The Comet is a lively, hard chime, non-spinnaker, sixteen foot racing sailboat. Her light weight (260-295 lbs.), generous sail area (140 sq. ft.) and semi-flat bottom, make her easily driven to weather and can be planned off the wind in breezes of only 10 to 12 knots. The Comet carries a sloop rig (mainsail and jib), the mast stands twenty feet five inches above the deck and is supported by a fully adjustable three stay rig.
The hulls are available in either fiberglass or wood, and since 1972, fiberglass Comets have been fully self rescuing. They feature watertight side tanks or false bottoms which are self bailing in the event of a capsize. The boat has evolved greatly since it’s 1932 design by C. Lowndes Johnson and has kept pace with the times.
The modern Comet sports such nifty “Go Fasts” as vang sheeting, mast benders and depending on the skipper’s appetite for complexity, ball bearing travelers, and magic boxes for mast rake control. All sail adjustments may be placed on the cockpit coaming, to be at finger tip control from a fully hiked position.
Class website:
http://www.cometclass.com/
Read Elizabeth Dudley’s great piece on the Comet!
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