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From: Steve Rienhart
Date: 18 Aug 1998
Time: 18:07:03
Remote Name: dynamic47.pm09.mv.best.com
No, I think that I have a good grasp of what you are doing with the hiking staps, and why. While you were doing well, you weren't that far in front! ;-)
Yes, I agree with you the fixed lifeline running the length of the boat makes it difficult to drive, and I will probably only use my full length cable lifeline when doing distance races offshore, such as the Coastal Cup. A different method needs to be in place for the majority of sailing, and I am in favor of a "slack" aft portion of lifeline that has a limit on the amount of slack.
My strong position against hiking straps is simple: it puts us, I believe, in the same position as the Etchells class and their "gentleman hiking" rule, which is violated by all competitors.
At what point would you consider protesting someone for an abuse of a proposed "hiking strap" rule? That is the crux of my position. No one wants to protest, unless there are clear violations, and "where you were in hiking straps, really" sort of arguments in a hearing are ugly and unnecessary. Many people forget where they were sitting in the heat of the moment... The second problem with allowing hiking straps, is that they do not enforce a uniform positioning of weight, and offer an unfair advantage to some skippers over others. As for your assertion that your 168lbs won't matter that much, it might not. But if I am allowed to hike, my 215lbs further outboard due to height will. How would you enforce that? Or if (hypothetically speaking) owner #xx comes along who is 6'6", 250lbs, how would that be enforced? Would your proposed rule have limits on the length of the hiking straps proportional to the skippers height and weight? Would that be fair? Who would measure?
That is the problem, in my mind, with hiking straps instead of some fixed lifeline.
As for the amount of slack allowable, that is something thatshould be put to a vote after a discussion and experimentation by the owners