The purpose of the Diamond Lake Sailing School (DLSS) is to teach basic sailing to the youth of Cass County. Sponsored by the Diamond Lake Yacht Club, which has a history of encouraging youth sailing since 1938, the school will encourage our youth to take up and enjoy the sport of sailing being racing or cruising in their favorite style sailboat.
The school operates from mid-June to the first of August with classes running from Monday to Thursday with Friday held for weather make-up dates. The classes are three (3) hours in length starting at 9:00 am and 1:00 pm with morning classes usually reserved for our younger students due to the lighter winds. Instruction starts with a dry land class where the students familiarize themselves with the sailboat they will be using including how to properly rig the boat. Students’ progress very rapidly to on-the-water sailing. Classes are usually limited to 10 students with three (3) instructors per class. The emphasis will be on learning the basics of sailing while having fun with likeminded fellow students.
The sailing School operates from the front of the Diamond Lake Yacht Club at 21268 Shore Acres in Cassopolis, MI. The site includes, two (2) long docks, facilities, parking and a 100-foot-wide waterfront access to Diamond Lake.
Our fleet consists of nine (9) Opti’s, seven (7) Sunfish, three (3) 420s and a Butterfly. The primary boats used are the Opti’s, the most widely used single crewed instructional sailboat in the world and the 420 which is doubled crewed and used extensively for high school and college sailing.