April 3 marked the start of sailing season for the Lakeside Model Sailing Club on Lake Ronkonkoma. The club will meet every Saturday until the fall to sail and race their remote controlled model yachts. The club, under the direction of Commodore Alden Whitehead since 1996, has 10-12 races each Saturday.
"We follow all the rules of the big boats and we compete against ourselves," Whitehead said.
The remote control operates the sails and the rudder to steer the boat around the course. Each member is assigned a frequency to avoid conflicts. Last Saturday's race featured 36/600 boats. The club sails three different boats: the 36/600, which has a 36 inch hull length and sail area of 600 square inches; the Marblehead, also known as the 50/800, has a 50 inch hull length and a sail area of 800 square inches; and the Soling One-Meter, which has a hull length of 40 inches and is perfect for the first time skipper since it has virtually no performance difference between a boat built by an expert as opposed to a first timer.
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Whitehead credits Vice Commodore Tom Clarke for doing the toughest job each week without fail.
"He gets to the lake early to set up the buoys that we race around," Whitehead said. "That's what gives us a place to sail."
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The club currently has between 15-20 members, "but we are always looking for new members," Whitehead said. "Anyone who is interested in joining can show up to see the races and talk to us about becoming a member."
The club has several invitationals throughout its season. In June they compete for the Rulon Cup, which was donated to the club by the family of Bob Rulon, a former member.
"There is only a first place winner," said Whitehead. "The winner keeps the trophy for the whole year until next year's Rulon Cup race."
In September the club will host a Commodore's Invitational for all the past commodore's of the club.
Whitehead began the hobby of remote controlled boats in the 1970's, but dropped it once his family came along.
"But in 1996 I moved to a house that had a basement so I could build the boats again and I got back into it," he said. "I build vintage wood boats from scratch which take about two to three months. I was also a big boat skipper. I had a 23-foot sailboat at one time so I was still interested in sailing."
The club meets every Saturday from April to October at 10 a.m. on the lake.
