“All Hands” Meeting – January 19

We had a great meeting on Saturday, January 19 with 10 sailors in attendance.  The minutes are detailed below.  CLICK HERE to download a pdf copy of the meeting minutes

---

Minutes from the All Hands meeting on January 19.

Attending

Bill Collinson, Chad Schrock, Steve Goodyear, Samantha Falter, John Vangilder, David Luttenberger, Steve Harris, 
Don Harris, John Albrecht and David Paligo

Topics discussed

Communications

• New Notice Board created to pass along direct communications to skippers and crew.
• SLOG used to pass along information to the entire yacht club.

Crewmembers

• According to BLYC bylaws section 10. (b) & (c), crewmembers are allowed to crew for 1 year without formal membership. This should encourage newbie crew members to ‘Grow the Sport’.

Moorage

• Eastport is being expanded and a new Racers Row is being formed to encourage communication and camaraderie. On the water, racing is competitive. After the races, the focus is on sharing, learning, fun and building relationships amongst sailors.

Cruising

• Thursday Night cruising will be brought back to allow first time sailing opportunities and/or team practice. Consider coming out on Thursdays and hosting The best movers in Toronto and potential new sailors. Boats leave the dock at 6:00 PM.

Racing

• SOS will be divided into 3 series consisting of 5 Sundays – Spring, Summer and Fall – with the following dates:
• Spring Series – May 26, June2, 9, 16 and 23
• Summer Series – July 7, 14, 21, 28 and August 4
• Fall Series – August 11, 18, 25 September 1 and 8   
• SOS series races will start at 1300 hrs. with a competitor meeting at 1200 hrs.
• SOS race types (multi-laps, multi-starts or both) shall be determined by RC each race day. Most races will be in the vicinity of the yacht club for RC and spectator viewing. Long Distance shall be lake end-to-end if conditions allow. 
• A calendar will be established that shows for each race in a series which boat/skipper will be responsible to provide (at least) 1 crewmember or select a volunteer to assist Race Committee. 
• Each skipper must register their boat for SOS series and LD races using noticeofrace.net. All races will be PHRF/JAM. 
• Registration is open now for the Spring, Summer & Fall series. To assist with registering for each SOS series, go to BLYC pull down tab Sailing & Boating/Sailboat Racing/Sunday Series and follow the instructions. 

P/C Steve Harris

This entry in our SLOG might not directly relate to sailing, but I thought I’d share this information with everyone.  There’s been a lot in the news the past year about hazing, bullying, & abuse in sports.  This probably isn’t a new problem, but it is one that we all need to recognize and work to eliminate.  Even before the news broke on the USA Gymnastics abuses, the US Olympic Committee had already partnered with other organizations to raise awareness of these problems and work to eliminate them in sports at all levels.  The result of that effort is SafeSport.

The USOC has mandated that all National Governing Bodies adopt policies implementing required SafeSport training for coaches, volunteers, officials, etc. in their organizations.  US Sailing, as the NGB, instituted this requirement this past year.  As a US Sailing Race Officer, I took the training.  While it may seem like “just another hoop to jump through,” I found the training to be very well done, very informative, and at the very least I think it will do much to help raise awareness of an ever-growing problem plaguing all sport.  It’s worth checking out.  The training is free to US Sailing members (although only required for certified officials and certain regatta chairs & volunteers at this time).  Those who aren’t members of an NGB can take the course for a small fee.

Click on the SafeSport logo above to learn more.

Are you the parent of a youth athlete?  SafeSport has also released a FREE “Parent Toolkit” you might want to check out as well as other parent-specific resources available at athletesafety.org

Safe Powerboat Handling Instructor Course

May 30 – June 1

The Foundry
Cleveland, Ohio

This course is open to those age 18 and older.  Whether you are interested in becoming an instructor or simply want to improve your knowledge and skills on powerboat handling this course is for you or anyone you feel would benefit from this course.

CLICK HERE
for more information

In an effort to better communicate with sailors at Buckeye Lake this summer, in addition to this “SLOG,” BLYC will be hosting an e-mail news list through which we will communicate information on plans for the season, upcoming events, race results, etc.  Please use the form below to sign up to receive the latest news on sailing at Buckeye Lake…

US Sailing is the National Governing Body for the sport of sailing in the US.  That said, what is it really that they do?  Membership in US Sailing has a lot of benefits – both directly and indirectly – for all sailors whether they race or not.  As our NGB, they are involved in helping to write the rules that govern racing, but US Sailing also offers a number of opportunities in a variety of areas that support sailors – Instructor Training, Keelboat Training, Race Management, Boat Ratings, and much, much more.

BLYC is an organizational member of US Sailing and this allows us to not only host US Sailing sanctioned events at the Club, but also makes us eligible for liability coverage in regards to sailing instruction, dockage, and running races.  This type of insurance is not easily affordable through via other avenues.

Individual membership also offers some great benefits to sailors:

A US Sailing membership provides you

• Access to world class educational materials
• Competitive services and resources to propel you on the race course
• Access to educational courses and smears that will expand your abilities
• Great discounts at our store and savings through our partners
• Certification and insurance opportunities
• Opportunities to connect and grow the sport of sailing in your area

A US Sailing membership provides the sport

• Certified Instructors are the backbone of ‘Learn to Sail’ programs for youth and adults.
• Certified Coaches take these sailors to the next level.
• Ratings Services level the playing field.
• Certified Race Officers are ready to make the right call at your signature regattas.
• Certified Judges and Umpires enforce the rules and provide credibility to your racing events.
• National Championships test your skills against the best.
• Resources help clubs enhance their programs.
• Newcomers introduced to the benefits of sailing.

If you want to learn more, visit the membership pages on the US Sailing website HERE.