57th Annual Governors' Cup a Success

August proved to be another busy month with our sailing activities which started with the 57th Annual Governors Cup Regatta. The event was a success thanks to the dedication of Scott Titus and the Committee members who supported it. Special thanks to club members Bill and Layne Brown, Clayton James, Jane Smith and Gary Hermanson. We ended up with a respectable showing of 43 boats and despite challenges with the weather on both days, the RC did a good job adjusting for the wind conditions and managed to get in 4 races on Saturday. Unfortunately weather moved in on Sunday and all races were cancelled. Nevertheless, the sailors and crew managed to make the most of it and had a terrific time.

This years Governors Cup Trophy went to Gordon Stokes, winner of the Hampton One Design fleet which had 14 boats represented. This was followed by the Albacores with 8 boats, Lasers, Buccaneers, a PHRF Class and our Opti Fleet. This years Chamber of Commerce Cup recipient, awarded to the Top participating skipper under age 18, went to William Sutten in a Laser Radial. And the Congressman’s Cup, awarded for sportsmanship throughout the regatta, went to OPTI sailor, John Ackerly. John also took 1st in the OPTI Green fleet. Congrats to all the winning skippers and their crews !!

Now to Fleet business. As I mentioned, we had plenty of sailing activity in August and with the addition of new members, continued to expand our adult sailing program and had over 8 folks checked out on club boats. Our keel boat is securely moored in front of the club and available for use. I also plan to keep a few Lasers and Albacores available for use thru October so please take advantage. I‘ve also confirmed rumors of a Ladies group who are sailing regularly on Saturday’s…………….terrific !! For any ladies who might like to know more please send me an email.

Lastly, we have divested ourselves of our 25’ Irwin “Gabby” and are now down to one keel boat, our 26’ Paceship Wagtail. If you would like to get checked out on this boat for use, please let me know. My plan is to add an additional Keel boat by next year so we have 2 solid, reliable vessels members can have access to. There is still plenty of sailing season left so I hope to see you out on the water.

Happy Sailing,

Jim Garrett - Fleet

Albacores, Albacores everywhere...........

July was filled with lots of boating activity as the Club saw 2 sessions of Junior Sailing Classes, Adult Sailing Saturday with Joe Morgan featuring Albacore and Laser instruction, and of course the Albacore Nationals.

The highlight of the month was the Club’s hosting of the Albacore Nationals, which went off without a hitch thanks to the dedicated Club members who did a FANTASTIC job helping our core committee organize and work the event. My biggest shout outs go to Layne Brown (who wore multiple hats) , Jane Smith and Jane Wilson (Food) John Singleton & team (RC), Gary Hermanson (Logistics), Joe Morgan (Event shirts) and Trish Schengber and Carolyn August ( goodies for the SWAG bags) There were many other members who donated time, talents and or boats and to all of them I say………….THANK YOU !! We couldn’t have done it without you.

I also want to mention Hayes Sailmakers who provided the tote bags made from old sail cloth! Thanks Phil !

We ended up with 21 boats registered and 20 that started the series. Despite some tough wind situations mid-day Saturday we finally managed to get in 3 races and another 3 on Sunday (One was a bit long). All in all it was a big success and the sailors all commented on what a terrific place Ware River is to sail, and host these events. For those of you who know the Albacore class, Barney Harris, a top Albacore sailor for years took first place in the Presidents Fleet. For those skippers who had never sailed in the Class Nationals before, there is the Challenger Fleet, and in that division our own Joe Morgan took first place. Congrats to Barney with crew Lee Mullins and Joe with crew Ian Palmer, and all the winners !

We still have some great looking long sleeve rash guard shirts from the Nationals available for sale in multiple sizes. Please see me or Layne Wilson if interested.

As I write this article we are getting ready for the Governors Cup Regatta and looking forward to another active weekend on the Ware River. I hope to see YOU at the Club soon!

Respectfully

Jim Garrett - Fleet

Putting the 'Social' back into WRYC

Greetings ! To update our Social Committee plans, which are still in the planning stages, we will be having our annual Governor”s Cup Regatta. Yea!!!! Registration will be done totally online with a check -in station that morning.

Meals will be handled by Va. Blue Crab Co. food truck offering breakfast, lunch and dinner on Saturday and breakfast and lunch on Sunday. It will be a seafood inspired menu with non seafood options as well. We have not yet finalized the choices as yet, but will keep members informed. This is one of our biggest events and we are trying hard to be able to host this while keeping safe so we can continue with this tradition. If you wish to participate in any of the meals, we would appreciate you making a reservation……particularly for dinner so enough food will be available.

We would also like you to be aware that friends of members are welcome. The outside picnic tables or the screened porch will be available for your enjoyment. There is also a charcoal grill that is can be used as a dinner option. Just make sure the grill embers are all burned out and cool before you leave.

This is our first Social Plan since the outbreak of the Coronavirus and we know everyone would love to see friends and enjoy the WRYC as usual, and we are planning with your safety in mind. We will see how this goes before making any future plans. We will keep you updated.

Looking forward to seeing many of you in August!!!

Social Chairs: Alice Bredin-Karny & Jane Smith