The holiday season is upon us and it is time for a quick review of the year gone and plans for 2017.
Progress
Orders for the WASZP continue to be strong through December.
By the time Christmas arrives 250 WASZP’s (to 25 countries) will have left the factory since production release in early July.
We will continue shipping boats through until late January in the lead-up to the Chinese New Year factory shutdown. Shipments will start again from mid-February.
The WASZP office will remain open during the holiday period (although many of the team will be off racing in various classes across the Australian summer circuit).
Any queries email sales@waszp.com
Medium Rig
The development of the 6.9 sq.metres (medium) rig took some time but we’ve got it nailed now and the first production run has been completed.
This rig is aimed at lighter sailors – youths and women being key targets within the range of 50 to 65 kilograms.
The 6.9 utilizes the same top section as the full size 8.2 but has a shorter, slightly softer bottom section.
The first run is available in black and red color options.
In the New Year, the 6.9 will be added as a choice when configuring new boats. It will also be available an additional option with new boats and as a seperate purchase through the webstore.
The 6.9 will be distinguished by its red head panel (as opposed to the black) of the 8.2 for ease of identification on the race course.
WASZP Boat of the Year 2017
Nice
In late December we received word that the WASZP had taken out the prize for the One Design category in the 2017 Sailing World Boat of the Year.
You can read the judges comments and remarks here
This is a nice accolade to receive and rounds out a big year of awards for the WASZP which also included:
Yachts & Yachting (UK) – Dinghy of the Year – 2016
Foiling Week Awards (Italy) – Best Production Boat – 2016
China Cup Awards – Performance Boat of the Year – 2016
The factory has geared up and is now capable of producing and shipping 15 boats a week.
Allowing for production shutdown, holidays and a bit of a buffer our target is to ship 600 boats during next year, bringing the total to 850+ by the end of 2017.
WASZP Factory
At the moment the production lead-time is fluctuating at 3-5 weeks.
We already have a number of orders for shipments from March – May to meet Northern spring timings. This includes some big orders for container loads to various countries.
If you want your boat in the Northern spring please consider ordering now with a forward production date to secure your spot.
To see more about the order and shipping process please click here
A big focus in the New Year will be to finalise the WASZP International class association setup and class rules.
This will then lead to a formal application for World Sailing (ISAF) recognition as an international class.
In many countries, local owners are already forming fleets, establishing racing schedules and driving national class association establishment.
So in 2017 and beyond WASZP racing will be happening across the globe.
WASZP International Games 2017
We are very happy to announce that the 1st WASZP International Games will be held on Lake Garda, Italy from 1 - 5 August 2017.
All WASZP sailors are invited to join in the action at a great racing venue combined with a strong social program. The emphasis will be on creating a unique, fun event.
More information including Notice of Race is available here
A huge thank-you to everyone who has jumped in and gone WASZPing this year.
Our aim was to get more people to experience the joy of foiling and we continue to receive a great response.
The smiles on sailors faces once they get flying says it all!
Your support and enthusiasm is infectious and is what we hoped for in the class.
Big thanks also to the team at McConaghy Boats, our sailmaker Global and all the other suppliers. We have challenged them with tight timeframes and a very solid workload and they’ve all delivered big time.
The crew at KA Sail and WASZP has also done a fantastic job under some serious pressure to keep the boats moving and getting the WASZP out there.
We wish everyone a safe, happy and windy festive season
Till next time,
The WASZP team