About Us

The Harper Lake Model Yacht Club (HLMYC) is a Denver area club whose members build and race model yachts. The club is sanctioned by the American Model Yachting Association (AMYA) as club #56. We meet to race our boats every Saturday from 10:00am - 1:00pm, lake and weather conditions permitting, at Harper Lake in Louisville, Colorado.

To join the club, please visit our Membership Info page.

Our racing season runs from the first Saturday in April to the third Saturday in November, but we continue sailing for fun and practice December through March as long as the lake is not covered in ice and there is not enough snow on the banks to make for hazardous footing.

We sail three standard One Design Class club boats: the Thunder Tiger Victoria, the ODOM, a slightly larger higher performance class boat, and the DragonForce 65 that was added to the fleet in 2018. These boats rely completely on the wind for their propulsion and have only two small servo actuators on board - one to control the position of the sails, and another to control the rudder. The models are operated from shore using radio-control (R/C) transmitters. Visit our Boats page for pictures and more information about these boats.

The principles involved in sailing these models are exactly the same as for full sized yachts. If you've sailed before, you'll find that the models handle amazingly true to life. If you don't know how to sail, the skills come quickly and easily, and it's great fun.  Our members are encouraged to review the HLMYC Sailing instructions which cover some of the rules and procedures we use in our regattas.

For more information, check out our club flyer (PDF Word).

Take a few minutes to explore our site and learn more about model sailing and the Harper Lake Model Yacht Club!

News

February, 2026 - February Meeting and Workshop

This is a reminder that Saturday the 14th of February will be our first get together of 2026. A business meeting will be followed by Doug McKnight's presentation and discussion of the Racing Rules of Sailing.

This year we have a new meeting location. We will be at the City of Louisville Colorado Public Library,  921 Spruce St. Louisville, CO 80027 [map], in the first floor meeting room. The building opens it's doors at 10:00am and we will begin our meeting shortly thereafter. There is parking available adjacent to the building and immediately across the street to the east.

Next month's meeting, on the 7th of March, will be at the same time and location.

We still have some unclaimed trophies and participation plates from the 2025 season that can be picked up. And, if anyone still has unpaid dues for this current year, those would be welcomed as well. 

Old News

News from previous years can be found here: 2025 2024 2023