What is a SailBoat Race?
A SailBoat Race is an ideal year-round youth group or summer camp activity. The object of a SailBoat Race is for the young skippers to move their boats from start to finish by blowing into their sails. This fun, simple project can be enjoyed with minimum effort, expense, and supervision. Like PineCar, SailBoat Racing is perfect for religious or civic youth groups' recruiting efforts. SailBoat Racing can also be the main attraction during church socials or fund-raising events.
All that's required are SailBoats Racer Kits (SR470) and a pool, or two 10-foot lengths of rain gutter and two sawhorses.
SailBoat Racers are small sailboat models produced by PineCar. The SailBoat Racer kits are easily assembled and finished with little or no adult assistance as craft projects for exciting races.
Plan the day and place of your race. Allow enough time for you and your sailors to obtain SailBoat Racer Kits and other supplies, and assemble and finish the boats. If your site is a swimming pool, plan clearly-marked point-to-point courses or lanes, avoiding the pool's water jets.
If you choose rain gutters for a race course, see the plans and bill of materials. Allow enough space around the course for sailors and spectators. When you've set up your rain gutter courses, pour a little water into each gutter to make sure it's level. When level, fill gutters to within ½ inch of the top. In rain gutter races, the finished sailboat's rear protruding rudder makes a square-to-the-course start difficult, so we suggest some simple starting templates (see Rain Gutter Racecourse instructions). Sailors place their boats in the starting templates and hold their boat against the end of the gutter until the starting signal is given.
Near the race course, set up a table for checking and registering boats and to hold registered boats during the regatta (included in Rain Gutter Racecourse instructions). If appropriate, some nautical flags or other decorations can add to the excitement. The time required to run your regatta depends on the number of racers and the number of lanes or gutters you use.
You'll need Registration Forms and Stick-on Labels to list and number each boat. All sailors can't race at once, so you'll also need an elimination form to record each race and determine the eventual winners. In order to determine your group's top winners, plan to run a double eliminations regatta. This means that each boat must lose twice to be eliminated. A Race Official will be necessary to call up the next sailors, start the race fairly, and judge the winner.
Start your Race Day activities by inspecting each sailboat. To ensure fairness, all sailboats should meet these common specifications:
  1. Hull Length: Not longer than 7", nor shorter than 6½".
  2. Mast Height: 6½" from top to deck.
  3. Keel & Rudder: As supplied in SailBoat Racer Kit SR470.
  4. Sail: No larger than material supplied in kit.
After passing inspection, list and number each boat on a Registration Form. List sailors' names (and hometowns, if appropriate). Write this registration number on one of the small pressure-sensitive labels and place the label on the sail. Elimination Chart and schedule of races are planned from Registration Form.
In the interest of fairness, we suggest these simple rules:
  1. After a race has begun, sailors may not touch their boats.
  2. If a race is interrupted by a capsized boat without interference from another sailor, the skipper can upright his boat and continue the race. If the same sailor capsizes a second time in the same race without interference, the capsized boat shall be disqualified.
  3. If a swimming pool race is interrupted by collision or interference from another sailor (i.e., making waves or splashing), the race shall be rerun. If the same sailor interferes a second time in the same race, the interfering sailor shall be disqualified. If, however, in the opinion of the judge, the initial interruption was intentional, the interfering sailor shall be immediately disqualified.
  4. If there is a tie, those boats will race again.
  5. The judge's decision is final.
  6. At the start of each race: rain gutter skippers must hold their boats against the back of the starting templates until the official gives the starting signal. In swimming pool races, skippers' backs must be against the side of the pool until the official gives the starting signal.
ANCHORS AWEIGH!
At the starting signal, all sailors blow into their sails to move their boats along the course. The first boat to the finish line wins the race.
All sailors need recognition. And don't forget to honor the boat builders who have shown special skills in craftsmanship! Special SailBoat Racer craftsmanship, racing, and participant awards (everyone is a winner!) are available Here Also available from PineCar are: Custom Finishing Kits, paints, and decals.
Everyone shares a love of boats and the sea. Let young sailors discover this perfect activity for fun and excitement now, or at any time of the year.