. By KARL BEGRICH “I must go down to the lake again, to the lonely lake and the sky, and all lask isa small ship and a transmitter to steer herby.” Actually, it’s only on ‘Sundays when Steve Kellas takes his sleek sails are radio controlled for downwind. . or... -windward work. The Skipper has a transmitter which sends a ‘signal to the receiver in the boat. The receiver activates servos which perform the functions. -— The set of sails is con- trolied by a winch operated by a servo. The winch will -pull_in_the—sail -so_that the Lake near - 12th and Nanaimo and meets _ with his fellow Club members for some serious competition. I had never heard of the Vancouver Model _ Yacht Club, and I still wouldn't know-anything about it, but my sailor eyes caught a white triangle to starboard, when I drove along 12th Avenue. _ Whenever I see-a sail, I take a second look, and this rating rule class shows -yyachts..from. four to--seven feet. The East Coast 12 metre is a scale model of a 12 metre. as used in the ’ “América’s Cup Races. All boats must be the same in the race, of course, but ‘protests are allowed and the action on the lake gets quite blood thirsty at times. boat can go to windward or. let the sails out to sail off the * ~ The tension builds up with the 1/4 _minute__starting _ wind. Naturally, some boats have extra functions.of trim’ and — believe it or not — Yacht models in England ‘race down wind with spinnakers (without a boom) and when it is time to change course, it is pulled into a Shoot on the foredeck. The Yachts are generally home made. The hulls are fibreglass with wooden decks. The fin keel is wood or aluminium with a lead bulb at the bottom. countdown (according to international rules). -The boats are raced in ‘heats’ to prevent frequency conflicts, up to 12 boats per heat. It’s not uncommon to ‘run ten races in a day. A Model Yacht Skipper has_ the disadvantage to a skipper of a ‘life-size’ yacht that he cannot get rid of his frustration by yelling at his crew. All he can do is smash the transmitter or throw it into the lake. — time I stopped for over an hour and got a different type of sailing education. Steve explained to me that tthe Club was formed in 1975 and they started off with 12 members — which has grown now to 40 members. But back in 1930 Lost Lagoon in Stanley Park was the meeting place of a V.M.Y.C. But in those days each model had a windvane on its stern and could only stay on the same tack right across the lake. But due to our space/age technology the Model Sailor races his yacht with the fingertips. Rudder and set of Steve's Yacht, which is ten years old, has a traditional wooden mast, but —-like the big brothers — Model Yacht racing becomes faster ‘every year. The masts are made out of aluminium tubing. The strong, heavy webs in the hull are replaced by extra layers of fibreglass and the canvas area is increased. The Club has six different sail classes. One class is 36/600 — it means, the yacht is 36” long and has a sail area of 600 sq. inches. Another class is 50/800, or EC 12 meter. The latter is 59” long and boasts 1200 sq. inches of sail. The 10 R But his: yacht cost only $500, — instead of $50,000, —- and in case it sinks, he can always jump into the lake and save it from ‘drowning’! If you want to know more about these highly technical machines, take a walk this afternoon to Trout Lake, or if you happen to be in the Richmond area, you might find them at the pond next to the Planatorium at Minoru Park. The VMYC is affiliated with the Canadian Model Yachting Association as well as the American Model Yachting Association; that A QUICK CHECK of the vessel before launching and working the controls-by radio. oe The sailing by radio control has been growing over the past number of years. means these guys are no amateurs. . It’s a worldwide recognized sport with regattas on an international level, In case you don’t find fun with your present boat, do it with a model! Fact and fancy from the outdoors __. Many of the falsehoods about nature arose through ignorance, say the outdoor recreation staff at Mercury outboards, who point out that it is easy to blame natural occurrences when better explanations are not - available. a An example of this is the notion that toads cause whiter ag