IF18CA Open Matters
If you’ve been following the blog for a while or if you search the archive you will find only one reference to the International Formula 18 Class Association affairs, that I thought it was needed to bring some light on more than public events at Balaton.
That was about the only one.
As I’m member of the World Council for Argentina I took high care of not filtering any public or private info.
After Balaton the WC has been very active and I’ve tried to expose my concerns to the management on firebacks if the class continued to follow a patch or ‘band aid’ path as someone pointed to the rules, with monthly changes/clarifications or spam like reactions and also warning on the future outcomes on those changes and possible unfair actions taken by the WC.
After Nov 26 Paris meeting (decisions were known beforehand) some irregular procedures being officially questioned right now by another WC member, and the actual highly unfair, in my view, voting system that assigns the control of the class to only four countries If they decide to vote together, were exposed.
Some hard mails started flying in and I was challenged (?) to publish info on decisions from that meeting as I was told that all decisions of the class should be wide openly distributed.
I was just questioning why someone present at Paris published on the web info from the meeting before all ‘remote’ representatives had their copy at that time. Now we all have a copy, but minutes are not officially published yet, thus the two post of the last week on cloths.
So here we are, in a new era of wide spread information available to all F18 sailors.
As a good example of the nonsense and waste of time the class is having right now is the two cloth restriction for the mainsail issue.
I wanted those sails to be grandfathered on the fact that the builder did not hide they were made on two cloths, those sails are hard stamped with the two cloths specs and also on some rules doubts confirmed even by the Chief measurer.
And who do you think informed and reported to the class that the 2010 World Champ sail (curently in Argentina) was illegal too on two cloths?
My goal was to protect the sailors as I pursued the same track on the Shockwave corecell affair after reading Greg Goodall’s excellent and unbiased report.
I recommended and quite lively fought for the Shockwaves to be grandfathered to protect the sailors that bought them. As the class did not act to prevent or take care of their investments beyond any builder’s fault. The intention of some on the WC was a total ban of the Loday-White Shockwaves.
So now this two cloth mainsail issue becomes irrelevant for the targeted builder.
Two cloths? what for? who cares now? if that builder has his team winning on a different main sail….
Ahhhh maybe the amateur sailors that bought them in good faith during a whole year including two Argentine sailors that bought them on the spot at Erquy after Backes-Jarlegan were crowned, including the actual winning sail.
Is important to note that some in the class knew at Erquy that those sails were illegal and only acted one year later at Balaton.
So now you might get the picture on who are the ones been damaged on this mess?
The fleet sailors, not the Pros, they just get a new built team set of sails or hulls for that matter.
Be noted then my history on not publishing info on the WC decisions before and I welcome this encouragement to inform the sailors about the class matters that of course concerns them mainly as they are the ones keeping this Class and the builders alive.
Martín Vanzulli
President F18 Argentina
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Racecat Catamaranes
Martin,
You jump from comments to a new post I'll try to follow. Many Things.
-First, I share with you that debates of the coucil are obviously private, but please do explain why decisions shouldn't be public as soon they are made by the council ?
You're still very upset because I publish those decisions. Calm down please: decisions have to be public with no delay notice. Minutes are for application purpose.
-Second: You say there is irregular procedure (your affirmation, then formally WC will decide applying 11.1 of our constitution).
That means you contest the decisions that you want to stay hidden. That now make sense.
Please notice:
the voting power during the last WC, were not held by few european countries but: 10 national association representing 871 members (74% of members)and 94 votes (70% of vote).
One french member (or Ned or Ger, or Ita and so on) is as important as one F18 sailor from another country in the WC.
Not more, but also not less.
And almost the decisions were made unanimously after long talking and exposure of many view points.
I share with you that Skype or others modern tools should be used to have far away representative live during council. But, I'm sure you have express yourself upon the agenda items by the wc mails…exemple beyond a lot: 26 october 2011, 05:02:46 about dagger chord. We take in consideration Argentinian matters.
Joining F18 doesn't mean ruling F18.
-Third: two clothes in mainsail. They are forbidden by a WC vote since 2007. Grandfathering such mainsail is for those who were product before.
Considering facts, the sailmaker and customer bonna fide Olivier Bovyn, our chairman, made exemptions.
Exemptions are of course for customers interest.
There I share your idea and I'll ask on exemptions in the same way than for the ShockWave.
You've got one illegal mainsail in Argentina, I think we've got at least 12-15 in France.
You may believe then we're also concerned.
Best regards.
Franck Tiffon
trésorier association française F18
Now here we can discuss specific ítems.
Stop interpreting my clear statements or I will start interpreting yours.
You need some english lessons maybe:
Is not ok to have someone publish minutes when his pairs does not has the possibility to check them by themselves, it is a matter of respect.
You challenged me to publish your same news and I did.
Stop saying I want to hide what?
Seen my posts on Cloths? or you are blind?
I wanted you to respect your pairs.
No one on common sense may agree that a pair member of the WC can publish info when the others not present are waiting to know what happened.
It is called Common Sense and a formal way to manage a Class.
Martin,
Ok for english lesson, pardon my so poor globish.
I haven't published the minutes, of course I never will before their official publication. You know that I do respect sec gen outstanding work.
I publish info (here mainly the decisions after voting) you can get them as soon as I did. No need to be there, a phone call was enough.
The respect is to publish correct info.
Respect to WC and also respect to readers and members.
May be that is the best tool against rumours and lobbies trying to change the decisions.
Going further, I really think we're missing an official declaration (kind of press release) after WC meeting.
We can propose that to our WC friends, can't we ?
Martin,
Thanks for shining some light on the inner workings of the F-18 class. As someone saving up pennies to either buy or build my way into this class one day, this subject is extremely relevant to me.
Have to say based on my understanding of what has happened so far, the appeal of the class to me has dropped quite a lot. It is particularly disappointing that the paint issue has made the build method I had hoped to use for my own F-18 design illegal (no female tooling = no gelcoat).
Cheers
Silas
Hi Silas, I'm a builder my self and one of the implications on this new rule/clarification on paint is that home builders one off are forbidden.
But I've been told , cause I was not present and no official on the matter, that home builders are going to be allowed prototypes, take this a possibility.
Don´t interpret further, this in a example on my points, you need rules to have account on many factors before going live and not targeting one builder.
Fact: Amateurs or new personal projects like you are not taken in account by the IF1CA, your own design/boat is not wanted to date (lets see if they have some light on this in the future)
If you want to build you own F18 you'd better start gathering some money for the orig plug , plus the female molds.