Richmond Sailor in Thai RC Regatta

Gary Boell of Richmond Yacht Club was chosen to represent the 36 International One Meter radio-controlled model-boat sailors from around the world in presenting a bouquet of flowers to the elderly King of Thailand, via camera, in his hospital. "Gary was invited with the other top IOM sailors from around the world to participate in the King Regatta 2015," writes Gary’s wife Megan, "to commemorate the king’s 88th birthday and to honor His Majesty’s talent in winning the gold medal in yachting at the SEAP Games in 1967." The king sailed an OK Dinghy to victory at the fourth South East Asian Peninsular Games in Bangkok.

Thailand’s Department of Sport and Tourism sponsored the 36 sailors (and their partners) for nine days in Thailand, which included a two-day regatta in the Royal Park near Bangkok, four full days of sightseeing in and around Bangkok, and a two-day ocean regatta for Optis, OK Dinghies, and the IOMs on the Gulf of Thailand in Pattaya. For more information and photos, go to the Thai RC Sailboat Club on Facebook.

You may recall that Gary Boell used to race a big boat, the 1D35 Diablita, with which he won the 1D35 class in the 2008 and 2009 Rolex Big Boat Series. "We sold our Diablita in 2009," said Gary, "however I’m still sailing my dinghy, a MegaByte. Of the 20-some-odd American Model Yachting One Design Classes, I am active in more than half of them — so I don’t have many weekends without some type of regatta or event travel associated with racing. The one huge advantage to radio sailing is the limited crew lunch expenditure!"