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Great Lakes Region

Regional Vice President
Craig Koschalk
thistle3994 at yahoo.com

Major events:

  • Great Lakes Championship (rotates location)
  • District Championship for each district (rotates location, sometimes combined)
  • Lake Erie Fall Series (approximately 8 regattas through the fall)

Districts in the Region: 

  • Lake Erie (Central and Northern Ohio, Western Pennsylvania)
  • Lake Michigan (Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Wisconsin)
  • Michiana (Indiana, Western Kentucky, Michigan, Southwest Ohio)

Need information from a district governor?

You’ll find contact info on the Class Officers page.

View Class Officers

Unique to this region: 

  • Open water sailing on the Great Lakes and “pond” sailing on inland lakes
  • Many camping regattas
  • A Lake Erie Fall Series regatta hosted out of someone’s backyard with a tractor to launch boats (Chautauqua)
  • When Thistle Nationals are hosted in the Great Lakes region, we regularly have 100+ boats attend

Upcoming Regional Events

April 2026
June 2026
No event found!
Want to start a fleet in this region?  If you have three or more Thistles in your area, you’re in luck!  Here are the basic steps to starting a Thistle fleet:
  1. Get your 3(+) boats measured, registered and dues-paid. Each boat must have a distinct owner, and that owner must be a member of the TCA.
  2. Make sure there’s not already a fleet in your area. 
  3. Contact the regional vice president to talk through the details (such as what district you’ll be in) and get help where needed.
  4. Decide who will be the fleet secretary.
  5. Contact the TCA National Secretary to request a new fleet charter!

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