San Diego Argonauts Radio

Traveling with everything you need to competitively sail your boat is not simple. This episode covers how to build a travel kit that gets your IOM or DF95 to the regatta ready to race.
But first, we'll start with a recap of the US One Meter event in Sacramento. Then we go through the full kit, one piece at a time: hard cases, a board bag for the rig box, how to keep the bulb from moving, the handy kitchen tool recommended for cutting foam, and the spare parts you hope you don't need but should keep with you, just in case.

For more San Diego Argonauts events, opportunities, and fun — check out our website!

Check out this week's pond-cast episode from the shores of the Mission Bay Model Boat Pond during September's Soling 50 Championships. We'll hear from many Argonaut members and catch some live action sailing commentary. Big thanks to everyone who came out to the event and volunteered. We say it a lot, but we wouldn't be able to run things half as smoothly without the donated time of fellow sailors. We appreciate you! We'll talk a little about PRO duties, new members, and as always, go over our points racing results.

Also, stay tuned to the end of the episode to hear about a special guest at the pond who really enjoyed getting a transmitter in her hands!

For more San Diego Argonauts events, opportunities, and fun — check out our website!

Join me for a practical walkthrough of RC sailboat maintenance across the DF-95, Odom, Soling, and IOM classes. We’ll talk all things chafe, corrosion, seized blocks and rudders, keel care, the importance of cleaning your goosenecks, and the routines that will help you make every race start. We also get into the products that help with routine maintenance most. Plus, we’ll do a quick recap of the August Mission Bay points races for the San Diego Argonauts!

For more San Diego Argonauts events, opportunities, and fun — check out our website!

This week, we sit down with longtime IOM legend and fleet promoter Steve Landeau to discuss how our radio sailing fleets are built and sustained. He talks about the importance of keeping an extra boat nearby to let people try them out, his move from the West Coast IOM scene to East Coast fleets, his work sourcing hard-to-get masts and parts, and which designs he recommends to newcomers. And as always, we'll wrap up with some results! This time from the Region 8 Traveler Weekend at Mason Park: 17 boats out for Saturday's fleet racing, followed by a fast-paced five-team team racing challenge.

For more San Diego Argonauts events, opportunities, and fun — check out our website!

The San Diego Argonauts Open House was a blast, with every division out in force, kids soldering at the maker tables, boats of all kinds on the pond, and hot dogs and pizza gone in a flash. All signs of a great event!

And then this week, I'm joined by Bruce Anderson, U.S. Marblehead class secretary and IRSA chairman. And we talk about radio sailing's Formula One class, Marbleheads! We'll dive into the boats 1930s origins, the Scalpel design, and today's comeback behind the Grunge and Red Ant. Plus July points results from Mission Bay Pond!

For more San Diego Argonauts events, opportunities, and fun — check out our website!

Let's sit down with Kerim Baran and Jeff Sparksworthy, the driving forces behind the San Diego Argonauts' new community outreach program: a hands-on STEM initiative connecting high school students with the world of radio-controlled hobbies, especially sailing here in San Diego. Our pond actually has a history of being connected to the local high school so it's exciting to hear about the continuation of that partnership.
From setting up soldering stations and metalworking tables to actually sailing RC boats on the pond, Kerim and Jeff take us through their first High School Maritime and Robotics Workshop, as well as share their vision for the upcoming RoboBuoy Challenge, where student teams will design and build radio-controlled (and eventually GPS-autonomous) buoys!

We'll get into details for the upcoming open house on August 1st, the Marblehead Nationals in Foster City, and Len Bose stops by the show with the latest on the DF-95 Travelers Trophy fleet and team racing on August 8th & 9th.

For more San Diego Argonauts events, opportunities, and fun — check out our website!

This week is a special episode where we're joined by 27-time radio sailing national champion, Craig Mackey. He'll take us through his top sailing ponds around the world (hint: one is right here in California and one is across the pond!). He also shares his origin story with the sport and how a borrowed Victoria led to four national championships in four weeks. We also discuss the purpose of practice when it comes to doing your turns, Craig's advice to new skippers, the importance of knowing the rule book inside and out, and of course, we have a little fun quizzing him on a recent pond protest.

Also, we'll review June race results for the San Diego Argonauts, hear from friend of the podcast Dan Shier about what's happening in Region 6, and share a little info on the upcoming Travelers Series registration.

For more San Diego Argonauts events, opportunities, and fun — check out our website!

We're back from the California IOM State Championship in Foster City, and it's clear that their pond is one of the premier radio sailing venues in the country. In this episode, we chat pond-side during the event with four competitors about racing, boat tuning tips, and what makes this regatta special. Also, all five San Diego Argonauts who headed up for the Championship finished in the top 10... How about that!

We'll end with a call-in from friend of the show Bill Bridge with results from the NAMBA District 19 Heat Race Series in San Diego, which drew an impressive 137 boats across 11 classes.

For more San Diego Argonauts events, opportunities, and fun — check out our website!

From spot checks and long courses to lay day priorities — this week, we're talking all things 2026 IOM World Championships!

Today we're celebrating our 10th episode of San Diego Argonauts Radio with a very special first-hand reflection of the 2026 IOM Worlds — times three! We hear from three American sailors who competed across the pond, in Datchet, England, last month. Brian Shores, a remarkable newcomer who finished 9th with only three IOM regattas under his belt, describes the challenging reservoir venue near Windsor Castle with its unpredictable weather and long course. He also details a tense protest over a one-millimeter sail measurement and praises the competitive level of the event. We'll also connect with Peter Feldman, who improved on his 2024 fifth-place finish to claim fourth this time around. Peter details the 12-day commitment of traveling for the Worlds and the strategy of rig-change decisions (including a pivotal Race 16 gamble that paid off). Lastly, we'll hear from Gary Boell, a veteran of over a decade of international IOM events, who offers a comprehensive take on the Championship. Gary tells us about the proud moment of seeing four American boats in the final A-fleet race and the differences between this year's event and the lavishly produced 2024 Worlds in Gladstone, Australia.

We'll also kick things over to a friend of the podcast, AMYA Vice President Dan Shier, to update us on Region 6's recent regatta results and how one of our own San Diego Argonauts performed sailing with the group in the Pacific Northwest.

And as always, we'll recap our Region 8 race results and standings, and share our important updates for the club.

For more San Diego Argonauts events, opportunities, and fun — check out our website!

This week's episode is a fun, info-packed episode featuring an interview with Bill Bridge, Vice Commodore of the Power Division (or as I call them, the "Thunderboats"). Bill shares the history of RC powerboat racing, the shift from nitro to gas engines, engine cooling systems for these boats that can move upwards of 65 MPH, and he gives us all the details on the upcoming District 19 Heat Race happening on June 12-14, where more than 100 boats are expected to descend upon San Diego, making what Bill calls an "Organized Circus" of an event. Plus, AMYA President Len Bowes drops in with a preview of the next issue of Model Yachting Magazine and updates on DF95 team racing. Then we'll wrap it up with a look at a busy June schedule, from Solings and IOMs to the Scale Tug-of-War. See you at the pond for all these great events and more!

For more San Diego Argonauts events, opportunities, and fun — check out our website!