I appreciate your thoughts, Josh. But truly, I did not need to go and look at 
the thing in person. I can see from their web site that it is overly 
complicated, what with all those holes, flaps and strings. I can just imagine 
trying to untangle that mess if a situation goes pear-shaped with wraps and 
twists, etc. Without resorting to the knife it would be a bit of a challenge!

I talked to the best sail designers in the world, making a real effort to get 
them to say something positive about the sail. These included Kenny Read at 
North and his top designer, Butch Ulmer, Kerry Klinger, Dave Ulman, and Phil 
Leitch. I even talked to Scott Ferguson, who designed the wing for the Oracle 
cats. They were unanimous in the opinion I shared with you. There is no 
aerodynamic merit to Parasail's claims. Certainly, if the claims had merit, the 
company owners would be getting rich from royalties because North would have 
optioned the patent.

By the way, there is nothing to stop one flying a symmetric kite the same way 
as an asymmetric. We used to do it all the time before asymmetrics were 
invented. Perhaps fly it a little higher but always make sure it's got a strap 
to hold the tack close to the head stay so the it doesn't end up way to leeward 
when you're reaching. If you are reaching, have the tack a little closer to the 
deck than you'd think. That will move the draft forward, opening up the leech, 
and creating a better foil shape, just as a Cunningham does on your main.

Andy
C&C 40
Peregrine

Andrew Burton
61 W Narragansett
Newport, RI 
USA    02840

http://sites.google.com/site/andrewburtonyachtservices/
+401 965-5260

> On Apr 29, 2017, at 18:26, Matthew L. Wolford via CnC-List 
> <[email protected]> wrote:
> 
> At the risk of stating the obvious, if they are that good everyone would have 
> one.  Sounds like a gimmick to me.
>  
> From: Josh Muckley via CnC-List
> Sent: Saturday, April 29, 2017 4:48 PM
> To: C&C List
> Cc: Josh Muckley
> Subject: Re: Stus-List spinnaker rig
>  
> Andrew, with all due respect your assessment may not be uninformed but it 
> does sound un-expierienced.  I understand your position... I mean how hard 
> could it be to sail a spinnaker and if it's that hard then why do I want it.  
> Though, it is an unconventional sail which unless it was properly introduced 
> to the user might have some quirks which you would need to know about.   That 
> being said the company would have provided you with the training for tree and 
> even provided you a free night stay on their boat.  This is normally what 
> they provide to purchasers.  This ensures that a buyer's expirience and 
> opinion are as fair and good as possible.
>  
> It does seem like a missed opportunity on their part to earn a glowing review 
> article from a seasoned (and hard to win over) sailor.  It probably wouldn't 
> have been a prohibitive cost to pay for your airplane ticket and in the end 
> would have paid for itself.
>  
> Still leaves me to wonder......
>  
> Josh Muckley
> S/V Sea Hawk
> 1989 C&C 37+
> Solomons, MD
>  
>  
>  
> On Apr 29, 2017 2:32 PM, "Andrew Burton via CnC-List" <[email protected]> 
> wrote:
> I'd venture to guess that a regular kite would have worked equally well or 
> better for your friend. I did a fair bit of research on them, inspected (but 
> never flew) them, and talked to a lot of experts about the company's claims 
> about their product. When I was working on an article on downwind sails for 
> the magazine I asked for one to test but they insisted I fly to them in Tampa 
> (at my own expense) so they could "train" me on their use. If that's 
> necessary for someone of my experience then I doubt someone of little 
> experience is going to have more success than with a regular kite. My 
> assessment of the Parasail is not exactly uninformed!
>  
> Andy
> C&C 40
> Peregrine
> 
> Andrew Burton
> 61 West Narragansett Ave
> Newport, RI
> USA 02840
>  
> +401 965 5260
>  
> 
>> On Apr 29, 2017, at 14:17, Frederick G Street via CnC-List 
>> <[email protected]> wrote:
>> 
>> Interesting comment, Andy — I’ve got a friend who’s got one up on Lake 
>> Superior, and it’s worked well for him.
>>  
>> — Fred
>> 
>> Fred Street -- Minneapolis
>> S/V Oceanis (1979 C&C Landfall 38) -- on the hard in Bayfield, WI   :^(
>>  
>>> On Apr 28, 2017, at 8:38 PM, Andrew Burton via CnC-List 
>>> <[email protected]> wrote:
>>>  
>>> Snake Oil! Seriously. Stay away from it. Their claims are bunk.
>>> Andy
>>> C&C 40
>>> Peregrine
>>> 
>>> Andrew Burton
>>> 61 W Narragansett
>>> Newport, RI
>>> USA    02840
>>>  
>>> http://sites.google.com/site/andrewburtonyachtservices/
>>> +401 965-5260
>>> 
>>>> On Apr 28, 2017, at 18:36, Josh Muckley via CnC-List 
>>>> <[email protected]> wrote:
>>>> 
>>>> Anybody have any thoughts on the parasailor?
>>>>  
>>>> http://www.parasailor.com/us/products/parasailor.html
>>>>  
>>>> Josh Muckley
>>>> S/V Sea Hawk
>>>> 1989 C&C 37+
>>>> Solomons, MD
>> _______________________________________________
>> 
>> 
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> _______________________________________________
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> This list is supported by the generous donations of our members. If you wish 
> to make a contribution to offset our costs, please go to:  
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> All Contributions are greatly appreciated!
> _______________________________________________
> 
> This list is supported by the generous donations of our members. If you wish 
> to make a contribution to offset our costs, please go to:  
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