Three Strategies for Sonar
Fleet Expansion
By CJ Rainaldi
Sonar Fleet 5 began
in 1982, with numbers 22, 24 and 25 purchased on the recommendation of
Mike Andert and Mike Fanberg from Wayzata Yacht Club, on Lake Minnetonka,
west of Minneapolis, MN. Within a few years, the fleet had its own start,
but by 1998, Sonar Fleet 5 had dropped to only four boats racing regularly.
Fleet 5 was in danger of being merged with PHRF for its start, plus the
lack of competition at home was proving a detriment for those racing
regattas away from Lake Minnetonka. Fleet 5 needed to attract sailors back
to the Sonar, an ideal racing boat. Sonars are fast, the cockpit is large
and comfortable, and minimal crew can manage most races.
Ultimately, three
strategies combined to triple the number of Sonars racing regularly. Most
unique was a strategy that evolved when one of seldom-raced Sonars went up
for sale. What could the Fleet do not only to keep the boat on the Lake
but to get it back on the line? Answer: buy it. Since 1999, "investors"
from within the Fleet have contributed up to $1,500 apiece in personal
funds to buy and then sell five used Sonars: #311, Ship Weck, off
the Lake (1999); #225, Banue, from Lake Carlisle in southern
Illinois (2000); #41, Azor, off the Lake (2001); #231, Molly,
from Lake Geneva, Wisconsin (2002); and #200, [TBN], from Grand
Marais (2003).
Each Sonar and
trailer was checked by one of the investors prior to purchase, each was
sent to a local boat repair expert for any necessary work to make it
racing ready, and then each was sold for only the purchase and repair
costs (no profit and no interest) and under one condition: the boat has to
stay on the Lake and be raced.
The second strategy
was a total Fleet effort to increase all skill levels. No one who is
consistently at the bottom of the Fleet is going to stay interested in
racing for long. No one who is consistently at the top of the Fleet is
going to stay challenged. To maximize competition in the Fleet, key crew
switch boats to exchange racing techniques and skippers regularly discuss
tuning post race. Helping one another is the norm rather than the
exception. Spring 2003 owners split expenses for one of the nation's top
Sonar racing teams to share their expertise with the Fleet. Steve and
Melissa Shepstone (Watertown, Connecticut) taught Sonar racing strategy
over a three-day period, using a 3-hour chalk talk, on-the-water drills,
and video taping.
A third strategy to
increase membership was to increase the Sonar "friendliness factor." Fleet
members work at registration tables for the spring racing seminars,
skippers try to find crewing spots for new sailors, and the fleet captain
publishes a list of people interested in crewing. Fleet members take turns
hosting socials about once a month during the racing season and once
during the winter. Each September, three or four Sonars have traveled to
Lake Geneva, WI, for the North American Championships. Three nights of
socializing and three days of competing against some of the nation's best
Sonars have further united the traveling WYC Fleet 5 owners and crew.
What have these
three strategies accomplished? When the latest investment boat hits the
line, the number of Sonars racing regularly will have tripled in five
years. Competition has also picked up. Ship Weck, #311, the first
boat purchased by the investors, placed 2nd in the 2003 ADA
Regatta/Great Lakes Sonar Championship. Banue, #225, and the second
"investment" boat, took 2nd in the first 2003 ADA race and
placed 5th for the regatta. In fact, the nine Sonars racing on
the first day finished within six minutes of one another, very competitive
considering the light wind.
Sailors looking for a
reasonably priced first boat (strategy one), racers looking for a Fleet
that will share expertise and encourage competition (strategy two), and/or
people wanting to enjoy the sport off the water as well as on it (strategy
three) are the folks for whom Fleet 5 is perfect. Contact John Sligh,
Fleet 5 Captain. |
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