B E Y O N D 2 0

B E Y O N D 2008 BEYO ND 2008 BEYO ND 2008 RS:X Beyond 2008 Contents

• Introduction - 4

• The Provider - 5

• The Olympic Experience - 16

• RS:X Facts - 27

• RS:X Submission - 2012 Olympics Sailing Regatta - 36

RS:X - CONTENTS RS:X Beyond 2008 Introduction

Dear Partners,

Developing the RS:X as the Olympic One These efforts culminated in a successful Design Windsurfing Class was an exciting Olympic Regatta in Qingdao where I believe challenge for our company. We are proud the performance of the RS:X validated the of the success we have achieved with the design parameters established for Olympic RS:X. In conjunction with our partners of Windsurfing by the ISAF and proved the the ISAF, we have established the RS:X as a performance of the RS:X equipment. new vibrant and exciting International Olympic Windsurfing Class and possibly the As an ex-Olympic sailor myself, I have taken most technologically advanced sailing an intense interest in the development of equipment in the Olympic Regatta. Olympic sailing and our company is proud to have been involved with Olympic Sailing During four years of close collaboration with since 1992 when we supplied the Lechner top sailors and representatives of the ISAF, One Design Olympic Rig. Since 2000, we the RS:X Board and Rig has proven in have also been the exclusive supplier of 49er Olympic competition that it delivers an Class Sails and we were the provider of the impressive sailing performance in winds RS:X Boards and Rigs for the 2008 Olympic ranging from 3 – 30 knots which in itself is a Sailing Regatta. remarkable technical accomplishment. We look forward to maintaining our In addition, we have worked with the RS:X involvement with the ISAF in Olympic Sailing Class Association and the ISAF to establish and working with the RS:X Class National RS:X fleets around the world and a Organisation to widen the spread of National comprehensive calendar of RS:X events. and International RS:X events, building on the success of the last four years to create an outstanding Olympic Sailing Regatta in 2012.

RS:X - INTRODUCTION 4 PRO VIDER RS:X Beyond 2008 PROVIDER Neil Pryde Limited (Pryde Group) designed and developed the RS:X Olympic Windsurﬁng Equipment and is the exclusive manufacturer.

Neil Pryde Limited was established in Hong Kong in 1970 and is today a diversiﬁed Manufacturer, Marketer and Distributor of Actions Sports products and world leader in Windsurﬁng equipment with the Neil Pryde and JP Australia brands.

The Pryde Group has annual sales in excess of US$100 million with more than 3000 employees world-wide.

The company operates manufacturing facilities in China and Thailand and has established a world-wide distribution network centered around its wholly owned subsidiaries in North America and Europe.

The resources available to the Pryde Group underwrite the company’s ability to deliver on its commitments to Olympic Windsurﬁng including support of the RS:X World Championships and World Youth Championships.

The world-wide Distribution Network of the Pryde Group brings RS:X equipment within easy reach of sailors world-wide while our On-Line Spare Part service provides quick and convenient delivery on all essential parts to any RS:X sailor world-wide.

RS:X - PROVIDER 6 RS:X Beyond 2008 Group Structure

NEILPRYDE LIMITED Pryde Group Headquarters - Hong Kong Finance / Operations / Brand Management Strategy & Planning

MANUFACTURING DISTRIBUTION COMPANIES BRAND UNITS

PERFORMANCE PRYDE GROUP FRANCE SA CABRINHA MANUFACTURING European Distribution Hub Maui, Hawaii, USA China French Distribution Company

PERFORMANCE PRYDE GROUP GMBH FLOW MANUFACTURING German Distribution Company San Clemente, California, USA Thailand Munich, Germany

PRYDE UK LTD Redcar, Cleveland, UK JP-AUSTRALIA UK Distribution Company Austria

ADVENTURE SPORTS INC. PRYDE WATERWEAR Miami, Florida, USA Hong Kong US Distribution Hub

ADVENTURE SPORTS HAWAII NEIL PRYDE WINDSURFING Maui, Hawaii, USA Hong Kong

ADVENTURE SPORTS ASIA PACIFIC Hong Kong

RS:X - PROVIDER 7 RS:X Beyond 2008 Worldwide Ofﬁces

Watersports Flow Sports Adventure Sports Inc Pryde Group Pryde Group Performance Pryde Group Design Centre USA USA France SA GMBH Manufacturing Headquarters Maui San Clemente Miami Grenay Munich Thailand Hong Kong

Neil Pryde JP-Australia Performance Retail Store Brand HQ Manufacturing Maui Austria China

Cabrinha Flow Pryde UK Ltd Neil Pryde Brand HQ Brand HQ UK & Pryde Maui San Clemente Cleveland Brand HQ Hong Kong

RS:X - PROVIDER 8 RS:X Beyond 2008 Distribution

Pryde Group products are sold into more than 68 countries worldwide through a network of wholly owned distribution companies and strategic distribution partnerships.

Initially devised as a distribution and logistics network for the company’s own products, The Pryde Group now offers access to more than 3,500 retailers in the adventure and marine sports industry, making this an ideal launch platform for new Pryde Group brands looking to quickly broaden their global reach.

With more than 30 years experience in the industry The Pryde Group has developed a ﬁrst class reputation for successfully developing and marketing high performance products. The Pryde Group’s distribution network now plays an important role in ensuring the success of Pryde Group brands in the marketplace.

RS:X - PROVIDER 9 RS:X Beyond 2008 Distribution - Europe

Pryde UK Pryde Group GMBH

Located in Redcar in the North East of England, Located in Munich, Pryde Group GmbH are Pryde UK is a newly formed joint venture that the sole distributors for Pryde Group brands in will substantially boost sales of Pryde Group Germany and Austria, servicing a dealer base brands in the influential UK market. of more than 550 stores with a selection of Winter and Summer sports products. As an island with a rich maritime history the UK offers enormous potential for growth in the In addition to the Pryde Group brands, they Sailing and Surfing markets as well as in our also distribute additional branded product lines existing Windsurfing Kiteboarding and covering snow helmets, protective wear, Snowboarding sectors. snowboarding tools & accessories and windsurf boards.

Pryde Group France SA

Located in Grenay, Pryde Group France SA are sole distributors for Pryde Group Products in France, with a dealer base of almost 600 stores.

In addition to the Pryde Group brands, they also distribute additional branded product lines covering snow helmets, protective wear, snowboarding tools and accessories and windsurf boards. Pryde Group France SA has recently begun servicing dealers in Switzerland, Spain and Portugal.

RS:X - PROVIDER 10 RS:X Beyond 2008 Distribution - North America

Adventure Sports Inc. East Coast Canada Sales Ofﬁce - Miami t 4BMFT.BOBHFNFOU - Water Sports Sales - Waterwear Sales - S. America & Caribbean Markets Asia U %JSFDU4BMFT

Europe Flow Sports West Coast Caribbean

HQ - San Clemente t'JOBODF t 0QFSBUJPOT t#SBOE.BOBHFNFOU - Flow 3FUBJM"DDPVOUT4FSWJDFE t 4BMFT.BOBHFNFOU South America - Winter Sports Sales - Winter Sports 590 - Water Sports 220 - Water Sports Sales t .BOVGBDUVSJOH4BMFT

RS:X - PROVIDER 11 RS:X Beyond 2008 Distribution - Asia Paciﬁc

Pryde Group Asia Paciﬁc

Korea & Japan Adventure Sports Asia Paciﬁc - ASAP

Located within the PrydeGroup Hong Kong HQ, ASAP supplies Pryde Group brands to 15 countries around the Asia Paciﬁc region.

Indian Ocean Islands

Australia & NZ

RS:X - PROVIDER 12 RS:X Beyond 2008 Brands

The Pryde Group owns a portfolio of Five brands, each targeting a speciﬁc niche in the marine and adventure sports markets. All of the Pryde Group brands are represented by premium priced, high performance products, and our aim for

each of our brands is to be number one in its respective market or segment.

Over the past decade, the Pryde Group has built a world-class reputation for the development of highly-engineered, elegantly designed products that sell at

premium prices to a committed consumer base.

The Pryde Group brand portfolio targets Marine and Adventure sport retailers with the intention of providing them with year-round earnings on a long-term basis.

RS:X - PROVIDER 7 RS:X Beyond 2008 PrydeGroup Brands

For full details of each of our brands visit these websites:

neilpryde.com NeilPryde Windsurﬁng Cabrinha Kiteboarding neilprydewaterwear.com

jp-australia.com

cabrinhakites.com

ﬂow.com

Pryde Waterwear

JPA Windsurf Boards Flow Snowboarding

RS:X - PROVIDER 14 RS:X Beyond 2008 Manufacturing

With factories in China and Thailand, the Pryde Group’s manufacturing business employs more than 2,000 workers and operates under the name Performance Manufacturing. Developed initially to manufacture the company’s own products, Performance Manufacturing has emerged as a highly successful specialist manufacturer of high performance sports equipment for the Board Sports industry, supplying products to many of the leading brands. Performance Manufacturing products are divided largely between ‘hard goods’ and ‘soft goods’. Hard Goods includes technical equipment for Windsurﬁng, Kiteboarding and Snowboarding (i.e. Sails, rig parts, kites, snowboard boots & bindings). Soft Goods refers to the company’s extensive wetsuit & waterwear business and the production of sewn goods, such as sports and equipment bags and soft-sided accessories.

China

Thailand Fu Rong Sail & Kite Making Chiang Mai Neoprene Production Performance Apparel Wetsuits & Waterwear Waterwear Technical Hard Goods 7,560 sq/ft Sailing Rig Parts 200 Staff Snow Bindings 34,000 sq/ft 2,500 Staff

RS:X - PROVIDER 15 T HE OLY MPIC EXPER IENCE RS:X Beyond 2008

RS:X - THE OLYMPIC EXPERIENCE 2008 17 RS:X Beyond 2008 Regatta Summary

Pryde Group is proud to be the manufacturer of the RS:X and congratulates the medal winners in this prestigious event.

The design brief laid down by ISAF in 2004 called for a board capable of performing in 3-30 knots and the RS:X lived up to this challenge as the conditions in Qingdao proved to be varied and testing.

With strong currents and the wind dropping down to just 5 knots in Race Five and getting up to 22 knots in Race Seven, the RS:X took to the course alongside the other yachting classes and each race proceeded as scheduled. Strong currents further complicated the racing with 6 knot winds often accompanied by 2 knots of current.

Overall, the conditions were varied and some experienced Olympic sailors believe the Qingdao regatta to be the windiest since Korea in 1988. The RS:X was able to deliver racing to the ISAF schedule, so guaranteeing live racing coverage and a TV suitable format. This is essential in today’s media environment.

As is the Olympic tradition, the board livery was updated for the event and coupled with the brightly coloured sails the RS:X created a visual spectacle at the regatta. Each sail was adorned with the sailors name, ﬂag and country designation making the event easy for spectators to follow and enjoy as country ﬂags were visible at the windward mark from as far away as the start line.

With just 6 points separating the top three in both the men’s and women’s divisions the competition was very close, creating excitement and anticipation right till the end, but ultimately the top sailors came through with both the 2008 RS:X World Champions in the medals. Tom Ashley of New Zealand added Olympic Gold to the World Championship he won in Auckland in January 2008, a truly remarkable double that was richly deserved given the sheer consistency of his performances. Silver was taken by the experienced French sailor Julien Bontemps and the bronze medal by the precocious youngster from Israel, Shahar Zubari, who was seen front looping his allocated RS:X Olympic equipment in pure “end over end” fashion during the windy practice day, pre the regatta.

RS:X - THE OLYMPIC EXPERIENCE 2008 18 RS:X Beyond 2008 Results & Highlights

The Women’s Gold medal was won by local favourite Jian Yin of China in a performance that will be truly be life changing as it represents China’s ﬁrst ever medal in Olympic sailing. Jian Yin’s performance went one better than the silver she won at the Athens Games in 2004.

Yin’s board will now be kept on permanent display at the Qingdao Maritime Museum and will be known as the “Gold windsurfer”. Alessandra Sensini from Italy also created history by becoming the ﬁrst woman to win four Olympic Sailing medals, by placing second, also one better than the bronze she won in Athens. Third was Britain’s Bryony Shaw.

As one of just two classes where all the equipment is supplied by the manufacturer, the RS:X sailors arrived in Qingdao relatively empty handed, but now not only do the winners get to take home their medals but they also get to take home their complete RS:X sets. As an ex-Olympic sailor and avid yachtsman Mr Pryde understands how attached a sailor can be to a winning boat and offered Tom Ashley of New Zealand and Jian Yin of China their RS:X sails and boards to keep as a memento of this historic occasion.

This event has been a true test of the RS:X equipment and as we look ahead to 2012 its clear that the RS:X has fulﬁlled the requirements of the ISAF brief and the resulting competition is a testament to the nature of one design racing.

The equipment performed to the ISAF brief and requirements in conditions as varied as 4 -22 knots true wind and from near ﬂatwater through to 1.5 meter swells.

“As a New Zealander living in China, I couldn’t be more proud of the Olympic result. Seeing both my country of birth and my home for the past 35 years top the podium and having the regatta sailed on the NeilPryde RS:X has been hugely exciting and a great honour for Pryde Group”

Neil Pryde

RS:X - THE OLYMPIC EXPERIENCE 2008 19 RS:X Beyond 2008 Performance through the Wind Range : Guaranteed Result

The RS:X can perform in such a testing range of conditions due to the hybrid design that assures upwind progress can be made in the lightest racing conditions using the daggerboard, combined with dynamic short board planing characteristics when wind speeds increase.

Olympic race schedules and modern day media obligations such as Television coverage dictate that races take place to a pre-determined program. Waiting for wind is simply not an option and the hybrid design guarantees the RS:X delivers a spectacle.

The short water line length of the RS:X also adds another tactical dimension in the lighter winds as the board is quick to spin into a tack as wind shifts come down the course. Sailors report they are able to take advantage of small shifts in a way they could not on previous Olympic boards as those long boards favoured sailing as fast as possible into the next gust, regardless of direction.

Downwind gybing angles remain essential in all windspeeds and correct angles deliver large gains over the ﬂeet, making the RS:X tactically demanding, technical to sail and physically challenging.

RS:X - THE OLYMPIC EXPERIENCE 2008 20 RS:X Beyond 2008 RS:X Consistency of shape : Years of Integrity (i)

Hull and Foils

The RS:X is built to the highest speciﬁcation of any Olympic sailing class. The hull and rig are built from full carbon ﬁber layup, guaranteeing the lightest possible weight and the highest possible consistency in production.

The use of carbon also ensures that the hulls retain their stiffness and designed shape over several racing seasons. No other material can deliver this consistency and use of anything other than a full carbon layup will likely result in shape deformation and a requirement on the sailor or MNA to buy several new hulls a season in order to maintain performance, this is a feature of some of the other Olympic sailing classes that don’t use carbon ﬁber.

In the RS:X class, we have seen three year old boards winning world championships in January 2008. The cost of ownership of the RS:X is therefore extremely affordable and represents excellent value.

Pryde Group created a new production process in collaboration with the manufacturer to allow the highest level of shape replication from hull to hull. This process completes the construction of the board in a “One shot” process that sets the ﬁnished hull shape in the mould and allows for a full cure before the hull is removed.

We also reduced the number of moulds used for each item (board, daggerboard & ﬁns) to one per item. Reducing the mould count also reduced to a minimum production tolerances. One-design classes can’t use multiple moulds!

We also used a small dedicated production team that specialized in the RS:X, let them become experts in the RS:X and understand the projects quality objective.

Use a stand alone production line for the RS:X and make quality in all areas the key production consideration.

Built 110 boards and measure each board on 33 stations and weigh the hull.

RS:X - THE OLYMPIC EXPERIENCE 2008 21 RS:X Beyond 2008 RS:X Consistency of shape : Years of Integrity (ii)

Hull and Foils

Cut the sail panels from the same batches of material to ensure the closest possible elongation and stretch characteristics across the sails.

Use the same limited number of production personnel to assemble the panels and control the sail shape through tight build tolerances of the key vertical and horizontal seams.

ISAF technical delegate checked batten conﬁguration to ensure the length of each tube and tip section was the same from batten to batten and sail to sail. ISAF also checked sails by visual checking of seam and print positions by “stacking” sails. These tests were passed successfully.

Pryde Group ensured all battens used a special color shrink wrap to enable us to visually check the battens in the sails were built for the Games.

All powerbase units were checked on a test jig by deﬂecting 200 times to ensure there were no tendon failures.

We ran a special Olympic production of 300 masts and checked the bend data for each one. Together with the ISAF technical delegate during his visit in China, we veriﬁed this data again by bending the masts for a second time.

ISAF & Pryde Group then selected the closest 48 masts for the Men’s ﬂeet and 35 masts for the women’s ﬂeet. The selection criteria was based on “cherry picking” the closest masts in terms of bend characteristics and weight.

150 carbon booms were built for the Games and the closest 80 by weight were selected for delivery to Qingdao. These 80 booms were within 6 grams of each other.

RS:X - THE OLYMPIC EXPERIENCE 2008 22 RS:X Beyond 2008 Quality and Accountability

ISAF’s technical delegate visited Thailand in April 2008 and each board was measured to verify the data provided by the supplier was accurate. Once this was done, the closest 77 boards were selected as Olympic boards with agreement of ISAF.

We allocated one craftsman to checking rail sharpness and ensuring all boards had the same rail ﬁnish. This ensures early planing characteristics are matched from board to board.

Dedicate one craftsman to complete the bottom finish on each board. Using the same person to finish the bottom of each board creates same surface finish and therefore performance across all boards.

Pryde Group built new CNC steel moulds for the fins and a new mould for the daggerboard and created fin jigs for both the foils section and outline planshape. These jigs established the allowable minimum and maximum thickness of the blades and provides a “Yes / No” quality check in production. Outline templates ensure rake angles are consistent and fair. All fins were checked in the jigs to ensure compliance with specifications and the ISAF technical delegate checked fins at random during the pre-Games equipment check.

RS:X - THE OLYMPIC EXPERIENCE 2008 23 RS:X Beyond 2008 Testimonials

“From my point of view , it seemed to be a great success from the equipment supply side.”

(Coach of Taiwan) Alex Mowday “NP and Cobra did an absolutely incredible job with the equipment. The boards were very even, the sails looked fantastic and nobody broke masts or booms. What more can we ask for?? Congratulations.”

(Gold Medallist - Beijing 2009) Tom Ashley

“The RS:X Equipment was of high quality and I believe the equipment played no part in the success or failure of the individuals at the 2008 Games”. (Coach of Great Britain) Barrie Edginton

“the equipment was awesome NP did a great job” (3 Times Olympic Medallist) Barbara Kendall

“In terms of the equipment that was supplied I thought everything was great” (Coach of Australia) Lars Kleppich

RS:X - THE OLYMPIC EXPERIENCE 2008 24 RS:X Beyond 2008

RS:X - THE OLYMPIC EXPERIENCE 2008 25 RS:X Beyond 2008 RS:X - Delivering!

RS:X - THE OLYMPIC EXPERIENCE 2008 26 FACTS RS:X Beyond 2008 What is the NeilPryde RS:X?

The RS:X came about as a result of a successful bid by NeilPryde WIndsurﬁng to supply one design windsurﬁng equipment for the 2008 Olympic Games in China. The RS:X was designed in 2004 and went into production in 2005.

The RS:X design features a high technology rig, with carbon mast and boom, a ‘wide-style’ board that merges modern windsurf board design with a centreboard, thus enabling competitions to he held in virtually any condition from 3 to 30 knots. This means that the RS:X is always a dynamic, versatile class to observe, and racing is always close, exciting and visually appealing.

Two sizes of sail are available for competitors. Men use a 9.5m sail while women and youth use an 8.5m sail. The sail, rig and board have been designed in conjunction with each other in order to to ensure a high level of design synergy.

The RS:X Class Association was established in November 2006, and is critical to the establishment and ongoing development of the RS:X as an international Olympic Class.

The RS:X is the most affordable yachting class that is eligible for competition in the Olympic Games. It is also very easy to transport, as it can be carried on commercial aircraft as excess baggage, thus allowing sailors to compete internationally at minimal expense. This allows the scheduling of many regattas which can be attended by a large number of sailors from all over the world.

The inaugural RS:X World Championships were held at Lake Garda, Italy, and featured some 244 competitors. Subsequent World Championship Regattas in Portugal and New Zealand attracted 186 and 193 sailors respectively. For more details refer to page 29.

RS:X - FACTS 28 RS:X Beyond 2008 Speciﬁcations

Dimensions Board Length 285.6 cm Beam 93.3 cm Volume 227 Litres Thickness 13.8 cm

Women’s 490 cm Mast Length Men’s 520 cm Weights Hull Only 15.75 kg 8.5m sail (Women) 5.5 kg 9.5m sail (Men) 6.1 kg 490 mast (Women) 2.2 kg 520 mast (Men) 2.4 kg Boom 3.05 kg Hull Construction & Materials

PVC / Carbon / Epoxy sandwich over CNC machined EPS foam core. One-shot boards are pressed and cured in a single-shot process that reduces hand work to the minimum, resulting in a high degree of shape consistency.

RS:X - FACTS 29 RS:X Beyond 2008 Design

RS:X - THE OLYMPIC EXPERIENCE 2008 30 RS:X Beyond 2008 Sailor Appeal

Performance Across The Spectrum

The RS:X in the Olympic family mirrors the type of equipment in use for high level windsurf racing generally with the added advantage of having a centreboard which allows it to race effectively in sub-planing conditions. The addition of the slalom end to the standard courses has been welcomed by racers as a good innovation in all wind speeds.

When addressing the relative needs concerning style of racing - i.e. strategic vs. athleticism vs. boat handling vs. boat speed, the RS:X class rewards all aspects. Competitors must be able to sail the correct course and downwind tacking angles also become important especially in the lighter conditions.

The One-Design nature of the equipment means terminal and average speeds are very close and advantage is usually gained by better tactical decision making.

Brain and brawn are rewarded in a relative equal manner. With so many boards on the starting line a sailor must be able to make a top quality start from the front row or ﬁnd themselves in a tough position to recover.

The RS:X has been designed to perform in conditions from 3-30 knots. The daggerboard and adjustable mast track allow the board to race successfully in as little as 3 knots and still make effective upwind progress.

As wind speeds increase the daggerboard is retracted, the mast moved backwards in the mast track and the board becomes an effective planning surface with the sailor riding the board from the tail. This reflects modern windsurfing and makes the RS:X truly relevant.

RS:X - FACTS 31 RS:X Beyond 2008 World Championship Regattas (i)

2008 Olympic games (Qingdao, China)

35 Boards for Men 27 Boards for Women 35 Countries represented by Men 27 Countries represented by Women

2008 RS:X World Championships (Takapuna, Auckland, New Zealand - RS:X Q System)

117 Boards for Men 76 Boards for Women 45 Countries represented by Men 33 Countries represented by Women 5 Continents

2007 RS:X World Championship (Cascais, Portugal - ISAF Q System)

113 Boards for Men 73 Boards for Women 41 Countries represented by Men 28 Countries represented by Women 5 Continents

2007 RS:X European Championships (Limassol, Cyprus - ISAF Q System)

68 Boards for Men 40 Boards for Women 23 Countries represented by Men 16 Countries represented by Women

2007 RS:X South American Championships (Buzios, Brazil)

20 Boards for Men 7 Boards for Women 14 Countries represented by Men 4 Countries represented by Women

RS:X - FACTS 32 RS:X Beyond 2008 World Championship Regattas (ii)

2007 RS:X Asian Continental Championships (Pattaya, Thailand)

34 Boards for Men 11 Boards for Women 8 Countries represented by Men 7 Countries represented by Women

2007 RS:X Youth World Championships (Sopot, Poland - Open Entry)

65 Boards for Boys 29 Boards for Girls 13 Countries represented in Boys RS:X Youth Worlds 8 Countries represented by Girls RS:X Youth Worlds 3 Continents

2006 RS:X World Championship (Lake Garda, Italy - Open Entry)

164 Boards for Men 80 Boards for Women 37 Countries represented by Men 28 Countries represented by Women 5 Continents

The Class has started to develop its Youth Racing Programme in support of the ISAF Youth World Championships by staging its own Youth World Championship for boys and girls (U19). Every other year this will be staged outside Europe (2008 in Thailand). In these years the class will stage a Youth European Championship. In addition, the class has established the ﬁrst of a proposed series of regional regattas being the Baltic Cup ( Latvia, Poland & Estonia) in co-operation with the Bic Techno 293 Class to enable young sailors to gain international experience at minimal cost.

RS:X - FACTS 33 RS:X Beyond 2008 World Championship Regattas (iii)

RS:X - THE OLYMPIC EXPERIENCE 2008 34 RS:X Beyond 2008 Class Association Structure & History

Class Executive and Country of Residence Class History

President Mike Dempsey GBR The RS:X Class was founded in November 2006. 1st Vice President Piotr Hlavaty POL In 2007, the Class Rules were 2nd Vice President Ben Barger USA reviewed and amended to ensure that they are as clear Treasurer Martin Aldridge GBR and precise as possible.

ISAF Representative & Life Member Rich Jeffries USA Following this, the Class Standard Notices of Race & Championship Sailing Instructions have also been Technical Committee Chairman Ilker Bayinder TUR reviewed so that they comply with the latest ISAF standards. Women's Fleet Representative Olga Maslivet UKR

Men's Fleet Representative Nicholas Huguet FRA

Coach Representative Rene Appel HKG

Life Member Aaron Botzer ISR

Life Member Barbara Kendall NZL

World Secretary Rory Ramsden GBR

Note: There are currently 49 paid-up Class Association Members

RS:X - FACTS 35 R S:X SUBMISSION

2012 OLYMPIC SAILING REGATTA RS:X Beyond 2008 Speciﬁcations

Dimensions Board Length 285.6 cm Beam 93.3 cm Volume 227 Litres Thickness 13.8 cm

RS:X - SUBMISSION 2012 OLYMPIC SAILING REGATTA 37 RS:X Beyond 2008 Measurement (i)

One Design Measures & Tolerances

All boards are one design and are measured within a tolerance range by the supplier. Any boards that are not able to measure into this range are rejected.

Board manufacturer signs a RS:X Certiﬁcate of Compliance for each board produced. This conﬁrms multiple inspection and measurement points as conforming to class rules.

Multiple stations are measured using jigs and templates. Rail sections, overall rocker line, concaves and V-sections are all measured in the factory as part of the certiﬁcation process.

The One-Shot construction process produces boards with a reduced tolerance range that ensures the closest possible performance characteristics across the class.

A measurement jig is available that allows 11 stations to be measured in a repeatable fashion to ascertain hull dimensions. This has been used at major regatta’s to create a data pool for the RS:X class. This jig is designed to reduce in size via use of a swing arm and to box conveniently for sea or air freight. The jig is made of box section alloy and is therefore light and strong.

Masts are delivered with serial numbers on base and tips to clearly identify matching sections.

The hull, ﬁns and daggerboard use a water transfer sticker. This is easily removed from the surface of the item if sanded too much by the sailor. This method prevents sailors from fundamentally changing the core shape of the foils and hull and preserves the one- design ethic of the class.

Finally, we have invested in a new mould for the hull and daggerboard (composite technology) and also for both ﬁns (CNC’d steel moulds). These moulds are producing ﬁns and daggerboards that are as close as possible in terms of tolerance.

We have also developed a new fin jig measurement tool that will be used by the supplier to ensure each and every fin fits within the minimum / maximum allowable tolerance, which is in the range of 0.6mm in relation to foil thickness.

RS:X - SUBMISSION 2012 OLYMPIC SAILING REGATTA 38 RS:X Beyond 2008 Measurement (ii)

Continental & World Championship One-Design Measures

The RS:X Regatta Measurement Process involves checking serial numbers and logos on all parts and Check-Measuring a sample selection of hulls.

Measurement of a hull takes approximately 9 minutes for an experienced measurer.

Due to in-house certiﬁcation (construction manual tolerances agreed with ISAF/RS:X Class) actual measurement at regattas is reduced to a minimum.

RS:X - SUBMISSION 2012 OLYMPIC SAILING REGATTA 39 RS:X Beyond 2008 Production & Quality Control

The builder has full production and build speciﬁcations. On top of this they have a full manual documenting their own internal procedures in relation to all aspects of construction.

Production moulds are now reduced to one each for the board, ﬁns and daggerboards. This provides ultimate repeatability and adherence to ISAF / Class Association accepted speciﬁcations. A back up mould for the board exists to be used in the event of a catastrophic failure of the # 1 mould. This will ensure production continues unaffected.

The RS:X Class is not suitable for home build.

RS:X - SUBMISSION 2012 OLYMPIC SAILING REGATTA 40 RS:X Beyond 2008 Manufacturing & Supply (i)

Equipment Supplier Names & International Service & Sales Network Locations

Sails, Booms, Bases, Extensions & Footstraps RS:X Sales Service & Spare parts are available via an established network Pryde Group Performance Manufacturing of Pryde Group distributors in 68 countries. Fu Rong, Shenzhen, China

Hulls U Pryde Group have also established an on-line store that sells spare parts Cobra International Co Ltd direct to sailors from Hong Kong. Chonburi, Thailand U This service includes all major items with the exception of the board such as sails, masts and booms.

U Products ship from Hong Kong direct to sailors. Masts McLean Quality Composites U The service aims for a 24-Hour Turnaround from ordering to shipping Salt Lake City, West Jordan, Utah, USA the items ex-Hong Kong.

RS:X - SUBMISSION 2012 OLYMPIC SAILING REGATTA 41 RS:X Beyond 2008 Manufacturing & Supply (ii)

Manufacturing Capacity Supplying Rigs for Key Events

The RS:X was originally established with production capacities Aside from supplying 75 complete RS:X rigs to the 2008 based on a large growth pattern and signiﬁcant numbers of Olympic Games in Beijing, Pryde Group has also supplied boards on the water. To ensure this was possible, the supplier RS:X rigs to the last two RS:X ISAF Youth Worlds and will of the hull built a separate production facility to meet forecast supply 47 complete rigs to the 2008 Youth Worlds in demand. Slower than envisaged take up in the market meant Denmark. capacity was never challenged. We also have a stated intention to bid for the 2010 Youth Since July 2007, RS:X boards have been made on a “Build To Olympic Games. order” basis as we planned the switch to the new one-shot manufacturing technique. In the early stages of the class, two ﬂeets of boards were made available in Asia and Europe to enable early regattas One-shot board production is now established at 3 pcs per to take place with high participation numbers. day (70 per month). This would put annual capacity at approximately 800+ boards. There is potential to expand this should the need arise.

RS:X - SUBMISSION 2012 OLYMPIC SAILING REGATTA 42 RS:X Beyond 2008 Demographics & Geography

Physique & Build of RS:X Sailors

RS:X sailors tend to be in the range of 62-72 kg for for Men and between 55-65 kg for Women. This is slightly heavier than the IMCO and based on the fact that the RS:X is a wide, modern design and this delivers better weight carrying characteristics than traditional long, narrow boards.

Fleet Sizes & Locations

By the end of August 2008, a total of 1,958 RS:X boards have been sold worldwide and 3,792 RS:X sails. (For a detailed breakdown of RS:X sales per country see appendices).

RS:X - SUBMISSION 2012 OLYMPIC SAILING REGATTA 43 RS:X Beyond 2008 Equipment Cost & Transportation

Product Price ( ) Cost of Campaigning

RS:X Board 2,007.50 There is no hard-and-fast measure available for this as RS:X Fin 60 cm - Women 109.20 athletes train and compete in a wide variety of wind and water conditions. Also individual athletes handling and RS:X Fin 66 cm - Men 134.90 care of their equipment can seriously effect the long- term life of their gear. RS:X Sail 8.5 - Women 635.60 Warranty rates for RS:X products are currently in-line with other commercially available, high-performance RS:X Sail 9.5 - Men 693.60 windsurﬁng products.

RS:X Mast 490 - Women 336.00

RS:X Mast 520 - Men 369.60 As an Olympic Sailing Class however, the RS:X has possibly the lowest equipment cost of any of the classes. RS:X Boom 225-265 604.80

RS:X Extension 48 cm 28.70 Due to its relatively compact size, the cost of traveling with RS:X rigs is also signiﬁcantly lower than with other RS:X Power U-Base 35.90 Olympic Class vessels. RS:X rigs can easily be road transported either RS:X Adjustable Downhaul 112.90 individually on standard car roof racks or stacked on car- towed boat trailers. RS:X Board Bag 174.30 For long-distance travel RS:X rigs can be checked-in at RS:X Rig Bag 520/9.5 174.30 airports and most airlines are willing to accept them as Excess Baggage. Most international RS:X competitors RS:X Rig Bag 490/8.5 174.30 use this method to transport their rigs to events.

RS:X - SUBMISSION 2012 OLYMPIC SAILING REGATTA 44 RS:X Beyond 2008 Media Appeal (i)

Boatspeed in Windspeeds of 5, 15, 25 Online Innovation Knots Up-Wind & Off-Wind

The class is developing its own media and event strategy Boatspeed Boatspeed to proactively maximise the appeal of the class to the Windspeed Upwind Downwind media wordwide.

The first innovation it has made is to introduce a web- 5 Knots 3 Knots 2-4 Knots based Dynamic Scoring System (used at the 2008 RS:X World Championship) which shows the rounding order at each turning mark with times so that anyone anywhere in 15 Knots 9-12 Knots 13-17 Knots the world can follow a race as it is happening. 25 Knots 12-15 Knots 17-22 Knots The software also allows those interested in a particular racer(s) to receive a text or an e-mail alert each time that racer finishes a race giving his/her finishing position.

The system had more than 2000 individuals sign-up for this service at the 2008 Worlds. They collectively received more than 20,000 individual alerts.

We are working with the developer (an ex IMCO racer now working with IBM) to integrate the system into the RS:X website and to include LIVE tracking of the medal races.

RS:X - SUBMISSION 2012 OLYMPIC SAILING REGATTA 45 RS:X Beyond 2008 Media Appeal (ii)

Colourfulness of Sails

The sails feature coloured luff pockets (Red for Women and Orange for Men) and metallic silver ﬁlm in the upper panels. Planing ability and under various conditions

The RS:X is a planing hull and will plane in 8 knots. The advanced high tension camber induced sail supported by a 100% carbon mast and boom delivers rig efﬁciency in line with the highest technology in the industry.

Level of athleticism required

The board is suitable for normal windsurf racing at local and regional level. Obviously fitness becomes more important as the level of competition increases, however no special skills or unusual fitness requirements are necessary in order to sail and the race in the class. Level of innovation in the Equipment

As the class is one design, there are strict limitation on what the sailor can do to both the board and rig. This ensure parity. As the class was recently selected as an Olympic class and is of modern design, the components are from the latest designs and technologies available in the industry. Typical closeness of racing and level of overtaking

Light to moderate winds promote very close racing with multiple place changing opportunities. As wind speeds increase, higher skill levels and technical ability come to the fore and are rewarded with higher board speeds. This can separate the fleet more than in the lighter conditions. The courses raced help to maximise overtaking with the downwind legs also being tactical and requiring accurate angles to be sailed to maximise speed without increasing the distance sailed too much. Sailors have the option of two leeward marks and this helps keep their options open tactically and mean the race result can change late in the race. A final slalom section before the finish demands good boat handling skills late in the race and a final overtaking opportunity as competitors tire.

RS:X - SUBMISSION 2012 OLYMPIC SAILING REGATTA 46 RS:X Beyond 2008 Media Appeal (iii)

RS:X - THE OLYMPIC EXPERIENCE 2008 47

RS:X Beyond 2008 Boards & Sails - Units Sold up to and including 31st September 2008

1,000

Total Total 840 Boards Sails 800 Sold Sold

688 1,958 3,792

600

404 400 352 356 315

243 209 205 201 200 174 153 161 126 104 88 87 82 72 83 63 54 66 62 54 49 37 39 42 4646 32 20 24 22 19 25 3030 17 5 11 4 4 3 3 0

USA SPAIN ITALY JAPAN KOREA RUSSIA ISRAEL FRANCE GREECE POLAND CANADA HK/CHINA GERMANY THAILAND S.AFRICA DENMARK AUSTRALIA SINGAPORE PHILIPPINES NEW ZEALAND NETHERLAND NEW CALEDONIA UNITED KINGDOM

RS:X - SUBMISSION 2012 OLYMPIC SAILING REGATTA 49 RS:X Beyond 2008 Masts & Booms - Units Sold up to and including 31st September 2008

800

Total Total 690 Masts Booms Sold Sold 600 557 3,256 2,518 524

450

400 340

279 276

220 197 200 175 174 159 132 114 117 93 8787 77 67 7272 65 64 66 60 55 57 51 54 46 40 43 38 40 19 19 31 25 14 7 5 4 3 33 3 0

USA SPAIN ITALY JAPAN KOREA RUSSIA ISRAEL FRANCE GREECE POLAND CANADA TURKEY HK/CHINA GERMANY THAILAND S.AFRICA DENMARK AUSTRALIA SINGAPORE PHILIPPINES NEW ZEALAND NETHERLAND NEW CALEDONIA UNITED KINGDOM

RS:X - SUBMISSION 2012 OLYMPIC SAILING REGATTA 50 RS:X Beyond 2008 Overview of World Markets

AMERICAS EUROPE AFRICA ASIA-PACIFIC AUSTRALASIA

Adventure Sports Inc. Pryde Group France SA South Africa ASAP (Hong Kong) Australia USA / Hawaii France China New Caledonia Argentina Benelux Hong Kong New Zealand Brazil Portugal Vietnam Canada Switzerland Chile India Colombia Pryde Group GMBH Indonesia Ecuador Germany Japan Mexico Austria Korea Peru Bulgaria Malaysia Uruguay Croatia Philippines Venezuela Cyprus Singapore Czech Republic Thailand Greece Taiwan Hungary Malta Turkey E. European Countries

Neilpryde Scandinavia Denmark Finland Norway Sweden

Pryde UK Ltd. United Kingdom

Israel Italy Poland Spain Russia PrydeGroup Independent Distributor Distributor

RS:X - SUBMISSION 2012 OLYMPIC SAILING REGATTA 51 RS:X Beyond 2008 One-Shot Board Production (i)

PRODUCTION HISTORY TO DATE...

From the start, RS:X boards have been built at Cobra to tighter production tolerances than all other board brands manufactured at that facility.

RS:X boards were originally built using the standard Cobra 2-Stage Construction Method - i.e. foam core is formed and CNC’d into shape. Bottom lay-up layers of cloth are applied to the foam core and pressed in the mould. The board is allowed to sit and cool. Deck lay-up layers are added to the core and the board is then placed back in the mould, heated and vacuumed - This two step process lead to production tolerances we all agreed were not ideal.

Pryde Group and Cobra have now developed a new One-Shot Construction Method. Within this process, both the deck and underside layers are laid up together in the mould and the board pressed and heated in “One shot”.

The One-Shot process ensures that the core shape is retained as both deck and underside cool and harden together in the mould. This holds the board closer to the designed shape as it hardens.

RS:X - SUBMISSION 2012 OLYMPIC SAILING REGATTA 52 RS:X Beyond 2008 One-Shot Board Production (ii)

PRODUCTION HISTORY

One-Shot Production Sample RS:X Boards have been Sea Tested in France and in Hong Kong under RS:X Class Association and ISAF supervision leading to an ofﬁcial approval.

One-Shot production of RS:X boards was introduced at Cobra in January 2008 with work being carried out by a dedicated team of RS:X production specialists.

RS:X - SUBMISSION 2012 OLYMPIC SAILING REGATTA 53 RS:X Beyond 2008 Board Inspection - Rail Proﬁles

Rail Proﬁle - all RS:X boards are checked at multiple points all around the board outline to ensure shape consistency of the Rail Proﬁle.

RS:X - SUBMISSION 2012 OLYMPIC SAILING REGATTA 54 RS:X Beyond 2008 Fin Inspection - Proﬁle Tolerances

All RS:X ﬁns are now cast in all-new Alloy Moulds which enable much closer shape tolerances. All ﬁns are subsequently tested in specially made jigs to ensure they meet the strict tolerances for Foil Thickness both Fore and Aft. Meanwhile a new composite mould has been developed to ensure shape consistency for the RS:X Daggerboard.

RS:X - SUBMISSION 2012 OLYMPIC SAILING REGATTA 55 RS:X Beyond 2008 Olympic Equipment Quality Control

75 Boards from a production of 110 will be individually selected for further BOARDS inspection and veriﬁcation by ISAF representatives.

75 Masts will also be individually selected from a batch of 300 having passed MASTS inspection for weight and bend curve characteristics.

75 Booms will be selected from a production batch of 180 - with correct weight BOOMS being the primary selection criteria.

RS:X - SUBMISSION 2012 OLYMPIC SAILING REGATTA 56 BEYO ND 2008 www.pryde-group.com