Laser 2

The Laser 2, or Laser II, is a sailboat that was designed by New Zealander Frank Bethwaite and Canadian Ian Bruce as a one-design racer and first built in 1978.[3][4][5][6][7][8]

Laser 2
Development
DesignerFrank Bethwaite
Ian Bruce
LocationCanada
Year1978
No. built8,200
Builder(s)Performance Sailcraft
Vanguard Sailboats
RoleRacer
NameLaser 2
Boat
Crewtwo
Displacement170 lb (77 kg)
Draft3.50 ft (1.07 m) with daggerboard down
Hull
Typemonohull
Constructionfibreglass
LOA14.42 ft (4.40 m)
LWL13.83 ft (4.22 m)
Beam4.67 ft (1.42 m)
Hull appendages
Keel/board typedaggerboard
Rudder(s)transom-mounted rudder
Rig
Rig typeBermuda rig
Sails
Sailplanfractional rigged sloop
Total sail area124.00 sq ft (11.520 m2)
Racing
D-PN92.8[1]
RYA PN1035[2]

Production

The design was built by Bruce's company, Performance Sailcraft, in Canada and also by Vanguard Sailboats in the United States. Production ran from 1978 until 1987, with 8,200 boats completed, but it is now out of production. In 2007 Performance Sailcraft and Vanguard were merged to form LaserPerformance.[3][4][9][10]

Design
A Laser 2 flying its spinnaker, with the crew on the trapeze

The Laser 2 is a sailing dinghy, built predominantly of fibreglass. It has a fractional sloop rig, a raked stem, a plumb transom, a transom-hung rudder controlled by a tiller with an extension and a retractable daggerboard. It displaces 170 lb (77 kg). The crew can make use of a single trapeze.[3][4]

The boat has a draft of 3.50 ft (1.07 m) with the daggerboard extended and 4 in (10 cm) with it retracted, allowing operation in shallow water, beaching or ground transportation on a trailer.[3][4]

For sailing downwind the design may be equipped with a symmetrical spinnaker.[3][4]

The design has a US Portsmouth Yardstick D-PN handicap of 92.8 and a UK RYA-PN of 1035.[1][2]

Variants

The basic Laser 2 was produced in a number of variants, including the Laser II Fun, Laser II Regatta and the Laser Fun New Wave, which was equipped with an asymmetrical spinnaker. All were out of production by 1990.[3][4]

Operational history

The boat was at one time a World Sailing international class, but its status has been revoked.[11]

In a February 1980 review John Turnbull in Canadian Yachting wrote of the Laser 2, "Frank Bethwaite, the unclaimed maestro of high-powered dinghy design, and Ian Bruce, the designer / promoter of Performance Sailcraft, may have come up with the only boat that could live up to the expectations created by the Laser. It doesn't bring anything startlingly new to sailboat design except perhaps the idea that a mass-market boat should be fast and challenging."[12]

Events
Main article: List of Laser 2 championships

See also

Related development

References
  1. "Centerboard Classes". US Sailing. Archived from the original on 15 March 2012. Retrieved 31 July 2012.
  2. "Portsmouth Number List 2012". Royal Yachting Association. Archived from the original on 25 April 2012. Retrieved 31 July 2012.
  3. McArthur, Bruce (2022). "Laser 2 sailboat". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 1 August 2022. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  4. Sea Time Tech, LLC (2022). "Laser 2". sailboat.guide. Archived from the original on 1 August 2022. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  5. McArthur, Bruce (2022). "Bethwaite Design". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 1 August 2022. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  6. Sea Time Tech, LLC (2022). "Bethwaite Design". sailboat.guide. Archived from the original on 1 August 2022. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  7. McArthur, Bruce (2022). "Ian Bruce 1933 - 2016". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 1 August 2022. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  8. Sea Time Tech, LLC (2022). "Ian Bruce". sailboat.guide. Archived from the original on 1 August 2022. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  9. McArthur, Bruce (2022). "Performance Sailcraft". sailboatdata.com. Archived from the original on 21 March 2022. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  10. Sea Time Tech, LLC (2022). "Performance Sailcraft". sailboat.guide. Archived from the original on 1 August 2022. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  11. International Sailing Federation (2012). "Centreboard". sailing.org. Archived from the original on 18 July 2012. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  12. Turnbull, John (February 1980). "Laser 2". Canadian Yachting. Archived from the original on 1 August 2022. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  • Media related to Laser II at Wikimedia Commons
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