2012 OPTIsailing calendar

Wow, what an awesome year of Optimist sailing and incredible response from everyone voting on photos on our all new www.optisailing.com! The result is the best version of the Opti sailing calendar EVER!. This 15 month calendar offers a huge size of 18" wide x 24" high when hanging on your wall. So big you can practically feel the spray hitting you in your face while doing homework or just daydreaming about your next chance to venture out onto the waters at your next regatta! We have also worked closely with regatta hosts and Optimist organizations around the globe to include every possible regatta that is currently scheduled and have listed many that the dates are still pending in the month they are expected to happen. If you are sailing in North America, Europe or anywhere else around the globe, we have many regattas listed for your convenience!


The calendars were printed in a limited quantity and are available right now at http://www.opticalendar.com. They will also be available at some of the upcoming regattas, if there are any left... Enjoy your copy before they are all gone.

2010 Orange Bowl Regatta is underway

The 2010 Orange Bowl regatta started with a tremendous day of competition in cooler than anticipated conditions for most competitors. With temps that never stepped above 60 throughout the day and starting at only 34 (in Miami), there was an unusual chill to the air that helped to raise nerves and anticipation just before launch in the 9-20 knots of breeze that were providing for an awesome day of racing on Biscane Bay. Photos of all three fleets will be posted on daveheinphotography.com

Layline Optimist Great Lakes Championships

In 2010 Layline has been selected by USODA as their Platinum sponsor. Among many benefits of being awarded this honor, Layline is able to require all competitors at USODA events to place their logo on the boats.

At the Great Lakes Championships we witnessed the first event with the Layline logo and debate erupted over the placement of the stickers. What do you think? Should it be on the starboard side as shown, or directly on the bow?

Chautauqua Lake Yacht Club in Lakewood, New York was the host of this event and proved to be a great place to sail in the spring. With light, 8 knot breeze blowing in the beginning it looked like an average regatta, but the 18 knots were not far behind. 21 sailors from this event qualified for the 2011 USODA National Team Trials which will be sailed in San Francisco at the St. Francis Yacht Club in late April.

All photos posted

All photos of the incredible sailing action of last week's IODA North American Optimist Championship regatta at CORK in Kingston, Ontario are now online and available at http://pix.daveheinphotography.com/event/2010-OPTINAM-at-CORK. Here you can view the photos, purchase any prints you want and save your favorites to view online or vies as a slideshow and share with your friends.

Remember to vote on these photos at http://www.optisailing.com. The top photos here will be used in the 2011 OPTIsailing calendar, which will be distributed worldwide this fall! Login every day and vote for the top photos from OPTINAM 2010!

2009 Fogh Boorman Regatta

When a severe storm blew through at 9am on Saturday, I figured this regatta was going to be light and short on races.

After the storm had passed, it appeared that all of the wind had gone with it. Boats launched and it looked as if it would be a day of light and variable wind, basically a day of bobbing on the water.

Within a hour of launching, the wind started filling in and continued to build all day. In fact, the weather proved to provide for exciting sailing on the Opti, Laser/Radial and 420/29er courses. All fleets had tremendous wind and awesome sailing across the board. You can see photos of the Opti races at OPTIsailing.com and all others at Dave Hein Photography

2009 Cleveland Race Week

The 2009 Clevenad Race week Opti regatta hosted by Edgewater Yacht Club was bigger and better than ever, with sailors in town to compete the following weekend at USODA Great Lakes Champs at LSYC. The regatta provided the perfect venue to experience sailing in the waters of Lake Erie and preview the competition that would be present at the upcoming championships.

Featured in this photo is Edgewater Yacht Club sailor, Ian Moran completing a roll-tack in light breeze.

Make sure to see all of the photos from this event, and vote for the photos to be included in the 2010 OPTIsailing calendar by visiting OPTIsailing.com