Outdoors in RI: Radio-controlled sailing, wearing orange, FEMA re-releases nuclear planning guide

Photo, top: Local sailors compete during all four seasons in Newport, RI. – Henry DiPietro/Newport Model Sailing Club

Sail Newport, Rhode Island’s Public Sailing Center, has been selected to host a unique national sailing event next year with the remote-controlled DragonFlite95 (DF95) National Championship. The regatta will occur October 16-19, 2025, and will be the first radio-controlled national championship in Newport. 

“The DF95 USA Executive Board is very excited to work with Sail Newport and Executive Director Brad Read for what we are sure will be the top destination radio sailing regatta of 2025. The DF95 USA class has evolved from fierce one-design racing into one of the most competitive and popular radio sailing fleets in the country,” says Chuck LeMahieu (McKinney, TX), member of the DF95 Executive Board and the U.S. DF95 distributor. 

Organized by Sail Newport in association with The Newport Model Sailing Club (NMSC), the 2025 DF95 National Championship will gather 60 of the country’s top one-design radio control sailors. The DF95 Class sets a 60-boat maximum for their Nationals event, each skipper having qualified at various regional events around the U.S. The competition will be fierce as boats race in rotating flights, using the promotion/relegation scoring method. 

“Our rigorous Nationals qualifying process is due to the popularity of the DF95 fleet across all regions of the USA. Newport, Rhode Island, is the heart of sailing in America, and we are proud to have this legendary venue host the most actively sailed radio sailing class in the USA,” LeMahieu adds.Depending on wind direction, the 95cm model boats will race off Sail Newport in Fort Adams State Park close to shore or nearby, providing prime spectating opportunities. 

Every region of the U.S. will be represented by competitors, and organizers will also invite international competitors. The age of sailors ranges from 16 to 90 years old. Sailors to watch at the 2025 nationals include two-time defending DF95 USA National Champion Peter Feldman (Harrison Township, MI), who is fresh off his top-five finish at the International One Metre (IOM) worlds. Peter also recently won the prestigious Jack Brown Trophy, sailing a DF95 at last year’s U.S. Sailing Championship of Champions regatta.

Other top-ranked DF95 skippers will likely include previous DF95 USA National Champions Mark Golison (Long Beach, CA) and Dennis Rogers (San Diego, CA), Steve Landeau (Pooler, GA), Sean Fidler(Brighton, MI), Tony Gonsalves (Hollywood, FL), and Ken Read (Portsmouth, RI), who have finished in the top five of previous DF95 Nationals and IOM USA Nationals.

The DF 95 is the fastest-growing radio-controlled one-design sailboat in the world. Sail Newport is proud to have helped the growth of the class with nearly 100 boats sold in the Newport area since 2020. The NMSC was born out of the 2020 pandemic and quickly grown. On any given weekend in the winter, between ten and 25 avid “thumb sailors” are at Sail Newport competing on Saturday and Sunday mornings. 

“This type of racing is a blast. It keeps you sharp for the other kinds of sailboats you race! I have had the pleasure of going to a few DF95 events, including a national championship, and the competition is unbelievable,” says Brad Read, Sail Newport’s executive director. 

“We look forward to welcoming the DF95 sailors from around the country to Newport and Sail Newport,” Read adds. 

ABOUT THE DRAGONFLITE 95 CLASS

The DragonFlite 95 Class started in 2016, designed by John Tushingham, Buzz Coleman, and Mark Dicks. Manufactured by Joysway Hobby, the boat has quickly become incredibly popular due to its high performance, modern design features, and sailing qualities, combined with a low-cost entry point and wide availability. The American Model Yachting Association and U.S. Sailing both recognize the DF95 Sailing Class. World Sailing governs radio sailing regattas, which race under the Standard Racing Rules of Sailing, like all other sailing sailboat classes.

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Wear your orange – hunting or not

Wearing highly visible, fluorescent orange clothing helps prevent accidents during hunting season. 500 square inches is mandatory for all users of state management areas and undeveloped state parks.

The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) reminds the public that solid, fluorescent orange must be worn in all state management areas and undeveloped state parks during designated hunting seasons. Throughout shotgun deer season, which opened on Dec. 7th, all users of these recreational areas, including hunters, must wear 500 square inches of solid, daylight fluorescent orange clothing, such as an orange vest and hat worn above the waist that’s 20 inches long by 25 inches wide has 500 square inches of surface area. During shotgun deer season, archers and waterfowl hunters are exempt from wearing orange in areas of the state that are limited to archery hunting only and waterfowl hunters hunting only from a boat or blind, over water or field, and when done in conjunction with decoys. For more details, please visit www.dem.ri.gov/orange. 

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FEMA Guide to Planning for a Nuclear Event

Not sure why FEMA chose to re-release the 258 page “Planning Guidance for Response to a Nuclear Detonation” guidebook, which was last updated in 2023, but here it is. Those survivalists among us may find the information on sheltering, etc. interesting for planning. While the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 may have been the official “closest to nuclear war” we have ever been, crazy times in the mid-east and with Russia – and China – leave that open to debate.

Here is the link: https://www.fema.gov/sites/default/files/documents/fema_nuc-detonation-planning-guide.pdf

And here is the full document: