International Cadet
The International Cadet was designed by Jack Holt in England in 1947 to be double handed training boat for children. Purposely made to be too small for an adult to sail but with all the attributes of a racing dinghy. Strictly controlled measurements has kept this ‘one design’ boat at the front of junior training world wide. The boat itself is 10ft. 7in. (3.2m) long, weighs 54 Kg. and has a sail of 49 (4.55 sq. m) in the working sails (main and jib) and 45 sq. ft. (4.2)sq. m) in the spinnaker.
Almost all skippers will have sailed as a crew for two or three years and will therefore have a great deal of experience and knowledge which they can pass down to new crews. The cadet provides a junior training and racing experience where the skipper and crew must work together as a team to obtain the best results.
Traditionally all cadets were built of wood,although use of foam sandwich fibreglass is now widely used. Due to the strength of design;boats up to forty years old can still be competitive if they have been properly maintained. Pricing ranges from $800.00 for a beginners second hand boats to $5,000.00 for a brand new boat ensuring there is something to fit everyone’s budget and sailing capabilities.
The class is currently sailed in three states in Australia, Tasmania, South Australia and Victoria with National championships held each year with fleets of over 60 boats. The top boats are eligible to sail at the world championships for the class,held at different venues around the world each year.
The cadet dinghy is sailed in over 20 countries such as Argentina, Australia, Holland, Germany, Spain, Hungary, Poland, New Zealand and the United Kingdom, making it one of the only truly International double handed training/racing dinghies.
Please click here to view the Victorian Cadet Association 6th fleet website.
