmonds (GBR) our chief measurer who will report to Mike Dempsey (GBR), the class president, with input coming from a management team including representatives from GBR, FRA, UKR, USA, ISR and AUS.
Moving on to possible changes in format...
The ISAF Olympic Commission Report which was approved by Council talks about demonstrating the diversity of sailing not only through the use of different equipment but also through the use of different formats and whilst we have not been contacted by the ISAF Events Committee Format Working Party establsihed at the ISAF Mid-Year Meeting in St. Petersburg, we want to be ready to discuss ideas with them when they invite us to do so.
It is with this in mind that the RS:X AGM agreed to establish an RS:X Format Working Party to be chaired by Rene Appel (HKG) with representatives from FRA, GBR, UKR and the USA with input from the RS:X Techncial Committee Chair, Ilker Bayinder (TUR) with a view to making an initial report before the ISAF November Conference
The Minutes of the 2011 RS:X AGM
