Laser Pico - We Love Her

The sweet tale of MadforSailing's holiday romance with the Laser Pico

To regard the Pico as a beginner's boat would seriously underrate this very competent single-hander from Laser. Designed by Olympic medallist Jo Richards, the Pico offers a combination of qualities rarely found in one boat. A new manufacturing process (sandwich rotomoulding) and a top production team have come together to produce a boat so simple to sail, that a child could master it in a day.

For the MadforSailing review, Peter Bentley spent not one but three days at Minorca Sailing. This is just one of many sailing schools throughout Europe to adopt the Pico as the principal single-hander for beginners. Sailing the Pico in a mixture of wind conditions, it quickly became clear that trouble free sailing was obviously a priority at the design stage.

Unless you want adrenaline-rush, high performance racing, there is little to fault the Pico. Her MadforSailing Overall Rating reflects that fact, though the score is also dragged down a little by the lack of a comprehensive racing circuit. The new construction system (based on a process we've called sandwich rotomoulding) ensures durability and stiffness at a modest cost. Bob Gelfs at Minorca Sailing has been involved in prototype evaluation, and reckons the Pico is the nearest thing he's seen to an indestructible boat. All the fittings, including the dagger-board and rudder, follow standard Laser practice and work well.

The Pico is extremely easy to rig, stable and simple enough for almost anyone to get in and sail away. She tacks easily and is unlikely to sit in irons, an excellent attribute for a beginner's single-hander, and one which some of the competition conspicuously lacks. For more advanced users, the Pico also has a responsive nature. Off-wind, she accelerates well in a decent amount of breeze, and offers more excitement than expected. The Pico can carry a crew if necessary, coping well with the additional weight. It is ideal for taking young children on their first sail and there is an optional kit to add a jib.

It would be truly remarkable if this excellent product was totally without fault, and there are a couple of minor gripes. The moulded-in non-slip is quite vicious, and scuffed skin is a complaint brought about by the roughness of the finish - dubbed 'Pico Knee' by Minorca Sailing instructors. Our reviewer's sailing gear looked like it had been through a month's sailing after just a couple of days.

It's nowhere near enough of a fault to stop the relentless advance of the Pico. First launched in 1996, 5000 have been sold to mid-2000. A busy race circuit includes many local events and club racing for kids. Open meetings are attracting up to 40 boats, with the 'Pico Pile-up' in Weston becoming a popular annual event.

Laser have introduced a bigger than standard racing sail, which will give the accomplished learner more mileage from the Pico, before moving on to a larger dinghy. Laser claims that 75% of UK sailing centres have Picos in their fleets, and family owners are not far behind in the sales figures. That's not surprising - as a fun beach boat for the kids, or a recreational boat for their parents, the Pico has few rivals.

Rants Future icon
Raves Pico Knee - non-slip is tough on skin and clothes

Photo by Peter Bentley

The Nitty Gritty

Ease of Sailing

The design brief for Laser was to produce a boat that would allow sailing to compete with other easy-access sports, where the new user simply turns up and gets started. Our experience demonstrated the extent to which they have succeeded. It's also a reflection on Minorca Sailing's instructors, but the first-time sailors were very much in charge of their own boat after just a couple of days. To teach beginners, the Pico takes some beating, vice-free and simple enough for almost anyone to get in and sail away.

Steering is well balanced and positive, providing just the right amount of feedback to alert both beginner and serious sailor to any out-of-balance forces. Equally, there is no need for subtlety in the trimming or steering as the forgiving rig and big rudder will compensate for most errors. Similarly, the pronounced keel and bilge runners provide both directional and roll stability without adversely affecting the Pico's responsiveness. And the balance between the hull and rig is such that the Pico is extremely reluctant to sit in irons, with the bow slowly paying off if the boat is stopped head to wind. Absolutely invaluable for those learning to sail.

Systems and Layout

The Pico is so simple to rig (the comprehensive instruction manual supplied is almost redundant) and so simple to sail, that a child could master it in a day. And maybe even the odd adult (I jest). Controls are limited to the usual three (cunningham, outhaul and kicker), they are all adjustable underway. The rudder system uses the increasingly popular swing-down-and-lock-with-the-tiller arrangement, secured by an easily replaceable bungee cord. It works well, but a more positive 'click' action to indicate that the rudder is fully down would be an advantage. The dagger-board fits easily in the case, and even when fully raised it clears both the boom and the kicking strap. That's a huge benefit for easy lee-shore launching, and impossible to foul up when gybing.

The single, padded toe-strap proves comfortable even for bare feet, and the curved decks suit a reasonably wide range of leg length. All the fittings - and there are precious few - follow standard Laser practice and work just fine. The cockpit is self-draining in all conditions and, while big enough for two, is sufficiently narrow to allow your feet to rest on the far side in light winds. Those with children will be delighted to know that the Pico has both the space and the performance to keep more than one person occupied at a time. The addition of the jib will keep both of them busy. The weight-carrying capacity and cockpit size are both sufficient to allow an adult and youngster to sail together with ease.

Performance

Those who do take the trouble to set-up the Pico carefully will reap the benefits. And more advanced users will delight in the Pico's responsive nature and surprisingly brisk performance. Upwind, the little boat belies her size, riding with a smoother motion than one might expect from her well flared bow sections and flat underwater profile. While offwind, the Pico accelerates briskly in a decent amount of breeze. She's surprisingly fast and offers more excitement than one might expect.

Although the Pico hull (at 60 kg) is slightly heavier than some of its rivals, this is unlikely to be a major factor for most would-be purchasers given the Pico's expected durability. The ability to cater for crews is also vital in this kind of boat and the wide flat-bottomed hull certainly proves very effective in this respect. One 105 kg Minorca Sailing beginner managed just fine - though he was frustrated by his inability to keep up with the 45 kg ladies in light winds. At the other end of the spectrum we sailed the boat with crews of less than 40 kg in plenty of wind.

Build Quality

The new sandwich rotomoulding process produces boats of perfectly acceptable build quality. And the rest of the detailing is well up to Laser's normal standard.

Anticipated Durability

Laser has given much thought to performance and durability. Exemplified by the new manufacturing process developed for the Pico, offering superb durability and reasonable stiffness at a modest cost. From what we saw, you could drop one off a roof and do little harm.

Quality of Race Circuit

The Pico was launched in 1996, with around 5000 sold to date. The race circuit in 2000 included local events, club racing for kids, and one open meeting attracted almost 40 boats. The addition of the bigger than standard, racing sail, may encourage more regatta participation.

Value for Money

Difficult to find fault with this one - exciting, fun, simple, easy to maintain and modestly priced.