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Showing posts from June, 2019

I Attended a Sail Grand Party, and It Was Great!

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This past Saturday was an amazing day to be in New York City. We were among the lucky ones to be on board a spectator boat at SailGP New York. It was a beautiful day for sailing with a breeze of up to 20 knots in the puffs. We arrived at Brookfield Place in the vicinity of the World Trade Center at about 4 pm. The spectator boat was waiting for us. Oh, it was actually an « adrenaline lounge hospitality boat. » Service was impeccable and the DJ was great.  Despite the booze on board, adrenaline was clearly in the air. I did not pay much attention to what the MC was saying in the beginning, as I was busy chatting and taking some shots of Manhattan and spectators on the boardwalk. I also took some pictures and videos of the F50s preparing for the first race, and it was pretty amazing as in several instances they came pretty close - say, 10 or 20 meters to our boat. The 6 F50s were present, as the Great Britain boat, that capsized the day before prior to the racing, was repair

Laser Update: Watch Some of the Key Players for Yourself ...

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Key players in the Laser class, including Eric Faust (ILCA's General Secretary), Jean-Luc Michon (EurILCA's President) and Alexandra Behrens (President of the German Laser Class), discuss many of the key issues surrounding the Laser class and its future at the Olympics. An important element is that, according Faust, the parties to the discussions to resolve the Laser crisis are still too much apart, dixit World Sailing, which is facilitating the discussions. Faust argues in favor of a class rule change, which is supposed to resolve the Olympic issues, while not necessarily lead to a name change for the boat. Time is extremely short: the vote should be completed and processed by the end of July. This is a long video but it's worth watching if you are interested in the future of the Laser. 

Laser Update: Will the Laser Change its Name to ILCA?

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Will the Laser Change its Name to ILCA? This is the question that many Laser sailors have in mind these days, as the future of the boat as an Olympic class depends on the ability of the Laser class to sign an Olympic contract with World Sailing by August 1. Update : ILCA will address sailors at the Master Europeans in Spain tomorrow Thursday. "ILCA must move forward very soon with an important rule change vote" reads the announcement (see caption below) Video of the meeting was pubished by EurILCA -- https://www.facebook.com/eurilca/videos/673540879758190/ -- it features not only Eric Faust from ILCA but also Jean-Luc Michon from EurILCA and several other class officers and sailors. According to Faust, World Sailing has informed them that the parties are still too far from an agreement, and that a rule change vote is required. The scenario that has been contemplated for months, if not years, by the international Laser class ILCA, is to change the name and logo for th

Sailing after the Optimist - Webinar #1

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Optimist sailing is great, but all good things come to an end. Now what to sail after the Optimist? This is the question that will be addressed by Jean-Pierre Kiekens, a recently graduated optimist father, after over 10 years of service in that capacity. He is also very familiar with the Club 420 and Laser Radial as used in youth sailing. Jean-Pierre is not only a sailor (Laser, Snipe, etc.) but he is also running a specialized blog on youth sailing and has written many articles on the challenges associated with youth sailing development, particularly in the North American context. The webinar will discuss what's best to do after the Optimist: - Youth sailing development: what are the goals? - Single-handed or double-handed sailing? Or both? - Laser and C420s: are they still suitable for youth sailors? - Two missing links in youth sailing in North America: the Laser 4.7 and the RS Feva - 29er, i420, Nacra 15, etc.: multiple choices, but few real options - What about windsur

A Success Story: the Feva Double-Handed Dinghy in British Columbia

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Canadians at the 2018 Feva Worlds. From left to right: Top: Tomas Harmer, Henry Blue, Phil Rojkov, Tom Sluyter, Isaac Mitchell, Graham Maude, Ben Maga Bottom: Carter Chartier, Nixon Francis, Sophia McDonnell, Ruby Farr, Zavary Koehn This article is about a success story, the development of an approximately 30 boat large fleet of RS Feva XLs in British Columbia, with both community sailing centers and private clubs such as the Royal Vancouver Yacht Club involved. The boat, which is simply referred to here as the Feva, is proving to provide a great platform for youth sailing, as it welcomes beginners and advanced sailors alike, boys and girls, in the 10 to 16 age group. UPDATE : Watch our webinar about youth sailing , which discusses the role to be played by the RS Feva. Year after year, youth sailing in Canada typically remains pretty similar. Boys and girls join learn to sail programmes, usually in Optimists, and then move to dinghies for teens, mostly the 420 and the Laser.

Laser 4.7: Where Does the International Laser Class Stand?

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The Laser class ILCA has sent an extensive letter to its various national members, largely in response to the position issued by its European branch EurILCA and the online petition calling for the resignation of the ILCA leadership. While the letter, signed by Tracy Usher, the president of ILCA, does not provide much new information and mostly reiterates ILCA’s position blaming LaserPerformance and arguing that a  name change for the boat may have to occur, there is an interesting section about the Laser 4.7. Remember, the President of the international Laser class ILCA participated in a video released on YouTube mid-2018, promoting a new "C5" rig developped in Australia. « So thinking about the future of the Laser class, as we start to look at the end of our first 50 years, we want to position ourselves for the next 50 years, and we don’t see that future being white sails on aluminum masts, to be able to continue the model of a smaller rig, a medium size rig and a la

Fixing the Youth Sailing Pathway with the Laser 4.7 and the RS Feva

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2016 4.7 Europeans - Source: EurILCA This past weekend’s Laser Canadian championship was a reminder of the very limited spread of the 4.7 rig in Canada.  Out of a total of 55 participants, there were just 4 competitors in the 4.7. This situation is unfortunately pretty typical not only in Canada but more generally in North America, as the 4.7 rig remains unpopular in the US too. The contrast with Europe is stark. For example, at the 2019 Laser 4.7 European championships held in Hyères, there were nearly 400 participants. In Europe, there is a balance, in youth sailing, in terms of participation between the 4.7 and the Radial. Sailors typically sail there a few years in the 4.7, and then continue in the Radial. Some male athletes pursue afterwards in the Laser Standard. Unlike in Europe, there is no such balance between the 4.7 and the Radial in youth sailing in Canada, and in North America in general. Europe now has huge vibrant fleets of both Lasers 4.7 and Radial, and is an e

Sailing after the Optimist - a Webinar

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Update: here is the link to watch the webinar: https://www.facebook.com/highperformanceyouthsailing/videos/862679444088982/ Optimist sailing is great, but all good things come to an end. Now what to sail after the Optimist? This is the question that will be addressed by Jean-Pierre Kiekens, a recently graduated optimist father, after over 10 years of service in that capacity. Jean-Pierre is not only a sailor but he is also running a specialized blog on youth sailing and has written many articles on the challenges associated with youth sailing development, particularly in the North American context. The webinar will be held, online of course, at 4 pm EST on June 17. To register, please go to the Facebook Event . What will be covered? - Youth sailing development: what are the goals? - Single-handed or double-handed sailing? Or both? - Laser and C420s: are they still suitable for youth sailors? - Two missing links in youth sailing in North America: the Laser 4.7 and the RS