Anyone Using a Parasailor-Spi

[Ram]

Im looking at buying a Spi, and -I came across this website from a link from noonsite, Parasailor is anyone using it care to comment on it? http://.parasailor.com

Is it worth buying?

Ram

No, but I have been considering one for my trimaran. I will be interested to see where this thread goes.

[Talbot]

The advantage is supposed to be that it helps lift the bows instead of pressing the bows down, thus speeds can be better with lower chance of a broach, it is also supposed to stabilise the sail better, but I suspect that the penalty is that the sail can only be used with the wind abaft the beam. There was one on one of the boats on this years Round The Island Race in UK. Verbal reports were very favourable

[GordMay]

Talbot suspects “... that the penalty is that the sail can only be used with the wind abaft the beam ...” ~ which would account for at least 75% of my sailing.
As a gentleman, I don’t beat my boats nor my wife .
Sorry, sometimes I just can’t help myself.

Gord

The lifting the bows concept is one of the main things that has attracted me to this sail for use on my trimaran. The other, is the ability to carry a much larger sail.
Ram, the bottom line is, not only has the sail gained rapid popularity, but this technology is the same used for kite surfing, a very rapidly growing sport. I know several windsurfers that switched to kite surfing because windsurfing wa not fast enough. It is good logic that this is good technology.

[delmarrey]

There is another version built in NZ that I've been interested in to see if it gains popularity. And wouldn't mind having one myself.

http://www.kiteship.com/

KITE SURFING! What a rush! That is what got me inspired.

[Ram]

Thanks for your replys, everyone! I would like to see one of these in use or talk to someone who owns one before i decide if its right fo for me.

[nockerwhite]

Lots of these in the UK, I have seen about 8 off the same stretch of beach. They have been for some time,first saw them last year, in fact when I first saw this thread I thought these were the subject!

Ram, did you mean a kite surfer, or a kite spinaker? Same techonology, different animal.

[Ram]

Hi Kai Nui

Im looking at buying a Spi, and -I came across this website from a link from noonsite, Parasailor is anyone using it care to comment on it? http://.parasailor.com

Im looking for the best bang for the buck, Im new to sailing a boat of this size, Im not sure what I need, (haha -in many areas). Im having a new boat built in France and I plan on cruising the Med for most of next year & then across the Atlantic in the winter of 07 and back to S. Florida.
So im at the point of trying to figure out what I need or what would be the best for all around usage.
Im sure I will make lots of mistakes and im sure I will learn from them quickly. I was hoping to talk to someone who had one,and could give me first hand exp. on it.

You added a dot to the link. That is something different! Not what I was talking about at all, but the theory is great. Hope someone has used one. I would like to hear if it works too.
The set up I was talking to is closer to the Kite surfers. I guess it is actually a "kite spinaker". I stand corrected.

[Ram]

i copyed this from there webpage
Ram

Article in Yachting World 07/2003 page 90
"What´s new" edited by Tim Thomas


Tested: Parasail - a "more stable" spinnaker

It looks like a torn spinnaker, a flap of loose sail billowing away off the front, but the design of the Parasail spinnaker is no accident. And when we first wrote about it in April 2003, interest was already strong, not least because a racing version of the sail, which will be used by some competitors in the Daimler-Chrysler transatlantic challenge, was nearly finished.

The reason for all this excitement is the sail´s design. Manufacturers Parasail say that by adding parafoil technology to a standard spinnaker, they have made a sail that is more stable, thanks to the foil stretching the belly of the spinnaker, and creates lift, pulling up the bow when speed increases rather than trying to bury it in the water. They also say their spinnaker can be flown in true wind speeds from 6 knots to Force 10 - although they recommend it should only be flown up to a Force 6, that is more for rig security than anything else. Yes, the Parasail is more expensive than your average spinnaker by about 30 per cent, but it is made from top-notch components and just one sail will cope with all wind strengths. So much for theory. Only a test sail could prove the Parasail´s worth.

Unfortunately, the racing version of the sail was only 98 per cent complete, but the cruising version was available for us to try. Flying it on a Grand Soleil 40 Race (see below), the sail was simplicity itself to hoist, being housed in its own sock. Released by a simple pull on the strings, the Parasail filled instantly in the 8-10 knots of true wind, which was just enough to get the foil at the front flying.

The manufacturers claim that at low wind speeds the sail is only 1,5 per cent less efficient than a conventional sail and our boat speed seemed to reflect this as we cruised ar around 5 knots with no main up.

We crept to 80° to the apparent wind to see how shy the sail would fly and while we didn´t push it any further due to the guy lead putting pressure on the stanchions, we could have come up another 10° and kept the sail flying. What´s more, when we tried to collapse the Parasail on purpose, it simply snapped full again as soon as we were back on course - with this sail, there are no wraps around the forestay nor any sheet/guy manipulation needed to recover it.

Heading for the gybe, the foredeck was a little disorganized, which meant we had to float the spinnaker on its sheets for longer than I liked. But the sail remained full and steady, with the foil pushing the sides out and preventing the collapse. Dowsing the sail was just as easy thanks to the specially designed snuffer and the problem that I had envisaged with getting the snuffer over the parafoil proved to be no problem at all.

The first racing version of the Parasail - all 146m² of it - has been built, tested and redesigned and should be flying by the time you read this. It is not too different from the current model, but has its foil taken all the way to the edges and integrated more with the leech as well as made rounder. Parasailor claim this will make the sail stronger and faster. Certainly the sail is generating interest. RORC technical manager Mike Urwin has cleared it for racing and it will incur no penalty over a conventional spinnaker under IRC. Volvo Race organisers are also in talks to see what it can offer round the world sailors.

Parasailor have now built 1,500 Parasails and have yet to receive a complaint or a claim of damage. Having seen the sail and flown it, I can say that once you have got over its unusual styling and concept, it is a joy to use and appears to do exactly what its makers claim. Indeed, some boatbuilders are so confident in it they are ordering Parasails for particular boats in their range; Hanse is one of the first.

[biltong]

HI RAM. I know that this could be 6 years too late and that you might no longer log onto CF, but, having recently bought a yacht with a Parasailor, I decided to try it out yesterday. I must say that I found it very stable and satisfying flying this sail. To say the very least, I was super impressed and am surprized that the previous owner hardly used this sail. While the other yachts on the water were sluggish, we managed some very comfortable speed. No pole needed. I am interested to know if you have bought one of these and your impressions on the performance.
All the best
Biltong

[Ozbullwinkle]

Hoping to breathe some life into this thread as several years have passed since the original post and there would now be lots more parasailors out there.

I am looking at one as a possibility for a FP Eleuthera 60 which currently only has a main & genoa and I want another sail in the arsenal for a Pacific crossing from St Martin in early 2013.

Would appreciate some feedback from users of these spinnakers.