At the Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Bermuda in 2012, the World Class Association (WCA) voted to support the effort to re-write our equipment rules.  This project is being lead by the World Class Technical Chair and VP, Charlie Van Voorhis and a committee of representative technical experts from fleets around the world.

Why?

The Equipment Rules re-write has become relevant and important for a number of reasons. These include:

1. The reorganization of existing information (class drawings & dimensions) into a more logical format partially to satisfy the requirements by ISAF,
2. Addressing the need for a class rule for the LIS rig (in use in half of the fleets worldwide), 
3. Regular questions from mast builders and riggers or boatyards taking on repair projects, 
4. To facilitate inter-fleet competition (NOOD regattas), 
5. To support the handful of people interested in building one-off boats and ease of movement between fleets.

What’s changed?

We have created a working draft of the new rules which is being tested and reviewed by the committee.  The new rules  include virtually all of the language from the current rules, but the information has been organized according to ISAF guidelines by hull, spars, sails, deck, etc. and references to the appropriate class drawings which have been included.

Existing rule dimensions, or new dimensions taken off original drawings have been translated or added to comply with current ISAF measurement methodology.

The new rule includes a fore/aft measurement datum (Station 10). This has traditionally been the front of the cabin house on wooden boats and a point 20’-1 ½” from the transom of glass boats. These points should be permanently marked on the boats.

A measurement certificate has been created to help boat owners, fleets and the class better understand where significant non-compliance might be.

In order to facilitate the building of new boats in other parts of the world, the rule is more of a box rule than it has been in the past, providing greater flexibility for components like mast & boom extrusions which change over time than the old rule.

We hope that these new rules will improve the quality of future boats by providing measures of quality control.

What’s left to do?

•     Gather measurement info from around the world (this is where we need your help)
•     Include language that “grandfathers” existing boats adequately.
•     Write the rule for the "LIS rig" 
•     Edit existing draft
•     Measure existing molds or new boat

Where we need your help:

In order to determine appropriate tolerances and to understand what deviations need to be "grandfathered", we are asking as many owners and fleets as are willing/able to provide measurements of their boats for our database.