Hello again, awesome Coop Members! This is a special "Sailboat" update that so many of you sailors have been eagerly awaiting. There's stuff for the paddlers as well, so buckle up and read on.

If you sail an ILCA Laser, well, we've got new dollies and new covers. See picture below. The dollies are actually made for the Laser (go figure!). The bow of the boat hooks into a special cradle, and there are flip-up gunwale supports so that the boat is super stable up and down the ramp when it's windy. The dollies have a sticker to easily distinguish them from other dollies on a busy day. The covers are made from "Top Gun" fabric. They might not be bullet-proof, but they sure are tough! Each boat is equipped with a full rig and they both share a radial rig. The sails are now wrapped around the lower section of the appropriate mast and stored on the boats. If you lay the sail on the ground, place the mast over the top batten, fold the top section of the sail over the mast and start rolling, it will work well. Keep it loose - there is a gooseneck fitting for the boom, and it will help preserve the window at the bottom of the sail. Everything now gets stored on the boat: Mast sections, Sails and Boom, Foils and Rigging. There is also a new foil bag to neatly store the rudder, daggerboard and rigging.

If you like sailing a Radial Laser, then we've got some candy for you - the RS Neo. The RS Neo is new - as in brand new! It just got delivered here from the U.K., and it's awesome! "Poseidon" has a carbon fiber mast that is permanently rigged to the boat, and the sail goes up with a halyard. Yup - "stepping the mast" is no longer the stuff of mariner nightmares! Unlike a Laser, the cockpit actually drains, and the deck rails are comfortable for hiking. There's even enough room in the cockpit for a passenger (well, maybe not Dwyane Johnson, but you get the idea). Poseidon is pre-rigged (yup - all rigging stays attached to the boat!). I'll be giving rigging sessions on the RS Neo during the Club Cruises - more on that later. The Neo is also adorned with a foil bag so everything stays tidy during storage.

If you like sailing the RS Quest, it now has a new cover, and also a new spinnaker (purchased - to be installed soon!) The Quest is now not only the quintessential family boat, but it should also give the Vision a run for its money in a Regatta. The Quest now also has a rudder bag, and the dolly has a new sticker so that you can distinguish it from other dollies when the yard gets a little crazy. See picture below.

Speaking of the RS Vision, I gave it a much needed scrub-down, and I also laundered the cover. The RS Vision has a new rudder bag, and the dolly has a new sticker so that you can identify it quickly.

All of the sailboats have now been equipped with the new hull stickers. The QR Code now signs out the boat automatically - all you have to do is enter your name (voice to text is super fast). Signing out the boats is mandatory - I have my eye on some new boats, so I need to know what's popular.

Speaking sign-outs, so far for 2025, the SUP's are leading the pack with 110 sign-outs. The kayaks are about 50, and the Sailboats have 60. C'mon kayakers and sailors - pull up yer boot straps and sign out those boats, or you'll have to walk the plank!

If the 420 is your main ride, then get yer kicks in while you can, cuz I'm selling both of them to make way for something better! $1,500 for one, and $2,000 for the other. Contact me for more information. Both 420's can be signed out until they are sold.

Want to pile the kids in the boat, and go for a picnic cruise in moderate winds? Or, do you prefer to go for a heart-thumping rip across the inlet in high winds? Either way, the RS Cat14XL is for you! This is a small racing catamaran (14 feet by 7 feet) that just got delivered from the U.K. along with the RS Neo. Family friendly in moderate winds. Ocean rocket in high winds. "Riptide" has a spinnaker and a trapeze (for those who are qualified). Catamarans are considerably easier to rig than monohulls, and they eagerly sail in moderate winds. I'll be giving rigging sessions on the RS Cat14XL during the Club Cruises - more on that later.

I'm organizing some trapeze clinics for those who dare to go out on a wire (the Coop also bought a top-drawer Zhik trapeze harness). Watch the HSC Newsletter for upcoming dates.

Are you a novice sailor, but not quite ready to skipper a boat by yourself? Are you unsure about rigging one of the Coop boats? Do you want to go for a day sail, and stop for a picnic along the way? Are you a paddler, and are intrigued but intimidated by those crazy sailboats? Are you a great sailor, and just want to go sailing with a group of friends? Whatever your walk of life, come on out to our Club Cruising events! Every second Saturday (give or take) throughout the Summer, we get together (private boats and Coop) and participate in a group sail to Dundarave (or further), and stop for a picnic lunch. There is no experience necessary - we'll do our best to hook you up with a qualified skipper. But, make no mistake - you won't be working on your tan, you'll be working the sheets and the sails and learning how to make a sailboat giddy-up. Sound like fun? Then join the Club Cruising Google Group under the Member Communications tab of our website. Travis Lyne heads up this group, and is super approachable (and a phenomenal sailor to boot!).

If you're curious about our sailboat fleet, check out the Sailboat Matrix on the Coop section of the website (navigate under the For Members tab). Dimensions, weights, handicaps, sail area and sailing characteristics are all listed. See image below.

On some of the Club Cruises, I'll come early and offer rigging clinics on the Coop boats - likely a deep dive on one boat only per session. Travis and I will coordinate this, and he'll send out word through the Club Cruise email list. Each sailboat has somewhat unique, but familiar rigging, and it's always good to get a refresher on how to rig a boat before you take it out.

I've organized the paddles as follows: The Kayak paddles are stored in the inside Coop locker, along with the paddle floats, skirts, hand pumps and throw ropes. The SUP paddles are stored in the left-hand tall outside locker. The Surfski paddles and spare Sailboat paddles are stored together in the right-hand tall outside locker.

All of the Kayaks have now been completely re-rigged! New bungees, new perimeter rigging, and new rudder up/down-hauls. I re-routed all of the rudder up/down-hauls so that they now are accessible from the cockpit (rather than risking a capsize by reaching behind you!). Rudder pedals were lubricated, and seat backs were re-rigged with brightly coloured adjustment lines with a hand-loop.

All of the rigging is high-end dyneema core racing line (Sailboat jargon for the "good stuff"!). On the subject of Kayaks, in case you've never seen them, there are some kayak stands hung over by the hose reel on the East Side. See pictures.

The Coop purchased new Kayak Paddles! While there were a few kayak paddles worth salvaging, most of the others were either seized in a feathered position, or were quite heavy. I bought nine new kayak paddles with carbon shafts and lightweight fiberglass composite blades. 3 of them are 230cm in length - ideal for a large paddler on any kayak, or any paddler on "Rooster" (the tandem). The other 6 are 220cm in length - the Sea Kayak "sweet spot'. If you take a spare paddle with you (a good idea), please take one of the old ones and keep the new ones for other paddlers. I'm still waiting for the 220cm to be delivered - hopefully soon! These paddles are expensive - please take good care of them.

Many of the SUP's were adorned with new leashes. Ya, some of the old ones were pretty skanky - who wants to strap a dead squirrel around their leg! I also re-rigged most of the SUPs with new bungees. Not only is this a convenient place to securely store your paddle during transport, it's a perfect place to tie the new leashes to during storage so that the coil doesn't drag on the ground. Two of the Starboard Go's don't have any bungees - for all others, please attach the leash to the bungees during storage (after you wash the equipment, including the leash, that is!). Lingcod and Halibut (our two iSUP's) have now been fully inflated, and now paddle more like an SUP and less like an air mattress! I also bought some SUP carts that are useful to move your SUP around the yard, or wash it afterwards.

The Kayak lessons sold out quickly, so I added more! We also have a new paddling Instructor who is a Certified Instructor under Paddle Canada. Compared to other lessons in the marketplace, HSC's lessons are extremely affordable because they are partially subsidized by the Coop. Completion of Kayak #2 (or equivalent) is mandatory if you want to take out a Coop Kayak, so get your skills mastered, and then get out on the water!

I've also added some SUP Lessons! This is an awesome sport that is not only fun, but a complete body workout. Whether you are a beginner, or an advanced paddler, we can elevate your skills. For information on all of our paddling courses, check out the Paddle tab on our website.

A couple of quick Do's and Don'ts on the Sailboats. Please sign out your sailboat each time, and wear a PFD - both are mandatory. If the sailboats get used a lot, this helps me justify buying more! If you sail a single hander, and there's nobody to retrieve your dolly, either beach it (if the tide isn't exposing the rocks), or sea capsize it (to leeward) in chest high water with the daggerboard half way down and take the dolly up yourself. I can teach you how this is done. Don't run any sailboat up the ramp or drive it up the beach! Period. Uncleat your jib, depower your main, approach the ramp at a 45 degree angle, raise your foils half way, turn your boat into the wind once you are over the ramp, and jump out to catch the bow at the right moment. Then fully raise your foils. You should be in waste-high water. If you don't know how to do this - please ask. When you are just learning, practice this maneuver over the beach to avoid contact with the ramp.

If you run a Coop sailboat up the ramp, or recklessly abuse any of the Coop equipment, I will suspend you from the Coop!. That goes for the Kayaks and SUPs - don't hit the ramp, or run them mercilessly up the beach. Please treat the equipment as if it were your own. To give you some perspective: A new SUP is $2,000. A new Sea Kayak is over $4,000. A new double-handed Sailboat is north of $30,000. The annual single membership in the Coop is only $200. Heck - the new kayak paddles were $400 a piece!

On that note, some of you have asked 'Where does my Coop Membership money go?" All Coop Membership Fees are held in a fund that is used exclusively to buy and maintain Coop Equipment. 100% of your Coop Membership Fees go towards buying (or maintaining) new sailboats, kayaks, SUPs, paddles, etc. - there is no transfer to general operating revenues for the club (that's what your HSC Membership fee is for). Any unused Coop funds get carried forward for future purchases.

If you have any comments, or suggestions for improvement, please feel free to respond to this email (please don't use Reply All!). The Coop is there for the benefit of all its members, and I welcome your feedback.

Class dismissed! Now get out there on the water and have fun! Looking forward to a great 2025 with everyone from the Coop and the greater HSC community.

Jonathan

Co-op Captain

Coop Captain Announcement.

June 28th Cruise