retirement goal?

I saw this posted on the Sunfish Forum.

mid-life crisis? or perhaps just a solid retirement plan? either way that looks like a fun combination.

LEGO sunfish sailing

a favorite toy from childhood combined with a favorite activity from later in life? sounds like a winning combination! on the LEGO Ideas page, there is a new user created LEGO idea – the Sunfish Sailing Pier. if this LEGO project gets 10,000 supporters, then LEGO may make it into a real LEGO set.

This Sunfish Sailing Pier model is a tribute to the joys of small boat sailing. For a kid who didn’t like most parts of summer camp, Sunfish sailing was an escape. Once I figured out how to operate the sail, steer, and duck my head under the swinging boom, I was hooked. There is nothing quite like zooming across a pond while leaning out over the edge of the boat with the water just inches below you. It was a thrill that made the stresses of camp all worthwhile.

These minifigure scale LEGO Sunfish capture the iconic look and feel of the real thing. The rudder and sail articulate. The pier and rental shack round out the concept, complete with a spare boat and plenty of nautical elements.

greater Detroit 2022 Sunfish race schedule

the Greater Detroit Sunfish Club (GDSC) has released their 2022 Sunfish race schedule. you can check them out on their Facebook page.

• May 15th – Baseline Lake (with the Michigan Sailing Club)
• June 12th (new date!) – Watkins Lake
• July 2nd & 3rd -Independence Day camping weekend at Muskegon Lake State Park
• July 24th – U.P. Island Race (Les Cheneaux YC… details t.b.d.)
• August 21st – Watkins Lake
• September 3rd & 4th – Labor Day camping weekend at Higgins Lake
• September 17th & 18th -Clark Lake Regatta (Clark Lake Yacht Club)
• October 9th – Baseline Lake (with the Michigan Sailing Club)

all Sunday races typically start at 12:30pm [uno], with the camping/racing weekends starting earlier in the day to get extra races in over the weekend.

I said this last year (and the year before… and the year before… and the year before), and didn’t get a chance to sail with this group, but I’m again going to do my best to meet up with them for some sailing races this year.

sunfish sailing on the Hudson [painting]

I’ve been following Hollin Calloway on twitter for a while now – and am amazed every time she posts a picture of a new painting, or even photos of a painting still in progress – just incredible work and beautiful results. and she occasionally paints something near and dear to my heart, the beloved Sunfish sailboat (see her landscapes for more Sunfish paintings).

Sunfish Sailing on the Hudson – by Hollin Calloway

she has an Esty shop, where you can purchase some of her original paintings or high quality prints of them – they would be a perfect decoration for a home or cottage of the sailor in your life.

a print of the painting above can be purchased from directly from her Etsy shop here.

Excellent quality print of sunfish sailing on the Hudson River, an original acrylic painting representing my favorite hobby other than painting, and the original has been gifted to the Manhattan Yacht Club. A framed version is also available.

• Paper thickness: 10.3 mil
• Paper weight: 5.57 oz/y² (189 g/m²)
• Giclée printing quality
• Opacity: 94%
• ISO brightness: 104%

more boats

still snow on the ground and the lakes are mostly frozen over here in Michigan, but spring is coming.

I technically already have 4 Sunfish-type boats… why would I need more?

building & sailing a Super Sunfish

Nico posted this video on the Sunfish Forum – his father built the wooden Super Sailfish in their garage, and they sailed it on the Knysna lagoon in South Africa (beautiful waters!).