Yes the Open Bic is Cheaper than the Optimist!
Following my blog post comparing the Open Bic to the Topper, I was asked if I was really sure the Optimist is more expensive than those two boats. Indeed, the Open Bic is a much more recent design, and it's a bit counter-intuitive that it would be cheaper than an Optimist.
In this blog post, we will present some price figures out of leading online stores in North America. We will also comment on the annual costs that are to be expected in terms of equipment.
Let’s check first the Open Bic.
A new Open Bic, complete, is listed on the website store.bicsport.com at 3,299,95 US$, including hull, rudder, daggerboard and complete 4.5 rig (mast, boom, blocks, sail, lines). With the Open Bic, things are simple: there is one manufacturer, one type of mast and boom (no sprit), one type of blades, one type of race sail (with a smaller sail available for lighter sailors).
Now let’s have a look at a race-ready Optimist
A new Optimist - pro racer, from the McLaughlin brand, is listed at US$ 4,250 on the website www.apsltd.com - a price that includes not only the hull, but also a choice of race spars (Black Gold, Giulietti or Optimax), a choice of blades (N1, Tebbertmann or WinDesign Pro Race) and a choice of race sail (Olimpic, North, J-Sail, WinDesign)
The company www.sturgisboatworks.com
also offers Far East Optimists, which are more reasonably priced: the
regatta package is at US$ 2,995, just below the price of the Open Bic,
but the championship package is at US$ 3,595, i.e. higher than the Open
Bic.
Note that the popular Winner brand is even more expensive. www.sturgisboatworks.com offers the Winner 3D Star Package, which includes Mk IV Optimax or Optiparts Black/Gold spars, and N1 Race Blades, at the price US$ 4,500, to which you need to add a sail, listed at US$ 550 — a total of 5,050 $.
Annual Costs
It’s normal to incur annual costs for dinghy sailing, and the first item to be regularly changed is the sail.
The Open Bic standard 4.5 square meters sail is listed at US$499.95, a price slightly lower than the ongoing price for a race level IODA approved Optimist sails (US$ 550)
Both for the Optimist and the Open Bic, you can find non-class sails on the market, at a fraction of that price, which may be a good option for training. See for example: http://www.intensitysails.com
The main difference in annual costs resides in the fact that, for the Optimist, you will need to change spars at least once, as lighter sailors require more flexible spars, adapted to the sail types geared towards lighter sailors. A set of Black Gold spars is listed at US$ 695.
The top end Optimist sailors will also choose blades according to their weights, which also adds costs. And a recent development has been the launch by the company Winner of a "flex" Optimist, particularly geared towards light weight sailors -- a logic meaning that you would need to purchase successively two race hulls for your sailor, as he/she is gaining weight! But even if you don't venture into those kinds of extremes, changing spars will be required, and add to your costs.
Another type of cost is the maintenance of the hull. Typically, race Optimists are pretty fragile and repairs tend to be needed on an annual basis. The Open Bic hulls appear to be more resilient.
As your sailor is progressing, you may end up also chartering boats for regattas. And here again, the Opti charter rates are typically higher than those for Open Bics.
And for international regattas, the costs to attend IODA events (North Americans, Worlds, etc.) are way higher than those for similar events in the Open Bic - something we will discuss in another blog post.
In Sum
So in sum, both in terms of initial purchase, and annual costs, the Optimist is indeed a more expensive boat than the Open Bic.
The good news: both the Optimist and the Open Bic tend to retain a good resale value. There are many cheaper sports, but also many more expensive ones.
And of course, there is no other sport such as sailing! :)
(all prices were checked on the day of writing this blog post - for sure, you can get from time to time better deals, do group purchases, etc. to reduce costs)
(and of course, for Canadian residents, convert in Canadian dollars, and add GST and provincial taxes to estimate your real cost).
 |
| Open Bic Dinghy - from Bic Sport |
In this blog post, we will present some price figures out of leading online stores in North America. We will also comment on the annual costs that are to be expected in terms of equipment.
Let’s check first the Open Bic.
A new Open Bic, complete, is listed on the website store.bicsport.com at 3,299,95 US$, including hull, rudder, daggerboard and complete 4.5 rig (mast, boom, blocks, sail, lines). With the Open Bic, things are simple: there is one manufacturer, one type of mast and boom (no sprit), one type of blades, one type of race sail (with a smaller sail available for lighter sailors).
Now let’s have a look at a race-ready Optimist
A new Optimist - pro racer, from the McLaughlin brand, is listed at US$ 4,250 on the website www.apsltd.com - a price that includes not only the hull, but also a choice of race spars (Black Gold, Giulietti or Optimax), a choice of blades (N1, Tebbertmann or WinDesign Pro Race) and a choice of race sail (Olimpic, North, J-Sail, WinDesign)
 |
| Winner Optimist Hull |
Note that the popular Winner brand is even more expensive. www.sturgisboatworks.com offers the Winner 3D Star Package, which includes Mk IV Optimax or Optiparts Black/Gold spars, and N1 Race Blades, at the price US$ 4,500, to which you need to add a sail, listed at US$ 550 — a total of 5,050 $.
Annual Costs
It’s normal to incur annual costs for dinghy sailing, and the first item to be regularly changed is the sail.
The Open Bic standard 4.5 square meters sail is listed at US$499.95, a price slightly lower than the ongoing price for a race level IODA approved Optimist sails (US$ 550)
 |
| Optimist Intensity Training Sail |
The main difference in annual costs resides in the fact that, for the Optimist, you will need to change spars at least once, as lighter sailors require more flexible spars, adapted to the sail types geared towards lighter sailors. A set of Black Gold spars is listed at US$ 695.
The top end Optimist sailors will also choose blades according to their weights, which also adds costs. And a recent development has been the launch by the company Winner of a "flex" Optimist, particularly geared towards light weight sailors -- a logic meaning that you would need to purchase successively two race hulls for your sailor, as he/she is gaining weight! But even if you don't venture into those kinds of extremes, changing spars will be required, and add to your costs.
Another type of cost is the maintenance of the hull. Typically, race Optimists are pretty fragile and repairs tend to be needed on an annual basis. The Open Bic hulls appear to be more resilient.
As your sailor is progressing, you may end up also chartering boats for regattas. And here again, the Opti charter rates are typically higher than those for Open Bics.
And for international regattas, the costs to attend IODA events (North Americans, Worlds, etc.) are way higher than those for similar events in the Open Bic - something we will discuss in another blog post.
In Sum
So in sum, both in terms of initial purchase, and annual costs, the Optimist is indeed a more expensive boat than the Open Bic.
The good news: both the Optimist and the Open Bic tend to retain a good resale value. There are many cheaper sports, but also many more expensive ones.
And of course, there is no other sport such as sailing! :)
(all prices were checked on the day of writing this blog post - for sure, you can get from time to time better deals, do group purchases, etc. to reduce costs)
(and of course, for Canadian residents, convert in Canadian dollars, and add GST and provincial taxes to estimate your real cost).
