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The K6 is one of three new boats from the LDC stable launched
at this year's London Boat Show. For a sneak preview, and to find
out if this new dinghy/keelboat lived up to its exciting reputation,
sailpower.com's editor Sue Pelling took it for a spin on the solent...
With ink on the line drawings barely
dry from the successful RS800 high performance racing dinghy, LDC
have been at it again, this time with a new boat designed to attract
sailors from both the dinghy and big boat market. The RSK6 is LDC's
introduction to keelboats. At just under 6m LOA with a total overall
weight of just 260kg, this boat could be really appealing for those
looking for low-hassle keelboat racing for under £13,000. The 200kg
crew limit means you'll never need more than three crew and, unlike
other small keelboats that need four-wheel drive vehicle to tow
them, and cranes to assist with launch and recovery, the K6 can
be handled just like a big dinghy.
With the initial design idea coming from Rondar Raceboats' Paul
Young and the lines drawn up by Paul Handley, a prototype was built
in early 1999. The development continued throughout the year and
the hull and deck design was signed off. A plug was then made using
a hi-tech CNC milling machine - usually associated with the car
industry - and once the mould had been taken from that, production
began on the first batch of boats.
On the water performance
As with all new boats, it's the first impression that's often the
most important one. Thankfully the K6's racy, fine lines put her
immediately into the 'kind on the eye' category and, although she's
primarily a keelboat, she has a distinct dinghy flavour. Having
rigged the boat in less than half an hour on the trailer, we carefully
launched her off the slipway at Hamble Point Marina. And while my
crewman, Martin Wadhams parked the car, I was able to hold the boat
with little effort. Once the mainsail had been hoisted we sailed
out into deep water to secure the fixed rudder (production boats
will be supplied with lifting rudders), lowered the lifting keel,
unfurled the genoa and sailed off into the sunset - well, threatening
black clouds on the horizon! With a pending storm approaching, our
sail on the Solent was short and sweet but nevertheless very exciting.
On the helm the K6 was amazingly light and sensitive - just the
sort of feel you'd get from a performance dinghy. She was also incredible
responsive on the tacks and gybes and basically made life very enjoyable.
I have to say I was really impressed with her performance. She
excelled through all sailing angles and, with the 29m² (B14-sized)
spinnaker up, she rocketed downwind. Because we were out on our
own, it was hard to judge the speed but it didn't take long to get
from the middle of the Solent to mouth of the Hamble River in a
building breeze. As with all LDC boats she's been very well thought
out. The layout is simple and, for a racer, the control lines are
exactly where you'd expect to find them. And the self-tacking jib
works really well, particularly downwind when you need 100 percent
concentration on keeping the kite flying through the gybes.
More than any new boat I've seen recently, I can really see the
K6 taking off big time. It's fun and most importantly in our busy,
changing world when time at a premium, it's hassle free and, thanks
to her epoxy foam-sandwich construction, she's easy to maintain.
Contact
To find out more about the K6, log on to the LDC Racing Sailboats
website at www.ldcracingsailboats.co.uk.
Specification
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LOA:
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5.80m
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Beam:
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1.97m
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Sail Area: Main and Jib
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19.7sq m
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Spinnaker
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29sq m
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Sailing Weight:
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260kg
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Price:
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£12,995 ready to sail excluding trailer
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