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July Fleet News
by Peggy Davis
July 29, 2010
SATURDAY 5:30 - snipe gathering at the best patio at the club!! See you at Mitzi's waterfront cabin!!! Bring your favorite beverage - and your meat and Italian dish to share afterwards at the club supper at the point. It should be a really enjoyable day!
Patio-party the 7th will just be at the point unless I find another volunteer. The 14th will be at Joan Sammons' followed by another snipe- sponsored club supper. I need some volunteers to carry the stuff to and from the point. Please let me know if you will be there.
I have not heard from your fleet mentors whether or not you have any interest in restoring the ALIGO event on August 14 or a new Ladies Snipe Champion on August 21. These are the weekends that our more experienced sailors will be at the Nationals. The way I see them working is that the races would count like any others toward the club championship qualification and the annual fleet trophies. In addition there would be a trophy for the highest placing skipper who has not won a snipe trophy before. (At Last I Got One = ALIGO). The next weekend would be the same except that a trophy would go to the highest finishing female skipper. These will not occur unless I hear of some interest, so let me know and I will let the fleet know.
32 people have sailed in our point scores to date!! I think that s by far the most of any fleet. Keep up with what is going on by looking at the results at the club website!!
July 12, 2010
See you Tuesday night ? Sailing 6 - dark....
We will try a patio-party one more time. Saturdays 5:30 - 7. Club supper afterwards. If there is no interest, others will be cancelled. Schedule:
July 17 = the Bradley's
July 24 - the Muhlhausen's
July 31 - Mitzi Wade's
What a 10 days!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Racing : 10 snipes sailed on Saturday , including Chris McCaffrey , age 11, with his crew Anna Mitchell age 9. Checking the records, only Woody and Beth (Tumlin) Norwood were younger - they sailed the first year of Snipes at AYC. Paige Bihary joined Danny and Sally Williams and Woody McLean vying for the junior season trophy. (If there are other juniors who have sailed PLEASE let me know. There is a limit on what the boat numbers tell me). BTW, Paige Bihary, a teen, won Sunday's race, even beating Muhlhausen!
Fall series begins on September 4. I apologize for misinformation - I was sure that only July was weird, but the published rules on the AYC website specify otherwise, so September 4 it is! Remember, in July and August you may sail single-handed and count as a boat to be beaten but your results will not count toward any series trophies. All double-handed snipes will count toward season qualification.
Lady-Power! We now have 17 legitimate female skippers in the fleet: Ava Moore ( who is missing because of injuring both ankles), Tarasa Davis (did you see the pictures and coverage of the US Women's Nationals in the latest US Snipe Sailor magazine?), Kathy Bronaugh (who placed 3rd in our Spring Series and who faithfully sponsors our Tuesday night sails, "Kiwi" Vivieros (who has competed internationally in her snipe), Kris Cleveland ( see bio below), Anna Lee Bradley (last year's Halloween winner), Sally Williams (AYC's major sailing instructor), and Lauren McLean ( last year's Outstanding Junior trophy winner). Other viable contenders include, Rose Haisty (who wants help and encouragement with her boat and sailing skills), Rita Fullick (who sails her Laser regularly), Lauren Mitchell (who was a skipper in her own right before becoming wife and mother), BJ Hudson (where are you this year?), Kelly Milliken ( now that Craig has moved into the VanHutten house we hope to see her some this summer), Hannah Mody (in mother-mode now, but we haven't forgotten you), Paige Bihary (our newest junior skipper) and brand new snipe owners Ashley and Liz Fricker! Don't be surprised if you see Katrina Blauvelt and other wives, or juniors Sarah Schmitt, Katie Mitchell, Margeaux Ratcliff, and some others on the line either!
Two new snipes in the fleet on one day would be great news any time, but to get two third generation AYC family members who have never been associated with the snipe is even greater! Welcome, Van Huttens and Frickers!
Over the 4th Ashley and Liz Fricker purchased John McGowan's McGo #26075, one of the first bulkheads Matt and Steve produced. Their grandfather Bill missed very few Thistle races and is still remembered by everyone who knew him. We are really excited to have Kathleen's granddaughters and Mike and Dawn's children join us!
Also on the 4th, Darrell and Kris Van Hutten bought Mueller #28368 out of Missouri. What a gorgeous boat! For you who are too new to know much about AYC in the early years, you need to know about the families represented by these new members. Darrell is the brother of Marina Haile and the son of Jack and Margaret Van Hutten, some of the most active and loyal Thistle sailors ever. Jack designed our RC barge and did most of the boat maintenance at AYC, and Margaret called all RC teams for years. Darrell went to the Naval Academy and was a high-ranking officer for over 20 years, mostly in Europe and the Pentagon. Though retired, he is still working with the military in Washington, but looking forward to settling back in Atlanta before too long.
Kris is the daughter of Al and Freddie Cleveland. Al was one of our most active Thistle sailors before Lockheed transferred him to California. Freddie was AYC's first nationally known female skipper and became a mainstay as sailing instructor here when she returned to Atlanta after his death. Both Darrell and Kris sail actively - in Lasers now.
July 6, 2010
The Spring Series is history!! 28 different skippers sailed!!!!!!!!!!
Un-audited results show John Muhlhausen again champion with Lee Bradley close behind. Kathy and Larry also qualified by sailing at least 10 races! Please take the time to audit the attached spreadsheet and be sure you are scored correctly. (You should check the formula box under the "average" column to be sure the denominator shows your correct races, and check the "bonus points" formula to be sure you got 2 points for every race day and an extra point if a junior, prospective member, or participation-emphasis person was skippering.) The present scoring system has way too much individual input rather than computer calculations for me to be sure I got it right!
Remember, as you can see there are some very high scorers who were not winners because they did not sail the required number of races. They still have a very good chance at the season trophies if they start sailing more. It is always more fun with a big group, so lets get some more on the line. We also need to get our juniors skippering - this Saturday's Participation Emphasis is for those in their 20' s, so as the snipe junior definition is not yet 22, this would be a good time for our college kids to sail.
Remember, July races are an experiment - you can sail single or double handed. All boats will be scored, but only those that are double handed will count toward the season trophies. Be sure to let me know if anyone is ailing single so scoring will be accurate.
Patio Parties are ready to begin ! This Saturday we will have the first gathering at a snipe cabin. After the races, relax, head to the store to get your dish to share and nibbles and liquids, and meet us at Kathy and Russell's about 6. We'll socialize, talk over the races, and then go to the point for supper with other club members. If this works out, we will rotate weekly among the many snipe cabins.
(If you noticed the two snipes for sale that pulled in over the 4th, you will realize that we may have some good news about new members soon!)
June Fleet News
June 24, 2010
Fleet races - This is the last weekend to qualify for the Spring Series. It takes 40% of sailed races to qualify - there have been 22 races to date, with 4 races scheduled this weekend. 26 different skippers have participated, with 10 on the line being our best effort.... not bad!
As always, current scores are posted on the AYC website under fleet - snipe - quick links - current standings. Those listed who are not dues-paid members or who have not weighed their boats are of course not eligible for trophies.
Remember, that July racing is an experiment. It is not included in the Spring or the Fall Series. Single-handed competition is allowed, but for races to count toward Season trophies or Club Championship qualification, boats must be double-handed.
This Saturday:
Participation Emphasis is for you between 30 and 39 - no, really! As Mitzi has had to go help her sister who is fighting lung cancer, we will move our celebration to the point just after the races. Limited liquid libation will be served the 30-somethings who sail, but to be sure (and all others), BYOB and munchies.
Tuesday sailing (6 - 8 pm):
If it has been a long time since you were at the club during the week, you may have forgotten how lovely and peaceful it is. Smooth water, absolute silence broken only by bird calls, a lovely sunset with good friends. Come join us next week!
There have been 4 storms this week causing less damage at AYC than in neighboring areas, but impressive nonetheless. Last Tuesday the storm came in early and made for marvelous viewing but no sailing. Saturday's races were also cancelled for a major storm. This Tuesday we finally dodged the storm and got in some nice drills and non-competitive sailing before it hit. What's up with this weather?
SEE YOU THIS WEEKEND!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
June 14, 2010
Don't forget - next Saturday's Participation Emphasis is for the girls, any age, skipper or crew. Would it be amazing to see all 8 of our female skippers on the line! The next Saturday, the 26th, is for the 30-somethings!
The first Patio Party will be earlier than announced. Mitzi Wade has the greatest patio at the club and wants all of us - sailing or not - to come by Saturday the 26th about 5:30. Bring your favorite beverage, some nibbles, and whatever you will take to the AYC cookout at the point.
Last Sunday with our first Participation Emphasis day was amazing! We had 10 snipes on the line, a good breeze, four 60+ skippers sailing and 3 watching as John, with his 2 first place finishes, showed everyone that being over 60 certainly doesn't have to slow you down.
From Kathy B
WELLLL--LAST TUESDAY NIGHT WAS A BUMMER--NO WIND--BUT TOMORROW FORECAST IS FOR 5-10 MPH WHICH IS PERFECTTTTT--ALSO I WILL HAVE MY SNIPE RIGGED AND READY TO GO FOR ANYONE TO SAIL---I KNOW THERE ARE TIME ISSUES WITH WORK AND PREPARING A BOAT FOR SAILING------SO THINK ABOUT IT--JUMP IN AND GO--REMEMBER SAILING BETWEEN 6 AND 8 PM--SEE YOU AT THE LAKE--KATHY
June 1, 2010
Tuesday June 1 is the first day of Kathy's evening sailing - any time after 4. This is the perfect time for insecure crews and skippers (club members or not) to get started sailing! Just come on up!! This will occur every Tuesday until the end of July.
The snipes are hosting the first of AYC Saturday suppers next Saturday. That means we want to show up in numbers about 6:30 - the usual meat to grill, dish to share format. We need a volunteer to light the fire and one to help return stuff to the kitchen afterwards. RSVP if you can help.
Fleet races - Antonio has overtaken Don in the race for trophies (both have "perfect" scores!). As both will be picking up extra bonus points by going to the Beaufort and Charleston regattas the next two weekends, this will be an interesting competition. Speaking of extra bonus points if you let a junior skipper one race, don't forget that the club will be crawling with juniors on June 5-6. That is the perfect time to see if one of them will be the perfect crew you have been looking for! The 5th is also the first of the Participation Emphasis categories for the year - juniors as skippers or crews!!
NO RACES on June 12 because of the Junior Championship. The Participation Emphasis category of Grand Master (60+ as skipper or crew will be held on Sunday the 13th.
We are postponimg the after-race Saturday get-togethers for a few weeks - just too much going on until after junior week!
June is busting out all over!
SAILING TUESDAY EVENINGS
COME WHEN YOU CAN--I WILL PROBABLY BE UP AT AYC BETWEEN 4 PM AND 5 PM----STARTING THE FIRST TUESDAY IN JUNE AND CONTINUING UNTIL THE LAST
TUESDAY IN JULY
WE WILL TRY TO HAVE A VARIETY OVER THE 2 MONTHS OF SHORT RACES--DRILLS OF ALL KINDS TO IMPROVE BOAT HANDLING SKILLS AND ANYTHING ELSE WE MIGHT LIKE TO TRY!!
THIS IS A GREAT TIME FOR KIDS TO JOIN IN AND A LESS STRESSFUL ENVIRONMENT FOR NEWER SAILORS AND A GREAT WAY FOR ALL OF US TO PRACTICE AND I HOPE A GREAT WAY FOR ALL OF US TO GET TO KNOW EACH
OTHER BETTER!!
START MAKING YOUR PLANS AND SEE YOU AT THE LAKE!!
ANY QUESTIONS CALL OR E-MAIL KATHY BRONAUGH
May Fleet News By Fleet Captain Peggy Davis
May 16, 2010
Fleet scoring (see online): Don leads, followed closely by Max and Lee. There is still lots of time to catch them!!!!
Upcoming regattas with snipe participation (bonus points available):
LET"S SUPPORT THESE NEW SNIPE AREAS!! Each of them is a really good venue for sailing.
Lake Norman May 22-23
Charleston, SC James Island June 19
Beaufort SC June 26-27
Fleet activities : We will begin cabin get-togethers between each Saturday race and the Saturday sipper at the club. Please plan to make as many as you can. We'll meet at 5:30 so you have time to clean up, everyone will bring nibbles and beverages, and then we will go to the point to show the others how active the snipes are! (Bring a meat to grill and a dish to share) Schedule TBD
We will also institute a "Participation Emphasis" (either skipper or crew) for each Saturday during the summer. Reward for those in the category who sail is still to be determined, but the main thing is to get compatible groups participating together. Schedule:
June 5 = juniors (not yet 21)
June 12 - grand masters (over 60)
June 19 - ladies
June 25 - thirty something
July 10 - twenties
July 17 - forties
July 24 - fifties
Fleet news:
The Millikens have bought the Van Hutten house!!! This means not only will Craig's family spend some time here this summer, but when Joan reaches retirement in Charlotte, they will permanently settle here at AYC!!!!
Scoring Tweak possibly needed
As the last two new snipes (the Viveiroses and Mitchells) both have wives who are skippers in their own right, and several other families may have members who decide to start skippering regularly, we need to anticipate that they may want to be scored as a team or as individuals.(They would make the final decision as to whether they want to be scored individually or as a team.) The executive committee will come up with a concrete proposal for scoring them individually soon, but we need your input.
Case 1: They want to be scored as a team. This means that all results, bonus points, and qualification credit would apply to the boat, regardless of who is skippering it. ( Sub -case: what happens if only one of the team is sailing? Thought seems to predominate that if the primary owner / skipper is skippering, results would count, but if they have a junior or potential member skippering, they would be eligible for the bonus point but the score would not count against them)
Case 2: They want to be scored separately: To qualify for trophies or Club Championship, the number of races each participates in as skipper or crew would be considered. A minimum number of skippered races would be required (half of that required for a regular skipper?)
Bonus points would be awarded to the skipper only - if a family member skippered one race and the owner / primary skipper skippered the other, each would receive 2 points.
Let us know what you think!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
May 3, 2010
MEMBER NEWS:
Another new snipe owner - Robert Mitchell (yes, the Thistle fleet captain) has added a snipe to his stable of boats. We expect that Lauren will be added to the list of female skippers, and that Katie will be competing for the junior trophy. What exciting news!!!
Antonio and Fernanda "Kiwi" Viveiros are now officially AYC members. They will provide not only excellent sailing skills but enthusiasm as well. Add them to your AYC book. email: aviveiros@na.ko.com
Phone will be sent out with next blurb.
Welcome!
REGATTA NEWS:
Lots of junior snipe sailors participated in the AYC Opti regatta / clinic this weekend: Evie and Carlyn Blauvelt,Finn Haisty, Anna and Katie Mitchell, Lucy and Ellie Spearman, Max and Carly Irvine, and Chris McCaffrey. Orren and Sally Williams, Craig Milliken, and Don Hackbarth were RC.
The Southern Snipe Championship in Birmingham was also this weekend. Only Tom and Lee went over, sailing 3 races on Saturday and none on Sunday because of high winds. BSC sailor and organizer, Michael Papp, topped his weekend by winning the regatta, ahead of Tom Henderson by 1/4 point! Gene Soltero, SCIRA Vice National Secretary was there from Dallas. What a shame more of you did not get to meet him - he's a valued friend form our sailing days! We need to do a better job promoting this regatta next year.
There is a new snipe website started by Clay Burnup (Martin and Julie's grandson - Clayton's cousin) http://snipesailing.com . Clay states "SnipeSailing.com < http://snipesailing.com > is a new community site for Snipe sailors. I am currently in school for web development, and I am testing the skills I have learned so far by building a website. I used to sail in District 4 and hope to get back into Snipe sailing when time allows me to." We hope to get him sailing with us soon - he still has his old Skipper Snipe.
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April Fleet News
By Peggy Davis
April 26th
Remember, the club is hosting our Opti regatta this weekend so there are no fleet races Saturday. If you have never attended a large Opti event, it is quite a spectacle!! We expect 50+ boats from 7 fleets in
6 states to be here. If you are not going to Birmingham , come up for a look at our future Snipe sailors in action. I WANT TO AGAIN PROMOTE SNIPES BY LETTING KIDS OR PARENTS SKIPPER / CREW IN SUNDAY'S POINT SCORE RACES. If you are willing to offer this (and pick up bonus points), let me know by Friday. I will try to let you know Saturday night if you have a prospect, but what with running this regatta with all its details, I do not promise. I'd suggest bringing a crew along in case we do not need you.
Fleet point score results are posted on the web. Max Hardage and Don Hackbarth are tied for first with Lee Bradley and Kathy Bronaugh close behind. Woody McLean leads Danny Williams in the junior competition.
The Open is history. While we lost a lot of sailors because of the storms Saturday, we did have 14 snipes and the racing was great on Sunday. There is a new younger fleet coming: Lauren McLean sailed with a member of the GA Sailing Team, and Greg Kibler and his son William tried their hand at racing for the first time. The winners also show a lot of new faces!
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David Muhlhausen in his new snipe with Ryan Ingram crewing
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Max Hardage with crew Andrew Battigagli, also a GA Tech sailor, were taking time off from pre-exam week.
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New members Antonio and "Kiwi" Viveiros - the first time they have launched their new snipe
Upcoming snipe regattas:
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Birmingham Southern Snipe Champs next weekend, May 1-2
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Lake Norman Yacht Club (Charlotte) Hospice Regatta May 21- 23 (This is listed in the AYC book with the wrong date.)
Fleet Meeting
The next fleet meeting is May 8 at Clayton's barn. 6:30. Bring a meat to grill and a big dish to share. For you new members, this is very casual, with cows mooing and kids running around outside. It's just down the road from the club, so plan to come on over after the races.
April 10th
Meeting at the point, April 17 in conjunction with the Opti Clinic. Bring a meat to grill and a dish to share.
AYC Open April 24-25. You can sail single or double-handed! We have out of town boats coming. Let's get our fleet on the line - 30+ snipes will really make an impression!!!
Larry Bull wins 1st ever Mentoring Team competition . Three of his team weighed their boats on Saturday. Congratulations!!
I am attaching the complete list of mentoring teams (at least I hope it is now complete - I found some missing sailors, so Leaders please note that you may have an additional sailor to encourage.) If your captain does not contact you, contact him and let me know!!!!
For those of you who did not get to the lake on Saturday, you missed a nearly perfect sailing day . We old-timers learned a long time ago that you can not forecast the weather at the lake. You need to come up and be ready to go sailing! Results are posted on the web.
We will weigh boats again from 12 - 1 Saturday the 10th and Sunday the 11th, our next race days. The main purpose of weighing is to let you know if your boat has a problem that you did not know of, like a leak that could be dangerous in a capsize situation. I hope to get all remaining boats weighed then so that everyone can be scored.
Scoring is going to be very complex this year. Please check the new yearbook and verify if the boat number listed there is the SAIL number you will be using . Let me know ASAP so that you can get credit for your races.
I plan to be at the point from 1 - 1:45 each race day to record who is skippering your boat. If you tell me that you will skipper the first race and crew the second and then you change your mind, please email me by Monday night. If at any time you are using a different sail number, let me know. I will post the results on the web every Tuesday.
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Changes for 2010
Meetings
1: Fleet Captain will get a group of three families to serve as hosts for a meeting each month, set up locations and dates, and publicize them as early as possible.
2: The family hosting a meeting in their house /cabin shall incur no costs. The fleet will pay for paper goods, soft drinks, (meat?) etc if it is a dish to share format. If the hosts desire to cater the meal, either the fleet will pay or individuals will pay at the meeting - no more than $10 each - with the fleet picking up necessary overage.
Fleet Races
3: Fleet races will be scheduled every Saturday and Sunday that a Race Committee is available between Commissioning and Halloween.
Proposal 4: We continue to adopt the snipe bonus point system that adds 10 points to the average score for each race sailed in a series up to 15 races.
At the January meeting it was suggested that the fleet consider adopting a scoring system other than SCIRA's. If this is done the amount of bonus points will be changed. The decision will be made at next meeting, February 20.
Proposal 5: There will be a Spring Series (with trophies) consisting of all fleet races between Commissioning and Junior Week. All races sailed will be scored.
Changed at the January meeting to end the last weekend of June
6: There will be a Fall Series (with trophies) consisting of all fleet races between the first of August and Halloween. All races sailed will be scored.
7: During July there will be great flexibility. If a snipe is sailed by its owner / usual skipper with a crew, the results will be counted toward the Yearly Series (with trophies). If it is sailed single-handed, it will not count toward the season results.
Prior wording of "summer" changed to clarify the time period covered.
8: Special emphasis days will be scheduled to encourage more participation from a specific group (For example: a junior in the boat, a female in the boat, a person over 50 in the boat, a person in their 20's in the boat, etc.)
Proposal 9: Extra bonus points and qualification credit will be awarded the skipper of any snipe sailing in a regatta that causes him to miss a fleet race. Skipper's fleet average will not be affected by regatta results but 15 bonus points will be added to his score for each fleet race missed up to the SCIRA maximum 15. If the maximum of 15 races has been reached, skipper will receive a 5 point bonus for each fleet race missed because of the regatta.
At the January meeting it was suggested that the fleet consider adopting a scoring system other than SCIRA's. If this is done the amount of bonus points will be changed. The decision will be made at next meeting, February 20.
10: The Top Junior Fleet 330 Perpetual Trophy shall be awarded at the end of the year to the junior skipper (SCIRA definition – not yet 22) who has the best average for any 8 fleet races sailed with no bonus points considered. If the boat owner/usual skipper crews for the junior, the bonus points will go to the usual skipper with his average unaffected by results.
There will be no change to the way the skippers are chosen for the Club Championship. (Per page 32 of the AYC rulebook) 2 ½ weeks prior to the event, the top 3 snipe skippers who have sailed in 50% of the fleet races sailed to date or 10 races, whichever is less, plus Don Hackbarth as present Club Champion, would be chosen to represent out fleet. No bonus points would be considered.
There will be no change in the way the trophy winners for the season are chosen. There will be trophies for the top 3 skippers, as well as for the Bill Lynn, Most Improved Sailor, Outstanding Service, and Captain's Choice. Bonus points will be included in calculating the winners.
Other Sailing Events
11: Kathy Bronaugh will head a Tuesday after-work sailing group. Emphasis is on developing sailing skills through drills such as Greg Fisher used at the Snipe Week Clinic, and helping our less experienced skippers feel comfortable enough in their boats to be willing to sail in the point score races.
12: If the club sponsors Coached Races on weekend mornings, the snipe fleet will support them by coaching from club motorboats, taking out beginners in their snipes, letting juniors skipper / crew on their snipes, and crewing on less-experienced sailor's snipes. If the club does not offer these opportunities, the snipe fleet will schedule some training activities of their own.
13: The ALIGO (At Last I Got One) regatta shall be reinstated on the weekend opposite the Nationals. This would be open to anyone who has not won a trophy in a snipe regatta or fleet series.
Halloween Regatta
14: A committee will be established to begin considering changes to the present format of Halloween, headed by the Vice Fleet Captain. Items being considered are increasing the cost to the participants to cover anticipated loss, creation of a reduced registration fee to junior skippers and/or first time snipe regatta or Halloween participants, elimination of mugs, change of band or format, clinic etc. to reduce costs. Input to the members of this committee is sought from all fleet members.
Members of the Executive Committee will be joined by John Muhlhausen, Courtney and Lee Bradley. Kathy Bronaugh will head this committee. Please forward all suggestion for change or no change to them.
2009 News Archive