180 Sails | Powered by Evolution Sails | Chicago
Nobody wants to talk about the end of the season in August. We are not here to make you. We are here to point out that the best time to buy sails is right now, while you are still pretending summer lasts forever.
Every April, our phone starts ringing. The boat is going in, the regatta is three weeks out, and that tired main is suddenly an emergency. We are always happy to take the call. We would just be a lot happier to take it in August.
1. The pricing is the best you’ll see all year
Lofts want the production calendar full before the spring rush, and that shows up on your quote in a way it does not in April. We are not going to pretend a sail is cheap. We are going to point out that it is cheaper right now.
2. Your boat is still rigged, so we can see the real thing
Right now your boat is in the water, rig tuned, hardware exactly where it lives. We can measure that boat and see how the current sails are actually trimming. In February we’re measuring a spec sheet and a photo from the dock. We will squint at a picture if we have to. We would rather sail.
3. You still remember what went right (or wrong)
You spent all summer learning where the boat was fast (and slow). Now is the time to build on that knowledge and keep improving the boat and how she sails. By next spring those memories get a little hazy, and exactly which sail needed a tweak is long gone.
4. There is time to do ORC and PHRF optimization properly
Rating work takes time to do right. Late summer gives us the runway to build sails that work with your rating instead of against it. Squeeze that into March and something gets left on the table, and usually it is the thing that would have won you the race.
5. Avoid the spring rush
Look, we get it. Winter is long, and once the snow falls and the Christmas trees go up, everyone in the northern climates forgets about their boat. Then the first warm, sunny day arrives and the memory of that sail past its sell-by date comes rushing back. Now you are looking at higher prices, longer lead times, and a couple of races on the old sail while you wait.
6. You can test it before it counts
Order now and there is time to build, deliver, and fly it before the boat comes out. You finish the year on a new sail instead of nursing the old one and telling yourself it still looks fine from the cockpit. It does not look fine from the committee boat. You also get a shakedown before it matters, instead of learning the trim at the first start of next year.
The bottom line
Spring is when most sailors buy sails. Late summer is when the sailors we are chasing around the course buy them. Better pricing, better measurements, and a sail built while you still remember what the boat needed.
We are not asking you to admit summer is ending. We are asking you to order sails like it might. Call 180 Sails, powered by Evolution Sails, at 312-300-0518 or email Andy@180sails.com and we will set up a time to get aboard. Order by the end of the September for the best pricing!
P.S. Headed south this winter? We can turn sails around quickly this time of the year to make sure they are ready before you leave!
