One Day Race Management Seminar at Lake Geneva Yacht Club – April 23rd 2016

Become a US Sailing Certified Race Officer!

The Lake Geneva Yacht Club is excited to host this one day seminar on April 23, 2016.  With 15 race series a week during the summer it is very important to have ample qualified individuals to assist in running our races.  This course will provide valuable knowledge as it pertains to race management.  Understanding the ins & outs will create a more enjoyable experience, whether you are participating in Race Committee, or out on the water with your friends watching the racing.

Race Officers are in charge of racing on the water. Their duties include ensuring the safety of competitors and members of the race committee, choosing courses to give competitors the best possible races, starting the fleet, adjusting the course in response to changing conditions, and finishing and scoring the race.

To Register: CLICK HERE

After clicking above link, choose April 23rd 2016 for the date, from there you will see the event to take place at LGYC.  To participate in this seminar you need to be a member of US Sailing.  You can join US Sailing, HERE

$55 seminar fee includes seminar materials and lunch. Seminar will be held at Lake Geneva Yacht Club. Registration closes on April 17,2016.

Learn more: http://www.ussailing.org/race-officials/race-officers/

4th Annual Geneva Lakes Burger Throwdown

The 4th Annual Geneva Lakes Burger Throwdown will be held at Geneva Ridge Resort, Sunday April 12th 2015, from 12n to 3pm. This is a wonderful event that benefits the Badger ProStart Culinary Program. Which is great training for young local culinary minds. The event has seen much success in its’ first three years with over 1,000 attendees last year. Last year Chef Ben Janssen from Abbey Springs swept the podium, winning both the peoples’ and the judges’ choice awards. Chef Justin was a part of that team and is looking to go back this year and compete against his old club. We would encourage you all to go check out the event and show your support for our club and its’ new Chef. Chef Justin raised funds for the event by going to local businesses and getting them to donate their products. The local sponsors for our club are Lake Geneva Spice Co., Daniels Sentry Foods, River Valley Kitchens, and Gordons Food Service. Chef Justin will be preparing an Asian theme burger with a tasty twist. Tickets for the event can be purchased HERE. But buy soon because there is a limited number available. Come get your first taste of our clubs’ new flavors! Have a great day everyone!

Volunteers Saluted

Commodore F. Terrence Blanchard and Rear Commodore Rodney W. Rieger joined with other members on November 8 to express their appreciation to LGYC volunteers for their many hours of service to the Yacht Club during the year. Commodore Blanchard thanked all of the officers, directors, race committee and other committee members for the successful 2014 season.

The annual Recognition Dinner honoring volunteers was held at Abbey Springs in Fontana.

Since the Yacht Club’s earliest days, individuals have volunteered their time and talents to serve as officers and directors, to work on committees that promote good competition on the race course, and to assist in social, educational, and business areas that contribute to the enjoyment of every member and keep the club functioning.

This tradition continues, and Commodore Blanchard expressed his deep appreciation for the efforts that everyone put forth in 2014 to make the Yacht Club such a special place. He gave a special thank you to the fund raising, design, building, and site plan committees, whose members have worked so hard to make the new clubhouse project a reality. Commodore Blanchard noted that after a few delays in getting the project started, construction is now underway, with the first floor walls more than 50 percent complete.

“We are cautiously optimistic that the new clubhouse will be completed on schedule, with our general contractor reconfirming delivery of the facility at the end of May,” he said.

Rear Commodore Rodney Rieger presented volunteers with special gifts of appreciation, which included LGYC car blankets, race committee shirts, and LGYC hats.

“Our club is defined by the great quality of our volunteers,” he said. “With your continued help, the Big Inland here in August will be a major success and offer a magnificent showcase for our new clubhouse.”

Reporting By Ellen Bentsen

2014 Wooden Boat Show

Sonny, John and Sharon Larson’s beautifully restored 18-foot Century Resorter, won top spot and the Chatterbox Trophy at LGYC’s Fifth Annual Wooden Boat Show, August 24. The event attracted seven boats and more than 80 members and guests to view the fleet, enjoy lunch, and attend the awards ceremony. Judges were past commodores Jerry Millsap and John Zils.

Sonny, winner of the Best First-Year Entry Award at last year’s event, was built in 1956 at the Century Boat Company, then in Manistee, Michigan. She was restored to her present condition in 2012 and 2013 after being bought by a member of the Temple of Reconstruction group in Mt. Dora, Florida. When LGYC’s David Williams saw the boat at the 2013 Mt. Dora Show his message to the Larsons was direct and to the point: “This is the boat you’ve been looking for.”

John Larson’s work on Sonny since then has been mostly mechanical. He repaired, rewired, and reinstalled the spotlight; returned the cooling system to specification; replaced the ignition system; and adjusted the carburetors and timing. He also installed a pair of air horns and connected them to the horn ring on the wheel, which is original.

After the awards, onlookers were treated to a demonstration aboard another 2014 entry—a handsome wooden 16-foot sailing canoe that is a replica of the famous 1900s racing boat Tomahawk. To everyone’s delight, owners Peter and Robin Mueller invited 2013 ILYA Class X Senior Champion Will Huerth, 17, to take her out for a spin.

“It was a great experience,” said Will, who spent this past summer as an instructor at the Geneva Lake Sailing School and as crew on LGYC scows. “I had never sailed a boat quite like that,” he said, “and at first I was really nervous because I thought it was going to break. They cast me off on a broad reach right to Williams Bay…and the boat wanted to flip over every second. On the way back, I got a huge puff and flipped right in front of everybody. Luckily, I quickly hopped over the side onto the centerboard and dry-tipped it. Being young and athletic,” he said, “really helped my cause.”

The Chatterbox Trophy is equally resilient. A silver vase that celebrated its 100 birthday last year, it started life in 1913 at LGYC as the High Speed Boat Trophy and was won by Commodore Marquette A. Healy driving Mrs. Healy’s 21-foot Chatterbox. The trophy disappeared after that victory then resurfaced in 1985 at an Illinois garage sale, and its buyer returned it to the Yacht Club, The following year it took on new life as the Healy Trophy for the MC Fleet Championship, but was replaced for that purpose in 1992 by the even older Chalice Cup, and again disappeared. In 2010, Trophy Committee Chairman Bob Pegel found it in the club’s basement, and the Board of Directors re-named and re-designated it for top prize at the Wooden Boat Show.

The Wooden Boat Show Committee for 2014 was Bill Bentsen (chair), Jerry Millsap, Robin Randolph, Diane Sherin, and David Williams. Each owner of a participating boat received a box of LGYC glasses, much applause, and an appropriate award from the judges as listed below.

Awards and Participants

Chatterbox Trophy for Best in Show

Sonny, 18-foot 1956 Century Resorter

Engine: 135 hp. original 6 cylinder Chrysler M-47S

Owners: John and Sharon Larson

First Runner-up Award

Majen Sawasmo, 34-foot 1898 Longdecker displacement launch,

Designer: L. E. Fry

Engine: repowered, Chrysler Marine, straight 8, circa 1940

Owner: Walter Goes

Best Brass Boat with Wood Trim Award

Pink Hour, 1980 30-foot steel hull (replica of Edwardian fantail motor launch)

Builder: Millerick Brothers Boat Works

Engine: 20 hp. 3-cylinder 1943 Easthope gas engine

Owners: Peter and Robin Mueller

Best Wood Replica Award

Cattawampus, 16-foot 16-30 Class decked sailing canoe

Materials: mahogany, white cedar

Builder:  Dan Sutherland, Hammondsport, NY, early 2000s

Sail Area: 90 square feet in main and mizzen

Owners: Peter and Robin Mueller

Close But No Cigar Award

Ariel, 19-foot 1959 Lyman Runabout

Engine: 135 hp. Crusader Marine Corp. 8-cylinder V-8 Interceptor

Owners: Bill and Ellen Bentsen

Best Boat with a Swedish Name Award

Till Havs [To the Sea], 24-foot 1959 Chris-Craft Sportsman

Engine: 185 hp. V8 Chris-Craft, Chevy 283

Owners: David and Kathy Williams

Best Party Boat Award

Miss Molly, 28-foot 1959 Chris-Craft Sea Skiff

Engine: 480 hp. Twin Original Corvette

Owner: Robert Chanson