Buy an Optimist for your Junior Sailor

The EYC’s fleet of International Optimists is one of the EYC’s most popular fleets for racing, and are among the EYC’s most useful boats for junior lessons.

For 2012, the EYC board of Directors has approved the purchase of three new Optimists.  The EYC’s Optimist fleet will be increased to twelve.

However, in 2011 there were some days on which the number of EYC juniors wishing to race an Optimist was even greater than twelve.

So, parents who wish to guarantee that their child always has an Optimist to race should purchase their own Optimist.

Optimists are relatively inexpensive; a new one purchased from Laser Performance Inc. is less than $2800 (see http://na.laserperformance.com/home); from McLaughlin Boat Works, Optimists are similarly priced (see http://optistuff.com/info/boats.html).

Quality used Optimists are often priced under $1500 and can be found with a simple Google search, or on boattrader.com, eBay Motors, sailboatlistings.com, or craigslist.  Or check out the Optimist classified ads at the US Optimist Class Association site:  http://www.empowered-sourcing.co.uk/classifieds/pages/search/searchresult.asp?cid=6b&ItemType=54

Furthermore, because the Optimist is the most numerous one-design sailboat in the world, and because the EYC’s lesson program creates a steady stream of new junior sailors, your Optimist readily can be sold when your children move on to Lasers,  Flying Juniors, 420s and Flying Scots.  The EYC offers Optimist dry slips for rent to members.

In 2011, did your child or grandchild come away from an EYC Optimist boat draw frustrated and sad because he or she did not draw a boat?  There is only one way to guarantee that won’t happen again in 2012:  buy your own Optimist.