Spring 2004 - Laser Class Website
Transcription
Spring 2004 - Laser Class Website
SPRING 2004 Treat yourself the best stuff f Laser Gear & ® Performance rigging... Our Mojo Performance Laser Rigging is a good example of how our attention to detail results in a superior product. The package includes all the new systems prerigged, fully assembled and ready to rumble! The MOJO Bag comes free with the “Colie Racing” Performance package – NOT the Dobro guitar (that stays with Dev down in the Toms River Delta). “Colie Deluxe” covers & soft accessories The original, highest quality, sharpest looking ...all made at Colie Sails’ Pro Shop, right here in Point Pleasant. The initial design of our Deluxe items is done by Dev, as is the material and thread selection. Stephanie and Nancie develop the patterns with Dev’s input. Nancie and Corby perform all the sewing operations. Finally, every product is personalized with your name or sail number! ■ Same Day Shipping ■ Absolute Top Quality ■ Made in America STITCHED WITH and your boat to a f rom the leader in r Accessories... A Hiking pants... We import 4 styles from Australia designed specifically for Laser sailors, including a perforated neo pair for hot climates. Sails... ■ We keep a fresh inventory of both North & Hyde. ■ Numbers and telltails are supplied and installed at no extra charge. ■ Same Day Shipping/West Coast Upgrade Applies We sweat the details so our customers don’t have to… As a supplier and outfitter of small sailboats our attention to detail is unprecedented. At Colie Sails Pro Shop we strive daily to source out the very best stuff for your sailing and to also determine that which is inferior. If you are unsure of exactly what gear, clothing, parts or performance upgrades are right for you – PLEASE call and discuss your needs with Dev or Stephanie. The favorite part of our business is helping Laser sailors and their families! Call or email us to GET YOUR MOJO WORKIN’ Laser/Radial/4.7 All Laser models are available fully upgraded “Colie Style”, re-boxed & shipped to your door! 1649 Bay Avenue, Point Pleasant, New Jersey 08742 Local & International 732.892.4344 Fax 732.899.8965 800.481.4349 www.sailorsproshop.com [email protected] Same Day Shipping on nearly all of our products including numbered sails and stenciled covers! E S T A B L I S H E D 1 9 7 6 3rd Day West Coast Upgrade! We upgrade to 3rd Day Select all non-oversize West Coast UPS shipments on orders of $200 or more at NO EXTRA CHARGE! We also stock all Camet & Magic Marine styles of hiking pants. Official publication of the International Laser Class Association, North American Region Box 6120 Annapolis, MD 21401 Phone: (410) 991-3719 Fax: (410) 266-3173 [email protected] www.Laser.org S P R I N G 2 0 0 4 District Contacts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6 ExCom Reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8 Editor James Appel Executive Director ILCA-NA Officers Peter Johns Chairman 15 Farm Valley Rd. Osterville, MA 02655 Phone: (508) 420-5210 Tracy Usher Vice Chairman 22 Creekside La San Mateo, CA 94401 Phone: (650) 926-3253 [email protected] Eric Faust Secretary 821 East 53rd Street Austin, TX 78751 Phone: (512) 467-1317 [email protected] John Dawson-Edwards Treasurer 795 Wheeler Road West Edmonton, AB T6M 2E5 Phone: (780) 487-0937 Fax: (780) 429-4843 [email protected] Message from ISAF President . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9 The Road to 2004 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 Laser Maintanence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 2004 Midwinters East . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13 Masters Corner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15 From the Districts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16 Laser World . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Center 2004 Event Schedule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20 2004 Grand Prix Standings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22 Sailing Fit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28 Advertising Rates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 Index to Advertising . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32 Membership Form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32 The Laser Forum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33 Tim Landt At Large 450 4th Ave North Tierra Verde, FL 33715 Phone: (727) 866-0613 Fax: (727) 866-8838 [email protected] James Appel Executive Secretary Box 6120 Annapolis, MD 21401 Phone: (410) 991-3719 Fax: (801) 454-8632 [email protected] Chris Raab, Newport Harbor Yacht Club, Newport Beach, CA PHOTO BY MARIA CHANDLER, M.D. www.Laser.org 5 BRITISH COLUMBIA 5 ALBERTA SASKATCHEWAN QUEBEC 4 MANITOBA NEW BRUNSWICK ONTARIO 6 WASHINGTON NORTH DAKOTA 22 OREGON IDAHO VERMONT MINNESOTA MICHIGAN NEW 9 YORK WISCONSIN 21 WYOMING 19 IOWA 10 PENNSYLVANIA 20 NEBRASKA OHIO 18 UTAH ILLINOIS WEST VIRGINIA KANSAS 23 25 16 OKLAHOMA NEW JERSEY 11 MARYLAND NORTH CAROLINA 12 TENNESSEE ARKANSAS 17 NEW MEXICO TEXAS SOUTH CAROLINA GEORGIA LOUISIANA 15 RHODE ISLAND CONNECTICUT KENTUCKY MISSOURI ARIZONA 8 MASSACHUSETTS VIRGINIA COLORADO CALIFORNIA NEW HAMPSHIRE 7 DELAWARE INDIANA NEVADA NOVA SCOTIA MAINE MONTANA SOUTH DAKOTA 24 1 2 3 PUERTO RICO AND THE CARIBBEAN 14 ALABAMA MISSISSIPPI 29 13 FLORIDA District 1 District 9 District 18 Andrew Childs, 5369 South Street #3, Halifax, NS B3J 1A3 902-423-5919. [email protected] Chas Williamson, 9 Lagrand Court Ithaca, NY 14850 607-272-0630. [email protected] We need a new District Secretary, please contact James Appel if you know of anyone. District 2 District 10 Denys Deschambeault, 5120 Du Havre, Trois Rivieres, PQ G8Y 5Y9 819-372-0842 [email protected] Phil Karcher 1104 Kennedy Drive Wall, NJ 07716 732-974-1887. [email protected] District 3 JR Futcher 11 Iowa Ave, Lewes Beach, DE 19958 302-465-2563, [email protected] Dave Abbott, 1248 Crestwood Dr. District 12 District 21 John Overton, 407 North Channel Drive Wrightsville Beach, NC 28480 910-509-0196, [email protected] Johannes Aubrecht, 25 Inner Drive St. Paul, MN 55116-1819 651-695-3157. [email protected] District 13 District 22 Tim Landt, 450 4th Ave. North Tierra Verde, FL 33715 727-866-0613. [email protected] Orrin Webber, 460 Orchard Ridge Rd Kalispell, MT 59901 406-257-7757. [email protected] District 14 District 23 Cal Herman, 7038 Catina St New Orleans, LA 70124, 504-282-1770 [email protected] James Richmond, Box 132 Nederland, CO 80466, 303-258-7125 [email protected] District 15 District 24 Bruce Moore, 201 River Rd, Coppell, TX, 75019, 972-393-5075 [email protected] Peter Phelan, 523 Mello Lane Santa Cruz, CA 95062 831-462-5528. [email protected] District 16 District 25 Katy Towles, 3117 Kerry lane, Oklahoma City, OK, 73120, 405-476-2859 [email protected] Nils Andersson, 13460 Hwy 8 SPC #92 Lakeside, CA 92040-5228 619-561-1722. [email protected] District 17 District 26 John Coolidge Guy Fleming, 44-392 Olina St. #6 Kaneohe, HI 96744-2617 808-955-4405. [email protected] Heinz Gebauer, 2205 South Millway - Unit 109 Mississauga ON L5L 3T2 905-820-8446. [email protected] District 4 Maureen Mathews, 11 Harvard Ave. Winnipeg, Manitoba R3M 0J6 [email protected] District 5 John Dawson Edwards 795 Wheeler Rd. W., Edmonton AB T6M 2E5 780-487-0937. [email protected] District 6 Andy Hunt, 111-2260 W 8st Ave, Vancouver BC, V6K 2A7 604-733-9663. Hotline: 206-525-5788. [email protected] District 7 Sally Sharp, 39 Caleb Dyer Lane Enfield, NH 03748 603-632-4192. [email protected] D7 Newsletter / Website Chris Morin [email protected] 207.775.5485 District 8 Don Woodworth, 15 Woodfield Ave Northport NY 11768 631-754-2840. [email protected] 6 District 11 District 19 Michael Moody, 7 Agate Way Williamston, MI, 48895-9423 517-655-3435. [email protected] District 20 Northbrook, IL 60062 847-564-8722. [email protected] SPRING 2004 Laser World Championship 2002 Laser. The boat is just the beginning. competition 4.7 camaraderie Radial Laser commitment 1-800-966-SAIL www.teamvanguard.com Sailing. Spread the Word. Repor t s CHAIRMAN’S REPORT PETER JOHNS Spring is almost here. For those in the Northeast it is a time to go over your boat and look at all the upcoming regattas to plan your summer sailing. Get off your couch, now it's time to shut down your computer and go sailing! You will meet lots of new sailors and support people who enjoy the sport as much as you. I went to the Masters Midwinters East and had a wonderful and very busy weekend. I was asked to help with the Race Committee and happy to be in a warm locale. I gladly accepted. What a great job Clearwater Yacht Club did, for two weekends they opened their club to the Laser class and put on two great regattas. These regattas do not just happen; they require planning and forethought for all the little details. There is usually one Chairperson in charge. That was the case in Clearwater. For several years Cassie Featherston has set up and run these regattas for the Laser class. We would like to thank Cassie for her hard work, I would also challenge each Laser sailor at their next regatta to find the Chairperson and show them your gratitude. There are many new items on the landscape at ILCA-NA; we have completed a first version of the Regatta Guidelines. This will allow each Chairperson running a Laser event to have a document they can edit, NOR, Sailing Instructions and general information. Look for this on the website. Speaking of the website, we are trying to make the regatta schedule more user friendly, in this issue is the hard copy schedule. Please send in pictures, results and anything about Lasers or their sailors to James; he will post it on the website or add it to The Laser Sailor. We have created a new set of ByLaws which, by the time you read this will be on the website for your review. Please remember these are general guidelines by which we will operate. We have kept them simple and reflected how we operate now. Please email someone on the Executive Committee if you have constructive input. After these are approved by the District Secretaries, we will continue forward with our quest to become a 8 501c3 organization. This will allow us to take donations and the donor will get a tax deduction. During the Masters Midwinters East, Tim Landt organized a fund raiser for Mark Mendelblatt at St Petersburg Yacht Club. This was a great event and raised enough money to cover the remaining costs for Mark to get to Athens. I know the entire Laser Class wishes Mark good luck! Finally, I want to challenge each member to add to the class. We need every member to take a younger sailor or new member under their wing, help them get up to speed on the course, take them to a new regatta or even get them to be a member of ILCA-NA. Now who is going to help me get up to speed on the race course? I have been known to be terrible downwind. See you at the next regatta. VICE CHAIRMAN’S REPORT TRACY USHER It is amazing how fast time passes; it hardly seems like last year's sailing season ended, when the new one is already on top of us! The major master's and open events of winter are now in the record books (see results and writeups of the Jack Swenson Master's, Master's MWE, MWE and MWW in this issue) and those of us lucky enough to live where the water is liquid are already starting our spring racing series. Pat Healy put in his second year as chief judge at the Midwinters East with his job made a bit easier this year by the breezier conditions (and fewer yellow flags than last year). I spoke with him for a while on the subject of Rule 42 and on the water judging (see his article in this issue). One question I had was how we can make sure to get experienced judges for our events and one of the things he suggested was that we should work to recruit judges from our own ranks. I think this is an excellent suggestion and I thought I would try here to being the process of encouraging our class members to consider going through the process of becoming a judge, with an eye to putting experienced people out on the water at our events. If you think this is something that sounds interesting, please don't hesitate to contact me, James or any of the Executive Committee members! As everyone knows, the Laser Worlds are "early" this year, to be held in Turkey during the month of May. North America will again be well represented at both the Senior and Master Worlds, though the total number we're sending to both is definitely down, a sad reflection on the reality of the times we live in now. It is unfortunate, especially since everyone tells me what a beautiful place Bitez is and how great the sailing conditions are there. Hopefully, this doesn't keep people completely out of their boats, especially since the really big event of this year will be the Laser North Americans at Cedar Point YC. With all I have been told, I am convinced this will be the biggest North Americans in recent memory, so start making your plans for that event now! For those on the West Coast there is a great line up as well, with the Laser PCC's in Monterey preceding the Laser/Radial US Nationals in Santa Cruz, then up to British Columbia for the Laser/Radial Canadian Nationals at Squamish. What a great way to start the summer! Hope to see lots of you on the water! TREASURER'S REPORT JOHN DAWSON-EDWARDS By the time you read this, the half year financials should be posted on the website. This is the first full year of the calendar year memberships, so we are watching with interest the rate at which revenue comes in. To encourage early payment each year we have introduced a $5.00 late fee (also applicable when you join at major regattas). We are being squeezed by the exchange rate to the British Pound. We remit 4.50 GBP to the UK for ILCA international dues for each member. At time of writing this is worth $8.25 US of your $35.00 US membership fee. Then also send back to the Districts up to $4.00 US per member based on the previous year's membership numbers. Our real income, therefore, is at a maximum, $22.75 per member. We are also down on the revenue front, with Vanguard advising us we will be down $3,500 compared to last year's contribution from boat sales. This squeezes us another $1.17 or so. While we can manage this year, we may be forced to raise annual fees next year to keep a balanced (or slightly positive) budget. Stay tuned and remember to pay your fees on time! SPRING 2004 A Message From President Henderson To LASER Sailors: It surely does not seem to have been over thirty years since Ian Bruce showed up in Toronto at the "Water Rats" with his "Toy" called the Laser designed by Bruce Kirby. It was a bitterly cold December day but we had an area where a Power Generating Station pumped warmer water into the bay keeping it free from ice. Ian asked Hans Fogh to sail it and it was Hans tightened the leech and made it such a powerful rig. Ian wanted to show the boat at the New York Boat Show and then enter the "Little America's Tea Cup" at the Play Boy Club on Lake Geneva Wisconsin here Buddy Melges grew up. The rest is history. The Laser fitted the needs of sailing as it was a counter culture to the nemesis of sailing which is escalating costs. What you see is what you get and win by talent not technology. It has stayed true to its original concept and is still the most popular sailing dinghy in the World. The various Laser rigs have allowed for a broader range of sailors to enjoy the concept. The major challenge to the Laser has been allowing the equipment to be used in the Olympics while not allowing those pressures to dominate the local and regional competitions. Several ideas have been used and the British idea of having a National Championship of club sailors was excellent. The Masters and Super Masters events also have ensured the health of the class. On top of this the class association both internationally and regionally has ensured it continued growth. It is strong class associa- tions and Yacht Clubs who face their responsibility to host regattas which makes sailing work. The sailors must be constantly reminded about this and respect that they are privileged to be allowed to use these facilities and structures. I would be remiss if I did not thank the Laser manufacturers especially Performance Sailcraft and Tim Coventry along with his sidekick Jeff Martin for their constant support by supplying equipment to Regional Games and ISAF Youth and other regattas. Without their involvement these international events could not happen. Laser Forever! with great respect, Paul Henderson, President International Sailing Federation The only gear designed for the One Design athlete. As a One Design sailor you require equipment that enables you to get the most out of your body, your ability, and your boat. Magic Marine gear is made from materials chosen specifically for sailing performance and stitched to withstand any challenge you will face. Strong, comfortable and cut out for the job. Magic Marine is athletic sailing gear made for the One Design world. w w w. m a g i c m a r i n e g e a r. c o m call 1-800-966-SAIL to find your local dealer www.laser.org 9 The Road to 2004 ANDREW CHILDS Laser sailing has been a part of my life for more than ten years. In those ten years, it feels like sailing has become more than just a past time, but a part of who I am. When Tracey Usher asked me to write an article about my road to the Olympic Trials, it gave me an opportunity to think about how and why I really started sailing. I don't think that racing Lasers has ever been about one event for me, but the things that have happened along the way. I can imagine that my own experiences as an athlete are not that different from many others in our sport. It's nice to have this opportunity to speak about it. Junior Sailing was always a lot of fun at my home Yacht Club (Bedford Basin) in Nova Scotia. Our program had a long history of producing great sailors. We also had amazing instructors and parents who enthusiastically helped organize summer travel plans. I'm sure that without these people I wouldn't still be racing Lasers today. I began to race my first Laser Full Rig when I was 15 years old, and less than 120 lbs. -there were very few Radials around in Nova Scotia at that time. It was tough, but the excitement of going to big regattas all around North America lured me in. I got to meet great people from all corners of the continent, as well as race a fun boat in many different places. As my regatta results gradually improved, so did my desire to train. This has not always been easy here in Nova Scotia where the water gets cold early in the fall, and warms up late in the spring. If you can't train year round, you're handicapped against those who can. My coach, Brian Todd has always been really keen to keep local sailors on the water late into the fall (or until its unbearable). The hours of the cold fall and early spring training always paid off. A good base of basic skill training early in the spring can set you up for a really solid racing season. On the other end, a good long push late into the fall will make it much easier to get back on the water in the spring, or at Mid-Winters! By the age of 18, I had bought a cargo van, equipped with bed and chesterfield. This was the normal progression amongst other good sailors from my area. Summers of traveling 10 with parents were over, and traveling solo or with friends was the norm. Taking this next step was important because I was able to go wherever good sailors were. As any great sailor will tell you, it's really important to train with competitors who are able to challenge your ability. In my case, I was extremely lucky to have an older, more experienced training companion. Mike Simms was going to Law School at Dalhousie University in Halifax (Nova Scotia) when I was starting to sail Lasers seriously. He had just finished his first Olympic campaign ('96), and was beginning another for 2000. The timing was right, and I was fortunate to spend hours on the water improving my skills with Mike. This time was invaluable to me; I pushed hard to become better. Each day was a new challenge, and this made sailing really fun. Mike's approach to sailing still affects the way I train and race today. Over the next three years I traveled to a lot of regattas. I had my first European regatta experience in 1999 at SPA, Danish Nationals (which I love to hate), and Kiel Week. These were humbling times as the level of competition was extremely high. Nevertheless, I had moments that were encouraging, and when I came home I still wanted to be a Laser sailor. Anyone who has been to a rainy Danish Nationals knows what I mean! I think that the toughest experiences we have while sailing tend to increase our desire for this sport. Since my first trip to Europe, I have made several more, and each time is a rewarding experience. There are a lot of great sailors in our class, and I have a lot of respect for those who are at the top. It takes a serious discipline to be a champion at any World Championships. My intent in writing this article was to elaborate on some of my experiences and memories while training for the 2004 Olympic Trials. However, I don't have any singular moments that really stand out alone. I can say that it takes a lot of practice, dedication, and sometimes perseverance to become a good sailor, but in the end it always feels worthwhile. For me, the best times have been traveling with great friends, or racing on a perfect day, windy and warm. I've been lucky to have some great friends who have remained in the sport for a long time; I think this has pushed me even harder. Perhaps that's what sailing Lasers is all about -always striving for the next level. My focus has never been placed entirely on one event. I think that sailing is a sport where you can achieve different objectives at every event you enter. My suggestion to anyone interested in becoming a better sailor is to learn as much as possible at every opportunity. Those who sail Lasers know that there are no boundaries for improving. That's what makes this sport so wonderful. See you on the water. SPRING 2004 IF L A S ’ T I E L Y T ES MELGES RACING Race with the best. Race with Melges Racing Gear—the ultimate performance sailing supplier. New boats, new sails, exclusive rigging packages, custom bags and covers. Race to our official website melges.com and see performance sailing up close. Check out our Melges Gear and Clothing page. Whether you race a Laser, Melges 24 or Performance Scow, we have the gear for your racing needs. Contact Melges Performance Sailboats TODAY! 75-111 2 2 6 2 • SA P.O. Box One • Ze nda, WI 53195 U Melges X Melges 16 Melges MC Melges C Melges 24 m es.co g l e m bsite: 0 • we Melges E Melges A DEALER Laser Maintenance & Care BY JACK MCVICKER, VANGUARD SAILBOATS From my position back in the fleet I have a hard time appreciating the gofast nuances that we always talk about after the racing is done. Getting tangled in the mainsheet or forgetting to install the tiller retaining pin are things I relate to. On that level, here are a few things that I have learned working in the Vanguard production facility that we should all know about our Lasers. They aren't the things that get you that last fraction of a knot. These are the things that could keep you from getting started. Each Laser has been made from the same recipe for about 30 years. There may be some slight differences but in general today's Laser is same boat as a 1970's version. The strength of the fleet is based on a strict dedication to one-design. On a practical level that means there is some old technology in each Laser. Towing First, here is some advice about towing. Don't! The pressure exerted on the hull when a Laser is towed can cause damage that might be visible but could remain hidden. Towing damage can significantly affect the stiffness of your hull and lead to gel coat and fiberglass cracking. It might be convenient to be first back to shore but it isn't worth the risk of sailing a damaged hull. Back-up Plates Each piece of hardware is screwed into a plywood back-up plate except the mainsheet block eyestrap (plastic or aluminum) and the outboard screw on each traveler fairlead (plastic). Since the backups are wood, caution should be taken when re-installing screws to prevent the wood from getting wet and to maintain the integrity of the initial thread. To re-install a screw always use a sealer and a hand screwdriver. Force the sealer into the screw hole before inserting the screw. Then twist the screw with your fingers 12 to find the thread. After finding the thread use a hand screwdriver to tighten the screw snugly. Using power drivers can result in cross threading and over turning the screw. result if frostbiters don't get all of the ice out of the mast step before stepping the mast.) Hull/Deck Joints Understanding two other design features of a Laser could help avoid problems also. At the bottom of each mast step, under the gel coat and a thin layer of fiberglass, there is a stainless steel wear plate. Under normal use the bottom mast plug wears away a portion of the gel coat and fiberglass. The plate stays secured because the wear pattern does not reach the outer diameter of the plate. The plate remains securely attached and prevents excessive wear under normal conditions. Occasionally, someone rigs a Laser and there is a rock or sand in the bottom of the tube. In the worst case, the foreign object can cause wear around the circumference of the plate. In the unlikely case that the plate becomes loose, simply glue it back in with a marine adhesive. Each Laser is bonded together with polyester bonding putty. There may be higher tech alternatives available but then it wouldn't be a Laser. Several times a season and after an impact, especially if your boat is leaking, you should inspect and repair the bonded joint. The repair is simple. Place the boat upside down on a set of saw horses. Use a disk grinder or Dremel tool to remove any cracked putty to a depth of ½". Be careful not to grind away the fiberglass hull or deck. The putty you are removing will be a pink/white color. If the area is wet let it dry before filling. Your local marine supply store will have putty appropriate to fill the void. Try to force the putty down into the void for a lasting repair. Mast Retaining Line Since the Pro style rigging package has become so popular a key preventive line is being overlooked by many sailors. Each boat is shipped with a mast retaining line in the kit. The line is intended to secure the mast in the event of a capsize. The construction of each Laser includes a rigid deck and a rigid mast base to support the mast. The mast base is not visible but it only supports the bottom 1" of the mast step tube. The tube connecting the two is not intended to support the rig. If the mast retaining line is not attached correctly the mast could slide out of the mast base (about 1" from the bottom of the mast step) when the boat capsizes. As the boat is righted, the pressure from breeze in the sail and the weight of the rig can cause the mast to break through the tube. This will not happen if the mast retaining line is rigged properly. (Similar damage could Wear Plate Breather Hole One last design feature to understand is the hole just below the hiking strap under the main sheet block. This is the breather hole. It allows the pressure in the hull to neutralize as the air inside warms and cools. The breather hole protects the boat as it is transported, stored, and launched. On a 70 degree spring day it is common to launch into a 50 degree body of water. It is helpful to realize that the air in the hull will contract and cause a vacuum effect. The breather hole will allow a free flow of air to relieve the pressure. Additionally, it is located in a "dry" location so water is not sucked in along with air. The breather hole should be checked often to be sure it is not obstructed. SPRING 2004 2004 Midwinter East RULES REPORT PAT HEALY, CHIEF JUDGE Here is a quick report about the onwater judging of Kinetics at this years Midwinters East Regatta. Since it has been twelve months since the class has tried on-water judging of Kinetics, it might be a good time to see what ISAF has done and how North American Laser sailors have responded. In Clearwater this year, we had nine Yellow Flag jury protests. This compares to sixteen last year's regatta and twenty-two at the US Nationals last August in Sayville, New York. Part of the difference is that there were four jury boats in Sayville and two in both Clearwater regattas. Also, this year's regatta had more races in winds over ten, sometimes thirty, knots. I was impressed by how the top sailors go fast without relying on protestable kinetics. Even in the light winds kinetics was at a minimum downwind. Upwind there was only one pumping flag due to violent body movement athwartships and the resulting flicking of the sail's leech. Most of last year's MWE flags were for pumping downwind. This year three were for pumping, three for rocking and three for sculling at the start. A misunderstood area of the rule is when you can pump in strong winds and big waves. RRS 42.3(b) says, "…when surfing or planning is possible, the boat's crew may pull the sheet … in order to INITIATE (my emphasis) … planing, but only once for each wave or gust of wind." You can pump once to help get your boat up on a plan or help it start down the face of a wave. However, if you are already planning, pumping ("repeated fanning … by trimming and releasing the sail…") you are breaking the rule. A second misunderstanding is sculling ("repeated movement of the helm not necessary for steering."). The four ISAF RRS 42 Interpretations on Sculling say that a penalty should be signal when: sculling but no clear www.laser.org change of direction (42-24), to offset the steering by the sail (crabbing) (4225), sculling continues when the sail can be filled (42-26), and to offset previous sculling (42-23). This last one caused the three sculling flags in Clearwater. A boat may scull above close-hauled to hold her place on the line or avoid a leeward boat. Then she must backwind the sail or simply drift down to close-hauled. Alternatively, she may sail head-to-wind and then scull back down to close-hauled. She cannot scull above close-hauled then scull back down to close-hauled. It was the later that the three sculling flags were flown. While we are on it, ISAF has posted the RRS 42 Interpretations in the Rules section of their website at sailing.org/rrs2001/ 42Interpretations.pdf. They were also reprinted here in "The Laser Sailor" last spring. It may be worth downloading the four pages and studying them for fifteen minutes. A non-RRS 42 rule is worth mentioning, the 720 Degree Turns Penalty (RRS 44.2). The rule has a time requirement. "After getting well clear … AS SOON AS POSSIBLE AFTER THE INCIDENT … by PROMPTLY (again, my emphasis)… making two complete 360 degree turns…" A boat that fouls just before going into a weather mark and allows herself to be swept around the mark then sail five or ten boat lengths before doing turns down the reach is putting themselves on this ice. Her skipper should not complain if they are called to task by a protesting boat that was deeply offended by the indiscretion. FULL RIGS BY TRACY USHER Thursday was warm, mostly overcast and the Laser fleet set sail for the racing area with hopes for a light air racing day. Unfortunately, it was too light for racing and after waiting for nearly 3 hours the RC wisely sent us ashore to try again the next day. Friday dawned with a nice breeze from the Northwest and low temperatures. Ok, it was downright cold. The forecast had called for highs in the mid 60's but I was told that the actual high temperature was in the mid 50's. Still better than the ice and snow most had run away from, but certainly not the suntan weather of the Master's regatta the weekend before. This was the windiest day (20+ knots?) with the largest waves (due to the onshore direction of the breeze) and there was a clear split between those who have regularly sailed in these conditions (and thought it was good, challenging racing) and those who haven't (and spent a fair amount of time upside down). In the end the RC probably had the worst of it, having to sit on pitching boats at anchor the entire day, but stuck it out to run three good races. Saturday was still overcast but the breeze had backed off quite a bit and the direction had clocked around enough to reduce the size of the seas. And it was at least 10 degrees warmer. My memory of the day had the breeze oscillating with large shifts either side of North (or just to the West of North) with a rather long time period. Seemingly the favored side of the first beat of each race was exactly the opposite of the previous race. The RC ran four races on Saturday and it was windy enough that everyone was really tired by the time they hit the dock (hungry too!). By Sunday the wind had swung to the East, directly offshore at Clearwater Beach, the sun was back out and the temperatures headed back up. I was told by a reliable local (and anonymous high ranking ILCA WC member) that it would be tricky sailing. And he was right: the wind would take turns filling from the left, then die, then fill from the right, then die, etc., always seeming to get just a bit stronger. The RC ran three races with the last starting to get windy again. In the 93 boat Laser Fleet, Mike Leigh won convincingly, besting some top Laser sailors including Marc de Haas from the Netherlands (second), Brendan Casey from Australia (third), Gavan Jones and Rory Fitzpatrick from Ireland, as well as a good fraction of the usual suspects from North America. In the end there were competitors from nine different countries sailing in the Laser fleet. The Laser MWE is one of four ISAF Grade 1 Laser events in North America (Miami OCR, MWE, NA's 13 and CORK) and its great to see how it is starting to attract top international competition to our events! Over in the 65 boat Radial fleet, Paige Railey dominated, with 6 firsts in nine races (she didn't need to sail the tenth, and last, race), beating out Matt Goetting in second, Charles Fulmer in third and James Liebl in fourth. Paige took home more hardware than anyone else: first in class, first Radial junior, first Radial woman and first in the qualification for US representative to the ISAF female single handed youth worlds. I think if anyone wants to catch her they better start by studying her article in the Winter Laser Sailor! The Clearwater Yacht Club again did a fine job running the MWE with great racing on the days they had control over. Cassie Featherston and her crew deserve our many thanks on again hosting a great event to kick off the 2004 Laser sailing season! BY CHRIS RAAB For at least four years now my wife and I have been flying to Florida for the Laser Midwinters held in Clearwater Beach. We stay at the Bellview Biltmore, the largest wood structure in the U.S. We love it because it resembles a Great Gatsby Mansion and includes an indoor spa that is as grand as they made them in the early 1900's including real coral pillars and tile work. The sailing facilities aren't fancy but very friendly. This year there were 64 competitors including some real studs like Augie Diaz, Kurt Taulbee and Andre Martinie from the Dominican Republic. On the first day there were 3 races. After the first two, I was in trouble with Kevin Kelly getting a 1-1. My first two races were a 5-9. In the third race, I leveraged left, rounded in the lead, and extended to win the race. The second day was warm, sunny, 6-10 knots and really, really choppy (just my stuff). I finished that day with a 3-3-2 which enabled me to finish in first place and 15 points ahead of second. I was pleased with my large "bowling" trophy which I gave to my father. We proceeded to play golf with Mark Mendleblatt (Laser Olympic representative) for the next three days. We got big ink in the St. Pete Times which recognized "Newport Harbor Yacht Club's Chris 14 Raab." The article focused mainly on Mark's Olympic fund raiser at St. Pete Yacht Club which we attended along with the Florida Attorney General, and the Mayor. Needless to say it was a success. I am starting to train for this year's Laser Master World Championship in Bietz, Turkey. Landing in Istanbul is worrying my wife, this will be the first year she isn't attending. RADIALS BY JAMES LIEBL What happened in the Radial Fleet at Midwinters East? The quick answer to that question is that Paige Railey went faster than the rest of us upwind and downwind. Any other questions? For those still curious, the fleet got a taste of things to come during Friday's first race. With a beautiful breeze, about 20 knots, and lovely waves, five to six feet, the race committee got us racing. The fleet split right after the gun, half heading to the right side and half sailing left. When the wind backed about 75% of the way up the beat, the left side paid big. Railey, coming in from the right, was a good distance back at the first weather mark of the regatta. However, with the combination of her boat speed and the fleet's confusion in trying to find the small leeward mark on the first run, she leapfrogged to first place at the top of the second beat. She didn't look back from that point, taking the bullet. Copying race one, Railey grabbed the lead on the second beat of the second race and won that one. For the third race, Railey had some company as Matt Goetting found some serious upwind speed. Once they headed onto the first reach of the trapezoid, both sailors extended slightly to give Railey a first and Goetting a second. Hats are off to the RC for racing us on Friday. Everyone had a blast! The downwind surfs were a wild, wild ride! Woo Hoo!! Alas, nothing lasts forever, and that includes the wind. So Saturday dawned totally different from Friday. Where Friday had big air and big swells, Saturday began light air and choppy. Royce Weber was the first to shift into the right gear for the lighter stuff, hitting the left side to get a win. Railey must have watched Weber use the left in that first race, because she hit that side in the second race and boat sped her way to a first place. The competition started to heat up though as Charles Fulmer earned a second place in this race. Combined with his third in the previous race, he was leapfrogging forward in the rankings. Unfortunately, his charge derailed for the day when an OCS in Saturday's third race negated a top three finish. Matt Goetting apparently decided that if Fulmer wasn't going to pressure Railey, he was. Goetting found the good shifts on the left, winning both the third and fourth races of the day. At the end of Saturday, with a total of 7 races run for the regatta, people started looking at the first throw out. Everyone, with the exception of Railey who had a total of 8 points after the discard, had ups and downs. Goetting sat in second with 20 points, Fulmer occupied third with 28 points, and Cy Thompson from the Virgin Islands possessed 33 points. With positions known, we headed out of the pass for Sunday's races. The good news was that the prediction showed decent breeze and significantly warmer conditions for the day. For the first time, people wore normal baseball caps instead of the nifty red ski hats given out at registration. The bad news for the fleet was that Railey figured out the shifts to nail wins in the first and second race. When Goetting ate a 20th in the first race, and Fulmer fell to a fourth in the second race, the regatta was mathematically over. Railey caught a coach's victory tow into the beach, leaving the rest of us to decide consolation positions with a final race. Back on shore, everyone enjoyed the nice, finally warm, sunny weather to pack the boats up. No matter how you ended up in the fleet, we all thoroughly enjoyed this regatta. Great sailing conditions, a super race committee, a nice facility, and the unbelievable organization and hospitality of Cassie Featherston made this an outstanding event. SPRING 2004 BY JOHN DAWSON-EDWARDS With cries of "about bloody time" and other worse phrases, your erstwhile master's coordinator has finally processed last season's results and arranged for the draw for the free sails. (Well actually he has not yet, but by forecasting the future he is trying to commit himself to doing it as stated!). Just two sails from Vanguard in 2003, but Steve Cockerill's Rooster Sailing is throwing in a pair of hikers (or goods of equivalent value) for the third and final draw prize. Check the web page for details of who won the draw. The NA Masters in Houston will be now history, with a few brave souls headed out to Turkey soon to challenge the rest of the world, or at least the part of it that shows up in Turkey. Your NA Region executive had requested a change of venue from ILCA but no dice. Strange that ILCA would allow two EuroMaster events to clash with the Worlds, but I gather there is some belief in Europe that the Turkey worlds are in the Asia-Pacific region, notwithstanding the proximity to all of Europe. Maybe we should be choosing more locations where we have some local masters sailors (as of March 4, there was one local sailor entered out of 117 posted). 2004 Jack Swenson Memorial Laser Master's Championships BY CARL SHELLBACH Sunday, February 15, 2004, dawned bright, as memories of recent romance faded and thoughts of serious sailboat racing descended upon the grounds of the Palm Beach Sailing Club. Not one, but two regattas were occurring this day, and the sailors and hosts were treated to a breakfast buffet that couldn't be beat. Promptly at 0930, the joint Skipper's meeting was called to order by Commodore Triangle, who introduced Carl Schellbach as PRO for the Laser Master's Championships for the coveted "Dirty Old Man of the Sea" trophy. Skipper's meeting over, time for www.laser.org Masters the Laser sailors to depart for the offshore course, leaving the Billy Cup sailors the entire lake. After a minor hang-up getting the courses set in the ocean, the first race started in about 12 knots of a southwest breeze. This was a difficult course to set, as the main committee boat, Jack Bailey's Trilogy, is difficult to anchor in more than 50 feet of water, which happens pretty close to shore around these parts! With the breeze out of the western half, Trilogy was forced to anchor in all of that, allowing for a moderate length course to stay far enough offshore to minimize the effect of the land on the breeze. As it was, the breezes were very shifty, and provided a good challenge for the sailors. Three races were run this day, all lasting approximately one hour (15 minutes short of the time limit). The 31 sailors seemed to have had enough, certainly of watching Jim Liebl of Melbourne trounce them three times in a row! Well, maybe except Buzzy Heusler of Tampa, right behind in each of the three races. The funny thing is that with the three firsts, Jim was TIED with Buzzy for first overall, with Great Grand Master Peter Seidenberg (of Seitech Dolly's fame) close in the hunt. The racers pulled into shore at about 1600, and got moderately cleaned up in time for a dinner party that couldn't be beat. Thanks much to Gail Schellbach and Sally Bailey for pulling the whole thing together. They got all the shopping done, and went off while the sailors were out doing their thing to obtain fresh fish and steaks for the revelers to grill that evening. Much fun was had, rehashing the days - and many day's prior, and I'm sure - racing. President's Day dawned a bit cooler, with breezes out of the northwest, again providing for a race committee challenge. As Trilogy had ingested something other than diesel, we had Ken Abbott's Edgewater for a main platform - a much easier boat to anchor in lots of water. Besides, the wind and the current were at odds, which had us drifting around in a circle around the anchor without putting too much stress on it! Jim Liebl had to work this day, giving some others opportunities to lead the way around the course. Another three races were run, lasting about 40 minutes each this time. Again, shifty conditions prevailed, giving a good challenge of both mental ability as well as the physical. The sailors arrived back at the dock at approximately 1400, with the awards ceremony scheduled for 1500. Molly Swenson arrived with the coveted Green Jacket, signifying honorary membership in the Royal Turkey Yacht Club, and the awards were presented to the top three in each division - Apprentice (35-44 years of age), Master (45-54), Grand Master (55-64), and Great Grand Master (65+). We had, for the first time, a bona fide Women's division, an eventuality we'd like to see repeated. The top sailor of the event, Great Grand Master Peter Seidenberg, was presented with the Jack Swenson Memorial "Dirty Old Man of the Sea" Perpetual Trophy, and again read all the names of every previous winner of this event (sewn into the green jacket). Lo and behold, his name came up in 1985. Yes, that's 1985. It was a great event; the sailors got a bunch of great racing in, a great party, and good revelry. Many of the sailors who had been coming to this event for years commented on what a great job the PBSC is doing with the property, and what a great facility it is for events such as this one. The regatta is indebted to Ethel Lindsey, without whose efforts and support this event wouldn't have been a mere shadow. We will truly miss her. Thanks also to the entire membership at the Palm Beach Sailing Club for their continual support of this event. 15 From the Districts District 1 – Andrew Childs Spring has arrived in D-1! This season’s regatta planning is well under way. Here are some of the relevant dates: The annual Spring Series will take place at the RNSYS on May 1-2, 8-9, and 15-16. Dress warm! The Youth Olympic Training Seminar (YOTS) will take place at BBYC on July 8-9. Expect some great coaching as always. YOTS is followed immediately by ARK also at BBYC on July 1011. The annual St. Margaret’s Bay Regatta will take place July 17-18 on “The Bay”! The Bay Regatta is also District One’s Grand Prix Title Event, so be there to collect your points! The RNSYS will be hosting Sail East this year on July 23 - 25. This will be a huge event, don’t’ miss it! Next is the CYA 23 and Under Championships which is hosted by the Charlottetown YC on P.E.I., July 30-31. Finally, the Annual Fall Series will run on weekends Sept. 18-19, Sept 25-26, and Oct. 2-3. The location is T.B.A. It will be another great season of Good Times Laser Racing in the Maritimes. See you on the Water! District 2 – Denys Deschambeault For the second year in a row I have not been able to come up for a date to hold the grand prix district two regatta in time for publications in the spring edition. As of today I am not aware of anything going on, rest asure as these things usually comes out in May. I am getting lots of request for used boats. Do not hesitate to contact me for any matters related to laser sailing. In just ten weeks we will be able to get the bottom of our boats wet, in the upright position that is. Regards, Denys District 3 – Heinz Gebauer By the time you get this message sailing should be getting into full swing in Ontario, at least at the Water Rats it will be, weather permitting of course. Right now there is a whole lot of nothing going on, as we wait for the ice to melt and the frigid water to warm up. There had been a lot of work going by our District 3 regatta coordinator, Paul Muldoon, to get the 2004 schedule in order. This is often a very difficult and time consuming task as we try to 16 schedule so many regattas in a short period of time. We cannot always meet everyone's request, but we try our best to do so. We have a full schedule of events planned, which you will find in this newsletter, or on the District 3 website (www.d3laser.ca). Not yet on the schedule is an informal racing and camping week we are planning for August 8-13 at Killbear Provincial Park (Killbear Race Week?). If you have never been there, you should go. It is absolutely beautiful and probably one of the best sailing locations in Ontario. Get on the Ontario Parks website and book a campsite soon (launching from the beach at Harold Point), as this park is very popular. Hope to see you there, or at another regatta. Nigel Heath District 4 – Maureen Mathews I'm in Oxford going to school this winter and I won't be back to District Four until the season is well begun. I haven't been idle though. Oxford has a Sailing team and I went out to cheer them on when they hosted a multi-university team sailing regatta on a little reservoir nearby. I do mean small, a rectangle less than 1 km in either direction, and at the moment of the races there was very little water in it. I arrived mid-afternoon and thought I'd missed the event because as I walked up the slope of the reservoir bank, I couldn't see any boats at all. I reached the edge, looked over the concrete walls of the reservoir and down at the tops of Laser masts! The wind must have been a little unpredictable down there in that hole. They had set a zig zag course and were running races every five minutes and were on race 40 when I got there. They managed to get sixty races in before the wind died and the darkness fell. I can't tell you how happy I was to see all those boats and all those kids. I won't bore you with results but the hosts did all right - much better than the most recent "boat race" - the Oxford /Cambridge rowing race - which was a debacle. One of the Oxford crew members was hit by his own oar and broke a rib right at the start and it got worse after that! Oh, the shame! I'm sure the Sailing team will redeem Oxford's honour. In any case, spring is here and a new set of races begins on Sunday next so I'm going to get out and meet the Laser sailors. District 5 - John DawsonEdwards The usual “Spring” D5 report is short and succinct with between five to six weeks of frozen water remaining at time of writing (March 20, 2004). New news is the District 5 Championships will be at Battlefords Sailing Club on Jackfish Lake, North of North Battleford, Saskatchewan in late August. The District 5 Grand Prix this year is a traditional event short as Newell Sailing Club declined to move its regatta to avoid a clash with SailWest near Regina in July. Unless anyone else has a better idea, we will include the Chestermere Ice Breaker regatta on May 29-30 as the first D5 GP event. Other events will be Wabamun Open, SailWest, D5 Champs (above) and the Alberta Provincial Regatta. Check the D5 Schedule posted on the D5 website for additional information and late breaking news. In Alberta this year we are going to experiment with combining the Radial and Standard fleets (it’s allowed except at a District Championship or higher) to give the younger Radial sailors some better start line experience and harden them up for the big fleets. And one other thing—bring your bike to laser events. We will be going for training rides in the evening and especially if the wind dies. District 6 – Andy Hunt Greetings to all District 6 4.7, Radial, Laser and Laser 2 sailors. The District 6 Frostbite Series is now underway. The second regatta of the series, the Frigid Digit Regatta, was held at Sail Sand Poin on February 7 and 8, 2004. Sail Sand Point is a fairly new community based sailing centre on Lake Washington in Washington State. Its main function is to encourage junior sailing and they offer US Sailing learnto-sail programs. Thirty-seven full rig Laser sailors and three Radial sailors showed up for the event. Thirty of the full rigs and all of the Radial sailors were from the Seattle area. The Royal Vancouver Yacht Club sent six sailors including their youth coach, Al Clark. The other visiting sailor, Ken Brown, came from SPRING 2004 Victoria. Winds were very light on both days. There was only one race on February 7th and four races on February 8th. The top ten full rigs are: Mike Leigh, RVYC, 8.00; Brendan Fahey, NKS, 8.00; Al Clark, RVYC, 10.00; Luke Ramsay, RVYC, 22.00, Steve Larsen, CYC, 27.00; Mike Johnson, CYC; Derek Vranizan; Ben Young; Abe Torchinsky, RVYC; Alex Jones. Michael Shalka won the Radial class. Matt Pistay was second and Elizabeth Shalka was third radial. The third regatta of the series was the Frozen Assets Regatta. This regatta is held every year at the Royal Victoria Yacht Club. The dates were February 21 and 22, 2004. Northerly moderate winds (9 - 14 knots with 17 in the puffs) blew both days. Sailors had to look back on the runs otherwise they ran the risk of death-rolls. The turnout was low with 17 boats in total. There was no Radial fleet. Six of the boats came from outside the Victoria area (five from Vancouver and one from Portland). There were 4 races on Saturday and 3 races on Sunday. Five of the races were double windwardleewards and the other two races were triple windward-leewards. Top five boats were: Greg Miller (who dominated), RVicYC, 6.00; Michael Bond, RVicYC, 11.00; Ken Brown (first master), RVicYC, 18.00; Peter Woytkowiak, JSCA, 26.00; Sean Spence, RVicYC, 32.00. First youth was Kevin Grierson from the Royal Vancouver Yacht Club, first grand master was Jacek Suski (JSCA) and first great grand master was Charlie Simpson (RVicYC). Charlie is in his early seventies and can still out-sail sailors who could be his sons and grand-sons. My thanks to the Bosun’s Locker who provided prizes for the regatta. The fourth regatta of the series was the March Madness Regatta. This regatta was hosted by the Royal Vancouver Yacht Club on March 6 and 7, 2004. Eighteen full rigs and four Radials showed up for the event. Sixteen of the full rigs and all of the Radials came from either the Jericho Sailing Centre or the Royal Vancouver Yacht Club. My thanks go out to the two Seattle area sailors, Michael Cenname and Scott Malone, who made the trip north. The race committee tried to run four races on Saturday in light easterlies but had to abandon the first race when a tug and tow came through the course. They also abandoned the last race to due inconsistent wind. The two races that they www.laser.org got off were run in 4 - 7 knots. Figuring out the correct side of the course and avoiding holes on the course were the key for the day. There was no racing on Sunday due to rain and unstable wind. Al Clark won the regatta with RVYC juniors Luke Ramsay and Abe Torchinsky in second and third place respectively. Top five sailors were: Al Clark, RVYC, 3.00; Luke Ramsay, RVYC, 6.00; Abe Torchinsky, RVYC, 7.00; Mike Leigh, RVYC, 8.00; John Romanko, RVYC, 10.00; Sean Dethlefson won the Radial class and Jimmy Craig was second while Ben Scott was third. I would like to congratulate the following two RVYC sailors, Mike Leigh and John Romanko. Mike won the Mid-Winters East beating some high-class competition and John qualified for both the Youth Radial Worlds and the Open Radial Worlds by virtue of his eighteenth place finish which was good enough for first youth sailor at the MME. I would also like to remind sailors of the West Coast Laser Circuit (hosted by Districts 6 and 24) and a new subset regatta of the Kamloops Invitational. The West Coast Laser Circuit starts with WAVES and ends with either the US Laser Master Championships or the District 22 Grand Prix. WAVES is hosted by the Royal Vancouver Yacht Club and is on July 3 and 4, 2004. The next regatta is the Pacific Coast Championships. This will be at the Monterey Peninsula Yacht (Monterey, CA) and will be on July 10 - 12, 2004. The next regatta is the US Open Laser Championships at the Santa Cruz Yacht Club (Santa Cruz, CA). The US Open Championships will be from July 15 18, 2004. The Canadian Open Laser Championships will be at Squamish, BC and hosted by the Royal Vancouver Yacht Club. Details for the regatta are being worked out but it will definitely occur on July 22 - 25, 2004. There will be a break on the next weekend and then the Circuit resumes with the CGRA Open at Cascade Locks, OR, on August 7 and 8, 2004. Master sailors should come to this regatta as a tune-up for the US Laser Master Championships which will be at Cascade Locks on August 13 - 15, 2004. The District 22 Grand Prix is the final regatta. This regatta will occur on August 21 and 22, 2004 at the Flathead Lake Yacht Club on Flathead Lake, Montana. The subset of the Kamloops Invitational is the BC Laser Master Championships. This masters regatta is not part of the official Masters Circuit but Trevor Owen (KSA Fleet Captain) has agreed to provide a trophy and promote the event. Please don’t hesitate to call or email me with any questions or comments. As always, NORs and complete results along with other information can be found on the District 6 website: www.drlaser.org/D6. District 7 – Sally Sharp First and foremost - a big round of thanks to Mary Ann Crandall for all her work on the District 7 website and newsletter the past four years. She really did a great job getting the website up and running, we’ve all come to rely on it for up-to-the-minute schedule changes, NORs, results etc. Thank You, Mary Ann! And a hearty welcome to Chris Morin who’s taking over! Chris can be reached at [email protected] please help him out by sending him all your race results, NORs - and reports & photos would be good too! And a special note to all D7 fleet captains: can you please send Chris or me a short description of your fleet to post on the website (include location, contact person, website link, summer racing schedule etc.); this will be very useful information to have readily accessible to both D7 and visiting (or new) Laser sailors. Sailing-wise, frostbiting is still going strong in southern New England. The most active fleets are at Cedar Point YC (Westport CT), Cottage Park (Winthrop MA), Newport RI & Essex CT. They’ll all wrap up their seasons in mid-April when we jump into a new regatta season. And a busy season it is, with a couple of majors (North Americans at Cedar Point YC in June, and Radial ACCs at Portland YC in July) to squeeze in between all the regular D7 events. Once again we’ll have a 6-regatta D7 championship series, where you need to attend 3 events to qualify. Five regattas have been designated – the sixth will be added to the schedule soon – check the website, http://d7.laserforum.org Three brand new regattas to note: Vicky Stump has organized the Stone Horse Laser regatta on Cape Cod July 3, Syd Sewall helped schedule a Maine D7 series regatta up on Lake Cobbosseecontee (say that after a couple of beers!) in August, and CONTNUED ON PAGE 19 17 Commited to your on water... 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Tri-Flame ................................................................. $68.00 Custom Covers & Repairs Prices do not include shipping or sales tax B LADE B AG Four-compartment padded bag to carry rudder, tiller and daggerboard with large exterior mesh pocket. Nylon ....................................................................... $72.00 18 1251 E. Wisconsin Ave., Pewaukee, WI 53072 Fax: 262-691-3008 • Email: [email protected] CANVAS WINTER 2003 LaserWorld THE INTERNATIONAL LASER CLASS MAGAZINE 216 ENTRIES AT THE SAILMASTER AUSTRALIAN CHAMPIONSHIPS photo: Teri Dodds 4 - 10 January, Corio Bay, Geelong, Victoria, AUS A total of 216 entries (109 standard, 84 Laser Radial and 23 Laser 4.7) were hosted at the expansive Royal Geelong Yacht Club (which only one week later hosted 460 keel boats for Skandia Week). Sponsored by Sailmaster, a Victorian based not-for-profit advanced youth sailing program, the regatta incorporated a series of innovations which were appreciated by the competitors and their supporters. These included the availability of on-water food and water, the use of competitor accreditation passes for social event entry and sign on/off formalities, free internet access, pasta immediately after each day’s racing, boat trolley identification tags and open entry to social events. Plenty of wind was available all week with one day lost to unsafe conditions. This led to the unusual situation where no discard was available for the four finals races - and thus a well behaved fleet on the starts and downwind!! The short chop and decisive shifts of Corio Bay provided an ideal opportunity for the demonstration of advanced upwind and downwind boat handling skills. Representatives of 22 countries (including the US Virgin Islands, Finland, Japan, the Czech Republic and the UK), many in the final A RECORD 18 COUNTRIES AT stages of preparation for the 2004 Olympic Games, ensured the CENTRAL & SOUTH AMERICANS competition was of the highest standard. Sailors from 18 countries in Europe and the Americas were However the regatta wasn’t all about the top guns. With age present at the 2004 Central & South Americans, held by the Yacht variations from 12 to 67 years, a good gender mix and some Club Santo Amaro in São Sebastião, Brazil. The total number of serious entries in the over 90 kgs category, diversity was the entries was 144, in strong Standard, Laser Radial, and Laser 4.7 mood of the boat park. A forum hosted by former World fleets, an obvious indication that the Laser Class is becoming Champion, Stewart Wallace, with a panel including Brendan stronger and stronger all over the World. Another indicator of Casey, Krystal Weir, Hugh Styles (GBR), Phillippa Brown and this huge development was that around 30 sailors were Matthew Chew provided some insights from the front of each of displaying sponsorship or supporters’ logos on their sails or the fleets. hulls. In keeping with tradition, the result of the standard rig Robert Scheidt BRA once again had a remarkable championship, Championship was fought out in the last race of the series with winning 8 races against top names such as Gustavo Lima POR, Vasilij World ranked No.1 Michael Blackburn taking the series by 2 Zbogar SLO, Diego Romero ARG, Mate Arapov CRO, Matias del points from Brendan Casey. Solar CHI and Andre Streppel BRA. continued on page 2 In the Laser Radials, Matthew Chew just edged out Krystal Weir by 1 point after an incredibly hard fought series. In the Laser 4.7 fleet the quality was excellent. James Burman scored 6 wins in a very consistent performance. The 2005 Australian Championship will be held at the Belmont 16 ft sailing Club Club, Lake Macquarie (2 hrs north of Sydney) in January 2005. Laser: 55 competitors 16 countries 1 Michael Blackburn AUS 23 pts, 2 Brendan Casey AUS 25 pts, 3 Hugh Styles GBR 32 pts, 4 Pieter-Jan Postma NED 38 pts, 5 Matias Del Solar CHI 44 pts Laser Radial: 42 competitiors 1 Matthew Chew 20 pts, 2 Krystal Weir 21 pts, 3 Simon McGoldrick 41 pts, 4 Zac Skulander 48 pts, 5 Brian Case 54.5 pts Photos: Jose Pinho www.boatspeed.com.br Laser 4.7: 23 competitors 1 James Burman 15 pts, 2 Jye Murray 40 pts, 3 Thomas Scully 45 pts, 4 Jeremy Wawn 56 pts, Youngsters at the mark: Eduardo Couto BRA, pursued by 5 Harry Mighell 56 pts Daniel Jakobsson BRA and Franscoso Lobato POR wild! 180,000 and still growing! page 3 COPYRIGHT AND LIABILITY No part of this publication may be reproduced without prior permission of the publishers. The articles and opinions in LaserWorld may not represent the official views of ILCA. The publishers do not accept any liability for their accuracy. LaserWorld April 2004 LaserWorld A p r i l 2 0 0 4 2 continued from page 1 Robert showed the way in almost every race and proved he will be really a tough man to beat in Athens. Brazilian Eduardo Couto matched Robert’s record, winning 8 races in the Laser Radials to become Central & South American Champion with a race to spare. Alexandre Tinoco also won the Laser 4.7 title with a race to spare. But the person with the best record in the event must have been Argentinean Cecilia Carranza Saroli, who won every single race between the Ladies in the Laser Radials. If the champions in the Standard, Laser Radial and Laser 4.7s were decided before the last race, the battle for second place was not easy. In the Standards, 2002 Southern Hemisphere Champion Diego Romero had a hard fought single point advantage over Mate Arapov CRO. In the Laser Radial, only 12 points separated 2nd to 4th position, and in the Laser 4.7, Matheus Dellagnelo BRA won the battle for second place, even though he even got a shot for first overall after a remarkable 1, 1, 2 first day. The venue of São Sebastião / Ilhabela showed once again why it is considered one of the best in South America. All scheduled races were completed, in all events. The Standard and Laser 4.7 fleets sailed all races in an Easterly breeze that varied between 12 and 25 knots, while the Laser Radials got different conditions in the following week and sailed in winds from South, East, and North. Next year’s Central & South American Championships are scheduled for Paracas, Peru, in the Easter holiday period. Carlos Fanucchi Under 21 sailor Francisco Lobato, POR LASER / LASER 4.7: 9 - 14 FEBRUARY, ILHABELA, BRA Laser: 51 competitors 12 countries 1 Robert Scheidt BRA 8 pts, 2 Diego Emilio Romero ARG 23 pts, 3 Mate Arapov CRO 24 pts, 4 Vasilij Zbogar SLO 30 pts, 5 Gustavo Lima POR 31 pts, 6 Matias del Solar CHI 40 pts, 7 André Streppel BRA 44 pts, 8 Francisco Lobato POR 72 pts (1st under 21) 1st under 19: Daniel Jakobsson BRA 195 pts 1st Apprentice: Jyrki Taiminen FIN 94 pts 1st Master: Ronaldo Senfft BRA 176 pts Laser 4.7: 37 competitors 6 countries 1Alexandre Tinoco BRA 12 pts, 2 Matheus Livramento Dellagnelo BRA 22 pts (1st under 18), 3 Ruy de Azevedo Guimaraes BRA 27 pts, 4 Guilherme Baumgartl Barbosa Lima BRA 28 pts (1st under 15), 5 Daniel Mendoza PER 42 pts, 6 André de Brito Arueira BRA 54 pts, 7 Joaquim Gonzalo Razetto PER 56 pts, 8 Daniel Cantinho Lemos Dantas BRA 59 pts 1st female: Fernanda Decnop BRA 84 pts LASER RADIAL: 15 - 19 FEBRUARY, ILHABELA, BRA World Council member Miguel Aguerre URU leads a multi-national group of Ari Barshi DOM, Alexander Kirkland BER and Alejandro Foglia URU Chris Meech “Nurse” Schlachter www.laserinternational.org 51 competitors 12 countries 1 Eduardo Cunha de Magalhaes Couto BRA 8 pts, 2 Eduardo Pacheco Chaves BRA 21 pts, 3 Tiago Cortes Rodrugues BRA 29 pts, 4 Samuel Albrecht BRA 31 pts, 5 Carlos Eduardo Wanderley BRA 33 pts (1st Apprentice), 6 Daniel Jakobsson BRA 44 pts (1st under 19), 7 Thomas Baumgartl BRA 49 pts, 8 Luis Canuto ARG 50 pts 1st female ELECTRIFYING SAILING AT GOSFORD!! Chris Meech, a Laser sailor for over twenty years, got the best lift of his sailing career recently, and can probably claim the world record for lifts. Chris got lifted clear out of his boat, and landed ten metres away when he was struck by lightning at Gosford Sailing Club, situated eighty kilometres north of Sydney, Australia. We were sailing home after the race had been abandoned due to a thunderstorm heading our way. I was steering with two fingers holding the rubber stopper at the end of my tiller extension, heading for the nearby tall masts of moored yachts, when I felt a sharp tingle through the tiller. I looked around to see Chris hanging motionless in his life jacket some way away from his boat. I gybed over to him and he initially agreed to let me take him on board, but quickly changed his mind as another clap of thunder overhead persuaded him to stay in the water! He went ashore in the rescue boat to be treated by ambulance officers, and in fact spent the night in hospital. The hull was a write off. The deck had lifted off from the bow to the cockpit. There were two holes in the hull below the water line one third down from the bow. There was a large black hole at the gunwale opposite the mast. The mast step had separated from the hull. The rivets on the mast had melted and the top section had dropped into the bottom section. The lightening exited through the top of the sail sock. Zac Skulander said later that “Chris was on fire out there today”. On Sunday morning Chris was back on the water in a borrowed boat! Jack Schlachter Ed note: A quick search on the internet for ‘lightning safety’ The damage produced a number of sites. Try also: www.lightningsafety.com. From this search: Lightning will be attracted to the highest point - not good on the water. If you cannot get ashore keep your body out of contact with the water. Probably better to stay upright and let the mast act as a conductor instead of your body sitting on a capsized boat! This The damage close up probably saved Chris. LaserWorld A p r i l 2 0 0 4 3 From our President Over the last few months the focus has definitely been on the southern hemisphere and warmer climates. Reading through the regatta reports, many of our top sailors have been continuing their Olympic training all over the world. Where normally a geographically isolated country would only welcome sailors from other countries at a world championship, in the Laser class all regattas from national championships upwards now attract a multinational entry. You do not see that in any other Olympic dinghy class! Laser 4.7 continues to grow Outside the Olympic circuit the Laser 4.7 enjoys the same benefits of ease of travel. 37 competitors from 6 countries took part in the Central and South American Championships. In Dubai Laser 4.7 competitors from 6 countries took part in a joint Laser 4.7 and Optimist regatta, 5 countries took in the 4.7 class in Qatar providing the first step on the international ladder of development for Arab sailors. Croatia has provided the example of how an active Laser 4.7 programme for youth leading on to the Laser Radial and then to the Laser develops top sailors. I am confident that we will see similar success in those countries that have been proactive in adopting the Laser 4.7 and the following the Laser Formula through the Laser Radial. Interestingly leading Laser countries including Australia, Brazil and Great Britain also have a growing Laser 4.7 programme. They obviously want to stay out in front! Paige wins again in the Laser Radial Remember last year when a US girl put the boys in their place by winning overall in a large mixed Laser Radial in Kiel Week and then went on to win the girls single handed event at the ISAF World Youth Championship? Well she has done it again at the Laser Mid Winters East in Florida dominating a mixed fleet of 65 competitors. Congratulations Paige. Next stop Athens The 2004 Olympic Games promises to be one of the most exciting yet for our class as once again Laser is on course to deliver an epic competition. Looking at the latest ISAF ranking list there are 15 countries from 5 continents in the top 20 places, all of whom have a realistic chance of getting a medal in our highly competitive class. At the last two Olympics the Laser provided a classic last race drama that thrilled the sailing world. Robert Scheidt has avenged his 1-point defeat by Gustavo Lima at the last Worlds, winning 8 races to take the Central and South American Championships. Michael Blackburn heads the ISAF ranking list after a brief affair with a 49er and Paul Goodison is back on form following indifferent results at the Pre Olympics and Worlds. Goodison still needs to get through the UK trials and there are a few top Brits who would be happy to take his place. If the in depth standard is high and the equipment is equal there will be close competition irrespective of the competition format or scoring system. I cannot wait to see the drama unfold. Good luck to all our sailors! Χαπταιν’σ Λογ Νεωσ, ϖιεωσ ανδ οπινιονσ φροµ ΙΛΧΑ Εξεχυτιϖε Σεχρεταρψ ϑεφφ Μαρτιν 180,000 ΑΝ∆ ΣΤΙΛΛ ΓΡΟΩΙΝΓ We have recently passed another landmark in Laser history. We have just issued building plaque number 180000. Laser has come a long way since its humble beginning as an “off the beach fun boat”. In the seventies ISAF wanted the Laser as an Olympic class and we said no because at that time we felt the pressures would be too big on what was then a new concept - “take your boat out of the box, don’t change anything, just go sailing.” The original concept was the result of a telephone conversation between the first builder, Ian Bruce, and designer Bruce Kirby. During that conversation Kirby sketched the lines on a scrap of paper which were very similar to the final production boat. Like a number of good ideas the project sat in a drawer until early in 1970 when a sailing magazine decided to hold a competition for low cost sail boats. The drawing was revived and Ian Bruce built a boat. For the competition the boat was called “Weekender” and sail maker, Hans Fogh, stitched “TGIF” (Thank God It’s Friday) on the sail. Fogh completed the first sail without seeing the mast, just in time to meet with Ian Bruce and the boat on the way to the regatta! Fogh sailed the boat for the first time on Ian Lineberger Electronic Watch Compass There are a growing number of electronic wrist watches on the market that incorporate a compass. I have seen some sailors using them. Class Rule 22 prohibits electronic compasses. Competitors may be protested for using these watches. Please pay attention to this class rule especially sailors at the Olympic Games or at the World Championships which is also the final Olympic country qualifier. Jean Luc Michon ILCA Chief Measurer BLACKBURN STILL LEADS RANKING LIST Little change at the top in the lead up to the Olympics, with top sailors more than ever travelling the World circuit of major regattas. This Olympic Class shows its true Worldwide status in the number of different World nations represented at the top of the ranking: 4 of the 6 continents are represented in the top 10 alone, with sailors from every continent and an impressive 29 different countries appearing within the top 60. Top positions at at 6 February are shown below, and include Sydney International Regatta (1); Christmas Race (3); 27th International New Year's Regatta (3); Australian Laser Championships (1); 2004 NZL Laser National Championships (3); Sail Melbourne OCR (1); Roles Miami OCR (1). Full details available from: www.laserinternational.org POS NAME NAT PTS 1 (1) 2 (2) 3 (3) 4= (4) 4= (4) 6 (6) 7 (7) 8 (10) 9 (8) 10 (9) Michael Blackburn Robert Scheidt Paul Goodison Daniel Birgmark Kalle Suneson Gareth Blanckenberg Vasilij Zbogar Brendan Casey Philippe Bergmans Gustavo Lima AUS BRA GBR SWE SWE RSA SLO AUS BEL POR 4787 4757 4712 4620 4620 4535 4516 4499 4490 4460 the Saturday and finished second in class. He made a few alterations to the sail overnight and went out and won the next race. The rest is history! The original concept of an “off the beach fun boat” is as valid now as it was 35 years ago. Yet the same hull, mast and sail now also provide some of the most demanding and intense Olympic sailing competition. All the Lasers in the world could support 174 jumbo jets. For fun I asked our Technical Officer, Adam French, to number crunch some figures into unusual statistics which I hope will amuse you and provide the opportunity for challenging questions in the clubhouse: • If you put the masts of all the Lasers ever built (not including spares and replacements) end to end, they would reach from London to Copenhagen and take two hours to fly from one end to the other (in a jumbo jet). • Over 2.5 million m2 of Laser sails have been made, enough to cover 500 football pitches. • If packed into standard 40 ft. containers, you would need over 9,000 trucks and the truck convoy would be over 270 km long. • If you built a raft of all the Lasers ever built, it would be able to support the weight of 174 jumbo jets. • If all the Lasers ever built started on a single start line (2 boat widths per boat) the line would be nearly 500 km long, so starters at each end would have to cover about 350 km before they crossed, taking about three days in medium breeze! Ed note: That would be a challenge for a www.laserinternational.org LaserWorld A p r i l 2 0 0 4 4 Matthew Goulter in action photo: Kevin Lewis HONG KONG LASER In clinching his third title, Hamish joins a select group of 3 other sailors: Russell Coutts, 2000 Olympian Peter Fox, and World No 1 Michael Blackburn AUS. photos: www.sportlibrary.com.au CHAMPIONSHIPS 29 November - 7 December 1 Matthew Goulter 10 pts, 2 David Early 13 pts, 3 Jorgen Christensen 17 pts 1st Woman: Julie McKenzie 195 pts 1st Youth Male: Jamie Dalton 64 pts 1st Youth Female: Akiko Sakai 103 pts 1st Master: Nick Andrews 36 pts AL-KHARAFI INTERNATIONAL REGATTA, 1 - 5 December, KUW Laser: 21 competitors, 9 countries 1 Peer Moberg NOR 14 pts, 2 Timofei Zbankov RUS 15 pts, 3 Taher Selmane ALG 26 pts, 4 Paul Damen NED 27 pts, 5 Sami Koheji BRN 40 pts ST NICHOLAS RACE, 4 - 7 December Pula, CRO Laser: 11 competitors, 6 countries 1 Milan Vujasinovic 7 pts, 2 Ivan Kljakovic-Gaspic 7 pts, 3 Boris Vidajic 15 pts Laser Radial: 41 competitors, 6 countries 1 Daniel Mihelic 8 pts, 2 Ivan Taritas 12 pts, 3 Marko Matic 15 pts EUROMED 2003, 17 - 21 December St Paul's, MLT Laser: 8 competitors 1 Mario Aquilina 7 pts, 2 Aaron Podesta 17 pts, 3 Neil Borg 20 pts Laser Radial: 5 competitors 1 Simon Aquilina 15 pts, 2 Zak Borg 17 pts, 3 Andrew Selvagi 17 pts Laser 4.7: 9 competitors 1 Adel Khalid UAE 19 pts, 2 Christoph Podesta MLT 19 pts, 3 Matthew Fleri Soler MLT 26 pts SYDNEY INTERNATIONAL REGATTA (SIRS) 18 - 21 December Sydney, AUS The 2003 event, part of the Sail Down Under series, saw competitors travelling from all corners of the globe to race during the four-day regatta, sailed out of Woollahra Sailing Club. The 55-boat Laser fleet experienced a variety of conditions during racing with the breeze direction being shifty and strength ranging from 6 to 25 knots. Laser: 56 competitors, 13 countries 1 Michael Blackburn AUS 26 pts, 2 Tom Slingsby AUS 41 pts, 3 Pieter Jan Postma NED 46 pts, 4 Andrew Murdoch NZL 52 pts, 5 Brendan Casey AUS 53 pts Laser Radial: 20 competitors, 3 countries 1 Zac Skulander 12 pts, 2 Matthew Chew 16 pts, 3 Simon McGoldrick 20 pts Laser 4.7: 13 competitors 1 James Burman 11 pts, 2 Jye Murray 12 pts, 3 Harry Mighell 31 pts PALAMOS CHRISTMAS RACE, 26 - 30 December Palamos, ESP A total of 60 competitors from 13 nations participated in the 2003 Palamós Christmas Race. The fleet was divided into 2 groups that sailed a qualifying series (5 races), followed by a final series (1 race) on the last day. 1 Diego Negri ITA 8 pts, 2 Mathias Rieck GER 12 pts, 3 Mathieu Murati FRA 12 pts, 4 Alexander Schlonski GER 15 pts, 5 Sergey Desykevich BLR 16 pts THIRD NATIONAL TITLE FOR HAMISH PEPPER photo: Jose Pinho Laser Radial winner Matthew Chew AUS In the Laser Radials, it was the turn of another ex-Team NZ member, Mark Orams to reclaim the title he won several years earlier. His string of firsts was only disrupted 3 times in the 10 race series when young sailor Mathieu Frei took first, which was First Laser enough to earn the youngster second youths. 4.7 Mark place overall and first in theMatt Blakey Lincoln Laser: 20 competitors, 3 countries 1 Hamish Pepper NZL 27 pts, 2 Michael Bullot NZL 29 pts, 3 Andrew Murdoch NZL 43 pts, 4 Rod Dawson NZL 44 pts, 5 Dan Slater NZL 52 pts Laser Radial: 11 competitors 1 Mark Orams NZL 12 pts, 2 Mathieu Frei FRA 26 pts, 3 Martin Winter NZL 29 pts, 4 Kate O'Brien NZL 33 pts, 5 Scott Blakey NZL 41 pts SAIL MELBOURNE, 21 - 17 January, Melbourne, AUS Sailors came from across the world to compete in what is regarded as the largest regatta of its type in the southern hemisphere. The Laser class was hotly contested - Paul Goodison, back from his break in the class, showed he was in top form, finishing first ahead of Australians Brendan Casey, who is having a resurgence in the class, and Michael Blackburn, who had earlier beaten Casey to the AUS spot for the Olympics. Only Pieter Jan Postma NED, finishing 8th, stopped it being an all Oz and Pom scenario in the top nine finishers of the top-ranking international fleet. Mark Lincoln (VIC) did not lose a single race in the Laser 4.7 series. Matthew Chew AUS owed his title to a strong finish in the Laser Radial fleet. Laser: 32 competitors, 11 countries 1 Paul Goodison GBR 12 pts, 2 Brendan Casey AUS 24 pts, 3 Michael Blackburn AUS 26 pts, 4 Tom Slingsby AUS 28 pts, 5 Mark Howard GBR 28 pts Laser Radial: 12 competitors, 2 countries 1 Matthew Chew AUS 8 pts, 2 Richard Bott AUS 13 pts, 3 Andrew Mowlem NZL 18 pts, 4 Jeffrey Schulz AUS 32 pts, 5 Craig McPhee AUS 35 pts 1st Laser 4.7: 1 Mark Lincoln AUS 7 pts SOUTHEAST BRAZILIAN CHAMPIONSHIP (OPEN) 18 - 21 January, BRA Laser: 24 competitors 1 Robert Scheidt BRA 10 pts, 2 Gustavo Lima POR 22 pts, 3 Luis Martinez Doreste ESP 23 pts Laser Radial: 38 competitors 1 Philipe Theophilo Nottingham 25 pts, 2 Daniel Coloneze de Pinho 25 pts, 3 Tiago Cortes Top 3 at the Cricket Match Race, L to R: Andre Streppel BRA, Robert Scheidt BRA, Fredrik Lassenius SWE New Zealand Nationals, 8 - 11 January, Hibiscus Coast, NZL Another hugely successful National Championships. 1996 Olympic Rodrigues 31 pts representative and tactician for Team NZ, Hamish Pepper won the title he Laser 4.7: 30 competitors 1 Henrique Duarte Haddad 13 pts, 2 Andre de earned previously in '95 and '97. He remarked: "it's been a long time since Brito Arueira 22 pts, 3 Philipe Wender 33 pts I first won it back in '95 and its great to come back a bit older and a lot ROBERT SCHEIDT WINS wiser and win it again". CRICKET MATCH RACE Typical of Laser, the overall title was decided in a tense last race. In the 22 - 25 January, Buzios, BRA end Bullot's blistering downwind speed wasn't enough to haul Hamish in he won the start and led to the finish. With such close racing the Olympic As part of the celebrations for the 30th anniversary of the Brazilian Laser trials will be closely fought. Class, this unique event was held in Buzios. The matches were sailed in www.laserinternational.org 5 LaserWorld A p r i l 2 0 0 4 LASER 4.7’S AND OPTIMISTS IN DUBAI Dubai International Sailing Week Regatta, 26 - 30 January, 30 competitors, 6 countries Dubai International Marine Club welcomed around 100 international Optimist and Laser 4.7 youth sailors for the 5th Dubai International Sailing Week Regatta off the coast of Mina Seyahi. For many, this was their first dip into the warm waters of the Gulf. “Although it’s winter here, the weather is practically tropical compared to our normal conditions!” said one European competitor, who obviously won’t mind too much if he suffers a capsize during the practice races! Conditions were varied, giving the young sailors plenty of experience. Adel Khalid UAE and Arron Larkins RSA Positions were hard earned. South Africa’s Justin Onvlee proved fastest to the finish line in all three sailing head to head races on the first day, a pattern that he maintained throughout, only dropping from top position in 3 of the 14 races. “During the first two Justin Onvlee RSA races there was a lot of wind so I think that gave me the advantage as I am heavier. For the third sails across the line to take the Laser 4.7 title race the win was more down to tactics.” Visibly excited about his winning the title, Justin said he was very happy and will go on for the Worlds in Italy in August this year. In the Laser 4.7 female category, strongest showing went to Egypt’s Dina Ahmed Ramadan after her impressive 7th, 9th and 16th place finishes. Again, it was consistency that won her the female title, with only 3 results outside the top 10 and finishing the final race 2nd overall. Overall results 1 Justin Onvlee RSA 16 pts, 2 Charlie Hill BRN 50 pts, 3 Aaron Larkens RSA 51 pts, 4 Adel Khalid UAE 55 pts, 5 Seezer Moritz ITA 72 pts 1st female: Dina Ahmed Ramadan EGY 117 pts SAIL AUCKLAND, 6 - 9 February, Auckland, NZL Light, shifting winds dominated the event which, for both the Laser and Laser Radial fleets, promised to be highly competitive. Positions remained close to the end at the top of both fleets, with the Laser title and the Laser Radial 2nd and 3rd positions being decided only in the final race. Laser: 17 competitors, 2 countries 1 Andrew Murdoch 20 pts, 2 Dan Slater 23 pts, 3 Michael Bullot 28 pts, 4 David Weaver 28 pts, 5 Matthew Blakey 29 pts Laser Radial: 28 competitors 2 countries 1 Jake Bartrom NZL 15 pts, 2 Mark Orams NZL 39 pts, 3 Craig Prentice NZL 42 pts, 4 Zac Skulander AUS 43 pts, 5 Blair McLay NZL 49 pts First woman: Krystal Weir AUS 53 pts Fifteen year old Adel Khalid bettered even this in the Laser 4.7s, sailing a superb card of nine bullets and a second, which he discarded, whilst in the Laser Radial Muhamad Mohd Romzi also never finished outside the top 3. Laser: 23 competitors, 16 countries 1 Gareth Blanckenberg RSA 9 pts, 2 Jan Seekamp GER 28 pts, 3 Dmitry Tereshkin RUS 30 pts, 4 Timofey Zhbankov RUS 33 pts, 5 Sami Koheji BRN 37 pts Laser Radial: 19 competitors, 9 countries 1 Muhamad Mohd Romzi MAS 15 pts, 2 Abd El-Gany Karim EGY 24 pts, 3 Mat Rofaizal MAS 27 pts, 4 Charlie Hill BRN 40 pts, Yaqoob A.Aziz BRN 43 pts Laser 4.7: 9 competitors, 5 countries 1 Adel Khalid UAE 9 pts, 2 Abdulla Abderrahman BRN 24 pts, 3 Alkandri Mohammad KUW 33 pts PAIGE RAILEY BEATS ALL COMERS IN LASER RADIAL Laser Midwinters East, 26 - 29 February, Clearwater, USA Oops! A rather too close mark rounding ATHENS EUROLYMP WEEK, 15 - 21 February, Athens, GRE Athens Eurolymp Week photo: www.sailingphoto.gr A total of 83 Laser sailors from 27 countries took advantage of the chance to try out the waters that will host the Olympic Regatta in August. With many competing and using the event as a build up regatta for the Olympic Games, competition was bound to be tough and the racing close, in a variety of conditions throughout the week ending with a brisk 35-knot breeze that tested even the strongest sailors. 1 Karl Suneson SWE 19 pts, 2 Andreas Geritzer AUT 23 pts, 3 Maciej Grabowski POL 24 pts, 4 Daniel Birgmark SWE 34 pts, 5 Paul Goodison GBR 35 pts photo: Gary Hufford, www.digiproofs.com/beachmaster/ XXX CAMPEONATO BRASILEIRO 31 January - 8 February, Rio de Janeiro, BRA Some whole families were sailing this year, along with stars such as Robert Scheidt. The entry record was once again broken in the Laser 4.7, and the fleet is now a sound path for ex-Optimist sailors in the country. Laser: 54 competitors, 12 countries 1 Robert Scheidt BRA 9 pts, 2 Vasilij Zbogar SLO 27 pts, 3 Luis Martinez Doreste ESP 29 pts Laser Radial: 65 competitors, 3 countries 1 Samuel Reis Albrecht BRA 15 pts, 2 Eduardo Pacheco Chaves BRA 23 pts, 3 Tiago Cortes Rodrigues BRA 24 pts Laser 4.7: 60 competitors 1 Matheus Livramento Dellagnelo 10 pts, 2 Ruy de Azevedo Guimaraes 20 pts, 3 Guilherme Baumgartl Barbosa Lima 26 pts 164 competitors from 11 countries battled it out over four days of very intense racing in the Gulf of Mexico, reflected in the fact that the top 5 in the Laser included sailors from 4 different countries and 3 different continents. Laser: 93 competitors, 11 countries 1 Michael Leigh CAN 18 pts, 2 Marc de Haas NED 24 pts, 3 Brendan Casey AUS 25 pts, 4 Brad Funk USA 33 pts, 5 Zach Railey USA 34 pts Laser Radial: 65 competitors, 4 countries 1 Paige Railey USA 10 pts, 2 Matthew Goetting USA 28 pts, 3 Charles Fulmer USA 28 pts, 4 James Liebl USA 36 pts, 5 Cy Thompson ISV 41 pts 1st Laser 4.7: Emily Billing USA 10 pts Winners at the Laser Midwinters East photo: Amanda Fleming SAIL THE GULF 2004, 21 - 27 February, Doha, QAT On the first day, the wind built from a steady and warm 15 knots to gusts of over 30 knots, leading to some capsizes and tough conditions, although by the end of the day everyone was safely ashore. By the end of the series clear leaders were emerging; in Laser it was South African Gareth Blanckenberg who established an early lead, taking the initial difficult conditions by storm - a pattern which he continued with a series score of nine 1sts and a 3rd. www.laserinternational.org 6 LaserWorld A p r i l 2 0 0 4 “We were able to launch off the beach!” COACHING COACHES IN INDONESIA Normally when you combine Jeff Martin with constant wind it is not a good thing, but in this case Constantwind was the Laser dealership for Southeast Asia run by Kah Soon and it turned out to be a memorable experience. A partnership of ILCA, Performance Sailcraft, Constantwind and the Indonesian Sailing Federation combined together to run a single-handed instructor course and I was asked to be the coach. When I arrived I was met by Ravie, who acted as course interpreter. I am used to people trying to interpret what I say and that’s when we all speak English, so Ravie did a fantastic job. He filled me in on certain key facts about the country which might affect its development as a growing Laser region. Indonesia is an island nation of 210 million people, the fourth most populous country in the world. It photo: Irish Apprentice Master Declan O' Byrne is spread over 5 main islands, three time zones and thirty provinces. The average wage is less than $100 a month so giving access to the population to sail is going to rely heavily on government intervention. The course was run at the Bandulu water sports resort, an excellent facility, where we were able to launch off the beach. There was a bit of a problem with a pretty steep swell that caused us to sink the coach boat twice, but the water temperature was 25 degrees, so who cared. We had 15 coaches on the course, not all familiar with the Laser, but all good sailors. As the week progressed I tried to improve their coaching skills and did a lot of tutorials on the racing rules. There is no Indonesia version of the rules, and as most of the coaches couldn't read English the explanations seemed to help a lot. It was a great week and I think ILCA should help to kick start sailing in the region by bringing a major Laser event to South-east Asia. Thats the sort of project that would encourage the government to get involved. Once the Indonesians can combine their perfect conditions with access to boats the rest of the World had better watch out. Bill O’Hara THE LASER BOOK 4TH EDITION by Tim Davison DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE RADIAL AND THE STANDARD RIGS The Radial sail has an open leech and less power than the Standard sail. As a result there is less weather helm - you don’t need to pull on the tiller to keep the boat going in a straight line. That’s why it is a very pleasant rig to take windward in a blow. On the other hand, it can feel a bit wishy-washy in light airs so you may need to heel the boat to leeward to give the tiller a bit of “feel” when beating. Ten degrees is enough! The Radial mast is shorter and lighter than the Standard mast. This means you have to overemphasise your movements when roll tacking, roll gybing and accelerating off the line. And if you’re light yourself you need to work harder still. THE MARK 5 AND MARK 6 SAILS 128 pages, with 276 colour photos plus 59 colour diagrams A completely revised, colour edition of this invaluable Laser sailing manual, which will take a complete beginner up to Club Championship standard. It will teach you to rig the boat using the new control lines, then launch and sail it. There are new sections on the Radial and 4.7 rigs. Finally, it covers the elements of how to race. It forms the ideal precursor to the Laser Campaign Manual by Ben Ainslie, available through the Laser Library at www.laserinternational.org. THE LASER BOOK 4TH EDITION will be available from May 2004; we are able to offer a sneak preview from the section on the Laser Radial, with kind permission of the publishers. The book will be on sale in the Laser Library, priced £16.50 for UK orders, £17.00 within Europe and £18.50 elsewhere. O R D E R F O R M O N PA G E 7 THE RADIAL RIG I’m very grateful for help with this chapter from Ian Clingan (RYA Laser Radial coach), Steve Cockerill and Philip White. They are fast Radial sailors and shared their knowledge freely. Thanks guys! www.laserinternational.org The Radial sail was redesigned 3 years ago. As a result the Mk 6 sail is more responsive to cunningham pressure. In other words, as you gradually pull on the cunningham the leech opens progressively. With the Mk 5 sail the initial tightening of the cunningham did nothing, then the leech suddenly opened. SETTING UP THE BOAT Stick pairs of telltales on the sail like this (one third of the way back from the luff). Use candle wax to wax them and the area of the sail they move over. Then they won’t stick in the rain. 7 LaserWorld A p r i l 2 0 0 4 Use the same candle to drip wax onto the screw head under the bailer, and use a credit card to scrape the still-soft wax until it’s level. Take purchases out of the kicking strap (vang) system or you will have too much tail rope in the cockpit. (It then wraps round everything and jams in the mainsheet block.) Either reduce the 3:1 section to 2:1 or take purchase out of the tail. Ian reports that light girls in his squad can still pull on the kicking strap easily. Do tie the tail rope to the centreboard so you can always grab it. Use 4:1 for the cunningham i.e. don’t use the cascade system. There must be enough travel for you to get the cunningham right on and right off, and if you have too much purchase this won’t happen. FAX / MAIL ORDER FORM: The Laser Book 4th Edition, Tim Davison Price: UK 16.50 GBP, Europe 17.00 GBP, & rest of World 18.50 GBP, postage & packing included. Payment may be made by UK cheque in Pounds sterling (payable to "ILCA") or by credit card (American Express, Solo, Switch, JCB, Mastercard or Visa) please give credit card details below (2% admin charge will be added). No. of copies required: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Email: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Telephone: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Fax: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Family Name: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ First Name: Delivery Address: ________________ __________________________________________ ____________________________________________________ _______________________ Country: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Card Number: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ On the other hand you need more purchase in the outhaul so you can adjust it without coming inboard. Add additional purchases so you have 3:1 instead of 2:1 at the cleat on the boom. This also makes outhaul setting more precise. Please charge card: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _GBP (+2%) BEATING IN THE RADIAL Cardholder’s Name: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Card Expiry Date: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Card Issue No. (Switch only): _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Cardholder’s Address: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ________________________ Country: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Cardholder’s Signature: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ When going to windward in any wind strength Fax to ILCA at: +44 1326 318968 (and with any rig) the objective is to have the or send by post to: ILCA, PO Box 26, Falmouth, Cornwall TR11 3TN, U.K. boom end directly over the outer edge of the deck. Having the traveller very tight and the tiller low help. You may also need to ease the mainsheet a bit. Beating in Light Winds Having the mainsheet bock-to-block stalls the sail because the leech is over-hooked (or too closed). Let off the mainsheet so there are six inches between the blocks. Looked at from behind, this puts depth into the head of the sail and increases the power. If you let off the mainsheet too much the mast straightens and the luff of the sail is too full (a round entry) which stops you pointing. If the mainsheet is too tight the leech is hooked. Aim for the best compromise. Set the kicking strap block-to-block. Use the cunningham to just pull out the creases. Have the outhaul quite tight - from your fingertips to the base of your thumb i.e. 2/3 of a hand. This shallow curve gives the wind a chance to bend around the sail. In very light airs pull on the kicking strap a little more to bend the mast and open the leech. Where you sit is a cleat treat - sit on it! Young sailors can easily injure themselves by hiking wrongly. Wear footwear that supports your ankles, e.g. Aigle Boots. Have an ankle support inside. Hike with your ankles, knees and hips in line and don’t point your toes - your toes should be pointing at the sky. Beating in Medium Air Your aim is to have all the power low down in the rig. And remember, as you increase the kicking strap tension the leech opens - the opposite effect from a boat with shrouds and a jib. This is because the kicking strap bends the mast. SAIL CONTROLS Pull in the mainsheet block-to-block and play it to give the boat a slight heel. The kicking strap should be tighter than block to block and pulled on more as the wind builds. Pull it on if you want to sail low and fast. Let it off if you want to point higher. Begin with the cunningham half on and progressively pull on more as you become overpowered. Set the outhaul to be one hand (fingertips to watchstrap). TRIM Sit just behind the cleat and give the boat a 10o heel. Watch the telltales and make sure the leeward ones are streaming all the time. Beating in Strong Winds Your objective is to flatten the sail and be able to pump the mainsheet in and out without the boom end rising. Heavier sailors can actually plane to windward by pulling on the kicking strap and easing out the mainsheet to keep the boat flat - this is really fast. Pull on the kicking strap hard, but note it is possible to pull too far. You are aiming for vang-sheeting i.e. the boom doesn’t rise when you dump the mainsheet, which then simply controls the angle of the boom to the boat. Pull on loads of cunningham to open the upper leech and bring the centre of effort forward. Set the outhaul to half a hand. Never have it bar tight because you want some flow low down. As the wind pipes up sit further back - up to 30 cm behind the cleat if need be. Aim for about one wave in ten to come onto the foredeck. www.laserinternational.org 8 LaserWorld A p r i l 2 0 0 4 LASER TERS 2004 S A M NEW ZEALAND MASTERS NATIONALS 8 - 11 January Hibiscus Coast NZL Laser: 13 competitors, 3 countries 1 Torben Grael BRA 134 pts (1st Apprentice), 2 Nelson Guimaraes BRA 148 pts, 3 Ricardo Zanetti London 183 pts 1st Master: Ronaldo Camargo Ribeiro Senfft 246 pts Laser Radial: 23 competitors, 2 countries 1 Carlos Eduardo Wanderley 44 pts (1st Apprentice), 2 Lauro Henrique Wollner 152 pts, 3 Joao Frattini Ramos 161 pts Richard 1st Master: Philipe Theophilo Blakey Nottingham 251 pts 1st Grand Master: Helio Albano de Araujo 227 pts Tony Park FLORIDA MASTERS, 15 - 16 photos: Eleanor Blakey In the Masters Class this year it was a family affair, with Richard Blakey taking the overall honours as well as first in the Apprentice Master division (35-45), while father Bob convincingly won the Grand Masters category (55-65), both scoring 5 firsts out of 8 races. In the grand Masters division, Tom Speed proved age is no obstacle, taking second place despite actually being too old for the Mark Orams division. As the only sailor in the Great Grand Masters age range, he was allowed to enter in the Grand Masters Division amongst the “spring chickens”. Matt Blakey Laser 1 Richard Blakey 9 pts, 2 Tony Evans 13 pts, 3 Peter Van Ryn 26 pts, 4 Bob Blakey 29 pts, 5 Luke Van Batenburg 40 pts Laser Radial 1 Mark Orams 8 pts, 2 Kevin Welsh 12 pts, 3 Amanda Wilson 25 pts, 4 Mark Miller 28 pts, 5 Colin Maddren 33 pts EURO MASTERS SERIES: ANTIBES 23 - 25 January, Antibes, FRA Apprentices 1 Christophe Plotton FRA 14 pts, 2 Caroline Jacot SUI 17 pts, 3 Philippe Jacot SUI 17 pts Masters 1 Regis Berenguier FRA 17 pts, 2 Gilles Grenier FRA 19 pts, 3 Laurent Bernaz FRA 19 pts Grand Masters 1 Tomaso Ambrosi SUI 10 All the prizewinners at pts, 2 Yves Dominique Spichiger SUI 45 pts, 3 Photo: Jose Pinho Louis Marcon FRA 50 pts Great Grand Masters 1 Gerard Jeannot FRA 62 pts, 2 William Roger FRA 74 pts, 3 Pedro Jimenez-Meifren ESP 81 pts Laser Radial Open 1 Georges During FRA 4 pts, 2 Pierre Yves Lambert FRA 5 pts, 3 Laurent Vigo FRA 8 pts Laser Radial Women 1 Christelle Marsault FRA 14 pts, 2 Claudine Tatibouet FRA 26 pts, 3 Antonella Sabatini ITA 30 pts CAMPEONATO BRASILEIRO: MASTERS 31 January - 8 February Rio de Janeiro BRA Winds averaged 20 knots, rising to 30 knots in a couple of races. All age groups sailed together; results are extracted from the overall rankings. www.laserinternational.org February West Palm Beach, USA Handicapped results: 1 Peter Seidenberg (GGM) 17 pts, 2 Buzzy Heausler (M) 19 pts, 3 Alden Shattuck (GM) 22 pts, 4 Ian Lineberger (M) 32 pts, 5 Tim Landt (M) 37 pts 1st Apprentice: Ken Tarboton 48 pts MASTERS MIDWINTERS EAST 21 - 22 February, Clearwater, USA, 64 competitors, 7 countries Apprentices 1 Kevin Kelly 39 pts, 2 Hal Gilreath 46 pts, 3 James Liebl 46 pts Masters 1 Chris Raab USA 24 pts (1st overall), 2 Andre Martinie DOM 45 pts, 3 Mark Bear USA 45 pts Grand Masters 1 Alden Shattuck 47 pts, 2 Joe Van Rossem 110 pts, 3 Newt Wattis 123 pts Great Grand Masters 1 Peter Seidenberg 58 pts, 2 Dick Tillman 90 pts 2004 EUROPEAN MASTERS CHAMPIONSHIP Largs, Scotland, 18 - 25 September 2004 Largs Sailing Club will host the 2004 International Laser Class European Masters' Championships between the 18th and 25th September. Situated on the west coast of Scotland, an hour outside of Glasgow, the club enjoys a unique sailing area in the shelter of the Western Isles. With easy transit links the Campeonato Brasileiro from all areas of the U.K. and a very efficient ferry service from the East Coast the site was a very popular choice for the UK Laser Nationals in 2003. Details of the racing and social programmes, together with the facilities offered by the club, including details of charter boats available can be found on the UKLA website: www.laser.org.uk or by contacting the organizer, Joanne Dixon, at: [email protected] or on + 44 (0)1475 670011 / 07786 736907 CONTINUED FROM PAGE 18 there’s a new “YRALIS” Laser regatta at Cedar Point YC in late August. The Vermont Open is moving back to Malletts Bay this year, in mid-August, and the Seitech New England Masters also moves to Lake Champlain (in late Sept.) to complete its New England circuit. So lots of travelling to do. Hope to see many of you on the water this summer! District 8 - Don Woodworth This winter is finally over and we can begin think about sailing in liquid and only slipping or falling on the deck of a boat and not ice. The sailing starts early this year with a new addition on May 15th a clinic at the Oyster Bay Sailing Center. Rudy Ratsep, one of the most knowledgeable people on boat construction, repair and maintenance as well as an excellent sailor, will go over any problems or questions you have about your laser. Rudy will also spend time on proper rigging and any improvement or upgrades that could be made. With a short break for lunch (BYOL) we will go out on the water for practice and some short course racing. The clinic will start at 10AM and end about 4PM with a $25 fee, well worth the money for any one who wants to improve their boat, sailing technique and boat handling. Go to www.thewaterfrontcenter.org for direction. The following week May 22nd Centerport YC will be hosting the Open Atlantic Coast Championships for full rigs and 4.7s (not Radials). It is limited to the first 120 boats and will be a popular event for local seniors and juniors so get your entry in early. Go to www.laser.org click on Racing to get the NOR and entry form. Our standard Saturday racing starts with Seawanhaka and CSH Beach Club, please note the skippers meetings are at 1PM in order to take better advantage of the afternoon breezes. We are back to a 10AM start with Southampton, Dinghy shop and Bayshore. Bayshore will again host the Area B finals for the O’Day trophy with the Nationals also held at Bayshore later in August. District 8 will again support the Great South Bay YRA racing schedule with Babylon YC on the July 4th weekend and at Sayville on July 23-25. In between, Sayville will host the 7th annual Grand Prix which has become a very popular event, always a great location and breeze. Devon on August 7th NOTE: back to a www.laser.org 10AM start, this is a great place to sail with lots of local talent. Sayville is hosting the Leukemia Cup on August 21 and the District will support this good cause with Laser racing. The season closes with a racing at Bellport YC on Memorial Day weekend. It is a full schedule with many great locations, please be sure to thank the host club members and organizers as we are grateful guests and value the opportunity to use their facilities with access to the water. See you on the water. District 9 – Chas Williamson Hello to all District 9 sailors. We look forward to a great Season. I will soon be sending out a District Newsletter which will wrap up last year, and provide details for the upcoming season. Just below you will find our District Schedule. So.....best wishes to all, and thanks indeed to those who have contributed to organize the regattas for the great 2004 season. Schedule Sat 29 May, Ithaca YC "Wine Keg" Chas Williamson. 607-272-0630 Sat 5 June, Willowbank YC Ray Cudney. 315-655-5477 Sat 12 June, Saratoga YC "Saratoga Derby" Allan Miller. 518-885-5510 Sat 19 June, Newport YC Jim Cuddihee. 585-266-8686 Sat 26 June, Chautauqua Lake YC Cilla Menzies. 716-763-4331 Sat 3 July, FREE 10-11 July, GP DISTRICT 9 CHAMPS (Centrals Regatta) Skaneateles YC. Dave Penfield Sat 17 July, Youngstown YC. Kevin Doyle. 716-873-0664 Sat 24 July, Sodus Bay YC. Nancy Ghertner 29 - 31 July, Empire State Games. Ithaca (Regional Qualifiers Only) 6-8 Aug, Rochester - Junior Olympics Youth Event 14-15 Aug, GREAT LAKES Championships !! Rochester YC. Steve + Jane Wilde. 585-544-5898 21 Aug, Keuka Lake YC. Debbie Koop. 315-595-2523 21-25 Aug, C.O.R.K. Kingston Sat 11 Sept, Willowbank YC Deathroll Ray Cudney. 315-655-5477 District 10 – Phil Karcher, Janet Combs Greetings from District 10 where we are in the midst of yet another snowstorm! It has been snowing here in Monmouth County since Tuesday and our future Laser sailors here in Wall are home for another snow day! We are receiving a lot of emails and phone calls from people who are looking for regatta information, so the warm spring weather must be on its way! If you are a fleet captain in D-10 and have not contacted Dave Magno, the District 10 scheduler, please do so as soon as possible. We are still missing lots of dates for the 2004 schedule. [email protected] If you are in charge of a regatta, please feel free to post that information on www.laser.org ASAP. James has made it extremely easy for anyone to enter their regatta info, and with more and more sailors using the internet for their planning, we need to have it posted immediately. We will start our District racing off with the annual Marsh Creek regatta, which is being held on Easter Sunday, April 11, 2004. Please visit www.ussailing.net/mcsc for the contact, time, and directions. We will end the season with the annual Marsh Creek Fall regatta which is scheduled for Saturday, October 16, 2004. Please contact Rich at [email protected] for further information. Marsh Creek is a great venue: close to home, awesome wind shifts, and great folks hosting these annual events. As always, if you have anything you want to contribute to the Laser Newsletter, please contact [email protected] or James at laser.org. Special thanks to Glen Dickson for his continued contributions, and congratulations to Dave Magno who is taking a day off from sailing to marry the lovely Heidi Soellner at the Toms River Yacht Club this May! Important Dates are as follows: (for those of you not using the web for information, always feel free to call) Marsh Creek Regatta - April 11, 2004 Shrewsbury YC Regatta - May 8, 04 Lavallette YC Regatta - May 29, 2004 Orange Coffee Pot Regatta - June 5 District 10 Champs & Grand Prix June 12-13, 2004 Laser Radial/4.7 ACC’s - Surf City July 19-20, 2004 CONTINUED ON PAGE 24 19 2004 Schedule Regatta Start End Host City State Contact Info Spring Dinghy Champs 5/1 5/2 RVicYC Victoria BC Leslie Fraser, 250-592-6113, [email protected] Week-End Warior Indy 5/1 5/1 Eagle Creek Sailing Club ECSC ~ INDY IN Wayne Myers, 317-627-3400, [email protected] Start of Summer Regatta 5/1 5/1 Santa Clara Racing Association San Diego CA Patrick Thompson, [email protected] Hank Davies Mem. Regatta 5/1 5/2 Chicago Columbia YC Chicago IL John Thomas (JT), [email protected] Charleston Laser Champs 5/1 5/2 CYC-SC Charleston SC http://d12.laserforum.org/ Friday Night Racing 5/7 8/27 West River Sailing Club Galesville MD Carl Berninger, 301-530-4218 Mothers Day Regatta 5/8 5/8 Lake Geneva Yacht Club Lake Geneva WI Lake Geneva Yacht Club, 262-275-2727 D6 Grand Prix 5/8 5/9 Jerico Sailing Center Vancouver BC Andy Hunt, 604-733-9663, [email protected] Scott Melander, [email protected] D26 Grand Prix 5/8 5/8 Hawaii Yacht Club Honolulu HI Senior and Master Worlds 5/10 5/19 International Laser Class Bitez TUR Jeff Martin, [email protected] SOCKS 5/15 5/16 SYC Seattle WA Doug Gordon, 206-328-7009 Vlad Kobal Regatta, Area K Elim 5/15 5/16 Chicago Yacht Club - Monroe Chicago IL Scott Diamond, [email protected] Blossomtime Regatta 5/23 COSA Kelowna BC Ron Rubadeau, 250-868-0388, [email protected] 5/22 David Irey Memorial 5/22 5/22 West River Sailing Club Galesville MD Carl Berninger, 301-530-4218 Gulf Coast Championships 5/22 5/23 Southern Yacht Club New Orleans LA Howard Schmalz, 504-581-2804 Full Rig and 4.7 ACCs 5/22 5/23 Centerport Yacht Club Centerport NY Brian Whitehead, 631-673-9480 Sea-to-Ski 5/22 5/23 BYC Bellingham WA Gus Farrar, [email protected], www.byc.org Memorial Day Regatta 5/28 5/29 EYC Eugene OR Club Manager, 451-484-5233 Wine Keg Regatta 5/29 5/29 Ithaca YC Ithaca NY Chas Williamson, 607-272-0630 Lavallette YC Laser Regatta 5/29 5/29 Lavallette Yacht Club Lavallette NJ Dave Magno, [email protected] Lake Naomi Mem Day Regatta 5/30 5/30 Lake Naomi Club Pocono Pines PA Chris Daggett, 570 646 6341, [email protected] Deathroll Regatta 6/5 6/5 Willowbank YC Cazenovia NY Ray Cudney, 315-655-5477 Vancouver Lake SC 6/5 6/6 VLSC Vancouver WA Randy Anderson, 360-573-0073, [email protected] Jericho Classic 6/5 6/6 JSCA Vancouver BC Andy Hunt, 604-733-9663, [email protected] Orange Coffee Pot 6/5 6/5 Surf City YC Manahawkin Bay NJ Newt Wattis, 609-494-2801, [email protected] June Gloom Regatta 6/5 6/5 Santa Clara Racing Association San Diego CA Patrick Thompson, [email protected] Savannah Championship 6/5 6/6 SSC Savannah GA http://d12.laserforum.org/ NOSA Invitational 6/12 6/13 NOSA Vernon BC Alex Muhlert, 250-260-4255, [email protected] Saratoga Derby Regatta 6/12 6/12 Saratoga YC Saratoga Lake NY Allan Miller, 518-885-5510 HSC Invitational 6/12 6/13 HSC West Vancouver BC Heather Drugge, 604-926-5744 LWSC Spring Regatta 6/12 6/12 Lake Washington Sailing Club Sacramento CA Ken Crawford, 916-374-0433, [email protected] D10 Grand Prix 6/12 6/13 Brant Beach YC Brant Beach NJ David Long, 973-543-2910, [email protected] Laser Regatta 6/12 6/12 Kaneohe Yacht Club HI Scott Melander, [email protected], North Americans 6/16 6/19 Cedar Point YC Westport CT Eric Robbins, [email protected] The Badger State Games 6/26 6/27 BS Games Madison WI Mark Kastel, 608-625-2042, [email protected] Vancouver Lake SC 6/26 6/27 VLSC Vancouver WA Sue Drake, [email protected], www.vlsc.org D7 Grand Prix 6/26 6/27 New Bedford Comm. Boating New Bedford MA Sally Sharp, [email protected] WAVES 7/3 7/4 RVYC Vancouver BC Sail West 7/9 7/11 Last Mountain Lake Sailing Club Saskatchewan Bch SK Fraser Pearce, 604-224-1344, [email protected] Patti Coons, 306-729-4363, [email protected] Kitsilano Invitational 7/10 7/11 KYC Vancouver BC Charles Hansen, 604-730-1646, [email protected] Laser PCCs 7/10 7/12 Monterey Peninsula YC Monteray CA Peter Phelan, 831-761-4164, [email protected] Patrick Thompson, [email protected] Firecracker Regatta 7/10 7/10 Santa Clara Racing Association San Diego CA D9 Grand Prix 7/10 7/11 Skaneateles YC Skaneateles NY Bob Castle, [email protected] D8 Grand Prix 7/12 7/12 Sayville Yacht Club Sayville NY Don Woodworth, [email protected] US Nationals 7/15 7/18 Santa Cruz Yacht Club Santa Cruz CA Peter Phelan, 831-761-4164, [email protected] Radials ACCs 7/16 7/17 The Boathouse Portland ME Scott Fox, 207-781-0939, [email protected] Kamloops Invitational 7/17 7/18 QSC Nicola Lake BC Trevor Owen, 250-372-9272, [email protected] D1 Grand Prix 7/17 7/18 St. Margarets Bay Halifax NS Andrew Childs, [email protected] South Sound Regatta 7/17 7/18 TYC Tacoma WA Craig Rone, [email protected] D23 Grand Prix 7/17 7/18 Aspen Yacht Club Basalt CO Jim Richmond, [email protected] Canadian Nationals 7/22 7/25 Royal Vancouver YC Squamish BC Fraser Pearce, 604-224-1344, [email protected] Canadian Laser Champs 7/22 7/25 RVYC Squamish BC Fraser Pearce, 604-224-1344, [email protected] Sail East 7/22 7/25 RNSYS Halifax NS Barbara Pike, [email protected], www.rnsys.com Masters PCCs 7/24 7/25 Disctict 24 Huntington Lake CA Chris boome, 650-373-0595, [email protected] Empire State Games 7/29 7/31 Ithaca YC Ithaca NY Allan Miller, 518-885-5510 Centerville 63rd Annual 7/31 8/1 Corsica River Yacht Club LRYC One Design Regatta 7/31 8/1 LaHave River Yacht Club 20 Md Fitz Turner, [email protected], www.cryc.org NS Kyle Hubley, [email protected] SPRING 2004 Regatta Start End Host City State Contact Info Gorge Regatta 8/7 8/8 CGRA Cascade Locks OR Kerry Poe, 503-282-4282, [email protected] Ron Runyan, 503-293-5100, [email protected] Al Morris Regatta 8/7 8/8 WSC Yale Lake WA D12 Grand Prix 8/7 8/8 Carolina Yacht Club Wrightsville Bch NC John Overton, 910-509-0196 Laser Regatta 8/7 8/7 HI Scott Melander, [email protected] Championship Regatta 8/7 8/7 Santa Clara Racing Association San Diego CA Patrick Thompson, [email protected] CYC Open 8/7 8/8 CYC-NC Wrightsville Bch NC http://d12.laserforum.org/ US Laser Masters 8/13 8/15 CGRA Cascade Locks OR Kerry Poe, 503-282-4282, [email protected] SOSA Invitational 8/14 8/15 SOSA Summerland BC Barry Cowan, 250-494-8257, [email protected] Great Lakes Championships 8/14 8/15 Rochester YC Rochester NY Steve Wilde, 585-544-5898 Oxford Regatta 8/14 8/15 Tred Avon Yacht Club Oxford Md David Cox, [email protected], www.tayc.com District 19 Championships 8/14 8/15 Grand Travers Yacht Club Traverse City Mi Mike Moody, [email protected], www.gtyc.com Junior Olympics 8/21 8/22 SYC Seattle WA Doug Gordon, 206-328-7009 Saskatoon SK Mark Barclay, 306 446-3860, [email protected] District 5 Championships 8/21 8/22 Battlefords SC D22 Grand Prix 8/21 8/22 Glacier National Park CORK 8/21 8/25 Portsmouth Olympic Harbour Kingston ON CORK Office, 613-545-1322, [email protected] D5 Grand Prix 8/21 8/22 Battlefords Sailing Club Saskatchewan SK John Dawson-Edwards, 780-429-4849 Orin Webber, 406-755-1200 D21 Grand Prix 8/28 8/29 White Bear Yacht Club White Bear Lake MN Johannes Aubrecht, 651-695-3157, www.wbycsail.org Lake Naomi Annual Regatta 8/29 8/29 Lake Naomi Club Pocono Pines PA Chris Daggett, 570 646 6341, www.lnsa.org Labor Day Regatta 9/4 9/5 West River Sailing Club Galesville MD Carl Berninger, 301-530-4218 Redwood Regatta 9/4 9/5 Humboldt Yacht Club Eureka CA Richard Whitehead, 707 444 9360 Back to School Regatta 9/4 9/4 Santa Clara Racing Association San Diego CA Patrick Thompson, [email protected] CSA Laser Regatta 9/5 9/6 Carlyle Sailing Assoc. Carlyle IL Paul Hanson, 618-288-5840, [email protected] Johnny Adams Memorial 9/11 9/12 PMYC Port Madison WA Dan Taylor, 206-842-6376, [email protected] Konigsberg Regatta 9/18 9/19 West River Sailing Club Galesville MD Carl Berninger, 301-530-4218 BBOD 9/18 9/19 BYC Bellingham WA Marlene Bolster, 360-773-7390, [email protected] The Border Challange 9/18 9/19 La Crosse Sailing Club La Crosse WI Mark Kastel, 608-625-2042, [email protected] BYC Sunday Fall Series 9/19 10/10 Beachwood Yacht Club Beachwood NJ William Wiencke, 732-349-9604, [email protected] 2004 No Coast Championships 9/25 9/26 Johnson Lake Lexington NE Noah French, 402-981-3871, [email protected] District 11 Grand Prix 9/25 9/26 Severn Sailling Association Annapolis Md Luke Shingledecker, 410 507 2052 Seitech New England Masters 9/25 9/26 Point Bay Marina Charlotte VT John Beal, 802-425-4796, [email protected] D14 Grand Prix 9/25 9/26 Pensacola Beach Yacht Club Pensacola Beach FL Callender R. Herman Lotsa Laser 9/25 9/26 HIYC Nashville TN www.hiyc.org Fall Dinghy Champs 10/2 10/3 RVicYC Victoria BC Leslie Fraser, 250-592-6113, [email protected] Octoberfest 10/2 10/3 CYC Seattle WA Jim Lyle, [email protected], www.cycseattle.com Octoberfest Regatta 10/2 10/2 Santa Clara Racing Association San Diego CA Patrick Thompson, [email protected] SC State Champs 10/2 10/3 WCSC Lake Hartwell SC http://d12.laserforum.org/ Seattle Fleet Champs 10/9 10/10 CYC Seattle WA Jay Winberg, 206-523-3370, [email protected] D17 Grand Prix, GA Champs 10/16 10/17 LLSC Flowery Branch GA www.llsc.com Pumpkin Regatta 10/23 10/24 WVYC West Vancouver BC Kevin Black, 604-921-7575, [email protected] Fall Dinghy & Olympic Classes 10/29 10/31 StFYC San Francisco CA Peter Phelan, 831-761-4164, [email protected] Bluenose Regatta 11/6 11/7 KYC Vancouver BC Charles Hansen, 604-730-1646, [email protected] South Bay Regatta 11/7 11/7 SCRA / Navy Yacht Club San Diego CA Patrick Thompson, [email protected] No More Turkey 11/13 11/14 AYC Atlanta GA www.atlantayachtclub.org LWSC Turkey Shoot 11/14 11/14 Lake Washington Sailing Club Sacramento CA Ken Crawford, 916-374-0433, [email protected] Turkey Bowl 11/20 11/21 CYC Seattle WA Jay Winberg, 206-523-3370, [email protected] D13 Grand Prix 11/27 11/28 Davis Island YC Clearwater FL Tim Landt, [email protected] Holiday Regatta 12/5 12/5 Santa Clara Racing Association San Diego CA Patrick Thompson, [email protected] This calendar was taken from the website. If you are hosting an event and would like it to appear in the next issue of The Laser Sailor, be sure to post it in the calendar section of www.Laser.org Bold Italic denotes World Championship Bold Type denotes Major Championships (Regional, National or Continental) Italics denotes District Championships www.laser.org 21 2004 NORTH AMERICAN GRAND PRIX RULES 1. Preamble The intent of the North American Grand Prix is to promote participation in Laser Class events at the District, Regional and Continental levels. Except where explicitly stated, the following rules apply equally to the 2004 Laser, Radial, 4.7 and Laser>> Grand Prix. 2. Eligibility a. All members, in good standing, of the North American Region of the International Laser Class Association (ILCA-NA) are eligible to participate in any and all official Grand Prix events. b. Competitors who join ILCA-NA before the start of the first race of a Grand Prix event shall be considered to be members in good standing for the purposes of receiving a regatta score for that event (deemed eligible competitors). 3. Regatta Categories and 2004 Grand Prix Regattas a. Continental Championship Total Regatta Points: 40 b. Major Continental Regattas Total Regatta Points: 30 i. The US Nationals ii. The Canadian Nationals iii. CORK iv. Midwinters East v. Midwinters West c. Regional Regattas - Total Regatta Points: 25 i. The Atlantic Coast Championship ii. The Gulf Coast Championship iii. The Great Lakes Championship iv. The "No Coast" Championship v. The Pacific Coast Championship d. District Championship Regattas for each North American Region Total Regatta Points: 20 4. Regatta Requirements a. The 2004 Grand Prix is for regattas which are sailed between January 1, 2004 and December 15, 2004. 22 b. Contact information and the official NOR must be posted on www.Laser.org at least four weeks prior to the event or it will not qualify as a GrandPrix event and no GrandPrix points will be awarded. c. The current Grand Prix standings will be published monthly on the ILCA-NA website at www.laser.org c. For the purposes of awarding Grand Prix points: a. For the 2004 Laser Grand Prix prizes will be awarded in the following categories: i. A regatta consists of an event scheduled to be sailed over consecutive days ii. There must be a minimum of three races completed iii. A minimum number of eligible competitors must be in attendance: 1. Laser: 10 2. Radial: 7 3. 4.7: 5 4. Laser>>: 5 iv. Events can only be re-sailed with permission of the ILCA-NA Secretary. d. Regatta results should be sent by the event chair or district secretary to the ILCA-NA office within 30 days of completion of the event. 6. Prizes i. Top three overall ii. Top finisher counting only district events iii. Top finisher counting only regional and district events iv. Competitor finishing exactly in the middle v. Iron Man: person competing in the most Grand Prix events (and, in the case of more than one competitor with the same number of events, with the highest total point count). vi. Competitors cannot win in more than one category. Top three takes precedence over the other categories. b. For the 2004 Radial Grand Prix prizes will be awarded in the following categories: 5. Scoring i. Top three overall a. Regatta Score ii. Top finisher counting only district events i. The score for eligible competitors will be calculated as Total Regatta Points less the sailors finish position plus one (e.g. the regatta winner will receive a score equal to the Total Regatta Points) down to a minimum of one point. ii. The finish positions of ineligible competitors will not be removed. b. Grand Prix Rankings Score i. The Grand Prix ranking will be based on each eligible competitor's sum of their top five Regatta Scores. ii. For the purposes of awarding prizes only, ties will be broken by removing points first from district events, if the tie remains then removing points from regional events, etc. If a tie remains, the competitor who finished ahead in the highest graded, and most recent, mutually attended Grand Prix regatta shall be the winner, unless neither competitor faced each other, in which case the tie shall be broken by the ILCA-NA Executive Director by coin flip. iii. Top finisher counting only regional and district events iv. Competitor finishing exactly in the middle v. Iron Man: person competing in the most Grand Prix events (and, in the case of more than one competitor with the same number of events, with the highest total point count). vi. Competitors cannot win in more than one category. Top three takes precedence over the other categories. c. For the 2004 4.7 Grand Prix prizes will be awarded in the following categories: i. One prize per fifty competitors d. For the 2004 Laser>> Grand Prix prizes will be awarded in the following categories: i. One prize per fifty competitors SPRING 2004 Grand Prix Laser Pos. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 First Name Michael John Emery Chris Parker Brad Bryan Zach Doug Andrew B. Andrew Carlos Luke Rory Andrew Ryan Reed Trevor Ned Conner Zach Mike Kurt John Dave Robert Jeff Tracy Ryan Scott R. Tim Last Name Leigh Romanko Wager Raab Shinn Funk Buffaloe Railey Hart Lewis Fahey Childs Roberts Ramsay Fitzpatrick Lea Minth Johnson Hamilton Jones Higgins Brown Wilde Taulbee Haverstock Leuck Noonan Sharp Usher Karnes Ferguson Lorence Pitts Total 60 29 29 28 28 27 26 26 26 25 25 24 24 23 22 21 21 20 19 19 18 18 17 16 15 15 14 14 13 13 12 12 11 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 Bill Van Joey Chris K. Brendan Abe Michael Ian Ari Matt Harry Jeffrey Horia John Symes Wilson Hill Wenner Grierson Shattuck Torchinsky Todd Wtorer Barshi Sterett Weyher Olson Ispas Shedel 11 10 9 9 8 7 7 6 6 5 4 4 3 3 1 Last Name Hall Hoepfner Curran Bastet Sloan Railey Goetting Gaudio Fulmer Liebl Kelly Thompson Tullo Weber Holtzer Beck Swetka Total 45 41 33 31 31 30 29 29 28 27 27 26 26 25 24 24 23 Radials Pos. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 First Name Mitch Leah Michael Nicole Jeff Paige Matthew Mark Charles J. Sean Cy Tom Royce Ethan Geoff Ken 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 Allie Kyle Case Chris Brian Brian Nicole Jeff Brandon Tedd Edward Tinja Charlotte TJ Paige Eric Blake Brian Travis Baker Charles Alex Max Alex Jonathan Mike William Andy Fred Ian Kaytlin Blecher Rogachenko 23 22 Hathaway-Zepeda 22 Alexander 21 Vanderspek 21 Raney 20 Blunt 20 Sharp 19 Freeland 18 Himler 18 Conrad 17 Anderson-Mitterling 17 Hill 16 Tullo 16 Johnston 15 Horrocks 14 Warner 14 Peterson 13 Cottrell 12 Rigby 11 LeConey 9 Potts 9 Sorosky 9 Natvig 8 Ill 7 Chamberlain 6 Gouverne 6 Ravelo 5 Craig 5 O’Bryan 4 dePauw 4 Brown 3 Wong 3 Strammer 2 Sutherland 1 Hall 1 PHOTO BY SEAN KELLY www.laser.org 23 CONTINUED FROM PAGE 19 We get a lot of calls from Laser sailors who are looking to join a club so that they can get involved in regular series racing, as well as the local regattas. Two of New Jersey’s associations are Barnegat Bay Yacht Racing Association, and Mid Atlantic Yacht Racing Association. Following is a list of members of both organizations and their websites, if available: BBYRA Members: (bbyra.org) Bay Head YC - bayheadyachtclub.org Beachwood Yacht Club - bycnj.net Island Heights Yacht Club - ihyc.com Lavallette Yacht Club - lavalletteyc.org Manasquan River YC - mryc.org Mantoloking Yacht Club mantolokingyachtclub.com Metedeconk River YC - mrycsail.org Normandy Beach YC - nbycnj.com Ocean Gate Yacht Club - ogyc.net Pine Beach Yacht Club - pbycnj.com Seaside Park YC- seasideparkyc.com Shore Acres Yacht Clubshoreacresyachtclub.com Toms River Yacht Club- tryc.com MAYRA Members: (mayra.org) Avalon YC - avalonyachtclub.com Brigantine YC - ussailing.net/byc Cooper River Yacht Club users.erols.com/wolf6001/ cryc/cryc.html Corinthian YC, Cape May - cycm.com Corinthian Yacht Club of Philadelphia cycop.com Deleware River Yacht Club Greater Wildwood YC - gwyc.org Marsh Creek Sailing Club ussailing.net/mcsc Ocean City Yacht Club - ocyc.org Red Dragon Canoe Club - reddragoncanoeclub.org Riverton YC - rivertonyachtclub.org Union Lake Sailing and Tennis Club Yacht Club of Pleasantville Yacht Club of Sea Isle City - ycsic.com Yacht Club of Stone Harbor - ycsh.org District 11 - JR Futcher The racing season promises to be busy and again competitive and a good racing time for all levels. I want to thank area laser fleet captains for their replies about racing news and schedules. Another big thanks goes to Ted Morgan for all of his terrific work as the previous secretary. He handed over the “tiller” 24 with the district in terrific shape. I want to reinforce, that I welcome any news, ideas, reports, announcements, suggestions and pictures for laser racing in ALL of district 11. I promise to make them known in Laser Sailor/ websites. Several area clubs have racing underway and incredibly many lasers are showing up at Rock Hall Yacht Club and Severn Sailing Association despite frigid temps and ice floes. After several weeks of total winter, the thawing continues; spring is upon us and its time to think about circulating the district for spring series and regattas. RHYC Sunday racing continues until late April. SSA frostbite racing concludes early April. Meanwhile other clubs are set and confirming schedules. Variety of racing guarantees competition and more good times... Fishing Bay Yacht Club, Deltaville, Virginia, Saturday, 1 May- One Design Spring series. Miles River Yacht Club, St. Michaels; Maryland-Eastern Shore, see their website...Mike Keene; [email protected] Rock Hall Yacht Club, MarylandEastern Shore near the Chester River on Langford Bay, Series racing continues to late April, Opening Day Laser Regatta, 1 May Nicholas Place; [email protected] Severn Sailing Association, Annapolis MD, Frostbiting wraps up mid-April, Tuesdays series to follow. Luke Shingledecker; [email protected] West River Sailing Club, Friday night racing begins 7 May, $20 series fee to August Crystal Bowl Regatta, 22 May with professional coaching during the racing. Carl Berninger; 301-530-4218 [email protected] Potomac River Sailing Association, Alexandria, Virginia, Spring Regatta, 29 May Mike Dabulo; [email protected] Hampton Yacht Club, Hampton, Virginia, on going one design racing great effort with top laser sailors. Rock Hall folks did the same trek to the Midwinters East laser racing. With numerous North American regatta venues a laser road trip simply makes laser racing more interesting. Its one way to measure up and get better. Two racing venues are opening up in the Delaware area. Lewes Yacht Club; Delaware Bay and Rehoboth Sailing Association, Rehoboth Bay is eager to expand their racing fleets and are welcoming the laser class. The Atlantic side of district 11 serves up a reliable summer easterly sea breeze, averaging about 12-15;the ideal laser experience... even better following the sweeping cold fronts, the northerly winds treat sailors to much more. (I do apologize that some information is not quite thorough, as I settle in this role I expect to have the routine down for listings and news.) Please visit their websites for more items. Other news to share are the regatta travelers- Luke reports that SSA’s Bob, Ted, Ali and himself made the long trek to the Olympic Classes Regatta in Miami; they report it was a successful experience and made a Spring has finally arrived in D12, and Laser sailing is getting in full gear. By the time this article reaches your mailbox, two D12 events will be in the books: The NC State Champs and The Charleston Championship. Upcoming events during the summer months include The Savannah Championship in early June and the D12 Grand Prix in early August that will once again be held in Wrightsville Beach. Check our- Masters racing The laser masters Atlantic coast championships is to be hosted by Rehoboth Bay Sailing Association, Rehoboth Bay, Delaware; 17-19 September 2004. Regatta Chairman, JR Futcher. The Notice of Regattawill be available on the Laser website. Recently I had the timing and opportunity to attend a laser training clinic at Seabrook Sailing Club in Texas following on the heels of beginner clinics I set up at SSC; the laser fleet is continuing the clinic agenda. John Kolius stepped in and offered his world class racing experience with extremely beneficial ideas and instruction. Some tips were efforts on controlling tiller, leeward rounding and driving off for speed, the “laser flick” on the gybe and starting coaching skills. It was money well spent. Some 20 master sailors got their chance to practice hard in perfect wind and skies. For the woman laser sailor, please consider attending a beginning womens laser clinic round-up; Diane Burton coaching. Contact me for further details and look for publicity about the event to be set-up in the later spring season in the Chesapeake Bay area. District 12 – John Overton CONTINUED ON PAGE 26 SPRING 2004 SPORT UTILITY TRAILERS & LAUNCHING DOLLIES Trailex Quality New Lower Price! New Foam Filled Box for Safer Shipping Now Ships UPS Now only $698 Trailer Features Lightweight aluminum will not rust and weights only 120 lbs. 3-point support design suspends hull, preventing damage. Standard equipment includes: Dual stop, turn and tail lights. Epoxy coated springs and submersible lights for long lasting protection. Protective vinyl on crossbar and bow clamp. Safety chains and web straps. Plus shipping Now only $188 Plus shipping Dolly Features Aluminum frame will not rust. Lightweight aluminum allows for easy transport by hand. Ships via UPS in a foam filled box. See our complete product line at: WWW.TRAILEX.COM OR WRITE TO [email protected] Call for a free brochure in OH (800) 282-5042 or in FL (850) 267-4563 Trailex is located in Canfield, OH and new location in Santa Rosa Beach, FL Dealers Wanted Contact us to learn how you can bring related products right to your customers Fal l & Winter Sp eci al s! MB Yachting Tillers and extensions & GSB hiking straps $20 USD 3” wide 32” long $75 USD 53 “ long 1 1/4” diameter $175 USD Carbon Roller super lightweight For all your Laser needs! Western Canada’s largest full service Chandlery & Boatshop 515 - 5th Ave. SE Calgary, Alberta, Canada T2G 0E9 visit our site at: www.glenmoresailboats.com or email us at: [email protected] tel: 403.266.3055 fax: 403.266.3057 www.laser.org 25 CONTINUED FROM PAGE 24 district website at d12.laserforum.org for complete racing schedule, NORs, and results. From the 2003 D12 season, there are several winners to announce: D12 Overall Full Rig Champion: Martin Willard D12 Masters Champion: Martin Willard D12 Junior Full Rig Champion: Nicholas Ellyn D12 Overall Radial Champion: Emily Aspland D12 Female Champion: Martine Zurinskas Congratulations to all these sailors. See you out on the water! District 13 – Tim Landt We kicked off the start of the sailing season with the Florida Masters-Jack Swenson at the Palm Beach Sailing Club. I’d like to thank Carl Schellbach and his committee for a fabulous event. Peter Seidenberg won on a tie breaker with D-13’s Buzzy Heausler second, age has it’s advantage. They were followed by Tim Landt 5th,Dick Tillman 6th, Dave Hartman 7th, Gonzo Diaz 12th, Michele Davis 20th and top woman master. The next weekend we all traveled over to Clearwater for Masters Midwinter’s. ILCA-NA chairman Peter John’s volunteered to be the PRO for the event and did an outstanding job. Peter showed true leadership in running the event and choosing not to sail so the members would be afforded the best sailing possible, other ILCA officers could learn a lot from this example. We had 6 good races in light conditions, the top D-13 member was James Liebl in 6th followed by Andy Culver 8th,Kurt Taulbee 10th, 2003 Rolex sailor of the year Augie Diaz 11th. On Saturday night we all travel down to the SPYC for dinner and a presentation by the Laser class representative Mark Mendelblatt, Mark will represent USA at the 2004 Olympics. I want to thank everyone who attend and made a pledge and donation to Mark. The next week all the big dogs showed up for the annual Midwinter’s East. With grade 1 status this event is drawing competitors from around the world. They had 4 days of very trying conditions. Top D-13 sailor was Brad Funk 4th and Zach Railey 5th. In the Radials D13 sailor Paige Railey put on a clinic and won, home for a break 26 from Navy, Charles Fulmer was 3rd and James Liebl in 4th. Please check Laser website for full report. Hope to see everyone on the water soon. District 14 – Cal Herman District 15 – Bruce Moore District 16 - Katy Towles By now, I hope you all have defrosted your boats, and stated to think about sailing again, it is definitely that time. Over the past few months, I have been putting together a schedule of future events. We have several in the area, and quite a few in the surrounding districts that look quite appealing. You should be receiving a hard copy of that schedule in the mail soon, if not already. If there are any changes or additions, let me know as soon as possible. District 17 – Martine Rawlings Zurninskas We have a new district secretary, John Coolidge. His contact information is listed in the districts section on page 6. Please drop him a note and help him get started. D17 Regatta Schedule for 2004. AYC Open Atlanta YC, April 24-25, www.atlantayachtclub.com LLSC Reggae Regatta, June 19-20, www.llsc.com LLSC One Design Regatta, Aug. 7-8, www.llsc.com Lotsa Laser, Harbor Island YC, Sept. 25-26, www.hiyc.org GA State Champs, Lake Lanier SC, Oct. 16-17, www.llsc.com ** Grand Prix** NO More Turkey, Atlanta YC, Nov.1314, www.atlantayachtclub.com Hot sailing going on at the Laser Frostbite Series in Atlanta Georgia... 44 boats registered and weekends with 25+ sailors was very common! Congrats to A fleet winners Robert Burke 1st, Mark Reddaway 2nd, Bryce Dryden 3rd, Bailey White 4th, Martine Zurinskas 5th, Warner Guedry 6th. Congrats to B fleet winners 1st David DeLorme, 2nd Robert Martin, 3rd Chris Jackson, 4th Ashley Saylor, and 5th Tim Schneider. District 18 – We still need a District Secretary, if you are interested or know someone, please let me know. Thanks James. District 19 – Michael Moody Besides the districts in Traverse City, the highlight of the season will be “Spartan Singles” in September at Lake Lansing. This is cooperative event between the Lansing Sailing Club and co-sponsored by the MSU Sailing Team. It’s a fun opportunity to race against top regional collegiate talent. Last year was the first for this event, and was such a success; the format was picked up and used at other Midwest colleges and clubs. You won’t want to miss this one! District 19 Regatta Schedule June 12 - Lansing July 10 - St. Joseph - racing on Lake Michigan July 24 & 25 Leland August 14 Traverse City (districts) Sept. 11 Fenton at Lake Fenton Sept. 11& 12 “No Sweat” at Portage Lake near A2 Sept. 18 & 19 “Spartan Singles” at Lake Lansing in cooperation with MSU Sailing Team Oct. 23 “Pumpkin Head” at Reeds Lake in Grand Rapids District 20 – Dave Abbott It was a tough winter for folks into iceboating – just a couple of good weekends. That makes us even more eager for sailing down south, frostbiting, and the start of the season! For those of you who called or emailed me about my back injury – thanks a ton for the good wishes and I am healing ahead of schedule. We have assembled a busy schedule of regattas to encourage you to travel and have more fun! To highlight a few old/new events: Frostbiting Chicago YC Belmont is undergoing major reconstruction and the club will be moving (it’s on a barge) so this spring’s sailing activities have been relocated to the Monroe Street location. Many thanks to Scott Diamond (a new laser sailor!) for all the work he has done to make this move work and allow uninterrupted sailing. Stephen Dolan at Milwaukee YC is also rumored to be starting a frostbite program so he won’t have to drive to Chicago for spring racing. Contact Stephen if you’re interested in joining this growing program: [email protected] CONTINUED ON PAGE 30 SPRING 2004 www.laser.org 27 Sailing Fit Recently I have had some questions about Yoga and how it may help or hinder your sailing ability. In my opinion it is a great option or addition to any exercise program. Yoga can help increase your core strength, increase flexibility and balance and tone your body. This is not to mention the positive effects on your mindset. I know that Yoga may not be everybody's cup of tea, but I wanted to at least give everyone some more information. While I am not an expert on Yoga, I am providing an article that I believe will be more helpful to you. I am always happy to answer any questions or help you find the answer. Just contact me at www.sailfit.com or [email protected]. Is Yoga for You? Considering it's thousands of years old, it might seem silly to say that yoga has come a long way in recent years. But as mind/body exercise continues to take hold in the '90s, the practice of yoga has moved from the alternative to the mainstream. Today's hectic lifestyle has left many of us wondering how to manage the stress that comes along with it. While regular aerobic exercise and strength training can help, it isn't the complete answer. Some believe yoga is the piece you need to complete the puzzle of keeping both the body and the mind fit. A trend worth following Now, before you start conjuring up images of zoned-out new-agers in pretzel-like positions chanting mantras, consider this: Yoga is an ancient practice that can help you deal with the stress of modern life. And, more and more people, stressed out or not, are 28 discovering the benefits of yoga. In fact, it has been reported that more than six million Americans are now practicing some form of yoga. Yoga, which means to yoke or unite, is the practice of uniting all aspects of a person - body, mind and spirit - through physical postures, breathing exercises and meditation. Flexibility, strength and muscle tone improve quickly as the mind and body work together in harmony and unison. Choose your yoga There are several different branches of yoga, each with its own unique focus. Hatha yoga, the most widely practiced form, emphasizes concentration and consists of gentle stretching and strengthening exercises. Because prana, or life force, is thought to originate in the breath, Pranayama yoga uses breathing exercises and breath control to enhance vitality and energy. Mantra yoga uses the concentrated repetition of a word or phrase to aid in the control of the mind. A time to relax For some, yoga is a primary means of relaxation, something that is often difficult to achieve in the high-stress, highspeed world we live in. Regardless of which type you choose, yoga is an excellent way to stretch and strengthen the body, focus the mind and relax the spirit. In fact, most modern stressreduction techniques are based on the principles of yoga. Dr. Dean Ornish, in his work with heart patients, utilizes yoga exercises, breathing and relaxation techniques to reverse symptoms of heart disease. Current research indicates that stressrelated diseases respond favorably to this type of approach. Easing into it The best way to get started in yoga is to find a class that appeals to you. Find out where yoga classes are being held in your area and stop by to see how you like it. There are many different approaches to yoga - some focus on breathing, others focus on holding specific postures - and it's important to find the one that appeals to you the most. A yoga workout One type of yoga that has recently jumped in popularity is astanga, or power yoga. This type involves a series of very intense yoga postures done in succession. This class, which is a vigorous workout, can help develop strength as well as flexibility. Yoga is a great way not only to relax, but also to improve your performance in other activities. Once you have learned a few yoga moves and breathing tech-niques, they can easily be integrated into your regular fitness routine. So don't let any preconceived notions of yoga keep you from enjoying the benefits of this dynamic mind/body exercise. REPRINTED WITH PERMISSION FROM THE AMERICAN COUNCIL ON EXERCISE.(WWW.ACEFITNESS.ORG) COMPLIMENTS OF: MEKA A TAULBEE SPRING 2004 Advertising Rates Gulfstream Marine Supplies Two page color spread, full bleed: $900 Performance Dinghy Shop Full page: Color - $550, B&W - $375 Half Page: Color - $285, B&W - $220 Quarter page - Color - $175, B&W - $130 Files should be e-mailed to [email protected] or mailed on CD to Box 6120, Annapolis, MD 21401. If overnight mailing is necessary please call 410-991-3719 for an address. Files may be sent in most formats including by not limited to, high resolution PDF (with fonts embedded), EPS (fonts as outlines), TIF, JPEG, PSD, PUB. Either Mac or PC platforms. Include fonts if necessary. Ad sizes are listed below. ¾ ¾ ¾ ¾ ¾ ¾ Magic Marine/Aquata clothing Trailex and Kitty Hawk trailers Seitech dollies, racks and accessories Gill, Ronstan, Harken Authorized Vanguard Dealer Full selection of boats, parts, clothing and accessories always in stock We service onsite and help sponsor class regattas in the southeast. Support the dealer that supports your class! We are also dealers for Byte, Megabyte, 29er and Finn. Two pages - 11.25” x 17.25” trimmed to 11” x 17” Full page, bleed - 8.75" x 11.25”, trimmed to 8.5" x 11" Full page no bleed - 7"x9.5" Half Vertical - 3.385” x 9.5” Half Horizontal - 7” x 4.625" Quarter page - 3.375” x 4.625” Toll Free: 888-250-SAIL email: [email protected] website: www.gulfstreamsailboats.com Full service sail loft: 561-743-3355 We sail what we sell! Laser Racing Simulators! Download Discounts & Free Demos www.poseysail.com SAILING TACTICS SIMULATOR: The simulator series Sailing World called “the best for improving tactics” has gotten better! 2004 Edition has: Improved 360° 3D graphics! Precise boat performance & fine-tune controls! 5 new fleets! Downwind finish courses & optional gates! Expert racing advice e-book! You still get lots of tactical action in a 30boat Laser fleet or match racing! 1 or 2 players. World-class opponent artificial intelligence. Very accurate wind & current models require astute strategy. Wind & tide vector views. Many course, racing area, & condition choices. Coach. Replay Leg. Racing Rules, Tactics & Strategy Tutorials. Use variable difficulty to tune up for your next regatta! ADVANCED RACING SIMULATOR: 2004 Edition has the same new features as Sailing Tactics plus a new Tactics & Strategy Tutorial! Intense, realistic racing in a 20 boat Laser fleet or match racing! Boatspeed, boat handling & tactics count as you steer, shape main & any headsails, position skipper/crew. Learn what works in Trim Mode. Highly intelligent accurately modeled fleets. Rules Tutorial. Coach. Replay Leg. Variable difficulty. Move up from mid-fleet finishes! Simulators: Windows 95/ better. Power Macintosh. CD-Rom US$54.95 + $5 ship. ($10 overseas) Download $44.95. Multiple Purchase Discounts! NEW! Coastal Cruising & Distance Racing simulators! UPGRADES! POSEY YACHT DESIGN Demos, Downloads & Discounts at www.poseysail.com 860-345-2685 www.laser.org 29 CONTINUED FROM PAGE 26 Lake Springfield – Island Bay YC. Pete Wise and others have rebuilt the laser fleet at Lake Springfield. This club is a strong, long established club featuring scows, stars, and now lasers again. They hosted many memorable regattas over the years – typically us lasers would race there in the early spring and late fall when the warmer air and water and fun parties made for a great weekend. April 24 and 25 Pete has invited us down for their IBYC Spring Opener. It should be good! Chicago Corinthian YC – Laser Clinic. On Saturday, June 5 Chicago Corinthian YC (Montrose) will be hosting a laser clinic coached by John Vandemoer. John is the super sailing coach who has put Chicago high school sailing on the map. This will be a super day of coaching with video taping for both on and off the water sessions. This is an excellent opportunity for those who want to improve their game – or just get up to speed in a hurry! Milwaukee YC, Great Lake Masters. Steve Dolan has demonstrated his desire to make lasering a mainstay at MYC by hosting this year’s GL Masters on July 17 and 18. This should be a super event with a lot of good planning already underway. Note that this event is open to ALL sailors but will have separate scoring for masters and all divisions of masters. District 20 Schedule March 14 – April 25 Frostbite CYC Monroe April 24-25, IBYC Spring Opener May 1-2, Hank Davies – Columbia May 8, Mother’s Day – Lake Geneva May 15-16, Vlad Cup and Area K O’day Elims – CYC Monroe May 23, Puddlefest – Des Plaines May 27, 1st Thursday night at Corinthian June 5, Dist. 20 Laser Clinic – Corinthian June 26-27, Badger State Games – Madison, WI July 10-11, SuperSail – Winnetka July 17-18, GL Masters – Milwaukee Sept. 5-6, Lake Carlyle Sept. 18-19, Border Challenge – LaCrosse Oct. 2-3, Talbot – CYC Oct. 9, Wandering Moose – Milwaukee Oct. 10, Frostbiting starts – CYC Oct. 16-17, Dist. 20 Champs, Lake Geneva Oct. 30-31, Springfield Fall regatta? 30 District 21 - Johannes Aubrecht The calendar for District 21 in the upcoming year appears below. Note that the first regatta in District 21, as it was last year, will be the Heckl invitational on White Bear Lake on May 15. Contact Andy Heckl for information on this regatta at 651-429-4935. Also note that a couple of regattas in District 20 also occur in May – specifically, the Mothers Day regatta on Lake Geneva on May 8 and the Vlad Cup (O’Day qualifier) in Chicago on May15-16. The first major regatta in District 21 will be the D-21 Championship on June 12. Schedule May 15, Heckl Invitational, WBYC June 12, D-21 Champs, UMYC July 24-25, Aquatennial Regatta, CYC Aug 7, Northstar Games, CYC Aug 28-29, D-21 Grand Prix, WBYC Sept 25-26, No Coast Champs, Johnson Lake, NE Oct 10, NUMB Regatta, WYC We now have 4 options for fleet sailing in District 21. For the hardcore sailors, there will be fleet sailing at the Calhoun Yacht Club, the Wayzata Yacht Club, and (NEW) the White Bear Yacht Club. The calendar for the fleet racing at these clubs is as follows: Calhoun Yacht Club, Wed. nights from 06/02/04—09/29/04; Wayzata Yacht Club, Wed. nights from 04/27/04—05/26/04 and Tues. nights from 06/01/04—08/31/04; White Bear Yacht Club, Thurs. nights from 06/03/04—08/19/04. Finally, there is beer can fleet racing at Bald Eagle Lake on Wed. nights. Contact me (651-695-3157) for any information on fleet racing at these locations. Please contact me if you would like to be placed on the District 21 Email list ([email protected]). And check out the District 21 website for the latest information and an electronic copy of the D21 newsletter cerebus.winsite.com/districts/d21/inde x.html. District 22 – Orin Webber District 23 – Jim Richmond Special thanks to volunteer Eric Simon [email protected] for developing an all-new District 23 website at www.sailtherockies.com. Eric’s website is a cool addition to District communications and a harbinger of new interest and growth of Laser sailing in the Rockies. We also owe our gratitude to Larry Arbuthnot [email protected] for continuing to coordinate the District email list. In Arizona, Mark Deardorff [email protected] has volunteered to be District 23’s Arizona liaison. Don’t forget to thank these volunteers this season! We’re bound to have more fun with their help. Aspen Yacht Club www.aspenyachtclub.com will host the District 23 Laser Championships in conjunction with their Aspen Open Regatta on July 17-18. Up to 20 NA Laser Grand Prix points will be available (ILCA membership required for eligibility). The site is Reudi Reservoir, a beautiful mountain lake located 17 miles up the Frying Pan River from Basalt, CO. Tent-city style camping is permitted on the Yacht Club lawn. Dinner is served Saturday night. Bring enough bottled drinking water for the weekend. This Club throws a great party + fun for all ages. Don’t miss it. The summer regatta schedule is posted and updated at www.sailtherockies.com and the highlights are listed here: May, Every Saturday, Arizona Spring Series, Tempe Town Lake, Tempe, AZ; May-June, Every Thursday Evening, Spring Series, Cherry Creek Res., Denver, CO; May 15-16, Hornblower Regatta, Denver Sailing Assn., Cherry Creek Res., Denver, CO; July 3, Firecracker Regatta, Denver Sailing Assn., Union Res., Denver, CO; July 17-18, Aspen Open & District 23 Grand Prix, Reudi Reservoir, 17 miles east of Basalt, CO; August 7-8, Dillon Open, Dillon Res., Dillon, CO; August TBA (tentative), Bow Mar YC, Littleton, CO; August 21-22, Colorado Laser Championships, Grand Lake Yacht Club, Grand Lake, CO; Sept. TBA (tentative), Commodores Cup (DSA members only), Denver Sailing Assn., Cherry Creek Res., Denver, CO; Sept. 18-19, Frostbite Regatta, Denver Sailing Assn., Cherry Creek Res., Denver, CO; Sept 25-26, Laser No Coast Championships, Johnson Lake, Nebraska. CONTINUED ON PAE 33 SPRING 2004 KITTY HAWK The Stainless Steel Kitty Hawk is truly beautiful. Always staying shiny never rusts or oxidizes as all other materials do. At 98 lbs, it’s the lightest available by far and you will appreciate this when using your Kitty Hawk as a launching dolly. When you get to the regatta you save time and are the quickest from road to water by simply disattaching from your vehicle and start rigging. When the regatta is over you are the quickest from the water to road. Even quicker by placing your spars on Spar Partners® and securing them with super shock cords. STANDARD FEATURES Lightest Weight • Welded Construction • Fewer Parts • Fewer Fasteners Pivot Bow Support • Molded Polymer at Boat Contact Points Stainless Steel Axle • Galvanized Rims SPAR PARTNERS® Spar Partners® carry your spars on the Laser® deck. They are the quickest on/off to get you on the water and on the road fast. Made from durable foam rubber. Spars fasten on with shock cords. Your deck cover fits over your spars. Now the new Spar Partners® are available that fit over the cam cleat system on the forcedeck for the outstanding new cunningham / outhaul performance upgrade. And, we also have super shock cords available with Spar Partners® PRICES Start Sailing faster, with . Seitech dollies are lightweight, durable, and easy to handle. That means you get into the water sooner and start sailing faster. Seitech also offers boat storage racks that can be built in a variety of configurations making your boat even easier to access and store. For more Trailers: information on Seitech’s line of dollies and racks, contact Kitty Hawk 1, Stainless Steel $655 Kitty Hawk 1, Galvanized $560 Kitty Hawk 2 (fits Laser II®) galvanized $560 ® Spar Partners (pair) $ 22 Spar Partners® (pair for cunn/ohaul upgrade) $ 24 Spar Partners® packed with a pair of supper shock cords us or visit our website. add $5.50 Mast Stepper - standard or for cunn/ohaul upgrade $ 29 Two-Boat Adapter (you glue together) $130 (The TWO-BOAT ADAPTER lets you carry two Lasers® on one trailer. There is room for seven spars (extra upper mast section) between the two boats.) From your local dealer or from the manufacturer Nautical America 604C4 Foxcroft Terrace • Statesville, NC 28677 (704) 878-6823 www.seitech.com • 401-683-6898 ® Spar Partners is a registered trademark of Kenneth N. Hopkins. Laser® and Laser II® are registered trademarks of Vanguard Sailboats www.laser.org 31 INDEX TO ADVERTISERS Magic Marine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9 Annapolis Performance Sailing . . . .35 Melges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11 Castle Craft . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27 Murray’s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 Cat’s Paw Boats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 New England Ropes . . . . . . . . . . . . .34 Colie Pro Shop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-3 On-Line Marine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25 Fogh Marine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18 Posey’s Yachts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 Glenmore Sailboats . . . . . . . . . . . . .25 Sail Coach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25 Gulfstream . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 Seitech . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31 Harken . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18 Svendsens Boat Works . . . . . . . . . .33 Kitty Hawk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31 Tackle Shack . . . . . . . . . . .Back Cover Layline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34 Trailex . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27 Vanguard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 Name ____________________________________________________________________________________________ Address _________________________________________________________________________________________ City ____________________________________State / Prov. _______________Zip / postal code ________________ Phone_____________________________________ E-mail ________________________________________________ Sail # _________________________________DOB (month/day/year) ____________________________________Sex __________ Boat sailed ______________ Laser _________ Radial ____________________ Laser 4.7 _________________ Laser 2 ______________ Membership fees Regular member, $40 USD - US and CAN residents Junior member (can not turn 18 in the calendar year), $35 USD - US and CAN residents Family member (first member), $40 USD - US and CAN residents Each additional member, $25 USD - US and CAN residents For each family member, please provide DOB, class sailed, and sail number. Each family member will receive a membership card. Only one issue of Laser sailor will be mailed per household. International member, $50 USD - any member living outside the USA or CAN. Amount enclosed __________________ US$ Please make checks payable in US funds to ILCA of NA. Thank you for joining the Laser Class. James Appel, Executive Director ILCA of NA Box 6120 Annapolis, MD 21401 32 SPRING 2004 CONTINUED FROM PAGE 30 District 24 – Peter Phalen Laser Nationals and PCCs The Santa Cruz Yacht Club and Monterey Peninsula Yacht Club extend an invitation to Laser Sailors to join us in Monterey Bay, California during July 2004 for the Laser & Radial 2004 Nationals and the Laser & Radial Pacific Coast Championships. Racing will take place in the premier sailing waters, only a short sailing distance from each club. The fleets will be based at the Santa Cruz Yacht Club for the Laser Nationals and Monterey Peninsula Yacht Club for the PCC's. Santa Cruz harbor is situated on the Northern end of Monterey Bay with the backdrop of the Santa Cruz Mountains. The event will follow the Laser Pacific Coast Championships (PCC's) which is to held at MPYC less then 30 miles south of Santa Cruz which will allow competing sailors to tune up for the event. Also been able to book housing for the whole week as the Laser PCC's will be starting on Saturday and going on to Monday giving you a two day break before the Nationals. Santa Cruz Yacht Club has been home to many major one-design fleet championships, which have include the Laser North America's, Laser PCC's , The Finn's and Europe's Nationals. The 505's have held there Worlds at Santa Cruz and will be again this year in August and also the Melges 24 Nationals with be held this May. We look forward to this tradition continuing with the Laser & Radial and providing you with keen racing and a social program ashore at both events do check out each yacht club's web pages for more details www.scyc.org & www.mpyc.org. District 25 –Nils Andersson District 26 – Guy Flemming www.Laser.org The Laser Forum www.LaserForum.org The Place Laser Sailors Talk Online The Laser Forum signed onto the internet in September 2002 as a new and intuitive way for laser sailors across the United States and the world to communicate online without clogging up an email account. After nearly a year and a half The Laser Forum has changed a lot. The site has been updated to the latest forum technology and has also adopted some of the internet ethic standards in a new term of service that was released early this year. The Laser Forum is now dedicated to free speech and has made a vow not to moderate posts made on the site. On The Laser Forum you will have to register to post on the site, but anyone is welcome to stop by and browse the "Laser Talk", "Laser Class & Politics", and "Classified Ads" sections. Registration is completely free and the forum will not sell or rent your personal information to anyone. Currently, The Laser Forum has about 70 new posts a week loaded with information to help you become a better laser sailor. At the forum you will find discussion on the ILCA Interpretations, mainsheet block preferences, car topping, hull separation, mainsheets, vang upgrades, and much more. Plus, The Laser Forum has a powerful search feature on every page that can bring back any discussion that's taken place since the forum signed on in 2002. Please stop by The Laser Forum next time you are online, you can find us at www.LaserForum.org. 33 34 SPRING 2004 PRSRT STANDARD U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT #41 ALBANY, GA We’re here to make sure you have fun. When it all comes together, there’s nothing like it. But when something’s not right, it can be a drag. For the past 15 years, Tackle Shack has been the South’s major supporter and dealer for Laser Class Sailing. We’re here to make sure you get what you need, when you need itat the best price. New & Used Lasers *Expert Service *Parts & Accessories*Wetsuits, Dry suits & Wet wear *PFD’s *Thule Car Racks *Custom Trailers *Hard to find items… everything for the Laser Sailor. If we don’t have it you don’t need it! We charter Laser’s for all Florida Events.call us at 727-546-5080 or 1-800-5376099 or stop by the store at 7801 66th Street N., Pinellas Park, FL 33781 Plus check out our web page www.tshack.com