Events

All ASC events are informal, low-key, and family friendly. We’re also very open to people who are just learning to sail, so don’t let a lack of experience keep you from joining us. In fact, only a few of our members come from a longtime sailing background. The rest of us learned right here at the ASC!

Weekend events almost always include a lively potluck, and most members stay overnight and either camp in our tenting area or park an RV. Evening activities include sunset viewing (weather permitting) and hanging by the campfire until the wee hours of the morning.

You can check out our events in three different ways:

View the ASC’s public Google calendar online.
Use the public iCal address to to access this calendar from other applications.
Read about our season’s festivities below.

May 2023

Saturday May 20

10:00 am – 4:00 pm: Spring Work Party
Alaska Sailing Club, Mile 8.2 South Big Lake Road, Wasilla, AK 99654, USA
The Spring Work Party is the official beginning of the ASC sailing season. This is a one-day event where all of our members come out to help us do the hard work associated with opening up the club for the year. Typical tasks include cleaning and stocking the clubhouse, chopping and stacking firewood, prepping flower beds, setting up and repairing the docks, launching the Ensign and the Pontoon Boat, cleaning and rigging club boats, setting up picnic tables, and cleaning the grounds. We need many hands to get all of this work done in a day, and it’s actually a requirement of ASC membership to attend at least one of our work parties (Although most of our hardworking crew come out for both!)

You don’t need any special equipment orskills to participate in the ASC work party … in most cases justa pair of work gloves and a positive attitude will more than suffice.When you show up we’ll find you the prefect project whether you’re a master gardener, a DIY weekend warrior, an aspiring lumberjack, or a wannabe riggingpro!

Saturday May 27 – Sunday May 28

Icebreaker Regatta

Saturday May 27 – Sunday May 28

Alaska Sailing Club, Mile 8.2 South Big Lake Road, Wasilla, AK 99654, USA

The Icebreaker is our kickoff racing event for the season. It’s a two-day regatta that happens every Memorial Day weekend, with raceson both Saturday and Sunday. The weather for the Icebreaker is often sunny and even pretty warm … but the water isstillcold. In fact, it’s pretty common that the ice goes out on the lake only days before the regatta, and we have occasionally had to cancel the seriesbecause the lake is still iced over! As a result, wehighly recommend that all sailors bring wetsuits or dry suits, especially if we get a windy day.

June 2023

Friday June 9 – Sunday June 11

Intermediate Sailing Class

Friday June 9 – Sunday June 11

Alaska Sailing Club, Mile 8.2 South Big Lake Road, Wasilla, AK 99654, USA

The ASC’s Intermediate Sailing class consists of a three-day session at the Alaska Sailing Club, and is intended for adults and teens 14 and older who have completed our intro class and have one season of sailing experience. This course focuses on more advanced sailing tops, with a focus on boat speed, effective upwind sailing, and basic racing skills. Class participants will train on club Lidos 14s, Lasers, the Catalina 16.5, and the Buccaneer 18.

You can find out more details about our courses on the classes section of the ASC website, located here: https://aksailingclub.org/classes/

Friday June 16 – Sunday June 18

1st Intro to Sailing Class

Friday June 16 – Sunday June 18

Alaska Sailing Club, Mile 8.2 South Big Lake Road, Wasilla, AK 99654, USA

The ASC’s Introduction to Sailing classes consist of a three-day session at the Alaska Sailing Club and require no prior experience. Our classes are relaxed, fun, and focus on practical dinghy sailing skills.

We run two simultaneous tracks. One is geared for teens and and adults, and the other targets youth sailors aged eight to thirteen. Adult class participants will learn to rig and sail Lido 14s, a Catalina 16.5, and a Buccaneer 18. Youth participants will learn to rig and sail both Optimists and Lasers.

You can find out more details about our courses on the classes section of the ASC website, located here: https://aksailingclub.org/classes/

Saturday June 24

11:00 am – 5:00 pm

Open House / Summer Sailstice

Alaska Sailing Club, Mile 8.2 South Big Lake Road, Wasilla, AK 99654, USA

Summer Sailsticeisa global, annual celebration of sailing held on the weekend nearest the summer solstice. Forthe ASC, this means sharing our love of sailing by providing free sailboat rides and BBQ to all members of the public. On the day of Sailstice, we need club members who are willing to:

Take people out on sailboat rides
Man the grill and prep food
Provide tours and information about the club

And attendees just need to show up! There’s no need to register … just drop by the ASC, and we’ll feed you BBQ, take you on a tour of our amazing club, and (most importantly) take you out sailing! We usually have quite a few folks who sign up for membership on the spot because once you experience it, the ASC is pretty hard to resist.

July 2023

Saturday July 8 – Sunday July 9

Firecracker Regatta

Saturday July 8 – Sunday July 9

Alaska Sailing Club, Mile 8.2 South Big Lake Road, Wasilla, AK 99654, USA

The Firecracker Regatta is a two-day series, with racing on both Saturday and Sunday. This regatta often vieswith the Governor’s Cup as the best attended event of the year. The odds favor good weather, the water is warm, and the racing is a blast.

Longstanding Firecracker traditions include a Family Fun Day with events including water relay races, model boat building, an egg toss, and other events for kids and adults who remain young at heart. We’ve also had a few epic BBQ cook-offs over the years.

Friday July 14 – Sunday July 16

2nd Intro to Sailing Class

Friday July 14 – Sunday July 16

Alaska Sailing Club, Mile 8.2 South Big Lake Road, Wasilla, AK 99654, USA

Saturday July 29

All Day: Pirate Race
Alaska Sailing Club, Mile 8.2 South Big Lake Road, Wasilla, AK 99654, USA
The Pirate Race is the biggest, craziest, on-water scavenger hunt and water fight in Alaska. Or maybe anywhere. And people dress up as pirates. No, really … they do. Some of the costume are spectacular, but dressing up is by no means required. The rules vary from year-to-year and are determined by the Pirate King or Pirate Queen who will have been selected at the prior year’s race. The rules are rarely the regular rules of sailing, and creative cheating and skullduggery are strongly encouraged.

Essentials race-day gear includes water cannons, bathing suites, towels, buckets, some spare dry cloths and a good sense of humor. Guests are welcome as long as they aren’t afraid of getting wet! Optional items include a pirate costume and even more squirt guns. (Note that we don’t allow water balloons at the Pirate Race. They can be ingested by both diving birds and fish and are fatal to both!)

August 2023

Saturday August 12 – Sunday August 13

Fireweed Ladies Race

Saturday August 12 – Sunday August 13

Alaska Sailing Club, Mile 8.2 South Big Lake Road, Wasilla, AK 99654, USA

The Fireweed Ladies Race is a single-day regatta that occurs in mid-August while the fireweed is in bloom. We try to get five full races completed on Saturday, but if the weather doesn’t cooperate, we will sometimes run makeup races on Sunday.

The Fireweed Regatta is typically a low-key affair, and it’s a favorite of members who enjoy an event with smaller crows than we usually see for the Icebreaker, Firecracker, or Gov Cup. It’s also popular with our “serious” racers who are looking for a final “tune-up” regatta before the Governor’s Cup!

September 2023

Saturday September 2 – Sunday September 3

Governor’s Cup

Saturday September 2 – Sunday September 3

Alaska Sailing Club, Mile 8.2 South Big Lake Road, Wasilla, AK 99654, USA

The Governor’s Cup is the granddaddy of all the ASC regattas. The first “Gov Cup” was held in 1966, and we haven’t missed a year since. This makes the Governor’s Cup one of the longest continuously running sporting events in the State of Alaska. Our long-standing tradition is to hold the race on Labor Day weekend, rain or shine.

This is usually our best-attended regatta of the year. We try hard to have at least seven races in the series, and we may conduct as many nine racesif the weather allows. The victor gets their name engraved on a large and uniquely ugly pass-around trophy that has been in circulation since the first race in ’66. The regatta includes a huge party on Saturday evening, complete with a bonfire and live music.

Saturday September 23

All Day: Northern Lights Regatta
Alaska Sailing Club, Mile 8.2 South Big Lake Road, Wasilla, AK 99654, USA
The Northern Lights Regatta is our final racing event of the season. It’s a one-day-only series held the Saturday before the fall work party and is decidedly low-key. This race was started as a homage to the highly informal “old-skool” racing of the ASC’s past. We usually set a single mark to serve as one end of the starting line and use the end of the “B” dock as the other end. Instead of using marks, we set a course using various islands on Big Lake.

This event has gained popularity in recent years due to the reliable September winds and the interesting challenge of using the landforms on the lake to the best possible advantage. Plus, the shorter days improve the odds of viewing the Northern Lights while hanging by the camp fire after the races!

Sunday September 24

10:00 am – 4:00 pm: Fall Work Party
Alaska Sailing Club, Mile 8.2 South Big Lake Road, Wasilla, AK 99654, USA
The Fall Work Party is the official close-up session for the ASC sailing season. This is a one-day event where all of our members come out to help us do the hard work associated with putting the club to bed for the winter. Typical tasks include cleaning and stocking the clubhouse and sauna, chopping and stacking firewood, winterizing flower beds, pulling in and repairing the docks, pulling the Ensign and the Pontoon Boat, cleaning and de-rigging club boats, and cleaning the grounds.

The fall work party kicks off at 10:00am. When you arrive at the clubhouse you’ll be treated to the famous “Commodore’s Breakfast” where you’ll be fed a pancake breakfast served up by all ASC commodores, past and present. Once you’re fueled up with pancakes and coffee, the work begins. We’re usually finished with all the tasks by 4:00pm.

We need many hands as possible to get all of this work done in a day, and it’s a requirement of ASC membership to attend at least one of our work parties. As with with the spring work party, you don’t need any special equipment orskills to participate … in most cases, justa pair of work gloves and a positive attitude will more than suffice.

October 2023

Thursday October 5

6:00 pm – 7:00 pm: Annual Meeting
The ASC annual meeting is where we conduct voting for club officers and report out on the club’s financial position. This event is conducted by videoconference, and is typically a short, strictly business affair.

Saturday October 7

5:00 pm – 9:00 pm

End-of-Season Party

Forget-Me-Not Nursery, 480 Indian Rd, Indian, AK 99540, USA

The ASC end-of-season party is our annual opportunity to let our collective hair down and celebrate the end of another season with sailing friends. Typical party agenda items include:

Pass out trophies for this year’s regattas.
Eat food at a fabulous ASC potluck.
Hang out with your awesome ASC friends.
Play some music. (So bring instruments!)

December 2023

Saturday December 2

5:00 pm – 9:00 pm: Holiday Party
The ASC holiday party is usually hosted by one of our members, and provides an opportunity for our community to gather in the winter, celebrate the holidays, and start dreaming of the next season of sunshine and sailing!