3000 (dinghy)

3000

A V3000 dinghy using both gennaker and trapeze
Designer	Derek Clark
Year	1996
Crew	2
Type	Monohull
Construction	GRP
LOA	4.40 metres (14.4 ft)
Beam	1.46 metres (4.8 ft)
Mast Length	6.02 metres (19.8 ft)
Mainsail area	8.60 square metres (92.6 sq ft)
Jib / Genoa area	3.20 square metres (34.4 sq ft)
Spinnaker area	12.80 square metres (137.8 sq ft)
RYA PN	1065

The 3000 (formally the Laser 3000) is a racing sailing dinghy crewed by two persons with a trapeze for the crew. Launched in 1996 as the Laser 3000, the 3000 was developed from the Laser 2, using the original Frank Bethwaite-designed planing hull combined with a new designed self-draining deck by Derek Clark. Clark also re-designed the rig, using spars and sails from premium proprietary sources and replacing the symmetric spinnaker of the Laser 2 by a larger asymmetric spinnaker (gennaker). The gennaker is chute-launched and retrieved using a single halyard line, and is set on a retractable bowsprit. Helm balance and handling were improved using a shorter-footed mainsail with two full-width battens giving a larger roach. A mast with conventional spreaders replaced the now-unusual diamond arrangement of the Laser 2.

The 3000 offers fast, exciting yet easy sailing, particularly for lighter sailors - couples, parent-child and teenage combinations are common at 3000 events. A modest rig size and forgiving nature means that if other classes are sailing on a windy day, any reasonably competently crewed 3000 will be able to join them and enjoy a sparkling sail.

The 3000 class organises racing for both the original boats built by Laser alongside boats sometimes tagged 'V3000' and currently built to the same design by VanderCraft. The latter are constructed from woven glass and epoxy resin using vacuum-bagging to produce a boat which is very stiff and light yet durable.

The mast on current boats uses externally run rigging to enable their being sealed and thus buoyant, reducing any tendency for the boat to invert in a capsize. Other innovations introduced with the boats included a centrally mounted bowsprit, a compression-strut kicker or 'Gnav' in place of the conventional kicking strap or boom vang, and ‘off-the-boom’ sheeting with a take-off block at mid-boom fed from an aft bridle. The latter two rigging variations give considerably more room in the boat for the crew members, and remove any objections levelled at the original boats of being cramped due to their centre-bridle and conventional kicker. The class rules permit all variations introduced since the original Laser 3000 to be retro-fitted to existing boats, which can generally be done with minimal trouble or expense.