A windy and happy start for Menantic Yacht Club

The long-range weather forecast for last Sunday called for cloudy to partly sunny conditions with wind blowing between 10 and 20 knots. Sailors like wind, and Mother Nature did not disappoint.

How shall I say this? The larger, heavier sailors were in heaven and we lightweights struggled in the strong wind, some of us taking Advil prior to racing, many afterwards, I’m sure. Everyone had a blast and the Menantic Yacht Club’s (MYC) first series of Sunfish races of the 2021 season was extremely successful.

Prior to sailing, a skippers’ meeting was held at the Red House. Unfortunately, Commodore and Sallie Bethge were unable to attend and hope to join the club in coming weeks. For me, it was great seeing all the old timers; it was as if the lost last year never happened.  Everyone introduced themselves and got acquainted.

Overall, 25 hardy sailors participated on Sunday, including seven newcomers. Peter Beardsley introduced Rich Prieto, and Kate Duff. Kate used the day to practice and will start racing with us next week. Charlie Modica brought a couple of his Shelter Island Yacht Club friends, Peter Dinkel and Jeff Bresnahan. Doug Rose, who came up from Virginia and plans to race with the MYC for most of the summer, used his new boat, having sold his old boat to Cindy Homer. Another newcomer, Ellen Jaffe, attended the skippers’ meeting and plans to race with us later in the season. Mia Brandt, a friend of Susanne Hulme, and Freddy Zorovich also sailed with us for the first time. Welcome to all the newcomers; please come back and bring your friends.

Due to the challenging conditions, a few sailors were forced to retire early, there were several broken parts and a number of sailors flipped. Paul Zinger suffered a broken traveler but continued sailing. He didn’t complain about the broken traveler, only that his arms were really sore from holding the boom; luckily it happened on the last race. Mary Vetri needed a tow to shore when her sail came crashing down after her halyard broke. I give her credit for even being out there in such strong gusts. George Zinger, Steve Shepstone, Peter Dinkel and Brant Davison flipped. Brant went over 30 seconds before the start, and lucky for him, a general recall was sounded.

Many thanks to Ellen Leonforte for taking responsibility for the loaner boats for the season. She also helped a sailor in trouble before the stake boat could get there. We are looking for volunteers for the stake boat until Billy Sulahian can join us.

Sailing was very competitive, and, if not for some errors and a helping hand, it is highly possible that the rankings would have been different. Peter Beardsley helped set up a Jens rig on a couple of boats and was late to the start for the first race causing him to take a DNS which affected his daily ranking. Lee Montes sailed toward the wrong mark in a couple of races where he had been leading, which cost him some points and caused him to miss first place by six points. However, with all of that said, Doug Wefer, who has sailed with the MYC in the past, had a really good day. Congrats to all.

Melissa Shepstone ran Race Committee along with Betsy Colby, the MYC’s longtime score keeper. Also, serving on the Race Committee were Marion Thompson and Mary Ellen Wefer. Betsy will be running Race Committee for the balance of the season. Thank you all for a superb job.  Remember sailors, come up alongside the Race Committee and give them your full name and wear a life jacket.

Due to a last minute glitch, I wound up captaining the stake boat, loaned by Charlie Modica, along with Deb Davison and Diana Keegan. I traded places with Kevin Keegan for one race and came away slightly bloodied after slipping off my boat. Deb jumped overboard on three different occasions to help right boats, but we were not as busy as I anticipated. Overall, the quality and capability of the MYC sailors is improving, although a number of us are eagerly awaiting Peter Beardsley’s sailing clinic.

Betsy handed out the awards at a brief ceremony after racing. Doug Wefer won both the Windell’s Perpetual trophy for winning the first race of the season and the first-place trophy for the day. Second place went to Lee Montes, and Paul Zinger placed third. Way to go, everyone.

There will be an after-race party at Linda Gibbs’ and Tom McMahon’s next Sunday, July 4th.  Bring a side dish or dessert. Please RSVP to Linda or me.

We are a very congenial club, open to all, with no dues, no fees and no clubhouse. The sailing is great, the camaraderie is superb, and we just have tremendous fun. All sailors, novice to expert, are welcome. Just show up in West Neck Harbor at 2 p.m. on any Sunday through Labor Day. Commodore Bethge has a fleet of loaner boats available on a first to reserve basis.

Call Bob Harris at 631-749-0524 (email [email protected]) or Peter Beardsley at 917-696-8229 ([email protected]) to reserve your boat or just to ask about our incredible club.

See you on the water.