Lansing Sunfish regatta

this coming Saturday, Lansing Sailing Club is hosting their Sunfish regatta. this is the home lake for the Michigan State University sailing club.

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.

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.

catch the trade winds

a builder update from Laser Performance

the latest issue of the Sunfish Class “Windward Leg” had an interesting update from the manufacturer of the Sunfish sailboat:

Brand new Sunfish boats manufactured at the LaserPerformance LDA facilities in Setubal, Portugal being inspected and boxed for shipment to the U.S.

LaserPerformance faced considerable headwinds in 2020. A combination of Covid-19 lockdown and supply chain disruptions curtailed Sunfish plans for continuous supply, growth and expansion. In 2021 the primary goal has been to get back on track. Last year LaserPerformance LDA successfully established manufacturing facilities in Setubal, Portugal. They also put into place technical teams for production, product development and quality and compliance. Sunfish hull production started this year in Setubal with one shift and, as of June, they have added a second shift to meet forecasted demand. The goal of meeting Sunfish boat construction standards has been attained. For the remainder of the year, priority will be given to bringing further design and quality improvements to the boat. To this end, the LP Team in Portugal is working closely with the Sunfish Class to incorporate their feedback and sailor experiences into the continuous improvement process.

LaserPerformance LDA also has an initiative to identify local and reliable vendors for Sunfish parts and accessories. LaserPerformance LDA aims to have all Sunfish boat parts sourced locally before the end of the year so that it can ship “a Sunfish in a box” to customers around the world and get parts to customers more rapidly. Equally important to LaserPerformance LDA is its commitment to seeking every available opportunity to introduce sustainable and environmentally friendly practices in all its activities and is excited by prospects for development and growth of the Sunfish.

Sunfish parts and new boats have been hard to get from suppliers… it’ll be interesting to see if this new build location will improve the Sunfish parts supply chain.

erie open regatta

the Erie Open Regatta is coming up in a few weeks – June 5th and 6th at Erie Yacht Club in Erie, PA.

This Sunfish regatta may not be a District Championship or a World Qualifier, but come sail anyway at one of the nicest venues on the Great Lakes!

official notice of race is here.