Harken Blockheads headed to Lake Minnetonka, Minnesota for the Paragon Insurance and Auto-Owners Group Dinghy Championship Week, presented by Helly Hansen. Also known as the Inland Lake Yachting Association (ILYA) Dinghy Championships, this event brings together ILYA clubs for an exciting week of competitive dinghy racing. Harken Blockheads were proud to support the Opti and X-Boat events, held July 26-28th!
The memories made at the ILYA last a lifetime, and we’re thrilled to be part of it! More than 60 sailors signed up for the Harken Blockheads program, where they discovered everything we have to offer, tackled fun and challenging contests, and connected with sailors. We engaged with 270 junior sailors to proudly share the mission and core values of Blockheads, and educated the Opti sailors (and sometimes their parents) on what the proper terminology of hardware on their boats: the first step in gaining knowledge to become and independent sailor.
Onshore, we hosted three exciting contests, one during the Opti regatta and two during the X-Boat regatta. During the Opti event, sailors voted for their favorite Opti boat name. We spotted plenty of clever, funny, and creative names around Lighthouse Island. Sailors were so passionate about their entries that they paraded around the island rallying votes from friends and competitors!
This boat holds special meaning for Kyle as his older brother sailed it before him, a true family legacy. Check out his opti and his new Blockheads buff! Doesn’t he look like SCHMICHTER????!!! Watch his reel here
We were lucky to watch two days of racing for the Opti fleets! While the wind conditions varied, but overall the breeze remained light. Still, the Opti sailors hit the water with big smiles, looking forward to a day on the water alongside friends and family.
Pictured above is the overall Opti winner, Mathias Urban. Without winning a single race, Mathias finished with 14 points—an impressive reminder that consistency is key in sailing. His hard work paid off, and post regatta moments like this make all the effort worth it!
The momentum carried throughout the weekend, and Harken Blockheads kicked things off bright and early during the X-Boat breakfast on Monday morning. While the breeze didn’t cooperate for racing, sailors made the most of their time, signing the Blockheads flag, participating in TWO Blockheads contests, and jumping into the ILYA X-Boat volleyball tournament.
Harken Blockheads challenged sailors to a timed knot-tying contest, both a traditional bowline and a flying bowline. And it got intense. We were pleasantly surprised when the very first sailor pulled off a flying bowline on their first attempt, so we knew we had to include it in the contest! The fastest flying bowline was tied in just 1.26 seconds, and the fastest traditional bowline in 1.56 seconds.
Not everyone knew how to tie a bowline, so we took time to teach and share some helpful tricks. Want to see bowline demos or other knot-tying videos from Harken Blockheads? Email us–we’d love to share!
After the contest wrapped up, many sailors who had also competed in the Opti regatta asked, “When’s the boat naming contest?” So, we delivered!
With over 80 creative boat names to choose from, the competition was fierce. The winner? Dialed In, pictured here after Minnetonka’s post-volleyball tournament celebratory swim. That’s two wins for Dialed In! Coming in a very close second was the Vegetarian Snake.
Wan to view results and more photos from the Inland Championships? Visit ILYA.org
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