Mock-up of a sign you'll see near Lake Pleasant. If you help.

Here’s a great three-fer:

1. Keep the highway to Lake Pleasant clean.
2. Have a good time with your AYC pals.
3. Spread the good name of the Arizona Yacht Club

Come and join us!! We’re looking for a few volunteers to walk 1.5 miles of State Road 74 (Carefree Highway) as it approaches the Pleasant Harbor turn. We’ll do it Saturday morning, May 19, starting at 9 am and we’ll cap it off with lunch/brunch/beer at Wild Horse West Saloon. AYC will buy lunch.

If you can help, please get in touch with Peter Lehrach at peter.lehrach@cox.com or 602.741.2016.

Here’s the deal. To earn the road sign shown in the photo, AYC needs to bag debris four times a year. We’ll provide the bags, gloves, high visibility safety vests, water, and lunch afterwards for our first pick-up. ADOT requires that volunteers be at least 12 years old and that they wear sturdy shoes.

We’ll make this 2-3 hour activity fun, and I’m sure you’ll feel good about improving the environment while making the drive to Lake Pleasant better for everyone.

NOTE: Bring green folding money for the cash bar. No credit cards.

What it is: The AYC End-of-Year Party and Changing of the Guard
Where it is: The Fiesta Inn, 2100 South Priest, Tempe
When it is: Saturday night, May 12, with cocktails at 6, dinner at 7 and dancing as late as you and the band can hack it.
Why: Congratulate, Recognize, Award, Celebrate!
Dress code: Business casual or whatever moves you. (Dave Christensen can wear his flip flops.)
The band: Los Big Grandes with sailor/guitarman Chris Smith

Los Big Grandes with Chris Smith on the right.

Oh, sure, we’ll pass out some awards and swear in the new board, but mostly it’s a time to have fun with your sailing pals, enjoy a nice dinner and rock out. We promise to keep the speeches to an absolute minimum and the fun to an absolute maximum.

The band is led by J/80 sailor Chris Smith, the band coyly called Los Big Grandes, and they’re huge. Muy humongous gigante. Rock and roll. Yes, they’re loud, but we’ll have room for people who just want to talk, too. But come dance.

The dinner: You have a choice of four main courses, all including salad and dessert.

1. Citrus Marinated and Grilled Chicken Breast with Mango Pineapple Salsa
2. Roulade Medallions of Pork Loin stuffed with Apple Chutney and topped with Demi-Glace
3. Oven Roasted Fillet of Halibut with Basil Butter topped with Tomato, Kalamata Olive and Red Onion Balsamic Relish
4. Chile-Rubbed New York Strip topped with Mushrooms, Onions and Bacon Ragout. Served with Merlot Sauce

Registration is closed for this event.

Children? Bring them! We have chicken fingers or mac & cheese for the kids at $14.95, cheaper than a baby sitter and more fun by far.

Questions? Contact Mike or Maryellen Ferring.

The entrance to The Party. The bar is just to your left. Belly up.

The room before we've filled it with tables and Maryellen has decorated it with centerpieces. The band will be off there to the left.

The AYC Board of Directors is proposing two changes to the club bylaws and voting on the changes will happen at the same time as the election of a new Board of Directors.

The two changes are these:

1. To extend the age eligibility for Junior Membership from the current 21 to 25. The intent is to try to draw more Junior Members, including more college students. Junior Members may not vote in elections, but can carry membership cards and enter club races as members.
2. To permit electronic voting in club elections. It’s now possible to conduct secure, online elections, reducing the difficulty and cost of conducting the annual club election, which the bylaws require be done by mail. As of this time, all but two or three club members have email addresses and online access. The change in the bylaws would allow these few members to continue to vote by mail, if they wish.

Here is a PDF of all the changes.

And here is the link to the current bylaws.

The Board unanimously recommends passage of the changes. Mailed ballots will go out after the first of April.

On those ballots we will also have the following candidates nominated by our Nominating committee! POSITION-NOMINEE-NOMINATED BY

• Commodore – Mike Ferring – Sport boat (Ferring)
• Vice Commodore – Decker Williams – Sport boat (Ferring)
• Rear Commodore – Bob Whyte – Sport boat (Ferring)
• Fleet Captain – Greg Woodcock – Spin (Andress)
• Membership (2 year) – Thom Dickerson – Thistle (Dickerson)
• Cruising – Mike Parker Buccaneer – (Davis)
• Staff Commodore (2 year) – Emory Heisler – (bylaws)

And two more volunteers that are scheduled to be nominated and elected by the Board

• Secretary – Peter Lehrach – Sport boat (Ferring)
• Treasurer – Tony Chapman – Sport boat (Chapman)

Thank you one and all!

Anna Tunnicliffe helps ASF high school kids. Photos: Mike Ferring

Accomplished. Humble. Determined. Nice. All Anna Tunnicliffe.

We’re still dazzled that she took time from her Olympic training schedule to come to Arizona to talk with the club. That she even slipped into shorts and stepped onto one of our ASF Laser Radials to spend more than an hour teaching raw beginners a thing or two about roll tacking.

In just two months this world #1-ranked women’s match racer will know whether her team will compete in this summer’s Olympic Games and take a shot at winning her second Olympic gold medal. Tuesday night (3/13) she posed with dozens of us holding that first gold medal and talked about the race that won it—a race that began by turning around to restart after she thought she might have been OCS (on course side), one where she picked the wrong side of the course for the wind, where a shift suddenly vaulted her into medal position, where she sat still on her boat during the final leg to avoid being called for a Rule 41 (propulsion) violation and held her breath to the finish, where she flew into the water in celebration, but only felt the joy and weight of the accomplishment after she sat alone in her hotel room that night, crying after having achieved a dream that took so much effort and concentration.

Anna coaches roll-tacking.

Now she drills with coach Dave Dellenbaugh and teammates Molly Vandemoer and Debbie Capozzi on an Elliot 6 meter, a boat she describes as being hugely physical, getting fully-powered-up in 8-10 knots of breeze and then demanding a crew that will fight her to keep her moving. Anna is clearly up to the job physically. She’s rock hard and toned. And she matches it mentally: she’s focused and determined (one of her four “Ds” that keeps her driving).

After saying good night to the AYC audience Tuesday night, she headed off for a brief night of rest and a 4:30 airplane back to Florida and more time on the water. Thanks, Anna. It was a fabulous few hours.

Go here for quick donations to Anna’s Olympic campaign, or here for tax-deductible contributions, or here to keep track of her exploits.

The Bucc Bunch at the AYC meeting: Matt Davis, Cindy Pillote, Brenda Shears (with the gold medal), Anna (with the burgee), and Emory Heisler.

Want to know how to roll-tack a Laser? Tony Eanes did. And when Anna Tunnacliffe visited the ASF high school program, Tony asked her to show the students how to do it.

In light air, Anna went through the steps below while the students watched and Mike Ferring snapped a sequence of pictures. Just do it this way!

To see a roll tack in video, try this. Anna’s roll tacks are faster and more powerful, but the mechanics are the same.

Step one: heel the boat to windward (All photos: Mike Ferring)

Step two: WAY to windward.

Step three: tack

Step four: when the boat is about to capsize, time to bring it back up

Step five: Plant it!

Step six: using all your strength and weight

Step seven: trim in sail and sail on (faster than when you entered the turn)

AYC member Dick Strand sent us this picture (below) of his just-restored classic motor yacht, Euphrates. It’s a 1949 Matthews, a 40′ wooden motor-yacht, that just finished her ten-year restoration last year.  She is a new member of the Classic Yacht Association and is berthed in Newport Beach.  Dick invites AYC members to visit this summer.

Here’s what Dick said about her recent sea trials:

“It was an open ocean trip from Newport Beach to Long Beach for Opening Day of the Classic Yacht Association (CYA),  about three hours in each direction.  We topped off our tanks with gas before we left.  At sea we ran around 1800 to 1900 RPM producing a speed of around 9 knots, which is pretty much our maximum theoretical hull speed.  In the harbors we ran around 1000 RPM producing a speed of 5 knots which is the harbor speed limit.  For the whole day, including two 3 hour ocean runs and our parade, we burned just under forty gallons.  This is about the same amount of running that would take us to Catalina and back.  At 5 bucks per gallon at the marine gas station that comes to around 200 bucks.  So pretty reasonable for that amount of running.  But best of all Euphrates ran perfectly, felt rock solid and she has a very sea kindly motion.  Partner Brad had the helm for most of the run and did a great job.  Bob Hersh of PrimeTime Yachts kept an eye on both of us however!

“The CYA is an international organization dedicated to the preservation, restoration and enjoyment of classic wooden motor-yachts.  The Opening Day function was held at the Long Beach Yacht Club.  The Southern California Fleet Commodore Larry Walker gave a nice welcoming speech and specifically mentioned Euphrates.  He said she looked better than the day she left the factory.  He invited me to say a few words about her restoration so I did.

“After the meeting there was a tour of members boats and then a parade around Los Alamitos Harbor by several of the wooden classics.  The current International Commodore, as well as one of the original co-founders of the CYA forty years ago, both chose to ride with us on the Euphrates.  A nice honor for us.  We received several nice comments from other classic boat owners like “stunning, ‘beautiful’ and ‘wonderful’.”

The restored 1949 motor yacht Euphrates.

The AYC Board of Directors has voted unanimously to name new Honorary Life Members, the club’s highest honor. The four new members of this special membership group are Al and Sandy Lehman, Mike Yarnell and Tia Renshaw.

The club Bylaws describe the requirements this way: “Honorary Life Membership may be granted to any Club Member whose services to the Club and the sport of sailing shall have been deemed outstanding over a period of years.”

The four new members will be given special recognition at the Commodore’s Celebration on Saturday evening, May12. They’ll join two other current Honorary Life Members, Joyce Seale and Tom Ohlin.

We’ve updated the AYC Website to allow you to POST your photos directly to the site!  Of course, we’ll have to take a quick peek at them before we let them show up – it is a family friendly club after all…

Anyway, you can navigate to the page from the menu on the website or you can go directly to the page here:

http://arizonayachtclub.org/member-photo-submission/

We look forward to seeing your fantastic photos!

AYC Web Team

A great new “class” of members have joined AYC in recent months, from High Schoolers to Power Boaters (are we on our way to creating a “Power Squadron?”).

Christina Andaloro joins us following a year with the Arizona Sailing Foundation High School Sailing Club. She is now a freshman in college, but started taking official lessons 6 years ago in Cape Cod MA. She looks forward to attaining instructor level certification and contributing to AYC through Club equipment maintenance, racing, and social activities.

Shawn Cook took the SSR class and loved it. He is a Mesa resident, is a Laser sailor, and has been spending a lot of time down at the lake. He is interested in Club equipment maintenance and assisting with racing activities.

Luke Marino is a Freshman at Washington High School and has been sailing for about 5 years – most recently through the High School Sailing Club and before that racing in Opti’s. In the last 2 High School championships his boat was 2nd place! His dad also sails. He is continuing to take sailing classes, is interested in racing and cruising, and looks forward to achieving instructor level certification.

Mary and Jeff Miller: The Millers split their time between Scottsdale and the White Mountains. Mary is a long-time real estate broker in Snowflake, and Jeff works in Phoenix for APS four days a week. They’ve had a decades-long interest in sailing, having owned a very small sailboat in 1979, but only recently got a little more serious about the sport by traveling to Marina del Rey with two of their adult children to obtain a Basic Keelboat Certification in May of this year. They’re looking forward to gaining more experience and knowledge as time/schedules allow — hopefully with retirement figured in there somewhere! — and appreciate the opportunity to be part of this club.

Cooper Miller: Cooper, 25, now has his ASA Basic Keelboat Certification and is looking forward to sailing involvement with AYC members, with a special interest in crewing for more experienced sailors. He recently graduated from the U of A in Mathematics with an emphasis in Probability and Statistics and is pursuing a new career even as he also splits his time between the White Mountains and Scottsdale, assisting with the family real estate business as a licensed agent. He’s a long-time snowboard instructor, as well, and welcomes any interested folks up to Sunrise Ski Park this winter! Cooper is also an avid mountain biker.

Jim Murphy, a Scottsdale resident, is interested in racing and in helping with AYC social events. Jim has been sailing “all his life.” And his son Garrison has taken the High School Sailing class.

Randy, Tara, and Elliot Odman: The Odmans have extensive boating experience, but are new to sailing, thanks to the interest of son Elliot. Elliot sails in the high school program and just purchased his first boat, a sunfish, this winter. They are Mesa residents and interested in helping with new member support and racing.

Richard, Noami, and Lincoln Strand: Dick, a retired Radiologist, has recently rejoined the AYC. His family consists of his wife Noami, a son Nick who lives in NYC; daughter Natalie, living in Santa Monica; and an eight-year-old son Lincoln. Dick shares the following: “A few friends and I are just finishing the restoration of a 40 ft 1949 Matthew’s wooden motor yacht, the Euphrates, and will be keeping her in Newport Beach. She is a beautiful old boat and should be capable of coastal cruising, Catalina Island etc. I am an occasional sailor and was a member of the Arizona Yacht Club many years ago. And speaking of reciprocity, in 1988, I went over to watch the America’s Cup Race. The evening of the final race, I went to the San Diego Yacht Club, and using my Arizona Yacht Club membership card, got in and attended the victory celebration. I ended up sitting with Dennis Conner’s mother!”

WELCOME ABOARD!!

Brenda Shears
Roger Butterwick
AYC Membership Directors

This is clever….

SPECIAL NOTICE OF MEMBERS WHO HAVE NOT RENEWED FOR 2011-2012 Our records indicate the following members have not renewed for 2011-2012; please let us know if that is not the case. Otherwise, please renew as soon as possible (no later than August 31) in order to keep your membership active and be listed in the 2011-2012 AYC Roster.

If you need help accessing your online account, please Click Here to visit the Membership Services Page.

• David  Allocco
• Rey Bergelin
• Brett  Bigelow
• Patrick Blumm
• David Chapin
• Steven Cassingham
• Chad Cornell
• David  Cummings
• Matt Davis
• Steve Dolter
• Jim Douglas
• Sean Eanes
• Michael Easley
• Ken Esty
• Paul  Farmer
• Bill Feil
• Kaniatariio Gilbert
• Jack Haskell
• Bob Hastings
• Judi Hayes
• John Hiett
• Amber  Jacoby
• Rick Johnson
• Eric  Jones
• Ruth LaBlonde
• Rick Lake
• Charley Laman
• Michael Leon
• Paula Lippert
• Dennis Lynde
• Arno Marcuse
• Pamela Mayer
• Gary  McCauley
• Diane McDaniel
• Jake McGuire
• Jim  Murphy
• Dave  Nowak
• Don Palmer
• Michael  Parker
• Christopher Payne
• Viviana  Pinilla
• Elena Putman
• David Rawstrom
• John Riddell
• Charles Rush
• Jason Rziha
• Luce Sahali
• Todd  Schiller
• Chris Smith
• Jane Spicer
• Eric Steidley
• Steve  Swanson
• Ann-Marie Tan
• Steven Troxel
• Roger Weissman

In addition we have not heard from the following Life Members; please let us know if you want to continue your active membership for 2011-2012:

• Thomas Cunningham
• Pat Guthrie

AYC has lost another of our “Founding Fathers”. Joe Rowe, an AYC member for over 40 years,  passed away July 9, 2011.

Here is his obituary, reprinted from the Arizona Republic Online:

Joseph Dallas Rowe A long-time Valley resident, passed away July 9, 2011. A man of action over words, a motivating role model and positive influence, Joe always gave family and friends first priority. In setting his “issue” up to succeed and excel academically and professionally, Joe postulated, “May you grow in the love that surrounds you and the knowledge that the circle of love extends to all who know you and beyond.” Joe was born the son of John AbramRowe and Floy Armstrong Rowe in Hollywood Hospital on January 29, 1929, his father’s 33rd birthday. Though confronted with the loss of his mother in childbirth and brother at the conclusion of WWII, Joe remained a positive soul. Step-siblings Charles Harris Flannery and Martha Flannery Betz introduced a breadth of family that brought Joe much happiness and sense of family pride. Outside of school, Joe spent his formative years fighting fires and working dude ranches while managing youthful diversions and adventures along the way. While a Marine Corp Reserve, Joe enrolled at Cal (UC Berkeley) in 1948 where he studied Economics and joined the Phi Gamma Delta Fraternity. Graduating in 1952, Joe entered the insurance industry as a property & casualty agent for US Fidelity & Deposit Company. About this time, Joe met Aneta “Punkie” Peabody whom he married on June 12, 1954.

They transferred to the greater Phoenix area immediately thereafter. In 1956, Joe joined the Valley National Company, where he specialized in meeting the insurance needs of contractors. Joe became an officer of VNCo in 1961 and entertained a lifelong career with the agency eventually holding executive positions of Secretary-Treasurer and CFO. During those years, Joe chaired the Central Arizona CPCU and sat on both the City of Phoenix and Maricopa County Citizen’s Bond Advisory Boards. Ever community-minded, Joe took on several philanthropic initiatives and among other positions became President of the Board of the Phoenix Center or the Blind and President of the Board of Planned Parenthood (formerly Family Services). He and Aneta were pillars of the United Church of Christ, Church of the Beatitude, where he served as congregation President. Joe sat on several boards including the UCC Insurance Advisory Board and headed up annual fund-raising for the Valley Of The Sun United Way. Joe and Aneta started their family in 1956, raising three children: Scott (Diane), Kathleen “Kappy” (Mark), and Michael (Nancy). He proudly enjoyed his three grandchildren Natalie, Will and Michael. Joe developed a keen interest in sailing and raced Thistles with sons Scott and Mike until the mid ’90s.

Almost 70 people responded to a survey we put together to figure out how members would like to receive word of meetings, events, and news about our club. Thanks for helping out!

Here are some headline results:

• E-mails are the best way to get the word out. An overwhelming number of respondents said they wanted a club e-mail to tell them what’s happening.
• The Yahoo list is a good supplement to the members-only e-mails, especially for nonmembers, of course. We now have about 390 people who receive the Yahoo e-mails. And the Yahoo respondents said they were happy with what they get from the list, even with the sometimes snarky debates that can pop up there.
• Most people check the AYC website for information, though they’re not always happy with how it works or how it looks. Your comments are in the hands of Webmeister Rob Gibbs to guide him in tweaks. Already: The calendar includes more information, including start times of races.

Also: I’ve just gotten confirmation that Garth Reynolds will be able to make our next membership meeting, Tuesday, July 12 at 7pm.

Garth is a one-design sails expert at North Sails in San Diego. He plans to offer a program like the one he just gave to 85 people at the San Diego Yacht Club, with lots of give-and-take about how they tune sails to make them just that much faster than their (and your) competition.

Maryellen is also planning to make this an ice cream social, with root beer floats and sundaes. Try the float with a dash of Jack. Mmmm.

We’ll be starting precisely at 7pm at the 19th Tee in Tempe (1915 N Mill Ave).

And, get ready for a year of top-rated speaker entertainment, including multi-America’s Cup dude Peter Isler; the high-personality act of Peter Reggio, famed America’s Cup Principal Race Officer (PRO); and Laser Olympic Gold Medalist, twice Rolex yachtswoman-of-the-year and ISAF Sailor of the Year Anna Tunnacliffe. Anna is preparing for a match racing challenge at the 2012 Olympic games and is fresh off victories in England and Germany.

Cheers,

Mike Ferring – Rear Commodore

I really did consider my decision to go out to Lake Pleasant when the forecast was for 103 degress but the oppurtunity to sail on one of the new fleet of J80′s that have recently arrived in AZ was too tempting.  We rigged Mike Ferring’s new boat at the marina and motored out to a flat and calm lake.  We bobbed around for close to an hour but then the breeze filled in nicely and we had some great sailing.  Things got even better when Chris Smith (see photo) joined us for the maiden voyage in his similar boat and we did a little speed testing together.  The breeze remained strong all day and we even saw some whitecaps for a while.  It was hot but a lot of fun.  Congrats to Mike Ferring, Chris Smith and Peter Hartleb on their new boats.   Leaving the lake, the only remaining question I had was whether the spinnaker was HOT PINK or what.  Ask Chris what color it is next time you see him.

I’m happy to announce that the AYC Website has a new sponsor:  SolarPower2Go!  They specialize in high performance, portable solar charging gear for your devices.  Their backpacks and computer bags come with embedded solar panels that charge a state of the art battery pack, able to charge your cell phone, iPod, GPS, DSI, Camera, iPad or even a laptop & more! These bags are tough, lightweight, waterproof and made from recycled materials.  Check them out at www.MySolarPower2Go.com and watch for them in the Compass Points and on our website.

I love sailing.  I’ve only been doing it for about 6 years now with varying frequency and intensity, but I noticed that as time progressed the ways that it enriches my life change.  This changing dynamic of how it fits into your life is part of why I think it becomes a lifelong passion for people.  Let me explain by sharing a few of my own personal experiences.

My first experience on a sailboat was with my boss at the time.  My buddy and I had worked for months on this big project and when we were done and all the Exec’s were happy, he invited us and our wives out on his Catalina 30 in San Diego.  We motorsailed with just the main up in the bay for a while then he looked at me and said “are you ready to go sailing?”  I was quite confused because I thought we were already sailing but said “sure” or something like that.  He reached down, turned off the diesel and had me unfurl the jib.  Things got quiet and all you could hear was the rush of the wind and water.  I was hooked.

When I got back I discovered the Arizona Yacht Club.  I started coming down to Tempe Town Lake and crewing for people like George Tingom and Peter Schweizer.  I discovered racing.  I grabbed a sunfish and gave that a try.  I ran into Emory Heisler and saw how much fun he was having and thought to myself “I want to hang out with those Buccaneer guys…they are having a great time!”  The most important thing any of us can do for new sailors is get them out on the water!  Give them the opportunity get wet, race, hang off the rail, flip the boat…whatever…just get them out there!

So then I got a Buccaneer 18.  I raced the heck out of it.  With crew, without crew…it didn’t  matter…I wanted to compete.  My daughter was too small to go with me at that point (this is important later) but I was out as often as I could get out.  I also took the Sailing Instructor course, but at the time for me, taking the course was more so I could learn more about sailing.  I was intent on winning and improving my skills.  And I did.  I won the Club Bucc Fleet in 2006.  Quite frankly I think it was because I showed up more than anyone else…but hey, that’s 50% of it, right!  I had a lot of friends help me learn along the way as well.  Mentors and friends that were always willing to answer questions like “how did you beat me in that race” or “why doesn’t my boat point as high” or “how do you replace the centerboard gasket?”  These are the kinds of friends a beginning boat owner needs to have so they don’t get frustrated and stonewalled.

It was about this point that the real estate market started to nose dive.  At that same time the ASF decided it needed a paid professional, so I took on the responsibilities at the ASF Director of Sailing Education.  This was one of the most rewarding things I have ever done.  People along the way had given me a lot, more than I even knew.  Now it was my turn to give back.  The surprising thing was that the people I encountered (and still encounter) all have a fresh enthusiasm for our sport and their enthusiasm invigorates me.  I got at least as much from spending time with them as I hope they got from me.  You don’t have to be a “qualified instructor” to give back either.  I’m sure you know someone who has expressed interest in learning to sail.  Take them on as crew.  Give them that chance.  Come out and help with a Start Sailing Right class or a High School Sailing class on the water some afternoon.  You don’t need to be certified…you just need to want to give back to your sport.

Then it was the Buccaneer North American Championship campaign.  18 months of prep and training with crew Patrick Edwards resulted in the B Fleet Trophy coming home to AZ yet again.  But when that was over, I decided that now my two kids were both big enough to be out on the water, but the Bucc wasn’t the right fit.  After much discussion with my loving wife, we decided to get a bigger boat.  Reluctantly, I traded my Championship steed to Mike Parker for a sporty, but decidedly more pigish, Santana.  What I enjoy about sailing now is not the thrill of victory or the intensity of competition.  It is time with my family and friends that would dare crew with a 6 and 3 year old on the boat (we almost named the boat “Stop It” after one weekend.)  It’s seeing my daughter drive the boat while my son sleeps in the v-berth.  My wife starting to “get it” when it comes to launching and dousing the enormous spinnaker.  Having my son come help me drive the boat.  These moments, and many others, are what I get out of sailing now.

The point here is that every step along the way, sailing has fulfilled me in ways I’m only just starting to understand.  And every step along the way the people I encountered are what made the difference.  I hope I have been that person for others.

And now here is the challenge.  This season, be that person for someone else.  Take on a greenhorn as crew for a season.  Sponsor a Fleet Tuning day to bring everyone’s level of competition up.  Come out on a Start Sailing Right afternoon and help out.  Volunteer to help with the Leukemia Cup.  Our club has hit a bit of a plateau in membership and event participation.  The only way to push through isif everyone takes the opportunity to be that person that makes a difference in someone else’s sailing experience.  Make this the first season that you make a conscious effort to give back to the sport and club that we all love so much.

(Thanks to Mike Ferring, Chrisann Tortora for Photos)

Please welcome our newest members: Chad Cornell, Patrick Byrnes, Philip Freedman, Viviana Pinilla and Charley Laman, to the club.  

 Chad has been sailing his whole life and wants to get out on the water.  He’s interested in racing and in helping with club social events.

 Pat Byrnes is the father of fellow club member and ASU sailor Gerald Byrnes. According to Patrick: “With a good chunk of my childhood spent on South Padre Island, TX, I grew up around power boaters, anglers, and beachcombers with a rare few trips on a sloop named “Traipsing.” An attempt to become a sailor in college many years ago came to grief on congealed committee boat french fries at the Frozen Butt Regatta in Galveston Bay, so it wasn’t until we moved to New Mexico that we bought our first boat.  Since then, Carol Anne, Gerald, and I have done a bit of cruising and racing here and there from Texas to California.  I’ve also served in office in the Rio Grande and New Mexico sailing clubs, helped teach some “Boating Basics” safety classes, and done regatta planning and committee boat work as a race officer.  We’re interested in exploring new horizons and would love to try out different boats and pick up some new skills.  Our son Gerald no doubt is better known in the club than Carol Anne and I and has been having fun taking his ASU team to California a few times a year and helping with the high school program at TTL.  He started sailing when he was nine and didn’t take long to graduate to sailing with other racers and cruisers at Elephant Butte Lake in southern NM.”

 Viviana took the start sailing right class this Spring.  She’s interested in club equipment maintenance, selling club merchandise and helping the club with social events.  She wants to get out and sail!

 Philip Freedman started sailing at the age of 6 off of Balboa Island in Southern California where chocolate dipped frozen bananas are the mainstay. He has raced and taught sailing for over 50 years winning many events.  After being a finalist in the 1988 US Olympic Trails in Star Boats he started and was CEO and skipper of the 1992 America’s Cup Team Betsy Ross. His syndicate broke America’s Cup tradition and history by being the 1^st America’s Cup team to name women onboard an America’s Cup boat.  He is the former owner of the America’s Cup 12 meter AMERICA 2 US-42. While he owned the 12 meter America 2, his boat was renamed GERONIMO and was the winning boat in the sailing movie classic WIND starring Jennifer Grey, Matthew Modine, and Cliff Robertson in which he served as technical adviser.  He is currently retired from USAirways and is the racing coach at Arizona State University in Tempe Arizona.

WELCOME!

Frank Bigelow - AYC Commodore 1989-90

Frank Bigelow

Frank was one of our few AYC “Honorary Life Members”, an AYC member since 1959, AYC Commodore 1989-90, the man who was “Mr. AYC” to many of the club’s long time members. 

He passed away with his family at his bedside Wednesday March 30, 2011 due to complications from pneumonia.

CELEBRATION OF LIFE:  Many long-time members of the Arizona Yacht Club joined with Frank’s friends and family for a Celebration of Frank’s life, attendees included Don Defreze, Tia Renshaw and Mike Yarnell , Joe Laux Jr., Tony and Phyllis Siros, Patty Rosky, Dave and Debbie Nowak, Steve and Angela Nahkala, Don and Faye Hueble, Al Lehman, Wayne and Dottie Tucker, Dennis Lynde, and in spirit, Frank Bigelow.

 Tom Ohlin, also an Honorary Life Member, recalls Frank for us……”Frank’s dedication to the AYC over the last 50 years has been immeasurable. He was a friend and teacher to all that knew him. His Saturday night socials at his camper at the old Lake Pleasant ramp 2 were legendary.

Each Saturday night after much discussion of the day’s races, and the arrival of darkness, we would break out the dice cup and a pen light to pursue the game of Liar’s Dice; in the darkness (the guards thought we were crazy). Quite often on slow/large games Frank would take a cat nap between turns. One such night when the cup got around to Frank, he was abruptly woken and given the dice cup and pen light, which he immediately grabbed and began stirring his drink with it!

Another time, I was discussing with Frank the problems I had had sailing a sabot off the Rocky Point beaches. We always started into the wind (east or west) and by the time we were ready to head back to camp, the wind would reverse and we would have to beat back. Frank’s solution to the problem; “sail downwind first, you might get two downwind legs”.

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Frank’s long time sailing partner Don DeFreze shares another tale…

Frank and I raced against each other on Interlakes, but later we partnered on a larger boat. The advantage of the partnership is that the costs are now discounted by half, and that arrangement worked well over the years except on one occasion.

For some reason Frank could not make it out to the lake one weekend and so I picked up a “green crew”. During a race I grounded on a shoal. Rather than try to explain to the young man how to raise the keel I jumped in the cabin and started cranking. The boat turned and then the rudder grounded and came unhinged. I watched as it disappeared into the murky water.

Later I explained what happed to Frank and he said, “YOU lost YOUR rudder?” I gulped. A rudder is not a dime store item. The next week I hired a diver and took him to the spot and asked him to find the rudder, and he did.

I called Frank and said “I’ll sell you half of my rudder if you will spilt the diver’s fee with me.” It was a done deal.

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Frank has received about every honor the AYC can bestow, and we still owe him more.

Frank; may you sail into a red sunset with the wind at your back.

President Obama and the Governors of both California and Arizona hailed the recent sales of Buccaneers between AZ and CA as proof that President Obama’s economic reforms are producing intended positive results.

“Matt Davis is a force I tell you! It’s outstanding to see these boats off the pavement and on the water. That’s what our policies are all about! More sailing for everyone!”, said presidential spokesperson and former Bucc owner Rob Gibbs.

At the center of this action is Matt Davis who sails out of Arizona Yacht Club in AZ in the winter and White Trash Yacht Club in OR in the summer. His first move was bringing famed Bucc #5100 “Blur” back to racing action as the renamed “Slur.” And then if that wasn’t enough, he loved sailing Bucc’s so much he upgraded to #5250, “Wonderful” and brought her off her sleepy TTL pavement home to sail in the recent San Diego NOOD Regatta.

Davis then spun a web of deals with the State of California to send “Slur” on to Bakersfield, CA and new Bucc owner and long time AYC member Dennis Martinelli of Spira/Martinelli fame. California Governor Jerry Brown lauded the event. “The entire Central Valley will turn out when “Slur” makes its way to its new home here in Bakersfield!” “I wish Harry Sindle could be here to witness this event!”

And if that weren’t enough to show that the recession is over, Arizonan Ramon Rivera is now the proud owner of #4346 “Hailey’s Comet”. The “Comet” has had a long journey from TX, to Phoenix, to Lake Havasu City, and back to Phoenix. Along the way she lost her “Tomato” spinnaker but gained a spinnaker launch chute and Ramon is ready to get her racing again. Ramon and Coronado 15 sailor Marcos Monetti (soon ALSO to be a Bucc owner we expect) will be campaigning “Comet” in Arizona Fleet racing….and….you just may see her crossing the border to California too!

Welcome new Bucc owners!
Matt Davis – #5250, “Wonderful” (for now)
Dennis Martinelli – #5100, “Slur”
Ramon Rivera – #4346, “Hailey’s Comet”

Arrrr!

Frank was one of our few AYC “Honorary Life Members”, an AYC member since 1959, AYC Commodore 1989-90, the man who was “Mr. AYC” to many of the club’s long time members.  He passed away with his family at his bedside this past Wednesday March 30, 2011 due to complications from pneumonia.

CELEBRATION OF LIFE: Mary Lou Bigelow, Frank’s wife, has invited AYC friends to attend a Celebration of Frank’s life from 1:00pm to 4:00 pm, Saturday April 9 at their home in Tempe. 1976 E Divot Drive, Tempe, AZ 85283. Email Patty Rosky (pattyrosky@msn.com) if you plan to come she will keep Mary Lou informed about how many to expect.

Tom Ohlin, also an Honorary Life Member, recalls Frank for us……”Frank’s dedication to the AYC over the last 50 years has been immeasurable. He was a friend and teacher to all that knew him. His Saturday night socials at his camper at the old Lake Pleasant ramp 2 were legendary.

Each Saturday night after much discussion of the day’s races, and the arrival of darkness, we would break out the dice cup and a pen light to pursue the game of Liar’s Dice; in the darkness (the guards thought we were crazy). Quite often on slow/large games Frank would take a cat nap between turns. One such night when the cup got around to Frank, he was abruptly woken and given the dice cup and pen light, which he immediately grabbed and began stirring his drink with it!

Another time, I was discussing with Frank the problems I had had sailing a sabot off the Rocky Point beaches. We always started into the wind (east or west) and by the time we were ready to head back to camp, the wind would reverse and we would have to beat back. Frank’s solution to the problem; “sail downwind first, you might get two downwind legs”.

Frank has received about every honor the AYC can bestow, and we still owe him more.

Frank; may you sail into a red sunset with the wind at your back.

Memorial Information will be posted when available.