A Smashing Time to trade in your LASER!!!

3:20 AM Sun 2 Aug 2009 GMT

'Marit Bouwmeester, Laser Radial, 4th. - Semaine Olympique Francaise, Hyeres, April 2009' Richard Langdon &copy Click Here to view large photo

Now is absolutely the best time to trade in your late model Laser for a new boat, with dealers across Australia and New Zealand offering smashing deals! If you're been putting off trading in your beloved Laser, rest assured that a quick trip to your local dealer will probably result in you leaving with a new boat. Laser dealers have been literally overwhelmed with requests for late model boats and so they're offering sensational deals on new stock.

Chris Caldecoat, from Performance Sailcraft Australasia, the Central Coast based Laser manufacturer said that the Win a Laser competition currently running on Sail-World.com has triggered the surge of interest in late model Lasers.

'The response to the Sail World competition has been phenomenal. We've had a huge number of replies.and people are looking for late model boats. A lot them are newcomers to Laser who just want to save that one thousand or two thousand dollars off the price of a new boat, but don't necessarily want to buy something too old so they've still got their resale value.'

'I've got a lot of dealers screaming for trade-ins! We encourage anyone to see their local dealer about trading their late model Laser in for a new one, so we can get more out there.'

At last count over two and half thousand people had entered Sail-Worlds Win a Laser competition with the PSA factory reporting the need to hire new staff to keep up with the demand it has generated. Not bad for an Australian manufacturer in the middle of a recession!

NED Laser Radial. - Semaine Olympique Francaise, Hyeres, April 2009 - Richard Langdon &copy Click Here to view large photo

Caldecoat commented that the competition had generated interest from people of all ages and walks of life, with the largest number of entries coming from the Masters demographic and parents with young kids.

'The kids have been flocking to the 4.7 and I think that parents are too, becausce they know that they've got a safe bet investing in a Laser.'

'They've got a good re-sale value, which is handy if Johnny decides that he doesn't want to do it in six months time. Or if he grows in spurts then they've only got to spend a small amount of money to change the rig from a 4.7 to a Radial, so it's a pretty safe bet in this economic environment.'

The Lasers Masters scene go from strength to strength, with the NSW Masters scene bigger than Ben Hur and the upcoming World Masters Games sparking a renewal of interest in the Radial class. But even we were surprised by the large number of Masters who were keen to win a brand new Laser.

The field was pretty evenly divided between people wanting to get back into sailing via the Laser class and current sailors looking to upgrade their existing boat. Another surprising result from the competition was the number of Masters sailors who said they wanted coaching, with one on one coaching selected as the most popular option.

Caldecoat said that PSA is in the process of putting together a coaching package for new and current Laser sailors '(the message is) that coaching works, like any sport'.

Paul Goodison, Laser. - Semaine Olympique Francaise, Hyeres, April 2009 - Richard Langdon &copy Click Here to view large photo

In the meantime, get down to your local Laser dealer for some truly fantastic trade in deals on late model boats!

And don't forget to enter the Sail-World Win a Laser competition, you need to answer 20 quick questions and in 25 words or less convince our judges that you are the worthy winner. The total package is valued at Australian retail $9200 or NZ retail $11495 and includes boat, spars, foils, sail, sail numbers, battens, turbo kit, rope kit, tiller and extension and beach dolly.

For more information on Lasers contact Performance Sailcraft:

Performance Sailcraft Pty Ltd
Lot 7 Catamaran Road, Ourimbah NSW 2258
Australia
www.lasersailing.com.au

by Jardine Media