This article also appeared in the Fall 2012 Edition of The Laser Sailor and is now featured here as well.  It was written with help from Kyle Martin.

Sport cameras are a relatively new breed of cameras that are compact, waterproof, durable and can be easily mounted on all kinds of surfaces.  This makes them great for boats and sailing and especially the Laser.  The footage from these cameras is great as a training aid, as a keepsake of your sailing and as a way to share sailing with friends and family – just don’t bore them with 20 minutes of you sailing upwind with nothing happening.  Not only do most of these cameras do video, but they can also be used for time lapse photography either to watch the whole series, or just to pick key photos of maneuvers , scenery or technique.

Disclaimer: While great for training and pleasure sailing, cameras are not legal equipment for racing on a Laser.

There are several different brands of cameras on the market each with their own strengths, weaknesses, price points, features etc.  Kyle and I both use the GoPro Hero2 cameras, but any of these cameras could be mounted in the shots below.

Bow
Pro:
Easy to set and forget, sees a great scene into the boat and all of the activity in the cockpit
Con: Often submerged leaving wet spots on lens, risk of snagging others mainsheet
Tip: Use a tripod mount on the bow eye for the most secure attachment.
How-to Video
GoPro Bow Mount GoPro Bow Mount View
Mast Facing Forward
Tip:
For best results, angle slightly off center to port. This ‘looks’ ahead around a mark or down the line on a start.
Pro:
Shows boats ahead of you
Con:
Boring video if you are in front
How-to:
Go Pro Mast Mount
GoPro Mast Mount GoPro Mast Mount View
Side Mast Facing Aft
Tip: To mount use a roll-cage mount with extra long screws
Pro: Similar scene as the bow, but from a higher elevation.
Con: Only works upwind
GoPro Side Mast Mount GoPro Side Mast Mount View
Masthead
Pro: Wide view shows boats around and position in cockpit
Con: Unsteady in waves, weight aloft
GoPro Masthead Mount GoPro Masthead Mount View
Mid-Mast
Pro: Closer view of cockpit than masthead
Con: Good video one tack, ok video other tack
How-to Video
GoPro Mid-Mast Mount GoPro Mid-Mast Mount View
Side of Boat
Tip: Use a suction mount on the smooth hull surface.
Pro: Interesting angles
Con: more likely to be underwater, greater risk of getting banged against something
GoPro SIde of Boat Mount GoPro Side of Boat Mount View
Chest
Pro: Great shots of hand-over-hand activity in the cockpit, putting the viewer in your seat
Con: easy to obstruct the view with hands or bang camera with tiller extension and hiking out shows all sky
GoPro Chest Mount GoPro Chest Mount View
Head
Pro: Nice point-of-view shots
Con: Scene changes fast as the wearer quickly looks around the boat to sail
GoPro Head Mount GoPro Head Mount View
Boom Facing Starboard
Tip: Wrist mount fits boom perfectly
Pro: Unobstructed rear view downwind
Con: Completely obstructed view on port tack by sail
GoPro Boom Facing Starboard Mount GoPro Boom Facing Starboard Mount View
End of Boom Facing Forward
Tip: Use roll cage mount
Pro: Shows sailor in cockpit and what’s ahead when sailing upwind
GoPro End of Boom Facing Forward Mount GoPro End of Boom Facing Forward Mount View
Stern Facing Forward
Pro: Shows sailor plus what’s ahead
Con: Slight risk of snagging your mainsheet
Pro: Shows sailor in cockpit and what’s ahead when sailing upwind
GoPro Stern Facing Forward Mount GoPro Stern Facing Forward Mount View
Side of Dolly
Pro: Can be used right-side up, or down
GoPro Side of Dolly Mount

Jon Deutsch
Races Lasers, PHRF boats and anything else he can find to race and usually has a video camera running. Check out his YouTube channel.

Kyle Martin
Races Lasers and makes a variety of tips and tricks videos on how to make the most of GoPro Cameras. Check out his tips on his YouTube channel.

Other YouTubers posting Laser footage:
laserinternational, ClaySails, DCSSInstructors, Districttwelvelaser, ericjpetersen1, GRSALaser, jondeusch5, kylemartin101, laserd8, LaserPerformance, LaserTrainingCenter, lightningfleet192, nalsalam, paigesailor, prsalaser, robsuhay, rwbeigel, SailProCameras, sdalin27, syelland100, ussailing2, wjsymes, xdlaser, zorgetbetty, 5FishBoy5, raffak1, GreatDaneLaser, pgihockey13, sailingshack, lasertouring, jonemmettsailing, eshedsailing

Last weekend was the 31st Chesapeake Bay Laser Masters Championship at Fishing Bay Yacht Club.  We had a great fleet of 45 boats come to sail.  I was the event chairman and I also got to be out on the water during racing to take some pictures.  Here are a few of the best:

191980 Richard Biggs, 182374 Doug Keiler
158670 Ron Thompson, 179132 Donald Hahl, 203957 John MacCausland, 199142 Newton Wattis, 188702 Roger Link, 121384 Mike Schmidt, 175592 John Gebhardt
186519 Dorian Haldeman, 179132 Donald Hahl
121384 Mike Schmidt, 171628 Ken Swetka, 92 Gavin O'Hare, 50005 Henry Amthor
191967 Jeffrey Moore, 166892 Jolie Homsher, 175892 Jacob Donkersloot, 175592 John Gebhardt, 170642 Frank Patch Jr, 121384 Mike Schmidt, 166046 Bob Peronne, 50005 Henry Amthor, 166063 Jane Schmidt, 196080 Steven Schmidt, 200528 Lindsay Hewett, 92 Gavin O'Hare, 179132 Donald Hahl, 186519 Dorian Haldeman, 158670 Ron Thompson, 178857 Adam Glass, 188702 Roger Link, 203957 John MacCausland, 196023 Bob Tan, 188182 Anthony Burton, 195478 Michael Moore, 148542 Bill Lawson, 188102 Mike Toms, 180536 Steven Cofer, 171628 Ken Swetka, 189774 Finn Hassing, 199142 Newton Wattis, 191980 Richard Biggs, 151860 Rich Parolski, 272727 Had Brick, 200405 Michael Parramore, 152912 Chuck Lee, 157552 Frank Murphy, 195431 Len Guenther, 174236 Jacques Kerrest
Sunset on Fishing Bay Friday night.

All in all it was a great regatta.  I couldn’t have done it without the help of our race committee and all of the Laser Fleet members who helped out.  And it was nice to have all of the masters sailors I see so often on the regatta circuit come sail with us in Deltaville.

Results | Photos | Video

Friday

Arrived at the Columbia Sailing Club this evening and ready to sail the District 12 Championship tomorrow!

Saturday

We had a great first day of the District 12 Championship at Columbia Sailing Club in Columbia South Carolina.  We sailed 5 races that at some point in each of the races we had 4 knots and 10 knots.  In the lighter winds I did well on the first upwind leg most races and worked hard to hold onto my spot on the downwinds.  I put up a 3-2-8-1-2 and am currently 2 points out of first behind John Potter from Beaufort SC.  Tomorrow will be another light air day and hopefully I can keep up the top 3 finishes to have a shot at the title.

Provisional Results (the winner in race 3 will be RET and everyone moves up one)

Sunday

The forecast for the last day of the Laser District 12 Championship was for light air and as we were sailing out to the race course we had great wind – 10-12 knots.  By our 10am start it had dropped at bit and it continued to go down from there.  Today was a basically a two-boat race.  Unless I put up two DFLs it would have been hard not to get 2nd place.  Once a drop would be factored in, I was effectively 1 point behind John Potter, so it would come down to today’s races as to who won the regatta.

first race start tacked out to the right

In our first race today I had a crummy start – I just about won the boat, but had no boat speed at the start.  John was to leeward of me and was a boat length and a half ahead when I crossed the line.  I took a big duck and headed out right while he sailed to the left.  Wanting to consolidate I came back to the middle having made up some ground, but John tacked on me and forced me back to the right.   On the middle right of the course I had better pressure and got in front of John, but the boats who went left did much better than us putting me around 6th and John several boats behind me by the time we rounded.

Downwind John caught up a few boats and on the 2nd upwind I stuck to the middle of the course while John went to the left.   When we got to the top 3rd of the course a 50-degree righty came in and I laid the mark while John out to the left still had to tack to fetch it.  At the mark there was one boat between us and downwind I worked to  pass one boat on the way to the finish.  With two boats between us that put me 1 point ahead of John.

After the race we sat on the course for half an hour with no prospect of wind and the race committee abandoned racing for the rest of the day and I won the District 12 Championship Regatta.  Not only was John great competition this weekend, but so were sailors such as Rob Bowden who would have beat both John and I had he not been OCS twice.  All in all it was a fun regatta and I got to visit a an awesome club who put on a great and I got meet a lot of new District 12 sailors.

Results | My Photos | VIDEO

All but the last photo courtesy of Joe Reyes

JG, Preston, Chris and I took the RV down to Columbia SC to see East Carolina play South Carolina.  We arrived Friday night and got an awesome tailgate spot with several other ECU RVs very close to the stadium.  Friday night we grilled some steaks, set everything up, and relaxed watching football on TV.  Saturday we tailgated, went to the game, tailgated some more and went out for drinks.  We might not have won the game, but we certainly won the tailgate and had a great time doing it.

Chris, Jon, JG and Preston in front of the stadium at our tailgate spot.

9/8 JG, Jon, Chris, Jen and Preston in our seats at the South Carolina Game

9/8 South Carolina entrance just before the game.

Photos | Video

This June while I was in Sayville for the Laser District 8 Championship I got to go watch a sunset with Ted Cremer.  Ted is doing a photo project where he takes a picture of every sunrise and every sunset this year.  We went out on the water from Sayville Yacht Club and here’s some video of our trip and Ted’s photography this year:

View more of his photos on  his Facebook page or on his website http://tedcremer.com

We had some nice weather and some wind for at least the first half of the Deep Creek Laser Invitational allowing us to get in 4 races on Saturday.  I put up a 3-1-1-2 and finished 1st in the 19-boat Standard fleet. Sunday we went out, spent 25 minutes sailing 2 legs and they abandoned and eventually sent us in without any races having not had any wind all day.

Saturday, we went out at 10:30 in partial fog for our 11am start.  After a brief postponement we got the first race underway.  I had a good start, winning the boat end, but my first two tacks weren’t so good and I found myself 8th at the windward mark.  From there I chipped away at boats and got to 3rd at the finish.

In the 2nd race I had another great start and just picked the shifts up the beat and got a nice lead. Darren Van Hutton and Meredith Hillyer, both on-the-lake sailors, both had great downwind speed and always seemed to catch up to me a bit.  Upwind I seemed to be able to pick the shifts right and would pull back ahead.  As we approached the last downwind mark with just a short beat left to the finish, there was a pontoon boat fishing just 5 feet upwind of the leeward mark.  To make matters worse, he had a line out to the right of the mark and he was reeling in ‘something big’ and was refusing to move.

worst place ever to stop and go fishing

I wound up having to sail 20 feet to the right of the mark to get around his fishing line and just as I was rounding the mark and the boat, I realized he had another line out the other way.  Only this one was in the air for about 40 feet so I couldn’t even attempt to sail over it.  I was really wishing I had a pocket knife with me.  The leader of the Radial fleet who was sailing a shorter course was right next to me with non of his competition in sight, and Meredith was about 10 lengths behind me with the rest of our fleet another 20 lengths behind her.  All 3 of us ended up having to sail about 40-50 feet on starboard on a close reach just to get to where the fishing line hit the water where we could pull our boards up and sneak over it.  Meredith almost caught up to me and I was able to stay about a boat length ahead of her at the finish.

still trying to sail around the fishing line, fishing boat is just behind me.

For the 3rd race, I was going to try to win the boat again, but realized with about a minute and a half left to go that we were likely to get a big lefty at the start.  I made my way down to the pin where I was all alone except for one other boat.  At the gun I was able to tack onto port and built a pretty comfortable lead by the first mark.  By the top mark of the 2nd beat Meredith caught up a bit and rode a nice puff around the mark and downwind on the inside lane putting her just ahead of me.  Eventually that petered out and the wind filled back in from the outside and he angle allowed me to get back just ahead through the finish.

After a lunch break (where I filmed this cool time lapse of the fleet coming in) we went back out for one more race in the afternoon.  At the start it was clear that left was favored so most of the faster boats were starting there.  Right at the gun the wind went left which ended up rafting up 6 of us top of the pin.  We couldn’t tack out because the rest of the fleet was on starboard so we just each took our turn bouncing off the pin, sailing out to the left, doing our turn and heading upwind.  By then we were clear astern of most of the fleet.

tight quarters at the start.

I worked my way up the left and was about 4th at the windward mark.  The lead pack went wide on the downwind leg and sailed into a hole while I headed down the inside with Meredith, Daryl and Margaret Podlich just behind me.  They ended up reeling me in as they rode a puff down and just as Daryl and Margaret were passing me, Daryl death rolled.  Margaret had just enough of an overlap at the mark to take it and I wound up following just behind her the rest of the course to finish 2nd.

With a 3-1-1-2 I was in 1st place in the 19-boat fleet with 2nd place 5 points behind me.  We spent the evening with a nice dinner at the club.

Sunday we were initially postponed on shore and they sent us out once the wind filled in a bit.  After chasing the wind around a few directions they set a course and started us.  I had a pretty abismal start, but picked some shifts up the middle of the course in 2 knots of wind to round the mark in 6th.  As we were at the top mark the wind was in transition and shifting about 100 degrees and a few minutes later the RC abandoned the race.  We sat on the course for 25 minutes waiting for the wind to settle down and the RC sent us in for lunch.  The wind never settled, so they never sent us back out and thus the regatta stood as is.

More pictures, videos and results.