P Class

The P Class is the training / racing dinghy to which most Optimist skippers aspire once they have out grown or become to old for the optimist. The P Class has an age limit of 17 but heavier  skippers may leave earlier since 55 to 60 kgs is really the upper limit for successful competition.

The P Class was designed in 1923 by Harry Highet and was officially known as the Tauranga Class. Over the years it has grown more sophisticated and has embraced modern technology but it remains more or less the same snub-nosed little seven-foot sailing boat, which first took New Zealand by storm so many years ago. It is without doubt the most enduring of all classes.

Competition in this class is fierce and to be successful it is necessary to have a good boat with good gear. Do not hesitate to get advice before purchasing a P Class without a racing record. The P Class is a difficult little boat to sail well. It is sometimes said that if you can sail a P Class you can sail anything. It is certainly true that the success which New Zealand has had in international youth and other sailing competitions is due in part to the good grounding in the boat handling skills provided by the P Class.

All P Class skippers are encouraged to enter the P Class events mentioned in the programme plus any other out of town events as they occur. It is by experiencing the competition in different waters against different competitors that improvements in performance are made.

The most important event in the P Class calendar is the Tanner Cup (Interprovincial) and the Tauranga Cup (National Championships).  These will be held at Napier, in January 2011.

The Tanner Cup involves having one representative from each province racing for New Zealand's foremost P Class trophy. These representatives are selected from trials held every year in each province. The Bay of Plenty trials this year were held in Tauranga. The 2010 BOP rep. is Geneve Saunders and Issac McHardie is the rep. for Waikato/Thames.