The NZ Laser Association supports racing Laser sailors and regattas at home and overseas. Come and join us.

Wanted - NZ Laser Association Secretary

Mon 4 Nov 2019 10:36am
After 7 years our NZLA secretary Karen Grimwade is moving on. Very many thanks to Karen who has done such a wonderful job and put up with us all for so long.
 
But now we are looking for a new NZLA secretary. 
 
This is a part time position covering all the usual administration of the class in NZ and carries an honorarium, currently $4000 pa. The secretary is fully supported by the NZLA committee, who are always available to assist in sorting out any problems that arise.
 
The general scope of the position is as follows;
  • Agendas and minutes for AGM, and two or three committee meetings a year.
  • Registration of members over the year;  administer our database of contact details and payments, and as membership registrations come in, send out membership pack (sticker, handbook & welcome letter).  NZLA has approximately 150 active members.
  • Pay the bills and keep an eye on the bank account.
  • Interact with the ILCA; payment of annual membership, ranking of Worlds Sailors and order cubes.
  • Administer Nationals entries in the lead up to Nationals each January.
  • Attend Nationals; manage the registration of entries and other Nationals related administration.
  • Send out ‘newsletter’ style emails to members from time to time over the year
 
The amount of work required each week varies with the time of year, with the period leading up to the Nationals being the busiest, but there will be many weeks where no work is required other than general monitoring of e mails etc. Management of the class website and facebook page is done by other committee members.
 
If you may be interested and available please contact the NZLA chairman, Nick Page (pages4@xtra.co.nz), and have a chat and raise any questions you may have.
 

Chairmans Report - 2019 NZ Laser Association AGM

Tue 22 Oct 2019 2:31pm
Yes, 2019 has again been a good year for Laser in NZ with good turnouts nationally at regattas, particularly in the Youth fleet, and success on the international stage for our Olympic sailors. 
 
The core of the success of the class however remains attracting and retaining new sailors at all levels. It has been pleasing to see strong club fleets in many regions but it remains a challenge for the class to retain numbers as longstanding members of the masters fleet become less active and youth sailors move on to new challenges if they are not looking at Olympic campaigns.
 
After a very challenging couple of years for the class, the Laser and the Laser Radial have been confirmed by World Sailing as the single handed classes for men and women for the 2024 Olympics. I believe this is great news for the class and its future. Part of World Sailing’s requirements for Olympic selection was that the class adopt a policy to allow new manufacturers to enter the Laser market. The class has agreed to this and is just commencing the appointment process. In NZ we do not expect any rapid change to the market for boats and equipment but in the medium term we hope that the scope of the class will expand and that this will lead to more competitive pricing for boats and equipment in the future.
 
Congratulations to George Gautrey and Sam Meech, whos results on the world stage this year have continued to demonstrate the strength of our Men’s Laser squad and the talent of our sailors. Of particularly note are George’s podium finish in the worlds in Japan and Sam’s consistency and No1 World Ranking. Our women sailors have also competed internationally and have been successful in qualifying NZ for an Olympic spot in 2024 if they are able to meet the NZ Olympic committee selection criteria.
 
Congratulations also to Dave Ridley and Scott Leith for their recent victories in the World Masters in Holland. There were also many other solid performances from our top Youth, Open and Masters sailors at international regattas.
 
The Nationals at Manly was again a success, with good numbers in the Masters and Youths. It was extremely well run by Manly and the fleet again enjoyed a great variety of conditions. We trust that this years nationals in New Plymouth will be well supported and we look forward to some awesome sailing at this iconic venue.
 
Our grants and coaching initiatives have continued and NZLA will continue to encourage and sponsor coaching this season for any club or group of Laser sailors.  I think this is a great opportunity for clubs and would encourage any club to get in touch to see how we can assist.
 
Financially we again had a satisfactory year and the Association remains in good financial health. We again had a small loss but this was within the committees comfort zone, given the cash resources of the Association. We are however continuing to look at options for a fundraising initiative to bolster the Associations coffers and ensure its ongoing financial health.
 
Internationally ILCA continues to try and work with the manufacturers on the ongoing equipment issues. We understand that approval of the carbon alternative for the Radial bottom section imminent. Unfortunately the issues with the European Laser manufacturers have continued, but with the introduction of the WS FRAND policy this year we are hopeful that these too are nearing resolution. 
 
Thanks again to Karen who has continued to do a great job as our secretary and to all our committee for their input this year. 
 
If anyone would like to join the committee or propose or discuss any Laser issue you are always welcome to contact me or any member of the committee via the NZLA website e mail contacts
 
Thanks 
Nick Page 
Chairman NZLA
 

Royal Akarana Laser Twilight Series

Tue 24 Sep 2019 6:24pm

The second season of the Akarana Thursday night Laser Twilight series is about to kick off

  • Thursday nights
  • starts Thursday 3rd October 2019.
  • 5:15pm briefing
  • 6pm first race
  • more details and dates at rayc.co.nz/lasers/

2 NZ Champions - Laser Masters Worlds 2019

Sun 15 Sep 2019 7:46pm

Great effort by NZ sailors at the 2019 Laser Master Worlds at Port Zelande, Netherlands.

With Dave Ridley winning the Standard Apprentice Masters only securing the win on the last day after and epic battle with Eduardo Van Vianan (NED) and Jared West (ESP).

And Scott Leith won yet again in the Radial Masters, holding the lead from the 2nd day of the regatta to beat Anders Mattsson (SWE) and Ledet Jean-Christophe (FRA).

Rounding put the NZ tean were Andrew Dellabarca, Cris Brodie and Luuk Van Basten Battenburg now living and sailing for the Netherlands.

It was a tricky regatta with big wind shifts in some races, catching out even some of the big names.


Applications for entry for the 2020 Standard & Radial Laser World Championships

Fri 16 Aug 2019 3:22pm
Dear Laser Class District Representative,
 
Please inform your sailors of the following important information for submitting applications to compete in several 2020 ILCA World Championships. 
 
Applications for entry for the following Laser World Championships will be accepted beginning Tuesday, 20 August 2019:
  • 2020 ILCA Laser Standard Men's World Championship
  • 2020 ILCA Laser Radial Women's World Championship
  • 2020 ILCA Laser Radial Men's World Championship
Detailed information about each of the Championships is available through the ILCA Laser World Championships events page: 
 

If possible, please publish the information below on your district website and send an email to any sailors from your country who would be interested and eligible to compete in either of these Championships. For your convenience, you may cut and paste the information below the red line into an email for your members.


Thank you for your help in spreading the word about these events.


Best regards,

The ILCA Team

____________________________________________

 

Dear District Members,

 

Applications for entry for the following World Championships will be accepted beginning Tuesday, 20 August 2019:
 
 
 
 

For all three Championships, the deadline for receiving PAID applications is 1 October 2019 at 23:59 Central US Time.

 
If you would like to compete in one of these Championships, you are encouraged to complete an entry application as soon as possible after it becomes available. Please be aware that if you do not apply by the application deadline, you may have little chance of receiving an entry offer.
 

Information about all ILCA Laser World Championships and access to applications is available through the ILCA events page

   https://sailing.laserinternational.org/

 
 
Best regards,
The ILCA Team
 

George Cautrey's Bronze at the 2019 Laser World Champs

Tue 16 Jul 2019 7:48pm


Photo: Junichi Hirai / Bulkhead Magazine

Read more at YNZ about George Cautrey's fabulous podium finish at the 2019 Laser World Champs. Including a knee dislocation!

https://www.yachtingnz.org.nz/news/gautrey-snares-bronze-laser-world-champs

The event was at Miho Bay, Sakaiminato, Japan and George in 3rd was followed by Sam Meech in 4th and a 10th for Thomas Saunders.
Aussies Tom Burton & Matt Wern were 1st an 2nd.

All results at
https://2019worlds.laserjapan.org/standard/results/
 

The 2020/21 NZ Laser Season Program

Mon 1 Jul 2019 6:57am
The 2020/2021 NZ Laser Season Program
 
NZLA, together with YNZ and clubs throughout the country, have again put together a regatta program for our Laser sailing groups.
 

These are strange times, with all of us constrained by Covid 19, but we aim to have a strong local program this season and hopefully we will see some overseas opportunities emerge in 2021 for those seeking international competition. Fingers crossed!

Anyway here's an outline of opportunities we see as offering a focus for each of you in planning your season, keep and eye on the NZLA website for NOR's etc;

Club Sailors

Laser sailing was made for social distancing so hopefully we see many club sailors enjoying the season.


There are at least 40 yacht clubs in NZ where Lasers race, from Taipa in the north to Bluff in the south, and we see representatives from many of these clubs at interclub regattas and the Laser Nationals each season. NZLA is keen to continue to encourage and assist development and growth of Laser sailing at club level and continues to offer clubs coaching support from our top sailors. If you are interested in NZLA supported coaching at your club please contact us through the link on the website. 
 
Most clubs hold regular racing throughout the summer season, typically from October to March, while some of the more prominent Laser clubs such as Pupuke and Tamaki have year-round club Laser racing programs. Details of club programs are best obtained directly from clubs, who will all welcome approaches from existing or aspiring Laser sailors wishing to try joining the fleet. So get your Laser on the water at the local club but also think about giving a few interclub regattas, the NI, SI or Nationals a shot as set out below.

International Sailors

These days our top Laser sailors, both men and women, are full-time professionals, each working towards their ultimate goals of World Championship and Olympic success. With travel restrictions due to Covid 19 we look forward to seeing more of them at local regattas than usual this year. 
 
Youth Sailors 

and Non-International Open sailors

There are extensive opportunities for both male and female youth sailors and open sailors to train and compete in in NZ. 
The key opportunities are based on an established YNZ training program (see YNZ's website) and a season-long program of local and national regattas. While there are many local interclub regattas around the country, for 2020/2021 season the key NZ regattas where we expect a strong fleets at include;

  • Wincham (Murrays Bay SC - 2nd to 4th October 2020)

  • South Island Laser Champs (Pigeon Bay - 24th & 25th October 2020)

  • North Harbour Freshwater Champs (Pupuke BC - 8th November 2020)

  • North Island Laser Champs (Napier Sailing Club - 28th & 29th November 2020)

  • Sir Peter Blake Regatta (Torbay Sailing Club - 5th & 6th December 2020)

  • NZ Laser Nationals (Worser Bay - 21st to 25th January 2021)

  • Bridge to Bridge Americas Cup celebration event ( RNZYS - Sunday 28th February 2021)

  • Oceanbridge NZL Regatta (Auckland Venue TBC by YNZ)

  • Auckland Laser Championships (Tamaki Yacht Club - 27th & 28th March 2021)

  • Freshwater Champs (Pupuke - 15th & 16th May 2021)


For the top male and female Laser youth sailor each season, selected by YNZ, there is also the opportunity to compete in the ISAF World Youth Championship, subject to Covid issues.
 
Masters 

Masters sailing is one of the stronger Laser sailing groups in NZ. There are opportunities for Masters to compete locally, regionally and nationally. The main regional and national regattas regularly attended by Masters sailors include;
 

  • South Island Laser Champs (Pigeon Bay - 24th & 25th October 2020)

  • North Harbour Freshwater Champs (Pupuke BC - 8th November 2020)

  • North Island Laser Champs (Napier Sailing Club - 28th & 29th November 2020)

  • NZ Laser Nationals (Worser Bay - 21st to 25th January 2021)

  • Bridge to Bridge Americas Cup celebration event ( RNZYS - Sunday 28th February 2021)

  • Wellington Laser Champs (Details TBC)

  • Auckland Laser Championships (incorporating a one day Auckland Masters event) (Tamaki Yacht Club - 27th & 28th March 2021)

  • Panmure RSA regatta (Panmure Lagoon SC - 2nd May 2021)

  • Freshwater Champs (Pupuke - 15th & 16th May 2021)


Women Sailors

There is a program of women’s coaching regattas held in Auckland during the season. Details of the contacts and dates for the regatta will be published on the NZLA website.

So get the boat ready, plan your season and we look forward to seeing you on the water. 

If your clubs regatta is not on the above list  please let us know (blurb and NOR details to webmaster@nzlaser.org) so we can be post details. Also please send us reports on your event for us to publish and let everyone know what is going on around the country

Nick Page

NZLA Chairman

2018 Lake Dunstan BC Laser Regatta - Report

Mon 20 May 2019 8:13pm

The Lake Dunstan BC Special Laser Regatta was held on December 8th & 9th 2018 and continues to build on previous editions.

Over the weekend there was around 25 Lasers in attendance from across the region including Invercargill, Bluff, Dunedin, Queenstown, Te Anau and Auckland.

There was a range of conditions from light to very strong and as always with lake sailing it provided a few shifts calling for tactical skills from everyone.

The event was won by Daryl Parkes who sailed consistently throughout the regatta to add to his wins from previous years.

Lake Dunstan BC did a fantastic job once again and their continued focus on social Laser sailing is doing wonders for the sport in the region. The lake is an excellent sailing destination with scenery to match. The clubhouse is perfect for the social evenings and has plenty of room for camping around it.

The dates for 2019 are yet to be announced but keep an eye on the event calendar and make this a must-do for the upcoming season. We have identified another 15 lasers locally who could be convinced to attend the next one.

Phillip Bennett

More photos of the event on Facebook

 

 

2019 Northshore Freshwater Champs - Results & Report

Wed 15 May 2019 6:56am

All 2019 North Shore Fresh Waters Results

Josh Armit wins 2019 NSFW Laser Champs.

There were 40 competitors and a breeze between 6-25 knots from SW over the weekend 18 & 19 May 2019.

  • 1st Radial and 1st Woman overall Sara Winther
  • 1st Radial Youth and 2nd Radial Luke Cashmore
  • 1st Radial Master Werner Hennig
  • 1st Standard overall Josh Armit
  • 1st Standard Apprentice Master Dave Ridley
  • 1st Standard Master Tony Nicholson
  • 1st Standard Grand Master Mark Hursthouse
  • 1st Standard Great Grand Master Gary Lock

We had a great turnout and generous prizes.

Congratulations once again to to Garth Briden for getting another successful series in.

- John Dowsett - Commodore

Syndicate content