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Premium Harken Hardware

All Zim Sailing ISCAs feature a Harken 57mm Mainsheet Block for dependable sheeting day after day. The Race boat features, for the first time ever, 29mm Harken Carbo boom blocks and a new Dual Traveler Block, ideal for running 2:1 mainsheets.

Exclusive North Sails Partnership

Zim Sailing is the exclusive source for North Sails for ISCA sailboats. North Sails is the leader in One Design sailing with proven quality and performance. Zim Sailing offers both Race sails and Club sails, both of which are 100% class legal for racing. Both sails feature a large vision window, and the Club sails are available in a range of fun colors. Zim ISCAs are also outfitted with a North Sails padded hiking strap.

Kingfisher Ropes Package

Zim Sailing worked with Kingfisher Yacht Ropes to develop rope packages for both the Race and Club boats. Included with all new Zim ISCA sailboats and available for purchase, the Club package includes everything you need to outfit an ISCA for everyday sailing, and the Race package includes upgrades like a (2:1) racing Evo Mainsheet, Dyneema halyard, outhaul, and cunningham, and Dyneema sail ties and corner ties. Both packages also include a daggerboard retainer and a floating bowline.

Note that almost all parts are backwards-compatible with boats from previous class manufacturers and older Sunfish® sailboats.

Fun places to visit while in Austin (mileage from AYC) include:

1. Chester Nimitz Museum in Fredericksburg, TX (79 miles/1 hr 33) 
2. LBJ Ranch, Stonewall, TX (62 miles/1 hr 29 min)
3. Sea World, San Antonio (111 miles/2 hr 9 min)
4. The Alamo, San Antonio (99 miles/1 hr 55 min)
5. Six Flags Fiesta Texas, San Antonio (96 miles/2 hr 7 min)
6. Visit a real Bat Cave! Mexican Free-Tailed Bats have made a home under the Congress Avenue bridge and provide a nightly show from 7:30 pm to 9:45 pm.

by Vicki Palmer 

(AYC was my “home” Club for 20 years – a beautiful Club with some awesome folks who will always be considered “family.”)

Dear Sunfish Family:

You will always be the heart and soul of what has been my Happy Place for 30+ years. Thank you so much for giving me joy on the water, off the water and in the articles you so graciously shared and continue to share with the members. Now it's someone else's turn to experience the same level of joy you've given me for 12+ years as your Windward Leg Editor. Please keep telling your stories that share a piece of your legacy. Our Class continues to grow richer in wisdom and stronger as an organization because you are who you are.

Vicki Palmer

The ISCA and USSCA Leadership thank Vicki for her continued service to the class ensuring the photos, articles, regatta results are shared with our members. 

More Than A Memorial…

The Dick Tillman Regatta has a noticeably different vibe. It must come from the sheer amount of respect Mr. Tillman earned from everyone at Melbourne Yacht Club. The Competitor’s Meeting opened with an explanation of Mr. Tillman’s importance to MYC and a list of his sailing accomplishments & contributions. But it’s strikingly clear that Mr. Tillman’s impressive resume is not why his fellow sailors hold him in such high esteem - it’s his commitment to sportsmanship and fair competition. 

This event carried that spirit forward. Sailors helped, encouraged, and complimented one another. The racing was competitive, clean, fast & friendly. When meeting someone new, you were sure to have some connection to Mr. Tillman in common. Hearing other competitors’ memories of him made the awards extra special. Just about everyone who stood up to accept a trophy shared something personal. And they all had his book - and a story about Mr. Tillman signing it! Trophies for the top finishers in each class were scale-model rudders of the respective boat handmade by Dave Noble of Noble Awards & Engraving. 

When you understand the nature of the event, perhaps it’s no surprise that the most important award presented here is not a first place trophy. It's the Richard L. Tillman Sailor of the Year Award. It goes to the sailor who embodies what Mr. Tillman valued most in the sport of sailing: the spirit of fair and friendly competition. We were treated to a truly delightful family moment when Susan Tillman Berg, daughter of Dick & Linda Tillman, was named the 2025 recipient and presented with the trophy by her sister, Laurie Ward. Susan joins previous winners Dave Noble, David Hartman, Pat Lambert, Chris Gates, Larry Etheridge, and David Silverman. 

If you’ve had the pleasure of racing with Susan, you know she is a smart, formidable, fair-minded competitor who doesn’t forget to enjoy herself and her fellow sailors. And if you had the privilege of sailing with Dick Tillman, you will certainly see him reflected in Susan’s sailing. 
 
When Mr. Tillman authored The Complete Book of Laser Sailing - great for sailors of ALL dinghies - he dedicated a chapter to sportsmanship. Some of his comments are included below. When you sail with these thoughts in mind, you carry on his legacy. You allow yourself - and your fellow competitors - to fully enjoy racing on the course and camaraderie ashore. Maybe Mr. Tillman’s greatest contribution to the sport of sailing is to remind us that fair and friendly sailing is the way to fast and fun racing. That idea is what makes this particular regatta special and why Dick Tillman will always be so much more than a name on a trophy.

“In my opinion, racing small boats is the ultimate combination of mental and physical skills.”

“The satisfaction in racing comes from doing your best, improving with practice, and helping each other enjoy close racing by clean and fair sailing.”

“Sailors…derive tremendous satisfaction when they are able to beat those whom they consider better than themselves. The greatest satisfaction goes to those who win fair and square.”

“...sailors can be competitive without being confrontational and loud. Courtesy on the course will go a long way toward promoting class growth.”

“Everyone enjoys friendly rather than cutthroat competition. The spirit of sportsmanship should always prevail.”

Left: Kelly-Anne Arrindell (Trinidad & Tobago Sailing Association), Right: Competitive starting line

Thank you to Mary Ellen Ingham for the awards photos. 

Thank you to Mark Jump for sharing these amazing photos! For full gallery please click here: Photos by Mark Jump Photography.

Shrewsbury Yacht Club

By Gerry Hesse

Yesterday, Shrewsbury Sailing and Yacht Club hosted their annual Laser-Sunfish Regatta in NJ. For the Sunfish Fleet, there were 20 registered with 19 boats sailing. The conditions could not have been more favorable to those of us who like a little extra breeze which started from the Northwest but quickly went South.
 

The RC did a great job in dealing with a 60-degree windshift just before our second race. After a couple of general recalls and resetting the course, it was nearly perfect. The promised southerly held strong for races 2, 3, 4 and 5, with moderate shifts and added pressure that some of the better sailors took advantage of.

With usual consistency, Ken Zorovich was in the top four in the races he kept. Mark Bauchian lost to Ken in a tie-breaker. Mark was constantly moving up the fleet in each race, passing many boats along the way with good tactics and solid boat speed. Dave Slavinski got off to a slow start but, by the end of the day, he was back on his game-capturing third place.
 

In an added feature, there were "teams" of three sailing as partners to win top team. Initial teams included Deer Lake, Lavallette and SSYC. At the last minute Mark was glad he participated, as our team placed 2, 4 and 8 to capture the team award.
 

I'd like to thank the SSYC Race Committee, shore patrol and social team. All were made to feel welcome, and we were certainly well fed. Both fleets ended the day in high spirits but went home to a good night’s sleep after five physical races.

May 10, 2025, Sebago Canoe Club, Brooklyn, NYC

By Gerry Hesse (posted in FB)

For the second year in a row, Sebago Canoe Club in Brooklyn, NYC, hosted an “urban” Sunfish regatta. Unlike most venues which are located in remote or suburban waters, Sebago CC is located in the heart of New York City. In fact, I can’t recall Sunfish regattas being held in any other major Metro in the east besides perhaps, Miami. Participating sailors attended from NW NJ, Eastern LI, CT and Brooklyn.
 

That said, the views are amazing and, just like last year, the weather was a major factor. Winds started the day out around 15 knots and built to over 20 with gusts nearly 40. Wind shifts were frequent leading to multiple capsizes and autotacks. The good news was when you got to the weather mark, you were launched downwind, traveling much faster than the traffic on the Belt Parkway. 
 

The committee had their hands full with rescues and course resets, but all were accomplished efficiently. Everyone made it back, maybe a little bit beat up, but all were safe. There were no serous breakdowns, showing just how rugged the Sunfish is in dealing with higher winds and capsizes.
 

After seven races, with the wind still gusting enthusiastically, the RC ended the day by mid-afternoon. At the top of the fleet was Griffin Sisk from Eastern L.L. showing off good boat handling, off wind speed and tactical skills. From CT, Malcom Dickinson sailed smart and consistent bringing home a second place finish. Rounding out the top three was Josh Greenfield from R.I. From Sebago CC, David Cripton, the event organizer, demonstrated his improved Sunfish abilities with a fourth place finish.
 

Special thanks to David Cripton for organizing this event and managing the race committee. Deserving mention also, with a great day on the course, was Isis Schiffer. In addition, she went above and beyond with the onsite registration, homemade breakfast pastries, post-race chili, brownies, Raspberry Cheesecake and, of course designing the, Brooklyn cool, event T-shirts. 

Sebago CC is one of a few up-and-coming Sunfish Fleets in the NYC Metro Area. I highly recommend sailing with them and attending next year’s event.

May 3-4, 2025, La Crosse, Wisconsin

By Mark Kastel

If we could only average the wind speed during the four days of competition over the past two years, we’d have the perfect Regatta!

Last year, it blew about 30 on the first day (exciting to say the least) with zero wind on Sunday morning. This year we had about 5 knots on Saturday. We waited for enough breeze to start on Sunday, but it petered out during the first race. And that was it for the series.

We had lots of close sailing both days with experienced sailors from Nebraska, Wisconsin, Illinois, Ohio, and Kentucky.

We had a lot of fun supporting the newbies. One sailor from Lincoln, NE, Anne Hanson, was racing her first away regatta. (I have enjoyed racing with that fleet at their annual event.) Another new Sunfish sailor, Ed Montano from Milwaukee, was racing his second regatta. The first was when he competed in the US Sailing Champion of Champions regatta a few years ago in Sunfish. Needless to say, he was toward the top of the fleet the whole weekend. Hopefully he will be back racing with us in the Class.

Competitors were treated to our annual farm-to-fork dinner with the rugged Driftless Region (Wisconsin, Iowa, and Minnesota) being a hotbed of organic farming. The La Crosse Sailing Club volunteers made it a great regatta on and off the water. And we were lucky enough to have Mr. and Mrs. Tesar, from Clear Lake, Iowa, running the races again — top-notch!

When the dust settled and, after a lot of trading positions at the top of the fleet, the results were: Mark Kastel (homeboy): first; Matt Glover (Lake Bluff, Illinois): second; Ed Montano (Milwaukee): third; Gordon Prejean (homeboy): fourth; and Al Wagner (Illinois): fifth. Leland Brode (Lake Bluff) won the Masters Award. (My thanks for doing the scoring, Leland.)

Hueston Sailing Association's first Sunfish regatta of the season came down to the wire  on May 11th.  After three races, Laura Peters had a one point lead going into the fourth and final contest. At that point, the bullets had been sprayed around with Bill Molleran taking race one, Peters taking race two, and  ringer Tom Katterheinrich from Lake St. Mary’s taking race three.

The only one who hadn’t notched a win yet was Brian Callahan, the likely favorite ahead of the contest to take the whole shebang. All he had to do was win this last race and he would have the title.

Peters, however, had other ideas.

Molleran, who often finds a way to win big races, faltered in race three, ending up 7^th and that put him out of contention for not only the title but out of the trophy hunt as well. He flew out to a lead in race one over Mike Stratton, but in the last leg to the finish he pulled away a bit as Peters, Callahan, and Katterheinrich closed in on the second  place boat.

All four boats after Molleran had somewhat of a photo finish as they all crossed the line overlapped, the committee calling out finishers in rapid sequence.

Junior Lauren Anderson once again demonstrated that she is ready to join the top echelon of Sunfishers at the club with her consistent finishes as she gathered in three sixth places enroute to a sixth place overall.

Brendan Draper had a great race four. He was still in second place after the first leeward mark rounding before being overtaken by the eventual trophy winners and falling to fifth.

In race three Stephen Cook went left early with Katterheinrich and found himself in second place. He too succumbed eventually to the crowd close on his heels but grabbed a top five finish anyway.

The weather was absolutely gorgeous and the committee handled the shifting directions with craft and care. Couldn’t have been a better day on the lake. The wind was both diabolical and delicious.

Pictured: Laura Peters (1st overall)

By Bobby Matthews

The second annual Sunfish Scramble, held May 31 at Hobcaw Yacht Club, delivered a day of exciting racing across a 14-mile hybrid-distance course on Charleston Harbor and the Wando River. This growing event drew 32 competitorsrepresenting 11 yacht clubs from South Carolina, North Carolina, New Jersey, and New York. Twenty-nine sailorscrossed the finish line, with the first boat completing the course in just 3 hours.

The race continues to generate buzz in the Southeast sailing scene, bringing together competitors from ages 11 to 73.

Kelly-Ann Arrindell (Trinidad and Tobago, College of Charleston) claimed overall victory and topped the women’s category. Ezra Zankel (Charleston Yacht Club) finished second, and Amy Kubie (Charleston Ocean Racing Association) placed third.

Age Group Winners:

• Sunfish Junior: Ross Campbell (Hobcaw Yacht Club)

• Female Junior: Ames Murrell (Hobcaw Yacht Club)

• Apprentice Master: Josh Jones (Lake Norman Yacht Club)

• Masters: Evy Silcox (Hobcaw Yacht Club)

• Grand Master: Elaine Parshall (Columbia Sailing Club)

• Great Grand Master: Charles Frasch (James Island Yacht Club)

“This 14-mile course has something to challenge every sailor. It’s awesome to see world-class racers and kids in their first distance race side by side, pushing hard,” said a Hobcaw Yacht Club official. “It’s exciting racing and a blast to watch!”

A highlight of the Southeast sailing calendar, the Sunfish Scramble is a family-friendly event where youth sailors, weekend racers, and top ISCA competitors all share the water. Spectators enjoyed up-close race views, live music, poolside fun, and a festive post-race dinner and awards ceremony.

Special thanks to our sponsors: Mount Gay Rum, Bittermilk, and Harken Derm—and an enormous thank you to our selfless volunteers and incredible competitors. You all make this event a success, and we can’t wait to see you again in 2026!

Full Results:hobcawyachtclub.com/regatta/5JB5rMIkZZ/results

Summer is here and sailors are headed to camp!

Send us your Summer Camp photos for the next WL! 

ISCA/USSCA Class Administrator

8070 Willow Tree Way, Alpharetta, GA 30005

www.sunfishclass.org    sunfishoff@gmail.com  404-451-7743