Upcoming Sailing events

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• Beginner Sailing Lessons (Group B4)

  • Start
    04 Aug 2025
  •  
  • End
    17 Aug 2025
  •  
  • Schedule
    8 sessions
  • Location
    Club Locarno Clubroom and laser rigging area
  • Spaces left
    0

  Join waitlist

  *** ALL LOCARNO FLEETS WELCOME ***

  ...we might even convince you to stay! ;-)

  Beginner Sailing Lessons

  Beginner Sailing Lessons is an introductory course for beginners. At the end of the course you will have the option to attempt a Checkout in the Level 1 monohull fleet of your choice.

  
  

  In these 8 lessons, you will get 26 hours of instruction spread along 2 intensive weeks. You can expect to learn the basics of  CANSail 1+2 (that you will need to be able to confidently attempt a check out for Laser and Vanguards).

  
  

  During the lessons you will practice sailing techniques while learning about sail controls, rules of way, local geography, weather and wind pattern to expect in English Bay.

  
  

  You will have the opportunity to tack, gybe, capsize, and practice rules of way on our Lasers and Vanguards.

  
  

  You will practice rigging and launching, and learn your way through the clubroom, the logout system to check out boats and where to find sails and foils.

  The goal of the Beginner Sailing Lessons is to confidently attempt a monohull check-out and safely skip Club Locarno monohull fleet Level 1.

  Pre-requisites to attend this course:

  • You must be a member of any fleet at Club Locarno.*
  • You must attend or watch online the English Bay Safety Seminar offered by Jericho Sailing Center for free.
  • You must be willing to study, learn and remember: (1) CanSail 1+2 handbooks, including the sailing jargon, the parts of the boat, and all the vocabulary that will help you communicate while sailing, rigging or while reporting issues or fixing them (2) Rules of way in English Bay and the safety protocols you must follow as a Locarno member (the so called Locarno way), including weather and tide forecast understanding.

  • You must be willing to wear a helmet (available for free, like life jackets).

  Sessions:

  • 2 Monday evenings:             1700-2000 (3 hours).
  • 2 Wednesday evenings:       1700-2000 (3 hours).
  • 2 Thursday evenings:           1700-2000 (3 hours).
  • 2 Sunday afternoons:          1600-2000 (4 hours).

  Location:

  
  

  Registration.

  Cancellations must be done at least 2 days before the first lesson, by email sailinglessons@clublocarno.com

  * In order to check out a sailing boat, you need to be a member of the Sailing Fleet.

  Show details
• Introduction to Catamaran for Beginners (Group BC2)

  • Start
    11 Aug 2025
  •  
  • End
    17 Aug 2025
  •  
  • Schedule
    3 sessions
  • Location
    Club Locarno club room
  • Spaces left
    0

  Join waitlist

  *** THIS BEGINNER COURSE DOES NOT INCLUDE A CHECK OUT ***

  IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR A CHECK OUT DURING CAT LESSONS,

  SEARCH FOR A REFRESHER LESSON (CODE RC1 and RC2) 

  ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  
  

  Introduction to Catamaran for Beginners
  

  This Introduction to Catamaran for Beginners course consist of 10 hours of instruction on Locarno Recreational Catamarans Level 1, led by a Cansail-certified instructor from MacSailing, over three days of lessons:
  

  • Monday : 1700 - 2000 (3 hours)
  • Wednesday : 1700 - 2000 (3 hours)
  • Sunday : 1600 - 2000 (4 hours)

  Goals

  This is the perfect course for you if you are a monohull sailor sitting on the edge... maybe never sailed a cat? No problem! not sure how to climb from your Laser to a Catamaran? You are in the right place.

  The objective of this primer course on catamaran sailing is to get familiar with the specifics of a double hull boat, and start to develop the basic skills you need to safely sail a Locarno recreational catamaran Level 1 without spinnaker. You will rig and sail Locarno Nacra 500 and 570 with the guidance of our CAN Sail certified instructor.
  

  Upon completion, you will be ready to crew Catamarans skipped by more experienced members and take turns on the helm, in different wind conditions, to build up your skills. After ~20 hours of sailing, you and your fellow skippers will have an idea of whether you are ready to try to check cats on your own, in which case you can register for the Rigging Clinic and On Water check out Level 1 led by our Catamaran Captain.

  If after this primer and crewing 20 hours on your own, you do not feel ready yet, no problem, you can take the recreational Catamaran Level 1 Refresher lessons that concentrates on safety, launching and landing, where you will have the opportunity to practice capsizing the Nacra 500 and 570 with your instructor to get ready for check out.

  Prerequisites 

  To be able to take and make the most of this course, you should have the equivalent of CANSail 2, CYA Bronze or equivalent experience sailing monohulls, both single and dual handed. We recommend (not mandatory) our Sailing Beginners lessons or Refresher lessons plus 20 hours of monohull experience or 10 hours crew experience on catamaran.

  Attendance at a Catamaran Level 1 rigging clinic prior to the lessons would also be helpful but not mandatory. Ideally, you will at least review the Rigging Guides and videos from our website - before attending the first class.

  If you are not sure, send an email to sailinglessons@clublocarno.com and we will get it from there!

  Location

  The class will meet near the Locarno sailcraft aisle, under the white tent (you will see a table and a whiteboard).  
  * Please try to arrive early so lessons can start on time. *
  

  
  

  
  

  Registration

  The lesson will be cancelled if no one has registered on time.

  Cancellations must be done at least 48 hours before the first lesson, by email sailinglessons@clublocarno.com

  Show details
• Intro to Catamaran for monohull sailors (Group IC3)

  • Start
    18 Aug 2025
  •  
  • End
    23 Aug 2025
  •  
  • Schedule
    3 sessions
  • Location
    Club Locarno club room
  • Spaces left
    2

  Register

  ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  *** THIS BEGINNER COURSE DOES NOT INCLUDE A CHECK OUT ***

  if you are looking for a checkout during cat lessons

  please search for "REFRESHER CATAMARAN LESSONS" instead

  ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  
  

  Intro to Catamaran for monohull sailors

  This Introduction to Catamaran for Beginners course consist of 10 hours of instruction on Locarno Recreational Catamarans Level 1, led by a Cansail-certified instructor from MacSailing, over three days of lessons:
  

  • Monday : 1700 - 2000 (3 hours)
  • Wednesday : 1700 - 2000 (3 hours)
  • Saturday: 1100 - 1500 (4 hours)

  Goals

  This is the perfect course for you if you are a monohull sailor sitting on the edge... maybe never sailed a cat? No problem! not sure how to climb from your Laser to a Catamaran? You are in the right place.

  The objective of this primer course on catamaran sailing is to get familiar with the specifics of a double hull boat, and start to develop the basic skills you need to safely sail a Locarno recreational catamaran Level 1 without spinnaker. You will rig and sail Locarno Nacra 500 and 570 with the guidance of our CAN Sail certified instructor.
  

  Upon completion, you will be ready to crew Catamarans skipped by more experienced members and take turns on the helm, in different wind conditions, to build up your skills. After ~20 hours of sailing, you and your fellow skippers will have an idea of whether you are ready to try to check cats on your own, in which case you can register for the Rigging Clinic and On Water check out Level 1 led by our Catamaran Captain.

  If after this primer and crewing 20 hours on your own, you do not feel ready yet, no problem, you can take the recreational Catamaran Level 1 Refresher lessons that concentrates on safety, launching and landing, where you will have the opportunity to practice capsizing the Nacra 500 and 570 with your instructor to get ready for check out.

  Prerequisites 

  To be able to take and make the most of this course, you should have the equivalent of CANSail 2, CYA Bronze or equivalent experience sailing monohulls, both single and dual handed. We recommend (not mandatory) our Sailing Beginners lessons or Refresher lessons plus 20 hours of monohull experience or 10 hours crew experience on catamaran.

  Attendance at a Catamaran Level 1 rigging clinic prior to the lessons would also be helpful but not mandatory. Ideally, you will at least review the Rigging Guides and videos from our website - before attending the first class.

  ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  *** THIS BEGINNER COURSE DOES NOT INCLUDE A CHECK OUT ***

  IF YOU ARE LOOKING FOR A CHECK OUT DURING CAT LESSONS,

  SEARCH FOR A REFRESHER LESSON (CODE RC1 and RC2) 

  ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  If you are not sure, send an email to sailinglessons@clublocarno.com and we will get it from there!

  Location

  The class will meet near the Locarno sailcraft aisle, under the white tent (you will see a table and a whiteboard).  
  * Please try to arrive early so lessons can start on time. *
  

  
  

  
  

  Registration

  The lesson will be cancelled if no one has registered on time.

  Cancellations must be done at least 48 hours before the first lesson, by email sailinglessons@clublocarno.com

  Show details
• Rigging clinic and DRY CHECKOUT - Level 1 Recreational Catamaran (Nacra 500/570)

  • When
    21 Aug 2025
  •  
    17:00 - 18:30
  • Location
    JSCA @ Locarno Sailing Fleet.
  • Spaces left
    7

  Register

  About the boat

  The Nacra 500 Fun is perfect for recreational sailing but can also be used for local club racing. At the Nacra family we also call this boat the ‘pocket rocket’. It’s a simple but really quick catamaran and easy to maneuver in different kind of waves with the large buoyant hulls. Launching from the beach is easy with the kick-up rudders and the skeg hulls. All working gear is from Harken, just like the other Nacra leisure boats.

  Next to all the features of the Nacra 500 Fun, the Sport edition has a larger battened MNX jib which reaches down to the spinnaker pole. Giving the boat more power lower down, more drive and less heel. The Nacra 500 Sport also comes without dagger boards and a simpler hull construction which saves weight and gains more speed. The 17 square nylon spinnaker packs in a cloth chute with glass fibre entry, making it easy to launch and recover. All in all, the Naca 500 Sport is in perfect balance and enables you to drive fast upwind and downwind.

  
  

  About the event

  This clinic includes Part 1 and Part 2 of the checkout. It is for experienced sailors who want to be cleared to use a new fleet; it is also a great refresher. For those who are doing their first checkout, it will include an orientation to the sailing fleet and club room.

  The on-water checkout (Part 3); will require a separate registration. Details of our checkout clinics can be found at Sailing Orientations and Checkout Clinics.

  Prerequisites

  All checkout participants must know how to sail and preferably have experience on cats or an a similar boat class. It is important that all participants review the online rigging instructions and videos. In particular, know how the hooks on jib and main function and how to release them. (Start your browsing here on the Sailing Docs & Link)

  Location 

  
  

  Show details
• ON-WATER SKILLS CHECKOUT - Level 1 Recreational Catamaran (Nacra 500/570)

  • When
    21 Aug 2025
  •  
    18:30 - 20:00
  • Location
    JSCA @ Locarno Catamaran Rigging area
  • Spaces left
    3

  Register

  The on-water skills checkout consists in the demonstration of safety sailing and capsize recovery.

  Eden J. Zhang, our Recreational Catamaran Captain will be there with Locarno prominent F-18 sailor Rupert Slight, to review capsize procedures, and assess your competency in launching, landing, on-water handling, and capsize recovery. 
  

  Prerequisite:
  

  • Clubroom Orientation & Rigging Clinic (Part 1 & 2) for the same vessels. 
  • Members are expected to complete Parts 1 and 2 prior to attending this skills checkout, or having been cleared out after attending Intro to Catamaran for Beginner lessons sailing Locarno boats Nacra 500 and/or 570.
    

  Tasks

  • Transport craft to water
  • Controlled launch (install centerboard, deploy and lock rudder(s) while maintaining some semblance of course control and stability)
  • Stay near shore
  • Maintain a heading
  • Tack
  • Gybe
  • Figure 8
  • Man over board rescue
  • Heave to
  • Capsize and recover
  • Controlled landing (low speed, retract board(s), unlock rudder(s), boat into irons in standing depth, no boat contact with bottom or shore
  • Return craft to derig location

  Make sure you review beforehand the Catamaran Rigging videos and documents on our website, located under Sailing Documents and links:

  https://www.clublocarno.com/Sailing-Documents-and-Links
  

  Show details
• Rigging clinic and DRY CHECKOUT - Level 2 Rec.Catamaran (Nacra 580)

  • When
    23 Aug 2025
  •  
    11:00 - 13:30
  • Location
    JSCA @ Locarno Sailing Fleet.

  Register

  About the event

  This clinic includes Part 1 and Part 2 of the checkout. It is for experienced sailors who want to be cleared to use a new fleet; it is also a great refresher. For those who are doing their first checkout, it will include an orientation to the sailing fleet and club room.

  The on-water checkout (Part 3); will require a separate registration. Details of our checkout clinics can be found at Sailing Orientations and Checkout Clinics.

  Prerequisites

  All checkout participants must know how to sail and preferably have experience on cats or an a similar boat class. It is important that all participants review the online rigging instructions and videos. In particular, know how the hooks on jib and main function and how to release them. (Start your browsing here on the Sailing Docs & Link)

  Brief History

  The Nacra 580 is an evolution of Nacra’s legendary line of high-performance catamarans. Building on the racing pedigree of models like the iconic 5.8, the 580 was designed as a modern, versatile sport cat that blends speed and accessibility. With influences from both racing and recreational classes and fleets forming around the world, this model stands out for combining Nacra’s performance DNA with real-world usability.^[1][2][3]

  Distinctive Features

  • Length: 20ft (6.1m)

  • Beam: 8ft 6in (2.6m) – so you get both stability and raw speed.^[4][5]

  • Weight: 390lb (177kg), making it manageably light (for its size!).^[5]

  • Hull Volume: Extra forward volume means fewer pitchpoles and more stability, even when really pressing downwind.^[6][1]

  • Kick-Up Centerboards: Far more beach-friendly than fixed daggerboards—just glide in, boards up!

  • Boomed Main & Sail Plan: Updated for powerful, controllable acceleration, with spinnaker options for full-throttle downwind excitement.^[7][2][8][1]

  • Spinnaker-Ready: The 580 can be rigged with an asymmetrical spinnaker—unlocking turbocharged performance on every run.^[3][8]

  Why Sailors Love It

  The Nacra 580 delivers a thrilling yet approachable sailing experience, with quick, responsive handling, explosive acceleration, and the ability to perform brilliantly in anything from light breezes to strong winds. It’s equally at home as a family-friendly day-sailer or a competitive race machine, offering room for two or three aboard—perfect for building skills, sharing the ride with friends, or blasting across the water with the whole family. Whether you’re charging around race marks or enjoying a spirited cruise, the 580 feels alive under your feet—fast, stable, and irresistibly fun. As a true hybrid between performance and leisure, it blends the adrenaline rush of competitive sailing with the freedom and comfort of all-day cruising.

  Sailing a 580 means grinning ear-to-ear as you carve, accelerate, and leave conventional monohulls—and many other cats—far astern. Its blend of modern design and raw fun makes every outing memorable!

  Rigging the 580

  You can find detailed rigging instructions in the official Nacra Knowledge Base, including downloadable manuals and setup guides for the Nacra 580 provided directly by the manufacturer. For step-by-step help, visit the [Nacra Knowledge Base Rigging Page].^[9]

  If you’re ready to turn wind into excitement and want a taste of what high-performance beach cats are all about, the Nacra 580 is the boat to try—it’s the definition of pure sailing joy!

  ⁂

  1. http://www.cathouse1.com/n580/N580.htm        

  2. https://www.clublocarno.com/sail    

  3. https://foghmarine.com/gibson-nacra-580.html    

  4. https://www.catsailor.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/108021/all/nacra-580 

  5. https://sailboat.guide/20xdpl  

  6. https://www.thebeachcats.com/forums/viewtopic/topic/18626/start/0 

  7. https://www.thebeachcats.com/forums/viewtopic/topic/13809    

  8. https://bnrwatersport.com/find-used-catamarans/nacra-580-spi-2008-detail.html  

  9. https://nacrasailing.com/knowledge_base/rigging 

  Location 

  
  

  Show details
• Spinnaker Lessons (Group SP1)

  • Start
    25 Aug 2025
  •  
  • End
    28 Aug 2025
  •  
  • Schedule
    3 sessions
  • Location
    Club Locarno club room
  • Spaces left
    4

  Register

  Learn to fly downwind!
  

  The objective of this course is to develop the basic skills that can be used on either mono-hulls or cats when sailing a Spinnaker.
  

  This course consists of 9 hours of lessons in 3 days:

       - Monday 1700 - 2000

       - Wednesday 1700 - 2000

       - Thursday 1700 - 2000

  
  

  You will be learning on the RS500 and the lessons will be led by a Cansail-certified instructor from MacSailing, who will focus on safety and efficient sailing.

  RS500, Nacra 500spi CHECKOUT
  

  During the lessons you will have the opportunity to show your rigging, sailing and self-rescuing skills on a boat with Spinnaker like the RS500 and the Nacra 500spi. If you succeed, you will be checked out for Spinnaker sailing.
  

  Requisites to register
  

  To be able to take and make the most of this course, you should have CANSail 2, CYA Bronze or equivalent experience, and at least 20 hours as skipper in a mono-hull like RS500 or similar, or ideally a recreational catamaran.

  We strongly recommend you are checked-out in at least 2 Club Locarno monohull fleets and Level 1 catamaran.
  

  In addition, you should refresh your knowledge by reviewing the instructional videos for RS500 Rigging Complete and RS500 Capsize on our website found here Sailing Documents and Links

  Attendance at a RS500 rigging clinic (to learn to rig the spinnaker) would also be helpful.

  The class will meet in the Locarno sailing club room.  Please try to arrive early and ready, so lessons can start on time.

  
  Remember to bring a wetsuit and towel! Have a great class!

  Show details