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*                     Snipe Class On-Line                          *
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This is an announcement for the Snipe Class on-line, which includes
an email mailing list and a World Wide Web (WWW) information server.
This message describes the email list, WWW server, and provides an
introduction to the Snipe sailboat.

Snipe Email List
----------------
The mission for the Snipe mailing list is to promote communication
among Snipe sailors from across the country and around the world.
This includes regatta announcements and results, equipment questions,
tuning discussions, Snipes wanted or for sale, etc.  Basically
anything that would be interesting to Snipe sailors.  The list
currently includes over 90 people from 5 countries and 17 states.

Mailing list subscription and unsubscription requests, as well as
questions regarding the list can be sent to:

snipe-request@ai.mit.edu

Mail to be automatically forwarded to all people on the list should be
sent to:

snipe@ai.mit.edu

Snipe Email is now available in digest form.  If you subscribe in this
form, you will receive one message per week containing all of the
messages sent to the list during the previous week.  Please indicate
which form you prefer (digest or regular) in your subscription
message.

The mission for this list is to promote communication among Snipe
sailors from across the country and the world.  This includes regatta
announcements and results, equipment questions, tuning discussions,
Snipes wanted or for sale, etc.  Basically anything that would be
interesting to Snipe sailors.  The list currently includes over 80
people from 5 countries and 17 states.


The Snipe on the World Wide Web (WWW)
-------------------------------------
Alex Pline and Steve Keckler are compiling and posting Snipe related
material on the Snipe WWW Home Page, including a general description
of the Snipe and SCIRA, boat specifications, the Sniper's e-mail list,
a gallery of digitized photos (to date, mostly from the Women's
Worlds), recent regatta results, articles written on the Snipe, and
fleet listings.  The page can be accessed using popular WWW browsers
such as Mosaic, Cello or Netscape by opening the URL:

        http://www.ai.mit.edu/snipe/snipe.html

Any suggestions or ideas from viewers are encouraged! Interesting
photos of Snipes (on or off the water) can be included by 
contacting Alex Pline directly (apline@en.com).


Welcome to the Snipe Class
--------------------------
The Snipe is 15 1/2 foot, 2 person, one design racing dinghy. The
Snipe has a rich history dating to 1931. Originally designed by
William Crosby, to comply with the emerging "trailer class" of racing
sailboats, it has evolved into a modern International tactical racing
dinghy.  Although the class has some of the best competition in the
world, the class has not lost sight of the importance of social events
and, in fact, many regattas are as well known for their parties as
they are for their racing. The essence of the class is summed up by
it's motto "Serious sailing, Serious Fun."

Although designed in 1931, the boat is up to date as far as sail
controls and rigging is concerned. The class is a strict one design,
but allows for innovation in rigging and to a limited extent hull
design, under the auspices of the class governing body (SCIRA), a
strong and healthy national and international association which
governs all aspects of the class and its activities. This fact has
allowed the boat to evolve and mature with changes in technology,
while not obsoleting boats 15-20 years old. As proof, the average age
of the top ten boats at the 1994 North Americans was 8 years old. The
innovations of late have been in the area of the deck layout. Due to
the flexibility of the Snipe rig, a broad range of crew combinations
has proven successful in the Snipe, generating a very diverse group
competitors in terms of age, size,skill and gender. Crew weights of
250-330 pounds are competitive.

The Snipe sail plan consists of a main and jib only. Off the wind, the
Snipe utilizes a whisker pole for the jib, generally on an easily
operated boom-launched system. The whisker pole for the jib offers
many of the aspects of a spinnaker (tactics, something for the crew to
screw up :-) but doesn't have the cost and complexity of a third sail.

The Snipe can be cartopped (van topped) as the complete boat is 381
pounds, but is more easily trailed with virtually any type of car. A
certain green boat was once seen being trailed at high speed on the
trans-Canada highway behind a Nissan 240SX. The class is extremely
popular world-wide (the Japanese collegiate boat, the Optimist
successor for older youths in South America) and has fleets in all
parts of the US and the world. The Snipe Class sanctions many regattas
from the club level (high point championships) and US district
championships (6) to national events such as the Midwinter Circuit in
Florida and the Bahamas, as well as National (all countries) and
North/South American Championships and World (including Womens,
juniors and Masters) and Western Hemisphere Championships.  Although
there is much international racing the strength of the class is very
much in the local fleet racing activity. Competition in national
regattas reads like a who's who, but there is much room for us mere
mortals in regional regattas (and the big events, for that matter, as
most regattas are "open" not requiring qualification).

The boats are built by a variety of class approved builders and are
very well made giving them a long life. There are many competitive
used boats to be had between $2500-4000. New boats are priced around
$6500.

The Snipe Class is a great competitive time on the water and a
friendly and helpful atmosphere off. For more information about
"Serious Sailing, Serious Fun" please write or call The International
Snipe Class (SCIRA).

SCIRA Office:

Executive Director, Jerelyn Biehl
1833 Tustin St.
San Diego, CA 92106
76015.1441@compuserve.com
(619) 224-6998
(619) 224-6997 (fax)

If you contact the SCIRA office, please mention that you heard about
this on the internet.

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Hope to hear from you and see you on the race course!

Alex and Steve

Alex Pline
Space Experiments Division   "Moderation in Moderation"
NASA Lewis Research Center
                             PHONE:
SNAIL MAIL:                   (216) 433-6614
 NASA Lewis Research Center
 Mail Stop 500-102           INTERNET:
 21000 Brookpark Rd.          mail: apline@en.com
 Cleveland, OH 44135          WWW:  http://zeta.lerc.nasa.gov/stdce/pline.htm

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Steve Keckler                    Concurrent VLSI Architecture Group
545 Technology Square		 MIT Artificial Intelligence Laboratory
Room 619A			 Tel:     (617) 253-8473
Cambridge, MA 02139 USA		 Fax:	  (617) 253-5060
				 E-mail:  skeckler@ai.mit.edu

