Capri 22

[magpie]

I''m considering getting one for PHRF racing. Seems like a reasonably quick boat that will sail to its rating (or better). Any thoughts on their competitiveness in a fleet of J24s, S2 7.9s, etc? Thanks.

[Jeff_H]

Capri 25''s are quite competitive under PHRF and od well against J''24''s. They were not very well built and they are now 20 or more years old so they often need a little remedial work to put back in racing condition. I have never heard of a competitive Capri 22.

Jeff

[magpie]

Thanks for the response. You said you never heard of a competitive Capri 22 - do you have any experience racing on or against them, or do you say that because you have no knowledge of them? If the former, would be interested in elaboration on your point. Thanks again.

[Jeff_H]

I have only seen one Capri 22 on the race course and it really was tanking.

My main point is that the Capri 22 was produced in pretty large numbers but I have never heard of one doing well on the race course. In contrast, I have heard of numerous J-22, Schock 235, S2 7.9, J-24, Schockwave 24, Kirby 25, Capri 25, Tripp 26 winning series even though some of these were produced in pretty small numbers. If the Capri 22''s were decent race boats I would expect them to show up in the results column once and a while. They don''t.

Jeff

[e-27 sailor]

Magpie, I sailed the Capri 22 for several years befor I bought my current boat. The Capri 22 is a outstanding daysailor in protected waters, but even in San Diego Harbor, we''d take a wave over the bow (and into the cockpit) occasionally.

If there''s a fleet of Capri 22s (15-20)where you live that race regularly, I''d consider racing one design with them. I think you''ll have a lot more fun. But in any case, look-up the PHRF boat rooster for your area to get a snapshot of what other people are racing in this size. I think you''ll find that 22'' boats are kind of on the fringe for PHRF racing. But if you do race PHRF, you''ll never have to worry about the course-you''ll have plenty of boats ahead of you to show you the way.

[shuttdh]

I have a Capri 22, and I have to say that it is a great PHRF boat, but not from the factory. With a little extra money, it can be set up nicely for racing. To compare it to Tripp 26 and other boats listed there is silly. The Capri 22 has similar disp/wl and sa/disp values as a J22, but the capri 22 has a lot higher rating. There have only been a 1000+ of these boats made, so give it some time. I have the only one last year that was listed in the PHRF of the Chesapeake.

[hwpratt]

I have a Capri 22 that I use almost exclusively for PHRF racing. It''s a blast and is competitive with other boats of comparable PHRF handicaps which are also of comparable size ... longer waterline boats tend to edge out ahead in the rougher stuff and heavier air (upwind only). It''s a crap shoot with boats of widely disparate PHRF handicaps, no matter what boat you race.

[madcap]

Both the Capri 25 and 22 do well in PHRF. You just don''t see as many out racing since they don''t have the big OD fleets like the J''s. The biggest problem with the Capri 22 is that it''s completely set-up wrong from the factory, so it''s PHRF number reflects that somewhat. But once properly set-up and a good set of sails it can be a hard boat to beat with a very slow 204 PHRF number (compared to the J/22''s 174!) We have done well with ours against a range of different boats, even beating out Colgate 26''s, 7.9''s, J/24 and J/30''s with no problem.

Both boats where well built, the 22 I think was a little beefier than the 25. But in the Capri 25''s defense, it was built as well as any other "light" displacement boat of that era (actually better than most!) which is why you still see most that were built still racing competetively.

[dwilbar]

Would love to set up a Capri 22 fleet in the southern Ches Bay. We have two in our Fleet!

[Sanduskysailor]

The Capri 22 can do well in PHRF depending on what the venue is and type of fleet it sails in. You will find the majority of Capri 22s on inland lakes for this reason. Also you are more likely to find more comparable boats in your class in those locations.

Then again, if you race on the Chesapeake or Great Lakes the boat doesn't fare too well because of the short chop and waves and power boat wakes. I raced in a class with a well sailed Capri 22 for 5 years. The venue was a bay off Lake Erie which had flat water some of the time. Unfortunately the class had a lot boats with longer water lines and a similar rating. Bottom line at a 201 rating it was pretty tough for the Capri 22 to do well against well sailed C&C 25s, Ranger 26s, Sabre 28 and Seidelman 25s. Over 4 years and 50 races the Capri 22 beat my old Sabre 28(201) once. This contrasts with the success the owner had with the boat on an inland lake.

I've always wondered why the Capri 22 and J-22 were rated 30 sec/mi apart. The J-22 has a better SA/D and better keel and rudder. But 30 sec/mi would seem a lot. Experience has shown that rating difference is well deserved in most all conditions. I would guess the Capri 22 would give the J-22 a tussle in 6-8 knots with flat water. If I wanted a boat to race in the 200 rating band I'd pick a Ranger 26 first and optimize it.