Landsailing World Championship set for July 2014 in Nevada

Photo credit: Mark Harris

The North American Landsailing Association (NALSA) will host the FISLY-NALSA 14th Landsailing World Championship at Smith Creek Playa (dry lake) near Austin in Northern Nevada July 12-19, 2014. The regatta is expected to draw entrants from at least four continents and 10 to 15 countries. They will be competing in fleet races sailed in at least eight classes. The sailing vehicles are called landsailers in America and land yachts internationally.

NALSA has hosted two previous World Championships (1990 and 2002) in Southern Nevada during the spring months. International entrants requested that the 2014 regatta be held in the summer, so they could bring their children. Smith Creek Playa was selected because its 6,000-foot elevation offers some respite from the high temperatures of the southern deserts. Nearby Austin provides modern amenities with a historic Old West flavor.

NALSA President Dennis Bassano stated, "We are pleased that the regatta has been named a Nevada 150 official event. This is a year-long celebration of Nevada’s 150 years as a state and offers regatta contestants and visitors a great opportunity to explore Nevada’s rich Old West history, including nearby Pony Express stations, working ranches, mines and many other historic sites."

NALSA is the U.S. affiliate of FISLY, the International Federation of Sand and Land Yachting. Read more about landsailing in Nevada in this story from our January/February 2013 issue. Watch a video below.



Video credit: John Eisenlohr & Duncan Harrison