June 2015 Official Publication of Alamitos Bay Yacht Club Volume 88 • Number 6 senior sabotnationals Todd Smith photos BYC was proud to host the 57th Senior Sabot Nationals in early June in the home waters of the Naples Sabot. Our club’s storied history in the Class coupled with our reputation of first class race management helped attract a great A showing of 46 boats from throughout . In addition to our host fleet from ABYC, we had sailors participating from Bahia Corinthian Yacht Club, Balboa Yacht Club, Leeway Sailing Center, Mission Bay Yacht Club, Newport Harbor Yacht Club, Yacht Club, and Santa Barbara Sailing Club. Road trailers from our visiting yacht clubs started arriving Friday. San Diego YC boasted a contingent of 12 boats and this was a nice testimony to the dedication to the Sabot class from their club. ABYC hosted a lovely welcome party in conjunction with our normal Friday Happy Hour and Sabotiers were treated to a delicious Taco bar dinner. Saturday morning greeted us with typical June gloom skies and light air racing earlier in the day followed later by sunny skies and breeze on conditions. Fleets included the Grand Masters (for those 65 years young and then some), the Clydesdales for the more manly men (greater than 220 lbs. of girth), Masters Gold, Masters Silver, and the hyper-

Close finish in the Seniors Fleet competitive Seniors Fleet (minimum of 18 years old). A good number of the racers have been sailing Sabots since their Junior years and the Class continues to groom top flight sailors. Amongst those racing were multi class champion Mark Gaudio, collegiate All American and undefeated Clydesdale champion Jeff McDermaid, World Champion George Szabo, and two time Lido 14 champion Mark Ryan. Given the large turn out, our PRO Steve Kuritz organized the racing so that about half the fleets were racing at any given time. This kept the clutter under control on the water and gave sailors some time on shore to catch up with Weather mark action in the Masters Gold Class. Tom Newton (#8343) learns the hard way that coming in on the port tack layline at the first rounding is a high risk move Jeff...continued Merrill photo page 8 inside Manager’s Corner ...... 2 Commodore’s Comments...... 2 sav e the date Vice Verses ...... 3 Ukelele Lessons ...... July 7 & 21 Rear View ...... 4 4th of July Regatta ...... July 11-12 Junior Sailing...... 4-5 Multihull Regatta ...... July 18-19 Rules Quiz #12 & Answer ...... 5 & 10 Special Olympics ...... July 24 - Aug 2 Dinner on the Deck ...... 7 Sabot Jr Champioship ...... August 3-6 OCR & LBRW Photos ...... 8-9 Pine Block Regatta...... August 9 Hails From the Fleets ...... 11 Catalina Cruise ...... August 21-23 Catalina Cruise ...... 12 Full ABYC Calendar sou’wester • july 2015 • page 1 manager’scorner

ith California experiencing one of the worst droughts in recent history, I’d like to take this opportunity to talk about water. Water is essential to our daily lives, and as we all W should know by now, our supplies are very limited. So please use water wisely. Some of the efforts that are staff are undertaking to help conserve water include using pitchers rather than hoses to water plants to prevent over-watering, and using a broom rather than a hose to clean the patio and sidewalks around the club. Some suggestions for ways that members can help save water at the club could include: limiting shower times to 5 minutes or less, making sure hoses in the yard are properly shut off after use, and minimizing water usage when hosing off boats. One member told me he that prefers to take a sponge to clean his boat after sailing, to save water, and I thought this was a great idea. So hopefully by the time you are reading this, we will have buckets with sponges located at the main hoses near the hoists, and members should be encouraged to utilize them for that purpose. If you have any other ideas or suggestions for ways we can reduce our impact during these water-conscious times, please do not hesitate to let me know. I’d love to hear them all. Thank you and see you down at the club! Tori commodore’scompass

oly middle of July Batman. Where does the time go, it is ripping along and you better get down to your boat, clean it up and get out on the water before summer leaves you in the H dust. There is so much going on it is hard to keep up so you better keep a very close eye on the weekly reader and online calendar. We just came off hosting the Senior Sabot Nationals with Todd Smith as regatta chair and he pulled of an amazing event. Congratulations go out to Masters Gold Division - Robin Townsend, Masters Silver Division - Kathy Weishample, Grand Masters Division - John Ellis, Clydesdale Division - Jeff McDermaid almost a clean sweep for ABYC! Dinner on the deck was a huge hit and if you missed it I would highly suggests you catch the next one! Lori Vanskyhock greeted the couple’s when they walked up the stairs, issued their bottle of wine and directed them to their tables. The staff did an amazing job serving the food and Chef Rick pulled out all the stops for an amazing roasted duck dinner with a “off the hook” inside out chocolate Sunday! Thank you Cindy Heavrin for making this new event a special one. Special Olympics are right around Bronny Daniels photo the corner and if you are one of the 94 volunteers that have committed to 7 days, Thank You! We are encouraging all members to come down to the pier and watch these amazing athletes compete. It will be an experience that you do not want to miss. Go to www.la2015.org for all of the details and time of events. Coming soon you will see an upgraded weekly reader that will have a cleanerKathy Robinson look and photo will be a little easer to navigate through. Don’t worry we are not going to mess with the colorful content that we all look forward to reading every week! Once again, get down to the club and enjoy summer! Cheers, Chuck

Chuck Clay, Mark Townsend and LBYC Commodore John Fleishman

sou’wester • july 2015 • page 2 viceverses Step 1 ello all fellow members, Apparently summer is here, I know this for a fact because one hundred smiling faces H have returned to ABYC! Remember, help them to learn the ABYC way and encourage them to enjoy the sport which brought us all to the ABCY family! Some other things to remember to make the summer at our club enjoyable for everyone: 1. If you are leaving your car or truck in the yard over night or for an extended period of time (going to the Island), please remember to let the office know and either drop a spare key off with the office or place it in the key drop box on the wall next to the galley. 2. Try to keep your stuff neat and tidy (we are working dillagently with the young sailors on this also.) 3. Parking in the lot is for full members or Independent Junior members that have a current valid driver’s license and are driving the car only. 4. Please only put your boats in spots which are registered to you, if you need to leave your boat at the club please check in with the office or it shall be impounded and you will be required to pay the impound fee as well as the daily storage fee. 5. If you are planning to leave your boat in the water – the city is being tough on the sign up process. Please sign your boat up on the list on the wall in the quarter deck restroom area. The city is giving tickets to bats which are not signed up. Also, there is a three day limit. Big brother is checking! Other things and happenings: We are almost done with the main club house major repairs!First Step The refer and fridge system is in and running, all the walls are repaired and painted, flooring has been installed on the main deck areas, and the staff is moved back into their offices. The laminate has been replaced upstairs and the molding and transition will be done in the near future! Thank you for your understanding during this process! Requests for bids have been made for the repair of the one-ton hoist – we are looking into fixes that will get it up for the summer with the major work to be done after Labor Day. If it is possible and economically feasible that is what we will do! Remember, fiberglass can be fixed but bodies are more difficult, so until further notice the one-ton hoist will remain closed to use. Have a great July! Latham

Sou’Wester DEADLINE Help us to Help you! Please keep your e-mail address current July 18, 2015 is the deadline with [email protected] to receive all for the August Sou’Wester. of the weekly news and events. Thank you.

2014/15 OFFICERS & DIRECTORS

Commodore Chuck Clay Treasurer Nicole Peoples [email protected] Vice Commodore Latham Bell Junior Commodore Beth Golison [email protected] Rear Commodore Steve Smith Fleet Surgeon Angela Albright [email protected] Fleet Captain Kevin Brown Judge Advocate Tom Ramsey [email protected] Fleet Chaplain Don Reiman Secretary Jeff McDermaid [email protected] Port Captain Dave Myers/Dave Schack Jr. Staff Commodore Jennifer Kuritz [email protected] Sou’wester Editor/Layout Sharon Pearson Directors [email protected] Junior Program Yon Carpenter Weekly Reader Glenn Selvin [email protected] [email protected] Membership Cindy Heavrin [email protected] ABYC Phone (562) 434-9955 Volunteers Tim Carter Homepage www.abyc.org [email protected] Email [email protected]

sou’wester • july 2015 • page 3 rearview

DINNER ON THE DECK Thursday June 11th Judging from the comments of those taking part, a new event on the ABYC calendar this year and brain child of Cindy Heavrin, Dinner on the Deck, was an unqualified success. Diners were served at table’s set-up on the east facing balcony, by attentive ABYC staff while overlooking picturesque Alamitos Bay watching the sailboats parade down the channel returning from Thursday evening races in the ocean. Dinner included Gazpacho, Crusted Duck Breast, Vegetable entrees, Desert and included one bottle of choice Pinot Noir or Chardonnay. The event was a near sell- out and with all the positive responses, we are considering a second Dinner on the Deck for later this summer or early fall. Watch this space for details. WHAT DO YOU WANT TO SEE AND DO AT ABYC? Wednesday evening July 8th Join us for our monthly Social Advisory Committee (SAC) meeting and share with us what you like and or what new/past event or program you would like to see at ABYC. Your ABYC Social Advisory Committee welcomes all ABYC members to join the SAC and create, plan for, set-up and participate in ABYC social and other events. SAC meetings are held the second Wednesday evening at 7:00 p.m. each month and all interested ABYC members are welcome to attend! If you have an idea for a new or existing event, we would love to hear from you!

Please contact any of us for more information: Kathy Robinson: [email protected] (714) 292-2963 Sue McDannel: [email protected] (562) 431-9907 Lori Vanskyhock: [email protected] (562) 505-9991 Steven Smith: [email protected] (310) 849-9779 BENEFIT OF THE DROUGHT??? In case you missed the article in the Thursday June 18 Los Angeles Times, we ABYC members and guests are the beneficiaries of, “cleaner water along the coast. Water quality along Southern California’s coast improved last year amid the record low rainfall largely because lower amounts of storm runoff flowed down to the coast.” In the article Alamitos Bay and Long Beach both received A+ grades according to Heal the Bay. So in addition to our beautiful setting, we can enjoy our beaches, Bay and Harbor more than ever. See you at ABYC. Stephen Smith

junior perspective

ummer has started and the first day of the ABYC’s summer sailing program will have been weeks ago, when this article is published. Instead of the normal “From a Junior’s Perspective” where one of our juniors writes about their Sexperiences at a regatta, this month we talked to the beginning sabot class after first day of summer sailing and what they are excited bout for summer. Most of the beginning sailors said that they are excited for summer, many are excited to earn how to sail, and some said they are scared. When asked what they were looking forward to about the summer, some said sailing, others said swimming, some said racing in Beach to Bay, while others couldn’t decide. The beginning sabot class had, as many kids put it, “a fun first day”. Beginning sailors did a swim test, capsize drill, and many other fun activities with their coaches. Some kids thought that the swimming test was the best part of the day, while others had some tears before they jumped in, but by the end everyone had a smile on their face. The beginning sailors said that they couldn’t wait to get in their boats and go sailing. One beginning sailor showed off his opti and said that he found a spider web in his boat because as he said “I haven’t sailed it in a long time, maybe 1000 years”. With a long summer ahead these juniors will get lots of time to learn sailing skills, make memories, and have fun. Julia Jaynes

sou’wester • july 2015 • page 4 junior sailing

he 2015 Summer Sailing Program has officially begun! With full classes and a coaching staff of 12, our youngsters are on the water learning all they can before Tthe Junior Sabot Nationals come to town in early August. Our beginner class has successfully capsized and passed their swim tests while our Intermediates are mastering the art of making sails out of trash bags. Our racing kids are hard at work to perfect their skills with the help of their great coaches. A lot of practice, cruising, and racing is in store for the summer so keep an eye out for our sailors in the bay and in the ocean all month long. This year we have a few returning coaches and some new ones to make up the staff. If you see them around don’t forget to introduce yourself. There’s a lot of talent floating around the yacht club these days so if you even need an extra set of hands on any boat, don’t hesitate to ask a coach! Allie

racing rulesquiz #12

ule Rule 19, Definition Obstruction R The situation occurs in the pre-start, with approximately 1 minute to the starting signal. Yellow and Blue, reaching on starboard tack, approach an anchored boat. The boat is anchored on the starboard layline to the race committee boat. Yellow is clear ahead of Blue at positions 1 and 2. Yellow is steering a course to pass astern of the anchored spectator boat. At position 3, less than three boat lengths from the spectator boat, yellow luffs to cross the boats bow and Blue immediately becomes overlapped to windward. Blue hails for room and Yellow bears away sharpley and protests.

What rules apply? How should the protest be decided?

...answer on page 7

sou’wester • july 2015 • page 5 moresenior sabot nationals ...from page 1 each other. Following Saturday’s racing, sailors were greeted on the dock by hostess Stacy Conn and ice cold Pacifico on tap complete with limes. Of course Stacy’s dad Eric was on hand to assist once he heard about the free beer! Chef Rick served up a wonderful Italian themed dinner Saturday evening (remember, this is the Naples Sabot after all). We would like to thank our regatta sponsors who helped add the extra social goodies including Bedford Boats (yes, we have a top flight builder of Sabots alive and well), Gresham Boards, and Ullman Sails. Sunday arrived with sunny skies and more wind. The breeze continued to build in the day with mid teens breeze and puffs recorded around 20 knots. These conditions shook up the standings where those blessed with extra mass were able to shine with the added wind. There has been a long time standing myth that our Vice Commodore Latham Bell hikes off the rail of his Sabot when the breeze comes up. We actually now have photographic evidence that this story is Latham Bell on the rail (the photographer geeked out at the visual and rushed the photograph) indeed factually correct! In addition to hosting the regatta, ABYC excelled at the trophy podium. Long time Sabotier and Fleet Measurer John Ellis captured first in the Grand Masters class. Robin Townsend captured her second Masters Gold championship with Fred Stevens coming in third. In Masters Silver, Kathy Weishampel was champion and Jeff McDermaid once again claimed the Clydesdale trophy (proudly displayed again at ABYC). In the Seniors fleet, Jim Otis came in a solid second (remember, Jim was a two time Junior Sabot champion), Matt McDermaid came in fourth, and Freddie Stevens came in fifth. Freddie was happy to see Matt do well given that Freddie used to coach Matt as a Junior. This year’s Senior Sabot Nationals had a great vibe and all our ABYC volunteers and club staff are to be congratulated for their efforts in hosting a successful regatta. Todd Smith

Silver Fleet.Masters Gold fleet downwind racing action

Got Sails?

The Juniors are collecting old sails to recycle into duffle bags and other gear. Clean out your boat and garage! Simply drop off your old

Kathy Weishampel (#9574) coming in fast to the finish line in sails in the designated collection the Masters bin in the junior room. sou’wester • july 2015 • page 6 dinneron the deck Lori VanSkyhock photos

hen Membership Director Cindy Heavrin approached the idea of a special dinner outside on the upper deck, she had reservations (no pun intended) as to whether or not it would elevate to her hopeful standards. But on WThursday, June 11, a special dinner of Tropical Gazpacho, Crusted Duck Breast, Blood Orange Cous-Cous and Mango Grilled Asparagus was served to the lucky diners who had reserved their seats for Chef Rick’s Special Wine Dinner. Guests were served by ABYC staff members Rick and Kelly Rose, Jenny LaForce, Lori VanSkyhock, and ABYC club manager, Tori Kasik. The specially selected three-course dinner also included a bottle of the night’s featured Chardonnay or Pinot Noir, chosen by Chef Rick to compliment the exquisite meal. While dining on the deck, guests enjoyed the view of sailboats gently gliding into the bay at sunset and intimate conversation, while they finished the evening with a unique Inside-Out Hot Fudge Sundae which commanded “ooohs and aaahs” as it was presented to each table. Everyone is already inquiring when the next special Dinner on the Deck will be, and what fabulous creation Chef Rick will turn out. Bon Appétit!

sou’wester • july 2015 • page 7 Olympic Classes Regatta Tracy Downing photo OCR 2015 long beach race week Stephanie Gwinn photos

sou’wester • july 2015 • page 8 olympic classes regatta Tracy Downing photos

sou’wester • july 2015 • page 9 rules answerquiz #12

ule Rule 19, Definition Obstruction Rule 19 applies as the spectator boat is an obstruction. There is no zone around an obstruction, so Yellow being R clearahead at 3 boat lengths has no bearing. Yellow, as the right-of-way boat may choose to pass the obstruction on either side. Rule 16.1 requires that when Yellow, a right-of-boat changes course, she shall give Blue room to keep clear. Tactically Yellow wants to cross the bow of the spectator boat so she can maintain control. However, if Yellow luffs to close hauled too early, Blue can pass astern of Yellow and become the right-of-way boat. If she luffs too late she is committed to going astern of the Spectator boat and must give Blue room. If Yellow turns up at position 2, Blue will pass astern of Yellow and gain right-of- way. However, at position 3 has Yellow left it too late to luff? Can Blue respond and give room between her and the Committee Boat for Yellow? The ruling on the water was that Yellow had committed to passing astern of the Spectator Boat. At position 3, Blue does not have sufficient room to turrn up and give Yellow room between her and the Spectator Boat. Therefore Yellow must give Blue room to pass astern of the Spectator Boat. As Yellow gave room no rules were broken. Had the same incident occurred at the Race Committee then Blue would have broken rule 18. Mark Townsend

eightbells

ohn Patrick McNaughton ~ a man who lived his life with a sparkle in his eye, love in his heart and always with a story and a laugh to share. He was a lover of Jthe water and all the adventures that came with it. Having spent a million hours at Alamitos Bay and on the ocean as a sailor, a captain, a fisherman and even a surfer in his day. He said a harbor cruise and a bucket of beer could cure anything. He was an athlete, a marathon finisher, and tri-athlete. But, more than anything else, he loved people. They were oxygen to the soul for him. He was always happiest surrounded with friends and family and will be greatly missed by those who knew him, called him a Dad, Grandpa, Uncle, or Friend. Crystal McNaughton Glenning

Charity Regatta September 20th

Watch the Weekly Reader “The Beat” visits Southern California, as host Katy for Nastro gets the low down on the Long Beach Race Details Week’s Yacht Club Challenge. Katy also gets the scoop on youth sailing at the Summer Gold Cup as she discovers the stories that touch on the friendships created and fostered through sailing. Click on the above block and you’ll be taken to the YouTube site.

sou’wester • july 2015 • page 10 hails fromthe fleets

No reports submitted...bobbing aimlessly on Alamitos Bay

Jeff Merrill photos ine Block Championships – SAVE THE DATE – August 9th. Attention all block heads and those who want to be one…the annual Pine Block Championship regatta is fast P approaching and will be held on Sunday August 9th at the ABYC beach approximately 3pm – check out the ABYC.org website calendar. Please plan to come down and join in the fun, you don’t have to own a boat to race, we will compete in flights with several division honors and the chance to see your name inscribed on the Pine Block perpetual. After the races stay for a Pot Luck dining extravaganza and enjoy the trophy presentation. For more details contact Fleet Captain, Jeff Merrill 949.355.4950 [email protected]

une 6th and 7th Alamitos Bay Yacht Club hosted the Senior Sabot Nationals. Forty-seven competitors participated in the event. This was truly a heavy air event. On my last leg I the breeze was so J strong and steady, I witnessed Latham Bell of the Clydesdale Class sitting on the rail of his sabot. Mark Gaudio swamped his boat prior to the start of the final race. After six races the skippers below were first in class: Senior Class Mark Gaudio BCYC Master Gold Robin Townsend ABYC Master Silver Kathy Weishampel ABYC Grand Master John Ellis ABYC Clydesdale Jeff MacDermaid ABYC Of particular interest many of the participants have been sailing the boat since they were children. Mike Sentovich, Kevin Dumain, Jim Otis and I sailed on the bay together as children and teenagers. There were also several other groups of participants that learned to sail and race at the same time. Furthermore there were families of participants. Jeff MacDermaid and his son sailed, John Ellis and his daughters Jane and Jennifer sailed, as did my son Michael and I. Kevin Dumain and Stacy Szabo (Dumain) brother and sister sailed as did Stacy’s husband George. Thank you Todd Smith for volunteering as the regatta chair and Steve Kuritz for volunteering as the PRO. Thank you to all that volunteered to make the event possible. This was a wonderful weekend for all. Next month Sabot Sunday will be held on the 5th of July. The Dutch Shoe Marathon will be held at SDYC on July 17th. Paul

sou’wester • july 2015 • page 11 Bill Dimpfl photo

Mike Ryan photo

Bill Dimpfl photo Mike Ryan photo

Mike Ryan photo Westward

Bill Dimpfl photo

Mike Ryan photo Mike Ryan photo

sou’wester • july 2015 • page 12