Follow our Sailors at the Ontario Summer Games

August 11, 2010 – 8:50 pm
Amy and Kate, Owen and Max (an SLSC/South Muskoka Team) and Megan are all off sailing our club colours at the Ontario Summer Games in Sudbury - hosted by the Sudbury Yacht Club.  After a first day yesterday of light wind practice, followed by opening ceremonies and the parade of athletes from all sports at the Games, today our sailors got down to racing.  Light winds prevailed again, with wind patches and holes with no wind.  In the 420s, Owen and Max found the wind in race 1 and scored a second place finish in the fleet of 11.  Amy and Kate came from behind (after an awful start) to finish 4th.  Race 2 was a wipeout for Owen and Max, who got stuck in a hole on the wrong side of the course and ended up 10th - their drop race - but now no room for any more bad races.  Amy ...

Head Instructor Report – Week of August 9th

August 10, 2010 – 9:59 pm
Summer version 2010 continues in full form this week at SLSC! We have a great week planned out and lots of updates to give ya! Here’s the news and this week’s sneak peek of the week! Kate and Amy and Owen and Meghan We would like to wish a good luck to team Thomas plus Amy this week at summer games, we have Kate and Amy, Owen and Max in 420’s and Meghan in Laser Radial, best of luck to all our sailors. Cottage Club and National Capital Regattas This past week the Jr. Race Team headed off to a regatta at Stoney Lake Yacht Club. All accounts say that it was a positive experience for our younger racers entering this new wacky world of regattas. Keep up the good work guys! Pizza/Treasure Hunt Its treasure hunt day, Wednesday the sailors will collect clues in search of buried pirate treasure, this treasure will be found with numerous ...

Head Instructor Report – Week of August 3rd

August 2, 2010 – 9:14 pm
Another amazing Civic weekend has come and gone.  For the new instructors it was quite an experience.  Both Chris and Ian competed at the running events.  Chris made it valiantly to the finish line, while Ian collapsed right at go and had to retire early.  In the mystery race, the three young teams triumphed, by carrying more marbles with their feet….and mouth: Liz. Here are this week’s happenings and updates! Civic Holiday Regatta On Saturday, 12 420s, 4 Bytes, 4 Lasers, 4 Mosquitoes, 2 Opti’s and 5 Handicapped boats gathered for the annual Civic Holiday Regatta – quite an impressive fleet. The weather was less than cooperative with no wind.  So we tried again on Sunday.  Unfortanely,  Sunday had the same result.  However, Ian and Chris competed to see who could tow the most boats in behind their coach boat, while Kate and Amy set a new record by holding 4 inflated orange ...

Civic Parent Child Races

July 30, 2010 – 5:42 pm
This civic long weekend would not be complete without the annual parent child races that we all know and love. This year they will be held on Sunday the 1st of august. We ask that parents and children meet at the club for 10 am and racing will begin by 11 am, the course and rules of the racing will be communicated by the instructor that morning in a brief meeting. These races are open to any white two or white three student and their parent or someone similar who will crew for the them. Parents are not allowed to touch the tiller and the boat must be controlled by the child. This year we have also opened the racing to white ones, a bronze four sailor from club will be asked to sail in the boat with the white one and their parent and will be allowed to guide the ...

Civic Holiday Regatta Sailing Instructions

July 29, 2010 – 10:41 am
2010 Civic Long Weekend Regatta July 31st 2010 Sturgeon Lake Sailing Club The 2010 civic long weekend is upon us and with it comes the annual Sturgeon Lake Sailing Club regatta. The schedule of events goes as follows: Saturday July 31st is the main event, a large course will be set for 420's, Bytes, Lasers and Laser Radials, and the handicap class. A smaller course will be set closer to club for the Mosquito's and Opti fleet. Sunday August 1st is the annual parent child races. Saturday Schedule: 9:00 am: Arrive at Club 10:00 am: skippers meeting at the lean to at Club 1100 am: first warning signal out on the water, races to follow 4:00 pm: last race is started no later than this time Starts: There will be multiple starts for different classes and they will be grouped as follows: All 420 racers; Class flag: Numeral Pennant #1 Byte racers; Class flag: Numeral Pennant #2 Handicap Fleet, Lasers, Laser ...

Canadian Laser Masters Postcript

July 28, 2010 – 9:52 am
We picked up this 'letter to the editor' of Sailing Scuttlebutt from Andy Roy.  It speaks of the spirit of Masters sailing and is a fine lesson for our SLSC sailors: "Here's one from the Canadian Laser Masters Championship held on Sturgeon Lake, Ontario this past weekend. In an early race I rounded in the lead and was holding on approaching the leeward mark when Al Clark, well known sailor and racing coach from Vancouver, was (as usual) smokin' downwind. As we hit the three boat length circle, it looked like he nabbed the overlap on me. I said, "I think you've got it, Al," and he replied, "No, you take it." "You sure?" "I insist", he said. He passed me up the next leg anyhow, and went on to win the event. In a subsequent race, Al rounded the top mark in the lead and bore off on to a run ...

Canadian Laser Masters Championships – Final Report

July 26, 2010 – 8:10 pm
From July 23 to 25, sailors from coast to coast in Canada - British Columbia, Ontario, Quebec and Nova Scotia - and from the U.S. (along with one  entry from Nortern Ireland) descended on the Village of  Sturgeon Point, in Ontario cottage country, to participate  in the 2010 Canadian Laser Masters Championships - host club, the Sturgeon Lake Sailing Club. The Sturgeon Lake community loves to host sailing regattas.  The community has a history of hosting Laser sailors at the Mid Ontario Regatta first held in 1972 and has a well earned reputation as hospitable hosts. The Masters and their guests were greeted with a very genuine enthusiasm.  Cottages were opened to the sailors and their guests around the Village, with communal breakfasts and dinners  prepared and served by a bevy of community volunteers.  The food was great, the beer and wine flowed, the conversation on the race course was non stop, as were the stories after. The fleet was superb. It included sailors aged 35 to 76 - ...

Head Instructor Report – Week of July 26

July 25, 2010 – 9:36 pm
Get ready for Week 4! So far we have had an awesome summer, with 5 more great weeks to come.  This past weekend SLSC hosted the Canadian Masters Championships.  Although the wind appeared weak at first, make no mistake, by the afternoon it was blowing hard…congratulations to all the masters’ sailors for some great racing, and thanks to all the volunteers and the local community for doing such a great job. Civic Holiday Regatta But fun on the race course isn’t over yet! Racing on the Sturge begins again this Saturday with the Civic Holiday Regatta. For those who are unfamiliar with this event, it is SLSC’s annual local regatta, open to all sailors young and old. The main event takes place Saturday: a big course will be set for 420s (both spin and sans-spin), Lasers, Radials, Bytes and Handicaps (The Handicap class is a class open to all other types of ...

Day 2 of the Canadian Masters – Cameraderie and Competition

July 24, 2010 – 10:17 pm
"I was going to launch a protest against 717, but then I found out he had a stash of cold beer and he offered me one, so I'm withdrawing the protest"...Welcome to Masters sailing: intense competition mixed with great sportsmanship and nothing that can't be worked out over a cold beer. Day 2 of the Canadian Masters was comprised of 5 races sailed in moderate winds from the west for the first three, sailed on a trapezoid course, and dropping to light winds sailed on a windward-leeward for the last two.   The first race was highlighted by over earlies and general recalls caused by over-zealous starters (finally tamed after a black flag recall).  All races saw mark roundings preceded by friendly debates about buoy room, competitors reminding each other as to where the next mark was to be found... masters of the sport reliving their youth, but with banter instead ...