Blevins Finishes 12th in 2011 North American Championship

Posted on September 20, 2011 by Bill Blevins

Bill and Tracy Blevins headed to Rock Hall Yacht Club in Maryland this past weekend where Bill participated in the 2011 North American RC Laser Championship along with 29 other RC Laser sailors.

After six races on the first day, Blevins was seeded in the Gold fleet to race for the overall championship the next day. After six additional races he ended 12th overall and with a 3rd place as his best score from the weekend of racing.

Complete race coverage, including scores and photos are being posted on the class web site at http://rclaserna.com.

Posted in North American Class News, Regatta | Tagged | Comments Off on Blevins Finishes 12th in 2011 North American Championship

Buying a radio controlled RC Laser sailboat and accessories

Posted on September 13, 2011 by Bill Blevins

So you want to buy a radio controlled RC Laser sailboat and come out to race but don’t know what you need to purchase to get started? Although there are many accessories you could purchase, in our opinion, we recommend you buy these four things to be competitive: the standard boat package, a transmitter, waterproof receiver and an extra light air sail.

Bottom line setup is about $694.

Buy the Plug-N-Play (PNP) version of the RC Laser and then pick up a Spektrum DX6i radio (MD2 version, no servos or receiver included) and the marine receiver locally or online. Click the links to view:

  1. RC Laser PNP $484.00 *
  2. Spektrum DX 6i MD2 Transmitter $159.99 *
  3. Spektrum MR200 Marine Receiver $49.99 *

If you are going to race at Canandaigua, you should also order the “A” sail rig that includes the tall mast and boom when you order your boat because most of the time we are racing in winds less than 9 mph. 

Shopping locally for your radio and receiver?

Dan’s Crafts and Things
http://danscraftsandthings.com
352 Empire Boulevard
Rochester, NY 14609-4454
(585) 482-7850

EXTRAS

Here is a list of additional things you might consider.

*All prices were current when this page was last updated.

Posted in RC Laser Fleet 14 | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Buying a radio controlled RC Laser sailboat and accessories

Women Battle For Spa Gift Certificate

Posted on September 12, 2011 by Bill Blevins

Canandaigua Lake Women's Series RC Laser racers competing on Sunday, 9/11/11 (those with transmitters in their hands) from L to R: Maggie Atkins, Leslie Bennett, Anna Gorbold, Terry Schmidt, Christine Stebbins, Anne Lambert and Tracy Blevins.

The race results for all series through 9/12/11 have been updated and posted.

Posted in Results | Tagged | Comments Off on Women Battle For Spa Gift Certificate

Fourteen New RC Lasers Heading To Rochester This Week

Posted on September 6, 2011 by Bill Blevins

The Canandaigua RC Laser Fleet joined together with the Rochester Area Model Yachting Association to purchase fourteen new RC Laser sailboats today. Six of the boats will be coming to the Canandaigua fleet and they should be arriving early next week.

Make plans now to attend the Sailors Night Awards Banquet at Canandaigua Yacht Club on October 15 to support the largest fleet at the club and to cheer on the first place award winners from each series from this past year. The results for each series have been updated through September 4 on this site, but it is still anyone’s guess as to the final standings because each series is so close!

Posted in Results | Tagged , | Comments Off on Fourteen New RC Lasers Heading To Rochester This Week

Significant Savings With RC Laser Group Purchase

Posted on September 2, 2011 by Bill Blevins

The Canandaigua RC Laser Fleet is working out final details with the Rochester Area Model Yachting Association (R.A.M.Y.A) on a discounted group purchase of RC Laser sailboats.

If you would like to order a boat as part of this group purchase, we need to know RIGHT AWAY!

We will be placing the order on Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2011.

You will get the basic Plug-n-Play “Boat in a Bag” which includes all five major components – the standard “B” sail, mast and boom, hull, keel and rudder – each in its own pocket in a custom zippered nylon carry/storage bag. In the hull is mounted all the operating electronics (sail and steering servos, wiring harness and switch, battery holder).

Since we are buying more than 8 boats at one time, the discounted price is $378 per boat, which is $106 less than the full retail rate. Shipping costs are included in the price.

You will still four AA batteries for the boat and you’ll need a radio and receiver in order to sail. You can order those online or purchase locally at hobby stores in either Webster or Irondequoit. Click on our “Boats” link at the top of the page for more detail on getting “race-ready” where we walk through all of the necessities and luxury items related to RC Laser sailing.

(At least four of the eight boats being ordered will be coming to the Canandaigua fleet bringing the total number of RC Lasers on the Lake to 16 boats!)

Call Bill Blevins or Nelson Habecker or send an email using the contact form on this site if you want in on this group purchase.

Posted in RC Laser Fleet 14 | Tagged | Comments Off on Significant Savings With RC Laser Group Purchase

Hurricane Irene Blew In A Great Time

Posted on August 29, 2011 by Bill Blevins
Nelson Habecker calls the starting line, “All Clear” as the first race in the Women’s Series on August 28 gets underway.

As Hurricane Irene’s rain bands skirted just east of Canandaigua Lake on Sunday, 14 skippers from the RC Laser fleet glanced briefly at the hurricane flags flying off of the crane on the tall hoist at the Canandaigua Yacht Club and then threw their boats in the water for a great time and some great racing!

The fleet gathered at CYC on Sunday afternoon for a scheduled race across the lake for a cookout at Neil and Maggie Atkins house on the east side, but after deciding it wasn’t feasible without powered boats to keep up with RC Lasers running in 20+ knot winds for a few miles down the lake, the group chose to pack up and drive to the other shore.

The long fetch coming directly in to Deep Run Cove under a stiff north wind created challenging choppy conditions. Surfing on 2+ foot swells with “C” sails was a great time!

The Women’s Series held three “exhausting” races. The regular Fall Low Point Series also added three races to the score sheet.

Terry Schmidt and Tracy Blevins continue to battle it out for the top Women’s spot with three points separating them and only five weeks of racing left. Tracy finished with two bullets and Terry added one more to her score Sunday. Leslie Bennett will be in the mix if there are enough races remaining for her to throw out two DNC scores from previous weeks.

After racing, everyone packed away their boats, picked up the marks and headed inside to warm up while Neil and Maggie totally outdid themselves by treating the group to a wonderful steak dinner, drinks and desserts.

It was a great time!

(Back, L to R) Maggie Atkins, Terry Schmidt, Anna Gorbold, (Front, L to R) Tracy Blevins, Anne Lambert and Leslie Bennett braved Hurricane Irene’s 20+ knot winds and 2 foot waves to race RC Lasers on Canandaigua Lake Sunday as part of the 2011 Women’s Racing Series.

There are five weeks left in the Fall Low Point Series which will conclude the 2011 RC Laser racing season. Awards will be handed out at the Canandaigua Yacht Club Sailors Night banquet on October 15. The 2012 season begins the following day, October 16 with the start of the seven-week Frostbite series and racing in Holiday Harbor.

The fleet continues to grow as Anne Lambert, Tracy Blevins and Tom Joynt are expecting their new RC Lasers to arrive in the next few weeks. If you would like to join us on the water and buy yourself (or a friend) an RC Laser then check out this web page or contact Bill Blevins or Nelson Habecker.

Posted in Party, RC Laser Fleet 14 | Tagged , | Comments Off on Hurricane Irene Blew In A Great Time

Hurricane Irene Should Create Perfect RC Laser Conditions

Posted on August 27, 2011 by Bill Blevins

Bring your rain gear (but you probably won’t need it), a PFD and your RC Laser and join us Sunday, August 28, 2011 for a 2.5 mile race across Canandaigua Lake to a cookout held at Neil and Maggie Atkins house in Deep Run Cove. This race will count as one Fall Low Point Series race in Week 2 of the series so there will only be one “regular” race that day.

Weather forecasters at the moment are saying that we have a 61% chance of not seeing any rain but they are calling for steady winds of 18+ knots from the North with gusts much higher! Bring your “C” sails! (“D” sails if you’ve got ’em!) Thanks to Hurricane Irene, it’s shaping up to be perfect weather to run under sail SSE across the lake!

Nelson Habecker and Bill Blevins are going out early to check the sea state and set a finish line. Then we’ll all gathered at the concrete dock at the Canandaigua Yacht Club at 1 p.m. and figure out the chase boat situation and who is going in which boat and who is driving around. After that we’ll get on the water and prepare for an on the water start at about 1:30 p.m.

If the weather is just too rough, we’ll drive around the lake and park in the lot for Deep Run Cove park since most likely no one will be there swimming.

We’ll attempt running multiple races for the Women’s Series from the docks across the lake.

Don’t miss it! This is going to be a fun one!

Posted in Party, Regatta | Comments Off on Hurricane Irene Should Create Perfect RC Laser Conditions

A Long Distance Race, Happy Hour, Cookout and Fall Racing!

Posted on August 22, 2011 by Bill Blevins

The Canandaigua RC Laser Fleet kicked off the final series of the 2011 season yesterday in very nice southerly winds which followed a serious afternoon downpour and thunderstorm. The skies cleared up just before race time and sailors completed five races and then one additional race in the Women’s Series.

The results have been updated and posted.

This new seven week series will take the fleet up through the Sunday before Sailor’s Night where we’ll hand out awards for our racing year which began back in 2010 with the Frostbite series!

On Friday August 26, the Canandaigua RC Laser Fleet will be helping host a happy hour at CYC from 6:30 – 9:30 p.m. The fleet will have boats set up for display with ‘B’ sails (since the big “A” sails are too tall for the indoor bar area) and be talking to people about our fleet activities and answering questions about RC Lasers. There will be plenty of fleet business cards to pass around. Bring a potential member to have a chance to win a gift basket. There will be live music, food and discounts on drinks at the bar.

On Sunday, August 28 the RC Laser fleet will be racing a few miles down and across Canandaigua Lake to a finish line set in front of Neil and Maggie Atkins house. We’ll set a starting line off the concrete dock at CYC and get going at 1:30 p.m.. We estimate that we’ll be finishing by 3 p.m. if the wind and waves cooperate. If you are racing, you will need to figure out your mode of transportation to chase your RC Laser across the lake – just don’t skip the event because you can’t find a ride – as we’ll figure out something before the start! The Women’s Series sailors are planning on holding as many races as they can across the lake from 3:30 – 5:30 p.m. which will then be followed by a cookout. There will be a couple of powerboats that will be available to make sure everyone gets transported back across the lake to the CYC.

Finally, the RC Laser National Sailing Championships are going to be held at the Rock Hall Yacht Club in Rock Hall, Maryland on September 17 – 18. Bill Blevins (#254) and Tracy will be attending. To register and for more information visit http://www.rclaser.org/.

To keep up with all of these events, keep an eye on the calendar section of this site and watch for emails this week for details about the happy hour and the race across the lake!

Get ready for a busy and fun weekend!

Posted in Party, RC Laser Fleet 14, Results | Tagged , , | Comments Off on A Long Distance Race, Happy Hour, Cookout and Fall Racing!

Fun Fall RC Laser Season Planned

Posted on August 8, 2011 by Bill Blevins

After 31 races that included 207 total starts in the Summer Low Point Series, Bill Blevins (#254, above in photo) took home top honors, ending with 21 points. Gary Schmidt (#59) followed in second place with 49 points and David Turnbull’s (#17) series-long scores broke a tie with Nelson Habecker (#54) to take the third spot. They both had 57 net points.

There is no scheduled RC Laser fleet racing next weekend due to the 50th Ensign National Championship Regatta being held at the Canandaigua Yacht Club. The RC Lasers will resume racing with the start of the Fall Low Point Series as well as continuation of the Women’s Series on August 21 at 4 p.m.

Mark your calendars for Happy Hour at the Canandaigua Yacht Club on August 26, starting at 6:30 p.m. The Canandaigua RC Laser fleet is one of the sponsors of the event and we have the opportunity to set up our boats in the bar so people will be able to get up close and check them out and ask questions. “Out of the Blue” will be performing from 6:30 until 9:30 p.m. Bring a potential new member with you for a chance to win a gift basket.

Sunday, August 28 is going to be a BIG day! Fall Low Point Series Race Week #2 will start at CYC at 1:30 p.m. with the finish line set 2.4 nautical miles down Canandaigua Lake on the East shore at Neil and Maggie’s house! Neil and Maggie have offered to host a cookout for the fleet! We are also going to carry over marks so the ladies can see how many races they can get in that afternoon for the Women’s Series! It should be a fun day. We’ll need a few “real” boats to ferry the racers across the lake. More detailed plans will be communicated shortly.

If you haven’t signed up for the RC Laser North American Championship to be held at the Rock Hall Yacht Club in Maryland on Sept. 17 & 18 but you still want to participate, you should register immediately as they will be closing the process when they reach 40 boats. Visit http://www.rclaser.org for all of the information and to register online. Bill and Tracy Blevins (#254) will be attending.

Finally, the current American Model Yacht Association’s (AMYA) quarterly magazine has a nice write-up on the activities of RC Laser fleets from around the country. This issue mentions our season long Women’s Series and includes results and a race summary of our Squaw Island Race. Since several of our fleet members have joined, we are now officially AMYA fleet #315. If you’d like to support the AMYA, visit http://theamya.org to sign up. The magazine they put out is first-rate and is packed with information on all types of model sailboats as well as information on upcoming regattas and previous results.

Posted in North American Class News, Party, RC Laser Fleet 14, Regatta, Results | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Fun Fall RC Laser Season Planned

RC Lasers Sponsor Aug. 26th Happy Hour At CYC

Posted on July 27, 2011 by Bill Blevins

Nelson Habecker, Jack Bennett and Bill Blevins, left to right in the photo above, started racing radio controlled Laser sailboats down on the waterfront docks in July of 2010.

One year has passed and the RC Laser fleet has now grown to 12 boats!

Current RC Laser sailors are Neil Atkins, Maggie Atkins, Jack Bennett, Bill Blevins, Kieran Draper, Jonathan Gorbold, Nelson Habecker, Dave Kelsey, Bill Schmidt, Gary Schmidt, David Turnbull and George Walter.

The Canandaigua RC Laser Fleet would like to invite CYC members to show up at the clubhouse on Friday, August 26th and join them as they sponsor a happy hour (which in the true spirit of RC Laser sailing will actually be 3 hours long) that will start at 6:30 p.m. where you can meet the fleet, check out the boats and ask questions about RC Laser sailing.

Bring a perspective member with you and become eligible then to win a nice wine basket.

Bookmark http://RCSailors.com for links to the latest photos, current race results and all of the information about the Canandaigua RC Laser Fleet.

Posted in Party, RC Laser Fleet 14 | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on RC Lasers Sponsor Aug. 26th Happy Hour At CYC