The Annual Russ Schurtz Memorial Dad/Mom/Lad/Lass race is now scheduled to be sailed at 6pm on August 20th.  That’s a Friday night; members please come out on the water and cheer on your favorite sailors! A backup date of August 22nd at 2pm has also been marked should it be needed.  This may be the last opportunity for the X parents to showcase their skills in front of the fleet this year; let’s hope they don’t let this one slip away!

PARTY LOCATION CHANGE – E fleet – Kristin Ebeling, the Lead Angel and Fleet Captain advises the annual E Fleet Party will be held at the Ebeling house starting at 5pm, Sunday August 8th. Food and drink will be provided, if you’re particular about your spirits, go ahead and bring your own… Please RSVP Kristin by calling or texting the Angel Hotline – 515.208.2530.

Stay in love with our club to the rhythm of a steel drum band on August 14th…  The party, which will feature a steel drum band, will take place at the Oz residence on South Shore Dr; not on a fictional island around the Florida Keys. Why not wear your favorite island garb and enjoy the night at one of our favorite host locations!?!

Given the current participation in the X racing program and the potential for further participation; the Sailing Center is in dire need of two (2) new coach boats.  A tradition of great racers from Clear Lake runs deep; these boats are necessary to train and coach the sailors of the future; the current RIB (rigid inflatable boat), which there’s only one of, is 20 years old…. That makes me feel old as I was part of that purchase years ago; I’m guessing that boat has gained just as much grey hair as I have!  The Center has done a lot of work to reach their goals and they have a source which will match funds; with that said, we need to help them raise another $15,000 in order for those matching funds to become available.  Let’s give it everything we have and help them carry on the great racing tradition! If you’re curious what the donations will look like, take a look here; Zodiac Pro. Please send donations to the following address:

CLYCSS
PO Box 29
Clear Lake, IA 50428

In regatta racing news, the youth sailors have returned from Pewaukee and what a great experience it was!  Several top 15 race finishes, a few times leading races in fact.  All-in-all a fantastic experience to learn from and build upon.  Our top Junior Fleet sailor was Leif Lundberg and crew Isaac Smith, while our top Senior Fleet sailor was Sam Ludwig and crew Griffin Harris.  Two points not to forget: 1. All of the X sailors are back again next year in the X boat, with more boats possible!  2. Clear Lake hosts the X Inland Championship next year!  What a great event that will be I’m sure!

Next up on the regatta calendar are the ILYA Championships, aka the Big Inland in Okoboji for the four major scow classes. The A’s and MC’s will start the week off; registering Sunday, August 15th with racing the 16th -18th.  The E’s and C’s will end the week with registration on Wednesday, August 18th and racing the 19th – 21st.  As of right now we have 5 MC’s, 3 C’s and 2 E’s registered for the event.  I know we can do better than that; we really should do better than that!  Let’s go sailors, it’s the closest the ILYA Champs are ever going to be; let’s make a really good showing from Clear Lake.

In local racing news; on Saturday afternoon the E boats kept it very interesting… At least entertaining for the rest of to watch!  Both races came down to the wire with team Z-9 coming out on top over the Z-94 of Eric Protzman and crew.  All 3 C boats made it out to get some practice in before the Inland; unfortunately I don’t have the results from their racing though it looked very close from my far off vantage point.  The MC’s got 2021’d (no wind) out Saturday morning, however, they were able to get two quality races in on Sunday morning.  The name of the game was patience and boat speed; in the end it was Todd Tesar winning the day with finishes of 1,2 in the shifty, building breeze.  Great sailing Todd!

A reminder to the race spectators; please be mindful of your position on the water and what boats, no matter the fleet, are around you. We know you want to get a birds eye view of the action, rightfully so, it’s not fair to be in the way of someone else racing to get that view however.  Please be mindful of your position on the water and what boats, no matter the fleet, are around you.  Thank you from all the racers.

Blooper nominations are becoming plentiful…. Keep them coming!!!

For Sale:  1999 Melges X Boat, complete with Melges trailer, newer full deck cover, envelope cover, 2 mainsails, 1 jib.  All rigging updated in 2019.  Meticulously maintained. – Available after Labor Day – $5500 – Contact Marcus Lundberg at 507-363-0634

Stay in the Clear Air,

Dan Allen
MC 2811 – Relentless
dsallen@cltel.net
www.clyciowa.com
www.clycss.com