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September 1, 2005
LABOR DAY REGATTA………is this weekend. Look for back-to-back races on Saturday for all fleets.
YEAR END PARTY AND BANQUET……is this Saturday, September 3 at the Yacht Club. Pre-party get together starts at 5:00 p.m. and dinner is served at 6:00, with awards being presented right afterward. Cost is $5 for adults and $3 for kids, payable at the door.
I made a mistake last week (I know….I know…it’s hard to believe) when I wrote that the part was on Sunday. It is not on Sunday….it is on Saturday.
CLASSIFIEDS…….
Kotz’s have decided to sell their 1995 Johnson X Boat now that Nathan is becoming an old man. The boat is a Blue Chip qualifier and it comes with sets of 2003 and 2005 North Sails as well as a 2003 “Yacht Club” trailer. $4700 can buy you all of this…and if you want to see the boat live you can stop by 1219 North Shore Drive thru September 10th….or call 357-2618 or 357-4605 or email rkotz@netconx.net.
There’s really not much more to talk about……so
Later, Oz
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I hate to say it, but it’s getting that time of the season. Time to think about wrapping it up.
THANKS TO HANSONS…….for having the Yacht Club masses over last Saturday night. The Social Committee ordered up good weather and a great time was had by all.
YEAR END PARTY AND BANQUET…..is coming. On your calendar, mark Saturday, September 3, at the Yacht Club. Beverages and idle chit-chat start at 5:00 p.m. The catered dinner will actually be served at 6:00 with awards presentations right afterwards. Cost will be $5 for adults and $3 for kids….pay at the door.
THE ANNUAL BLOOPER AWARD…….is, and has been for the past couple years, a big part of the Year End Banquet. It is time now to put on your memory caps in an effort to recall the pitfalls, pratfalls and generally dumb things that you or your Yacht Club peers may have done in the last 12 months. If it’s dumb enough, the party responsible for it just might take home the Blooper. Stu Oltrogge is waiting to hear your nominations, so contact him at 641-357-8957 or at oltrogge@clyciowa.com.
IF YOU THINK YOU MIGHT BE GETTING A TROPHY AND YOU WANT YOUR CREW’S NAME(S) ON IT……..you need to let Jeff Nicholas know by this Sunday, August 28. Email him at jnichls@netins.net with the names you would like to include.
SPEAKING OF TROPHIES……..if you still owe Interlakes dues, any trophies you might otherwise receive at the Banquet will magically disappear until you cough up the dough. So send them in to Dave Miller at P.O. Box 29, Clear Lake, IA 50428.
CLASSIFIEDS……Margaret Oz has finally decided she can part with our Optimist dinghy. It’s a 1990 red Johnson with newer sails. The daggerboard, rudder and tiller have been updated…and for $800 it can be yours. So call 641-357-5513 or email inremoz@aol.com or brad.osmundson@opuscorp.com if you have any interest.
Later,Oz
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August 18, 2005
From a sailing perspective, this past weekend struck me as Interlakes Regatta revisited……the weather was really nice, but the winds were really weird. The weekend also seemed like July 4th revisited…….at least for us pyros who partook of the fireworks exploding all week long at the fairgrounds.
CLYC PARTY THIS WEEKEND……at John and Carolyn Hanson’s on Dodges Point. Saturday, August 20 starting around 6:00 p.m. Board Members, Cs and Hobies are in charge of food and beverage hosting.
REMEMBER TO PAY YOUR INTERLAKES FEES TO THE CLYC………Send a check to Dave Miller, our esteemed Secretary-Treasurer, at PO Box 29, Clear Lake, IA 50428. By sending your check to Dave, you instantly bring yourself back into his good graces……and make yourself eligible to receive at the Year End Banquet any hardware you may be entitled to for this club racing season. The amounts are: E’s - $100 C’s - $80 MC’s - $70 X’s - $60
IT’S ALSO TIME TO START RUMMAGING AROUND FOR CLYC TRAVELING TROPHIES……so you can return them to Jeff Nicholas……so he can hand them out to this season’s deserving recipients at the Year End Banquet.
BIG INLANDS REPORT……I haven’t heard much about what has been happening at Lake Okoboji this week, except that the C Boats only got in 2 races in 3 days and therefore didn’t have a certified regatta or a formal Inlands champion. I did hear that Bill Nicholas was one of the leaders in a very light wind race that got called off because the time limit had expired, with the lead boat a couple hundred yards from the finish line. So, the racing during the first half of the week was, in a word, frustrating………let’s hope that’s not happening during the last half of the week when the MCs are racing.
I ASSUME VOLUNTEERS ARE STILL NEEDED FOR HOBIE 18 AND 20 NATIONALS…in September. The racing is actually Sept. 12-16 and put-in runs for a few days prior to that. Nobody is being asked to work all day every day, but if you can help here and there, please let Todd Wilson know at 641-691-0203 or at todd@hollingsworthmfg.com.
No Thursday night races tonight…..all those in charge are sailing at Inlands at Okoboji.
Later, Oz
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August
11, 2005
Only 4 weekends of the CLYC racing season are left, so start preparing yourself……
INTERLAKES REGATTA IS OVER……..The weather was great. The White Bear Lake winds were shifty, as usual. And the Clear Lake X, MC and C teams all placed 2nd in their respective fleets. Notable individual performances: Tom Birdsall pulling off 3rd place overall in the 28 boat C Fleet, Stu Oltrogge and Mike Risewick getting 5th and 6th overall in the 38 boat MC Fleet, and Nathan Kotz and Jon Osmundson finishing 5th and 6th overall in the 29 boat X Fleet. I thought the X and C fleets did particularly well, given that neither of those fleets are sailing a huge number of boats during our local races…..obviously it’s quality, not quantity that counts !!
SPEAKING OF QUALITY VS. QUANTITY…….Even though the size of our X Boat Fleet is not great (last I checked there were 6 boats registered), the competition is clearly very strong. 2 members of the fleet, Jon Osmundson and Nathan Kotz are traveling to Cedar Lake, Wisconsin this weekend to participate in the X Blue Chip Regatta. They were invited to attend based on their performances in the X Inlands a couple of weeks ago……so wish them luck.
THE LAST BIG ILYA REGATTA OF THE YEAR……..the Big Inlands will be happening all of next week at Lake Okoboji. C Boats race the first part of the week and E’s and MC’s race the latter part of the week.
HEADS UP FOR THE NEXT CLYC PARTY……Saturday, August 20th at John and Carolyn Hanson’s on Dodges Point. Board Members, C’s and Hobies have beverage and food honors.
THE ANNUAL ASSOC. FOR THE PRESERVATION OF CLEAR LAKE PICNIC….is this Friday, Aug. 12th at 6:00 p.m. at State Park. A registration form is attached, but you can also sign up “at the door”. This is a great opportunity to meet the people who set the policies in an effort to make good things happen to the lake, environmentally speaking….and it’s a good way to hear what progress they have made. So, if you’re interested in preserving Clear Lake (DUH!!!), show up. Click here for the form
REMEMBER…..there’s still Thurs. night sailing…..and it just happens to be Thursday today.
SEE YOU AT THE PYRO SHOW………
Later, Oz
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July 27,
2005
Not a bad weekend, if you enjoy living in equatorial Africa….or maybe Brazil. But the breezes helped, and we got all the races in for the Jack MacNider Memorial Regatta.
MACNIDER REGATTA RESULTS……I kind of forgot last weekend was a regatta weekend, so I didn’t give a heads up in last week’s newsletter, but most of you had figured it out anyway. The winds were a little tricky, and they rose pretty dramatically between the Saturday afternoon races……..congratulations to of those of you who managed to work through it:
E C MC
1. Z-6 Lori Zachar
1. Z-2 Tom Birdsall 1. 2178 Mark Tesar
2. Z-15 Charlie MacNider 2. Z-3 Bill Nicholas 2. 2284
Mike Risewick
3. Z-11 Dan Allen 3. Z-1 Mark Tesar
3. 2257 Eric Protzman
4. Z-22 Jenny Child 4. Z-77 JC Risewick 4. 1764
Randy Kotz
5. Z-24 Bob Swanson
5. 2079 Steve Taylor
X Hobie
1. Z-21 Nathan Kotz 1.
105343
2. Z-84 Jon Oz 2. 521
3. Z-6 Nick Zachar
4. Z-77 Drake Lundeen
5. Z-23 Emily Oltrogge
NO TEARS WEST OPTIMIST REGATTA……..was held here at Clear Lake at State Park Beach on Monday. About 20 local Opti sailors tried their hands at racing in what turned out to be high winds and threatening weather. But the crack judging crew of Craig Caslavka, Mark Tesar and John Lundberg managed to run 2 races. There were a few swamped boats and lost rudders but Kristin MacNider and our sailing school instructors did a fine job of making sure that the kids kept smiling and had a great time. It all ended up with super trophies and T-Shirts for the participants. Nancy Lundeen put it all together with the help of volunteers and she and her helpers are to be commended for their efforts. The spectator and rescue boats did everything that could be expected of them. Even the local media arrived in force….there were spots on TV and in at least one newspaper. Oh, and by the way, there were some winners:
Junior Fleet Senior Fleet
1. Courtney and Cody
Anderson 1. Drake Lundeen
2. Beckett and Deckard Finley 2. Anne Tesar
3. Jacob Wessels 3. Grace Moore
Actually everyone involved was a winner in this regatta designed for those just starting out. Congrats to all who helped and who participated.
THANKS TO ALL WHO MADE LAST WEEK’S SAILING SCHOOL POTLUCK ANOTHER SUCCESS………Margaret Oz reports that it was the biggest group she had seen for one of these events; and it was also the hottest. Mark Ebeling didn’t really have to fire up the grills because the burgers, hot dogs and chicken started cooking as soon as they left the packages.
X INLANDS IS THIS WEEKEND…….at Lake Pewaukee in Wisconsin. Clear Lake is being represented by 3 of its X Boaters, Emily Oltrogge in the Junior Fleet, and Jon Oz and Nathan Kotz in the Senior Fleet. Good luck you guys.
Later, Oz
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Report of the “No Tears West” Opti Regatta July 25, 2005 (by Denni Sue Erickson)
The Clear Lake Yacht Club, Clear Lake, IA, hosted the 2005 NoTears West Optimist Regatta at the State Beach location. The weather definitely defined the day, starting with “weather clouds” circling the lake early in the morning, clearing for a beautiful day, and filling back in to close out the regatta.
Two races were held, with winds starting at 6 MPH and ending around 15 MPH. Race Officer Craig Caslavka made sure the kids had good race courses and true sailing encouraged for the 18 + boats registered. Like the big racing scows, the Opti’s had some swamped boats, lost rudders and lots of fun.
Nancy Lundeen, chairman of the regatta, was pleased with the Clear Lake Yacht Club’s instructors, helping the young sailors and yet letting them handle their dilemma’s with the upsets and boat problems and having a positive First Regatta experience. Kristen Ebeling, Program Director of the Sailing school said she enjoyed seeing her instructors and sailing school students reacting together, learning but still giggling and having a great time.
During lunch, young sailors played Frisbee and football, a great day for everyone. T-shirts will be a wonderful reminder of the day.
The day ended with Trophy presentation. Results:
Jr. Fleet
1) Courtney and Cody Anderson CLYC
2) Beckett and Deckard Finley CLYC
3) Jacob Wessels CLYC
Sr. Fleet
1) Drake Lundeen CLYC
2) Anne Tesar CLYC
3) Grace Moore CLYC
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July 21,
2005
Another nice weekend for YC events. Thanks to MacNiders for hosting another fine party….and for ordering up the nice evening weather and the 8 or 9 hot air balloons that journeyed across the lake in the midst of the whole affair.
AS REPORTED IN LAST WEEK’S CROW’S NEST, THE SAILING SCHOOL POTLUCK IS TOMORROW NIGHT…….Friday, July 22nd from 6:00-8:00 p.m. at the Yacht Club. All adult and younger sailing students are invited, together with alumni, family, friends and any sailing school wannabees you might know. Grills will be provided. Bring your own silverware, drinks, and whatever you want to grill and eat…….also please bring a dish you can share with the group. If the weather cooperates there might even be some grudge match races out in front of City Beach.
INTERLAKES REGATTA IS NEARLY UPON US……..Fleet captains need to report to Dave Miller who your fleet’s team members and alternates are, plus which non-team members will be attending the regatta. And you need to do so by this weekend. Those sailors who plan to attend need to pay their fees directly to the CLYC…..and they go something like this: Es=$100 Cs=$80 MCs=$70 Xs=$60. Mail them to CLYC, PO Box 29, Clear Lake, Iowa 50428, Attn: Dave Miller.
A Notice of Race is attached with some of the details regarding the regatta, and you can also check out the White Bear Yacht Club link on our website for even more info.
HOBIE 20 & 18 NATIONALS ARE COMING IN SEPTEMBER………It’s going to be a big event, and our Hobie Fleet is looking for volunteers to help out. Races will be held Monday thru Friday, Sept. 12-16. Weigh-in is Friday thru Sunday, Sept. 9-12, but only for a few hours each of those days. We need folks who would like to help out with the Race Committee, with Boat Weigh-In, with Registration, and with Odd Jobs. You don’t have to volunteer for the entire week…..just those times when you can. By the way, the Head PRO will be Means Davis, a certified PRO, so this would be a great opportunity for some of us to get some training toward national certification as a PRO or Judge.
If you have any questions or would like to help out, you can contact Todd Wilson at 641-691-0203 or at todd@hollingsworthmfg.com.
DNR DOCK REGULATION UPDATE………Apparently all of the input from you lake dock owners and users (especially those from Clear Lake and Spirit Lake) convinced the DNR that they need to do some rethinking of the proposed dock rules. So, for now, those proposed rules have been shelved. I’m sure we will be hearing about them again, but we appear to have at least a year of grace.
A SAFETY REMINDER……….The Racing Officers want to remind all of you sailors to have lifejackets for each and every person on board your boat. Apparently, a singlehanded boat swamped last weekend and, to make matters worse, the sailor didn’t have a lifejacket on board. Don’t follow his example. Always have your lifejacket handy, because you never know when you might fall out, tip over, or get banged on the noggin.
Later, Oz
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I believe summer arrived this past weekend. There was no better place to be than at the lake. It was hot, but the breezes were just right for cooling off the furnace and for quite a bit of nice sailing. Everyone got all their races in. The Es and MCs got their fleet parties in. [Editor’s Note:…..and I birdied a hole at Rice Lake and won a race going away all on the same day….oh yeah, I stayed at a Holiday Inn Express the night before………it just doesn’t get any better than this]
AND THE PARTIES JUST KEEP COMING………
NEXT YACHT CLUB PARTY…….is this Saturday, July 16th at Charlie and Kathy MacNiders on North Shore Drive. You can start arriving at 6:00 p.m. or so, which will probably be right after the MacNiders have finished their early afternoon party (……just kidding……I think). The A, E, Cougar and MC fleets have beverage and hors d’oeuvres honors.
NOT TO BE OUTDONE, THE X FLEET PARTY……is the next day, Sunday, July 17th at Randy and Diane Kotz’s home, 1219 North Shore Drive. X Boaters, be sure to bring your crew(s) and come and enjoy some good food and entertainment.
AND, FINALLY, THE SAILING SCHOOL POTLUCK…..will happen on Friday, July 22nd, so you’ll have an entire work week to rest up for it. Details will be in next week’s newsletter.
FOR THOSE OF YOU GOING TO THE INTERLAKES REGATTA WHO ARE STILL ROOMLESS……..we have secured a block of rooms at the Best Western White Bear Country Inn. If you need a room, call them and say you want one of the Clear Lake Yacht Club rooms. I don’t know the phone number of the Inn right off the top of my head, but I know you can find it if you go to the White Bear Yacht Club link on the CLYC website. Plus that link has all the other regatta details you might need to know.
THE OPTIMIST NO TEARS REGATTA…..is at the end of this month here at Clear Lake, and is still in need of Optimists for several of our young Clear Lake sailors. If you have one available, don’t be bashful, even if it needs some minor tune-up and repair. Please call the Yacht Club at 357-8001 and leave a message that you would like to help out.
IF YOU (OR SOMEONE YOU KNOW) WOULD LIKE (OR NEED) PRIVATE SAILING LESSONS…..the Sailing School has what you need. Call Kristin Ebeling at the Yacht Club number (357-8001….if you forgot it since the last paragraph) and she will help you get it scheduled.
Later, Oz
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July 7, 2005
Another July 4th has come and gone. Lots of parties, a few laps around the carnie, and some magnificent fireworks on Monday night. Oh, and don’t forget the Parade Without Semis….but with a CLYC float. Thanks to the Cayot family for handling all the float logistics and for obtaining the cool CLYC wristbands (all 800 of them) that the kids handed out to the crowd. And we even sandwiched in some sailing this year…..lots of races on Saturday in an ever-building breeze. Sunday dawned stormy and windy, and by the time it all settled down it was too late to start races.
THE DNR DOCK RULES PUBLIC MEETING IS TONIGHT……July 7, 6:00 p.m. in the Community Room at Clear Lake City Hall. You can voice your opinion about the proposed rules and you can submit written comments. Hopefully you went to the DNR website as described in last week’s newsletter and read the 23 pages of rules. Here (with Mark Tesar’s help) is a quick summary of the private dock rules (public and commercial dock owners will have to do their own reading……the private dock rules were bad enough to slog through).
First, a summary of the current
rules:
(1) We
have 2 kinds of private docks. Docks that require a permit and docks that don’t
require a permit.
(2)
Docks that are more than 100 feet in length require a permit.
(3)
Permit docks must display the dock permit number at the end of the dock.
(4)
Non-permit docks must display the owner’s name at the end of the dock.
(5)
Docks and hoists may extend to the property line, but may not cross it.
(6) A
permit is $25/year, with a duration of 1 to 5 years.
Now, the proposed changes:
(1) We
have 2 kinds of private docks. Docks that require a permit and docks that don’t
require a permit.
(2) A
dock shared between two adjacent property owners is called a “common” dock, and
some of the rules vary for these.
(3)
For Clear Lake only, docks may reach 150 feet in length if you need that in
order to get the last 50 feet in 3 feet of water.
Anything longer will require you to get a permit. For all other lakes, max.
length is still 100 feet.
(4)
Docks that have more than 3 hoists will require a permit. For “common” docks,
this is 6 hoists.
(5)
Docks that have more than 1200 square feet of dock and hoists will need a
permit. For “common” docks, the area is 1800 square feet.
(6)
Docks and hoists are to be set back 25 feet from property lines and 50 feet from
nearest docks. If these setbacks are impossible because your lot is too narrow,
it’s OK to go to 5 feet from the property lines. But any closer and you will
need a permit.
(7)
All docks must display the 911 address at the end of the dock. Permit docks
must also display the permit number at the end of the dock.
(8) If
your dock or hoist is less than 5 feet from the property line, you must obtain a
written consent from the adjacent property owner.
(9) A
permit is $125, with a duration of 5 years.
So, if your lot is substantially wider than the standard 40 foot Clear Lake lot (or you get along well with your neighbor(s)) and if you don’t have many lifts, life will probably be manageable. If not, you may have some difficulty with these new rules, depending on how they are enforced and how tought it will be to obtain permits with variances.
I think the question for the DNR is how some of these rules are supposed to meet the policies they have established (i.e. “to protect the aquatic ecosystem of public water bodies, public uses of public water bodies, and access rights of owners adjoining shoreline properties”). And what prompted these new rules. Rumor has it that property owners on Lake Okoboji have been complaining that the huge Minnetonka-sized canopies that cover the huge Minnetonka-sized motorboats now invading Okoboji are hindering their view. OK, but that’s not mentioned as one of the purposes of the rules, and even if it were, a “one size fits all” approach based on Lake Okoboji’s experience doesn’t necessarily work for our lake………We’ll see………..
OK, ENUFF POLITICS……….on to really important stuff……..
4TH OF JULY REGATTA RESULTS…….
E Fleet C Fleet MC Fleet
1. Z-15 Charlie MacNider 1. Z-2 Tom Birdsall 1. 2079 Steve Taylor
2. Z-24 Bob Swanson 2. Z-1 Mark Tesar 2. 2257 Eric Protzman
3. Z-22 Don/Jenny Child 3. Z-110 Don Taylor, Jr. 3. 2000 Brad Oz
4. Z-11 Dan Allen 4. Z-3 Bill Nicholas 4. 1910 Jeff Nicholas
5. Z-17 John Vratsinas 5. Z-77 JC Risewick 5. 2012 Byron Beasley
X Fleet Hobie Hobie-Board
1. Z-21 Nathan Kotz 1. 105343 Bill Wilson (tie) 1. 1228 Bruce Ray
2. Z-84 Jon Oz 1. 105448 Todd Wilson (tie) 2. 486 Chris Wessels
3. Z-23 Emily Oltrogge 3. 94425 Regan Elsbury
4. Z-77 Drake Lundeen 4. 105377 Jeff Griffin
5. 521 Lynn Twedt
Cougar (we had the first Cougar sightings of the season this weekend)
1. US-7 Bob Krogh
2. US-276 Vince Tomlinson
MC FLEET PARTY……..is this Saturday, July 9th, starting at 6:00 p.m. on the Outing Club porch, more specifically in Lower Sinful Valley, more specifically at Fleet Captain Frank Jeffrey’s. He’s going to furnish burgers and brats and maybe a frothy beverage, but MC sailors should bring a snack or dish to share.
X BOATERS PLANNING ON ATTENDING X INLANDS AT PEWAUKEE.....you can now register online at www.ilya.org (this is also a link on the CLYC website)…and if you do so early, by July 10th, you get an “early food discount” and are eligible for an “early bird” drawing for a steel prop (not for your X Boat!!!...it’s for your dad’s boat after you’ve run it over Billy’s Reef!!!)
START THINKING ABOUT THE INTERLAKES REGATTA AT WHITE BEAR…..the teams are now set and qualifiers will be contacted by their fleet captains. Remember, this year even non-qualifiers can attend the regatta, but we still need to designate the teams for team scoring purposes.
A REAL MC NATIONALS THANK FROM THE CO-CHAIRS……is attached. Due to various transmission and publication errors (none of which I will take responsibility for) last week’s Crows Nest only included a thank you from Andy Burdick and a bunch of technical sailing stuff from Eric Hood (that I’m sure was read and reread by all of our social members). The MC Nationals co-chairs, Stu Oltrogge and Eric Protzman, want to get in on the action and make some personal thank-yous to the CLYC and those of you who went the extra nine yards to make the regatta another banner event.
SAILING SCHOOL NEEDS USED BOAT SAILS….. If you have any old X sails you no longer need, please consider donating them to the CLYCSS. You can drop them off at the Yacht Club building or leave a message at the building (357-8001) and someone will arrange to pick them up. If you have any questions, contact Mark Tesar at 641-357-8642 or at mark.tesar@kingland.com.
Later, Oz
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The 2005 MC National Championships will go down as one of the best MC regattas ever held. Once again, the CLYC and it’s tireless crew of volunteers welcomed teams from as far away as Texas, Florida, Georgia and South Carolina and made them feel as if they never left home. The willingness of the members of our club to step up and continue the long history of hosting well-run regattas is a reflection of our commitment to be one of the premier sailing venues in the Midwest. THANK YOU!!
Of course, such a big undertaking doesn’t get done without the help of specific individuals. Thanks to those who helped during the registration process. Val LaFrenz and her team of Mary Lou Fitch, Diane Kotz and Nancy Protzman made the process seem almost nonexistent. Sailors made their way through this process and were back outside in a matter of minutes. Thanks to Randy Kotz who, with the help of a ladder, a tree and a scale, made sure that boats were weighed. For the parties, thanks to the Hanus’s, Wessels, Cayot’s and Kim Holtz for hosting and making the serving lines run smoothly. Carol Casey took over as the breakfast queen and made sure that the coffee was hot and ready to go every morning at 7:30 (it takes 1 ½ hours to brew so you know she was there early). To all of the lunch volunteers who handled the hungry sailors, you were a blessing after the heavy air races on day 1 and the light air race on day 2. To the race committee who again showed why they are one of the outstanding teams in the ILYA and upper Midwest. Their role is so vital to the success of the regatta and they handled their duties flawlessly. Thankfully, the protest committee of Bill Nicholas and Steve Swift handled only one issue and spent the rest of the regatta spectating.
Thanks to all who helped with Margaret Osmundson’s fleet of taxi, spectator and chase boats. We certainly got full use of them. For those who made a home for people, it was an opportunity to make new friends and rekindle old relationships. A special thanks to those of you who took on crew jobs – you certainly were in demand and the opportunity to sail with some great sailors was fantastic. And finally, thanks to Julie Oltrogge who rounded up all of the volunteers, was on call at all hours of the day and is anxiously waiting to see this month’s cell phone bill since it was in constant use.
We know there were countless other individuals who helped make this a successful regatta. Thanks to all of you for your contribution of time and energy. We are so very lucky to have members that step up and help. Based upon all of the feedback that we’ve already received, the sailors have noticed and want to come back. Thanks to all for a job well done.
Stu Oltrogge & Eric Protzman
Co-Chairmen
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Last weekend was all about MC Nationals (see the attached report for all the details, kudos and thank yous) with lots of wind sometimes and lots of no wind sometimes. This weekend is all about the 4th of July.
4TH OF JULY REGATTA…..is this weekend. Expect the usual back-to-back races on Saturday.
4th OF JULY YACHT CLUB FLOAT…..will again be heading down Main Street in the parade this year. Yacht Club and sailing school kids are all welcome to be on it. If you want to walk with the float make sure you are wearing a CLYC or Sailing School logoed T-shirt. If you want one of this years green sailing school shirts give Kristin Ebeling a call by leaving a message on the YC phone (357-8001) or call her at 357-5213. Our float is Float Number 26 and it will be located in the “loop” at the High School, very near where it was last year. Be there by 9:45 on July 4th….and it might be a good idea to bring a water bottle, because it can get warm out there on the parade route.
WEDNESDAY NIGHT POTLUCK…..is this evening, June 29 from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. Sailing School students (from any of the sessions) and families are invited. Grills will be provided. You just have to bring your own meal to cook, some beverages and utensils and a side order to share with others. Weather permitting, the Optis will be available for a little evening racing. These get-togethers were a great success last year and we hope this year will be more of the same.
E FLEET PARTY…….is this Friday, July 8th, 6:30 p.m. at the Yacht Club. Fleet co-captains from the Langhart/Bergo bunch will be hosting. In fact they will be contacting each E Fleet member by email with more details. If you are planning on attending, please email Jennifer Langhart at jlanghart@mchsi.com.
DON’T FORGET ABOUT THURSDAY NIGHT RACES………..After a one week hiatus due to MC Nationals, they are being held again this week. So show up our on the lake at 6:00 to get some practice racing in.
THE OPTIMIST NO TEARS REGATTA…..is being held at Clear Lake this year on July 25th. Nancy Lundeen is chairing the regatta. She is expecting lots of sailing school kids to be part of the action. Not all of them have their own Optis. So if any of you have an Opti lying around in mothballs, and wouldn’t mind letting some youngster race it for a day on the lake, please dust off the cobwebs and give Spencer Anderson or Kristin Ebeling a call (leave a message on the YC phone, 357-8001) and let them know you have a boat available. Even if your boat may be missing a part here or there, there’s a good chance it can be fixed up with parts at the Yacht Club….so don’t be bashful.
DNR DOCK RULES PUBLIC HEARING…….The DNR is proposing a new set of dock regulations that will probably affect everyone reading this newsletter. A public hearing will be held Thursday, July 7 at 6:00 p.m. in the Community Room at the Clear Lake City Hall. At the hearing, people can present their views of the proposed rules either orally or in writing. If you want to see what the proposed rules say here’s what you have to do: go to www.iowadnr.com.....click on “DNR Site Map”……under “Commissions and Boards” click on “Natural Resources Commission”…….go to “Natural Resources Commission: 2005” and click on “May 12, 2005 Commission Minutes”……..this is about a 75 page document, but about 20 pages into it you will find a section entitled “Notice of Intended Action-Chapter 16, Public, Commercial, Private Docks and Dock Management Areas”……this is where the good stuff about total number of lifts, maximum length, setbacks from neighboring property lines and adjacent docks all can be found. It’s not the easiest reading, but well worth the effort. I’m not sure what’s driving these new regulations, but if we don’t let the regulators know what we think, we will be living with this come next year. I would suggest you show at the meeting……the old saying, “if you snooze, you lose” is very appropriate for what the DNR is proposing.
IF YOU WANT TO SEE WHAT SAILING SCHOOL REALLY LOOKS LIKE…….go to www.cltel.com and click on the “Lake Action Cam” icon at the bottom and follow the links. This is a camera that is on the Yacht Club Building and shows the Sailing School in action on most of the days when it’s in session.
IF YOU LIKED THE SHRIMP AT THE COMMODORE’S SURF N TURF PARTY….a couple of weeks back, Dave Woodward is making the recipe public. See the attachment to this newsletter which contains all the secrets for making New Orleans Barbecued Shrimp.
DAD/MOM/LAD/LASS RESULTS……These are a little late, because I didn’t do a Crows Nest last week:
1. Z-23 Stuart and Emily Oltrogge
2. Z-21 Randy and Nathan Kotz
3. Z-888 Doug and Hillary Southwick
4. Z-11 Chris, Henry and Maggie Long
5. Z-16 Chris and Jordan Wessels
6. Z-86 Deb and Anne Tesar
SAILING SCHOOL CLASSIFIEDS………..The Sailing School has 3 X-Boats for sale. These are older boats, but they’re fully rigged and each has a set of sails. You can take your pick for $300. Trailers are extra and negotiable. Contact Mark Tesar at 641-357-8642 or at mark.tesar@kingland.com.
Later, OZ
Email (office):
brad.osmundson@opuscorp.com
Email (home):
inremoz@aol.com
Fax (office): 952-656-4814
CLYC Web Site:
www.clyciowa.com
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2005 MC Scow National Championship
Clear Lake Yacht Club
Clear Lake, Iowa
MC Fleet 36 at Clear Lake, Iowa was the site for this year’s National Championship. 74 Teams sailed in this year’s event. The four day event hosted by CLYC will go down in the books as one of the best National Championships ever and certainly in my mind the toughest one yet with regards to the level of competition.
Regatta co-chairs Eric Protzman and Stu Oltrogge put together one incredible team of volunteers that made it possible for the fun times on shore and on the water.
Julie Oltrogge and Margaret Osmundson led the on shore teams. This was a large team and they did a great job with registration, posters, shirts, lunches and a great dinner this past Thursday night.
The Surf Ballroom where music legend Buddy Holly played his last gig was a ton of fun on Friday night. We had our annual National meeting, dinner and great music by the show band Hotel California. It was cool!!!!
Terry Bischoff was our PRO and led the experienced group of CLYC veterans that included Head Judge: Warren Wang, Race committee members Charlie MacNider, John Hanson, John Lundberg, Bud Toepfer, John Toepfer, Rober Bang, Craig Caslavka, Reece Caslavka, Russ Schurtz, Sterling Laaveg and Ann Schurtz. Apologies for anyone I left out in my list above.
Here are just a few of the cool things that we did at Clear Lake
·
The Surf Ballroom
with the show band Hotel California
·
Great storms with good light shows
with some serious rain
·
Incredible Clear Lake sailing with
all wind velocities
·
Great race courses, great starting
lines
·
Excellent food and parties
·
Sailing seminar with Eric and Andy
before the event
·
Annual National Class Meeting
·
Excellent competition from top to
bottom. Former regatta winners placed in the 10s, 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s, and
70s. Everyone at this event was a winner.
·
Very good sportsmanship on the
course at this event this year. Really good to see in our group. Only one or
two with louder voices now in the group. It sure is fun when everyone sails by
the rules and treats the rules with a good Corinthian spirit like this past
week.
I could go on and on about all the cool things we all experienced this year at Clear Lake. Kudos to that whole group at CLYC on a super event.
Now onto some racing news!!!!!
Here is a commentary from Andy and then I will share some thoughts.
From Andy - The MC National Championship was a premiere event - plan to attend the 2006 event at Lake Norman, NC.
Driving back from the regatta allowed me time to reflect on "What Was Fast" at the Nationals. In review, I felt that the top boats sailed for speed always rather than pointing ability. Sure, at the start, pointing is important. Especially in a large fleet, you need to keep you lane and stay above the competition. However, once you had clear air you really had to "put the bow down" and go for speed. Vincent Porter was doing this in the breeze and he was fast. As I sailed upwind, trimmed hard, pointing high, I could see the speed edge Porter had in the windy races. I had to adjust my boat to match the speed and in what turned out to be the final race of the regatta I had done this.
This was accomplished by dropping the traveler more, not trimming as hard and then making a concerted effort for my crew and I to hike hard as I "footed" upwind. Even with footing more upwind, our pointing ability was okay because the boat was going so fast upwind. You need speed to point so it all makes sense. In order to put the bow down and foot you need to definitely pull hard on your Cunningham and vang, use a softer sheet and hike. This is the technique that brought new speed to this years National Championship.
I would agree with Andy that the lesson learned about putting the bow down and footing was a huge lesson we learned from Vincent, Andy Burdick and Jamie Kimball. These three top boats did this very well. Especially in the breeze. I remember looking up at Vincent during the event and seeing this huge twisted mainsail exit. That could only be accomplished by what Andy talks about in his commentary. Also, in the light stuff though the top eight boats had an edge on the rest of the fleet. All of the top and look at their scores were sailing fast and bow down in the light stuff. It is easy to over trim when you have a lot of boats around and you feel a need to point. The only way you will point in a MC Scow is with boat speed. It is the number one question we get about sailing the MC. “ I am not pointing with the group”. That is because of over sheeting and slow boat speed. Find a tuning partner, go out and work on this. I think you will see the difference right away.
Other observations were downwind in big breeze. Too many teams were sailing flat, not committed to heeling the boat to windward when sailing down the breeze. Remember when it is windy, sail to the mark or below the mark by sailing a little bit by the lee. The boat is faster, easier to heel and much easier to sail but pay attention to the new breeze coming all the time and watch the wave sets in front of the bow so you do not bury the bow. Vang pressure on is very important here. If you are too light on the vang and your boom is above 90 degrees on its angle from the mast then you are at risk for some instability. Practice with vang pressure and you will see what we are talking about.
All of the race results can be seen at www.mcscow.org but here are some highlights.
Race Winners - Jamie Kimball, Vincent Porter, David Fox, Andy Burdick
Division Winners - Overall – Vincent Porter , Singlehanded – Jeff Annis, Masters – David Ferguson, Grand Masters – Steve Avery, Mega Masters – Charlie Lind, Top Woman – Kelli Farrar, Top Junior – Will Loux.
The top three boats all had top ten finishes.
The top nine boats had 40 points or less during the four race series. Consistency was the key for these top nine boats.
The point spread from top to bottom was 10 points to 286.
22 Fleets were represented at this years National Championship.
Individual
race highlights for those outside the top ten – good moments on the race
course. You can see how good the competition was at this event.
Overall Place Skipper Best Race
11th Rob Kimball 9th
12th Randy Kotz 13th
13th Brad Farrar 9th
14th Jeff Annis 2nd
15th Lenny Krawcheck 19th
16th David Fox 1st
17th Peter Toumanoff 10th
18th Noel Neuman 7th
19th Mike Risewick 21st
20th Byron Beasley 10th
21st Kevin Neal 17th
22nd Dan Fink 20th
23rd Kelli Farrar 8th
24th Rick Trester 16th
25th Zack Clayton 15th
26th Kurt Stadele 9th
27th Mark Marenakos 10th
28th Stu Oltrogge 17th
29th Kelly Reese 13th
30th Scott Tillema 20th
In closing I would say this was one of the best events I have been to in a long, long time. The health of the MC Class is very good. The quality of competitive sailing is at an all-time high. The quality of sportsmanship is at an all-time high. The Clear Lake Yacht Club and its lake are no doubt one the premiere Scow racing venues one could attend.
Tons of great events coming up. Herman at our website has done a great job keeping all of our regatta and class information up to date. Don’t forget to support him and the class by getting your regatta information in early.
New boats are road ready in Zenda right now. Next available hull is 2346. Also, Zenda has two demo boats available for MC sailors at a great savings. Both 2335 (EHood) and 2343 (Andy Burdick) are road ready to go. Call Zenda today. Also, please, please stop by Zenda or Lake Geneva for a tour of the factory. You can see MC Scows in all phases of production. It is pretty cool to witness this.
One last item we need to mention about our MC family. This involves losing MCs on the highway at high speed and how members of our MC family step up to the plate when someone needs help. First, thank God Justin Hood, Jamie Kimball and Bre Hatton were not hurt in this accident. They lost their two boats and double trailer on the Chicago Skyway. Trailer was unusable but the boats only saw minor damage. Dave Bandstra from Spring Lake stepped up to the plate, dropped what he was doing, grabbed another double trailer, drove 3 hours, then helped unload two MCs from a wrecked trailer on a very busy I-90 Chicago Skyway then took the wrecked trailer back home another three hours. All so his good friends could still sail in the National Championship they had so looked forward too. Nice job Dave!!!!!!! Stuff like this is the backbone of our MC family.
See you all
down the road somewhere. Big choice of events to attend, lots of good club
sailing ahead this summer.
One last special thanks to my crew Elle Schurtz for doing a great job this past
week at Clear Lake.
Best From
Zenda,
EHood MC 2335
Melges
Performance Sailboats
&
North Sails Zenda
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June 16, 2005
Maybe we’ve turned the corner, weatherwise.
Today is beautiful, sunny, warm, nice breeze. On the other hand, the best that
could be said for last weekend was John Lundberg’s statement that, “On average,
we had great winds.” With 25 knot breezes on Saturday and 0 knot breezes on
Sunday, a 12 knot average would have been just fine………too bad we never saw it.
Yet another example, for you statisticians out there, of the uselessness of
averages. Bottom line……one race on Saturday morning…….zip after that.
THE ANNUAL DAD/LAD/MOM/LASS RACE…..is this Sunday, June 19 at 1:00 p.m. Time for all you dads and moms to get a dose of humble pie racing X-Boats while your kids hang their heads in the front of the boat in disgust.
THE 2ND ANNUAL SURF N TURF OPEN HOUSE……is Saturday, June 18 starting around 6:00 p.m. at the Yacht Club. Board Members supply the hors d’ oeuvres, Commodore Bill Casey supplies the shrimp, Vice Commodore Eric Protzman supplies brats and hot dogs, you supply the fun, the friends and…. oh yeah….the beverages (cuz it’s BYOB) It’s an open house event, so bring along friends, family, kids, etc.
MC NATIONALS…..is only a week away. I’m told we really, really need 3 kinds of help. (1) CREW VOLUNTEERS…….We’ve going to have about 100 of the best MC sailors in the country here. Crewing with them is a great chance to have fun and learn how the good sailors do it on the race course. Our younger sailors and YC members are excellent candidates for MC crewing. If you’re interested (and I can’t imagine how you wouldn’t be) contact Eric Protzman at 357-1418 or at ericprotzman@mac.com with your age, weight, availability during the regatta, experience level, and anything else you might want to talk with Eric about. There will also be a sign-up sheet at registration next Wednesday. (2 and 3) TAXIS AND SPECTATOR BOATS……The MC sailors are a pretty user-friendly crowd, but they still need to get from the dock to their boats and back before and after races…..and some of them even have friends (believe it or not) who love to get out on the course and watch the races up close and personal. Give Margaret Oz a call at 357-5513 if you’ve got a motorboat and are interested in helping out.
THURSDAY NIGHT RACES……….have had beautiful weather, so don’t forget to join in the fun. Tonight should be perfect, especially after a less-than-perfect racing weekend. Remember, there won’t be Thursday night races next week because of MC Nationals.
SAILING SCHOOL IS IN FULL SWING…..The first session has begun, and the weather is finally starting to cooperate. Gunther Langhart, head X Boat instructor has a few announcements:
“I just wanted to inform all X-Boat racers’ parents of a few important dates in the near future. On Wednesday, June 22nd there will be a clinic held at the Yacht Club from 9 a.m. – 2 p.m. for all X-Racers to be put on by Kelly Reese. The clinic will be very beneficial for those who can attend as Kelly is both an excellent sailor and instructor. I also wanted to give the X-Racers a heads up on GLSS. Geneva Lake Sailing School will be holding its annual X-Invitational Regatta on July 11-12. There will be no sailing school on these days so I hope all of the X-Racers will be able to attend this great regatta. I will be sending more information home with your son or daughter regarding GLSS very soon. The sailing school is off to a great start and I am excited for another great group of students! Thanks, Gunther Langhart”
C NATIONALS….is this weekend at Lake Minnetonka. Bill Nicholas and Mark Tesar are there representing Clear Lake, so wish them fair winds and good luck.
Later, Oz
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The breezes kept building throughout the weekend, giving all the sailors a good early season workout. I know because I’ve taken the Advil to prove it. The rains held off for the most part, and we got in a full slate of racing, as well as the first Yacht Club get-together of the year.
THE PARTY AT SUKUPS……was a grand way to open the CLYC social season. Thanks to Steve and Vicki Sukup for opening up their home to the Yacht Club masses. The social members did their usual bang-up job of making sure we were fed and properly hydrated. And a special thanks to those who helped clean up the masses’ messes afterwards.
THE 2nd ANNUAL SURF N TURF OPEN HOUSE….is coming on Saturday, June 18 at the Yacht Club. The Commodore and Vice Commodore are the hosts of the party, but they will get some help from the CLYC Board Members. There is a change to the schedule you’ll find in the yearbook (that you just received) and on the website. Board Members (not X-Boat Parents) are in charge of bringing hors d’oeuvres. And, as with last years inaugural event, beverages are BYOB.
The Surf N Turf is a great opportunity to bring along friends or acquaintances who just might be interested in sailing or in becoming a member of the YC. That’s why we call it an Open House. So don’t be bashful about bringing new folks along with you.
SAILING SCHOOL STARTS……Tuesday, June 14. Hopefully you’ve already registered, but if it slipped your mind, you can show up the first day and still get placed in a class.
MC NATIONALS…..is only 2 weeks away. It’s a Thursday-Saturday regatta, so the action will get started early that week. I know the co-chairs, Eric Protzman and Stu Oltrogge, will make use of any help you can give them.
Later, Oz
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I think the Memorial Day weekend surprised us all. History, as well as the weather forecasters, had us all bringing our iceboating clothes and ponchos to deal with 3 days of awful weather. Well, I’m here to tell you, history did not repeat itself and the weather forecasters were wrong (once again). It just kept getting better and better as the weekend progressed. Mind you, I never felt the need to break out the sunscreen, and I don’t recall breaking into a sweat (except when Mike Risewick executed a major submarine move right next to me during Race 1). But, all in all, I’d take that Memorial Day over most all of the others.
MEMORIAL DAY REGATTA RESULTS……..The winds were not bad , and all fleets got in their races. I don’t remember anyone tipping over (although Mr. Risewick was oh so close….see above) but there was a lot of “rustiness” out there. Those who managed to shake off the rust were:
E Fleet C Fleet MC Fleet
1. Z-6 Lori Zachar 1. Z-110 Don Taylor, Jr. 1. 2178 Mark Tesar
2. Z-5 Mike Lundberg 2. Z-2 Tom Birdsall 2. 2079 Steve Taylor
3. Z-22 Don/Jenny Child 3. Z-1 Mark Tesar 3. 2340 Stu Oltrogge
4. Z-24 Bob Swanson 4. Z-3 Bill Nicholas 4. 2257 Eric Protzman
5. Z-11 Dan Allen 5. Z-77 JC Risewick 5. 2284 Mike Risewick
X Fleet Hobies
1. Z-21 Nathan Kotz 1. 1228 Bruce Ray
2. Z-6 Nick Zachar 2. 486 Chris Wessels
3. Z-77 Drake Lundeen 3. 105343 Bill Wilson
4. Z-23 Emily Oltrogge 4. 94425 Regan Elsbury
5. Z-84 Jon Osmundson 5. 105377 Jeff Griffin
FIRST PARTY OF THE SEASON……..I’m fairly certain you folks won’t be “rusty” at partying. This Saturday, June 4, the first YC party of the season will be at Steve and Vicki Sukup’s, 1405 North Shore Drive. Social members are handling hors d’oeuvres and serving beverages. I know some folks have expressed concerns about parking, although I’m not exactly certain why………heck, we never have adequate parking at our Yacht Club functions…….that’s part of the fun of it.
THURSDAY EVENING RACE REMINDER……As reported in last week’s newsletter, Thursday evening races start…….TONIGHT! All fleets are more than welcome. Show up on the course at 6:00 p.m. for a little practice racing. Just make sure you check the board on the judge’s barge to see what order (and with what other fleets) you’ll be starting. If you have questions, Mark Tesar has the answers…..641-357-8642 or mark.tesar@kingland.com.
YEARBOOKS……are out and they look great, as usual. Some were hand-delivered, some were mailed out on Tuesday.
MC NATIONALS……are coming up quickly. If you haven’t gotten your arm twisted by the regatta chairs, and you want to help out, please take it upon yourself to contact Stu Oltrogge (641-357-8957 or Oltrogge@clyciowa.com) or Eric Protzman (641-357-1418 or ericprotzman@mac.com).
Later, Oz
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Please ignore your thermometers and rain gauges………according to the sailing calendar summer has arrived. Actually it may have arrived in April……..which means we already missed it. All the lifts and docks went in when it was warm and dry; now all the boats have to go in when it’s cold and wet. Go figure. In any event, the 70th year of the Clear Lake Yacht Club is officially underway !!
MEMORIAL DAY REGATTA……….is this weekend. Look for back-to-back races on Saturday. For those of you who have not registered (heaven forbid) or registered very late, you might want to sail by the judge’s barge before the start and make sure they have your sail number and your name.
BOARD MEETING…..is this Sunday, May 29, 1:00 p.m. at the Yacht Club.
SAILING SCHOOL OPEN HOUSE…….is also on Sunday, starting at 3:00 p.m. at the Yacht Club, and running until about 5:00. Come down and bring your friends, especially those who might be interested in learning to sail…..or in learning to sail better. Incidentally, now is an excellent time to sign up for sailing school, if you are still procrastinating.
FIRST YACHT CLUB PARTY OF THE SEASON…..will be here before you know it, on Saturday, June 4 to be exact. Let’s start about 6:30 p.m. at Steve and Vicki Sukup’s, 1405 North Shore Drive. You’d be crazy to miss this, because the Social Members are in charge of food and serving your favorite beverages, and they always do it the best.
LAST WEEKEND’S HOBIE REGATTA……kicked off our lake’s racing season, although the weather clearly failed to cooperate. Saturday’s rain meant no races that day, and Sunday’s wind meant only one race that day. Apparently, one race may have been more than enough in those conditions………….it was so breezy that of the 32 registered boats only 20 actually started, and of those 20 only 7 made it across the finish line. Thanks to those of you with the fortitude to not only judge the event, but also to rescue upside down Hobies and soggy sailors. The eternal optimist in me says, it can only get better next time…….
YEARBOOKS ARE DONE……..and should be going out this week. Denni Erickson coordinated getting it all together again and, of course, she and her minions have done a great job. Special thanks to Val Lafrenz and Dawn Southwick for placing the ads. And more thanks to Jim Larson for doing the cover art again this year……..Jim does awesome artwork, and if you’d like to see (or acquire) more of it visit the Clear Lake Arts Center and the Chamber of Commerce.
THURSDAY EVENING RACES…….are going to happen this year. This is the new millennium version of the Wednesday series of a couple of decades ago. All fleets are more than welcome. Races will begin at 6:00 p.m. every Thursday from June 2 thru August 25 (except June 23 (MC Nationals) and August 4 (Interlakes)). When you go out to race, make sure to check the course board on the judge’s boat for the starting sequence, because smaller fleets will get grouped together. The races don’t count for anything (except possibly bragging rights), but are a fine opportunity to get out sailing, have some fun, and try new sails, equipment, tactics, crew, foul weather gear, foul language, or whatever. If you have questions, contact Mark Tesar at mark.tesar@kingland.com or at 641-357-8642.
SCREWUPS FROM THE LAST NEWSLETTER…….are going to be corrected right here and right now. First of all, several of you politely (and many of you pointedly) informed me that the Volunteer form attached to the last newsletter was for 2004, for god’s sake. Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa (for a translation ask your Catholic friends)!! To right that wrong, I’ve attached the 2005 form. Second of all, I made such a nice plea for sailing school donations, but didn’t give you any idea where to send your hard-earned money………try CLYCSS, P.O. Box 29, Clear Lake, IA 50428. And finally, there has been a recount of the fleet captain balloting…….and now that all of the hanging and dimpled chads have been accounted for and appeal periods have passed, it turns out that Frank Jeffrey is anointed the MC fleet captain and the triumvirate of Gunther and Karl Langhart, and Lyle Bergo become the the E fleet “tri-captains”. I understand Commodore Bill Casey really likes the ring of his title, and would like to vote himself Commodore For Life…….I can assure you there will be innumerable recounts and countless appeals of that particular vote.
INTERLAKES NEWS……..that may interest you, may excite you, may disappoint you. The Inter Lake Regatta board voted to open the regatta to all members of all its fleets this year……. on a trial basis, in an effort to generate more attendance. There will still be team racing and team scoring for those who have qualified to be on their lake teams. However, the racing will also be open to those who haven’t qualified. We’ll see how it goes at White Bear Lake this summer.
SAILING WORLD MAGAZINE…..has a big article on MCs in this month’s issue, focused on the annual Midwinter Regatta in Lake Eustis, Florida, that many of us have attended over the years……… so check it out.
CLASSIFIEDS………Wanted, a trailer and a lift that work well for an MC. Pls. call or email me if you have one or hear of one.
Later, Oz
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It was a heckuva lot warmer on April Fools Day, when the last newsletter came out. As usual, Mother Nature fooled us all, making us think summer was just around the corner and that we were already behind schedule to get docks and lifts in, yards raked, and boats located. So we all bit……and we got everything done in record time only to run smack into real spring weather again. Now we’re all huddled in our homes with the heat back on….and summer seems light years away. Well, I’ve got news for you……and I don’t care what curveballs Mother Nature throws at us……….SUMMER IS JUST AROUND THE CORNER!!
THAT MEANS GET YOUR YACHT CLUB REGISTRATIONS IN………May 10 is the deadline. I’ve attached a registration form for those of you who lost the last one we sent. But I would suggest you go on to the website at www.clyciowa.com and register on-line. It’s easy…..and fun!! Our newly installed Secretary-Treasurer, Dave Miller, is in high anxiety mode because so many of you haven’t signed up yet. So register, and keep his Pepto-Bismol bills down.
FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO WOULD LIKE TO VOLUNTEER…..but can’t find an outlet for all that “volunteerism”, take a look at the attached 2005 CLYC Volunteer Sheet. You should be able to find something on there that helps out the Yacht Club or the Sailing School, is enjoyable to do……and makes you a better person.
SUMMER ALSO MEANS SAILING SCHOOL……….And we’ve attached a Sailing School Information Form and a Sailing School Registration form for to this newsletter, just like we did with the last newsletter. But remember, the really fun thing to do is to go on the website, print off your own form, fill it out, and send it in. Classes are filling up and we don’t want you, your kids, your grandkids, your friends, your friends’ kids, your friends’ grandkids or your friends’ friends (ed. Note: make it stop!!) to miss out.
A HEARTFELT PLEA FOR MONEY……….There may come a day when the Sailing School can support itself from student fees. That day is not here yet. Frankly, it may never come. Nor should it have to. I would submit that the point of the CLYCSS is not to make money, but to provide a fantastic learning environment for kids and adults through learning to sail.
The Sailing School constantly walks the fine line between making sailing lessons affordable to students versus providing them with a high quality program, great instructors, decent sailboats and equipment, and a safe environment. Not surprisingly, when push comes to shove, affordability wins out nearly every time. That’s great for the students, but less than great for the Sailing School’s cash flow. Despite the revenues from tuition, from the Yacht Club’s rent payments, and from your generous donations, CLYCSS is still forced to operate in the red.
The folks in charge of the Sailing School aren’t willing to sacrifice quality for the bottom line. And as a result they over-donate their own time, energy and checkbooks to make the program work as cost-effectively as possible. The least the rest of us can do is help with the checkbook part, even if we feel like we don’t have the time or the energy. I plan to right away (thank God I got paid today)……..and I hope you can find it in yourself to do so, too.
IF YOU WANT TO KICK OFF YOUR SAILING SEASON EARLY……the Lake Harriet Spring Regatta is coming up fast on May 14 & 15. This is always a fun regatta, even though the weather can be a bit tricky. A registration form is attached, if you’re interested.
FINAL ATTACHMENT……For those of you who want to quickly fill your calendars, I’ve attached a sheet showing the party schedule, the racing schedule and a listing of the various fleet captains (who probably don’t even realize they are holding high office, because of the always mysterious election procedures which raise them to such lofty posts).
FUGGEDABOUT THE WEATHER. IT’S SUMMER!!!
Later,
Oz
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April 1, 2005
And now for a recap of the 2004 season!!!! This is not an April Fools joke….it just took me 6 months or so to get to it. So, in a nutshell:
The Yacht Club: It was a good year. We excelled again at holding regattas that people want to come to (and that we actually make some money on). The Hobie regatta in September was in the black. E Invitationals brought in $1000. And the mammoth X Inlands garnered $8000 for the Club. The Yacht Club has a bit over $20,000 in it. And the fleet champs were: E Fleet-Mike Lundberg C Fleet-Steve Swift Cougars-Bob Krogh MC Fleet-Mike Risewick X Fleet-Nathan Kotz Hobies-Bruce Ray. Actually it was a great year…….for the first time in history CLYC was named Yacht Club of the Year by the Inland Lake Yachting Association….congrats to all of you who made it so….and thanks to the ILYA for noticing.
The Sailing School: A good year as well. With 122 students (including 8 adults), attendance was up 30%. Beginning and Intermediate Opti and X-Boat classes were huge. Hopefully, that bodes well for the future. The Spring Fund drive allowed the SS to purchase a Boston Whaler, upgrade the X-Boat sails and the Optis, and add VHF radios. With 2 newly donated X-Boats and an inflatable, the SS now has 8 working Optis, 5 good X-Boats, an MC and a 420. The 3 social events were very well attended and will continue in 2005. The SS had to bid a fond farewell to Mike Risewick (head X-Boat Instructor), Robert Protzman (head Opti Instructor) and Mary Risewick (President of the SS Board) who have done a fabulous job. But it will say hello to Gunther Langhart, Spencer Anderson, and Margaret Osmundson who will fill those shoes very well, thank you. The SS is still operating at about a $2000 deficit (blame it on insurance and instructor salaries), but wants to keep the instruction fees as reasonable as possible.
OK, ENUFF LIVING IN THE PAST, THE 2005 SEASON IS HERE…………
We’ve got regattas, we’ve got parties, we’ve got lots of changes.
BUT FIRST, PAY ATTENTION TO THE ATTACHMENTS:
(1) A CLYC Registration form is attached. You can fill it out and mail it in OR you can go to the website (www.clyciowa.com) and either register online or print your own hardcopy to mail in. Do so by May 10 so Denni Erickson can get the Yearbook to the printer and so you don’t have to pay an extra $10 late fee.
(2) A Sailing School information sheet (that you can also find on the website).
(3) A Sailing School Registration form. This, too, is on the website if you want to print it off there.
(4) A description of the New International Code Flags that all ILYA lakes will be using this year……(click here) .............APRIL FOOLS!!!!!!! Read it anyway; it’s good for a chuckle or two (I had to delete a couple of the flag descriptions for being a tad too racy, but you can fill in your own if you like)
REGATTAS……….I think the Hobies are holding 2 or 3 themselves. One is in May and one is in September, and these regattas seem to get bigger and bigger each year. The Opti No Tears Regatta will be at the end of July. And this summer’s monster bash will be MC Nationals, with about 100 boats visiting us near the end of June.
RACE SCHEDULE AND PARTY SCHEDULE……..will come out in the next newsletter. If I gave you all that information now, you might not read the next issue.
NEW FACES, NEW POSITIONS………Tom Erickson has handed over the CLYC Commodore reins to Bill Casey. Your Vice Commodore this year is Eric Protzman. And Rick and Mary Lou Fitch who jumped into the Secretary/Treasurer position 5 years ago and did a super job have turned it all over to Dave Miller, who I’m sure is already gasping for breath. Finally, a welcome to the new board members who will be serving 3 year terms – Tom Lundeen, JC Risewick, Denni Erickson, Bill Nicholas, Kim Holtz, Mark Ebeling and Reagan Elsbury.
THE ANNUAL YEARBOOK EFFORT IS UNDERWAY…….Denni Erickson, Dawn Southwick and Val Lafrenz are again doing the yeoman’s work in getting it all ready. And you, too, can be a part of it IF you get your YC registration in on time……..
A MOMENT FOR OUR LOSSES……Over the winter we lost some “family” members who many of you have come to know, and who all contributed in some way to making our Club what it is today. Farewell to Billie Hanes, Mark Arneson and to “Shimmy” Jimmy Hall.
Later, Oz
Email (office): brad.osmundson@opuscorp.com
Email (home): inremoz@aol.com
Fax (office): 952-656-4814
CLYC Web Site: www.clyciowa.com
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