Dear Opti Sailors & Families,

Please see below the LYC Spring Season supported and non-supported events.

GOLD, SILVER & COMMODORES FLEETS

Club Supported

Dates                          Event                                                  Location
March 8-9                  FL State Championship                  Jensen Beach, FL
April 5-6                    Spring Fling Regatta                        Coconut Grove, FL
April 18-19                South East Dinghy Champs            Key Biscayne, FL

Non- Supported (Additional Fee) just for Gold & Silver

March 1-2                  Team For Invitational                    Clearwater, FL
May 1-4                      USODA Team Trials                        Stamford, CT

Please let me know if you have any questions about these events.  I will send more information when we get closer to the dates.

See you all this weekend!

Juan

2014 Buccaneer Blast Regatta Report

We had a great regatta this weekend at Buccaneer Blast. Light air and shifty conditions caused us to see very inconsistent scores from all of our sailors. It was great to see every single one of our sailors have a race in the top 25 and more than half of our sailors have a race in the top 10.

As we discussed in our meeting on Sunday, the main keys to success were boat speed and focus on point. I stressed to the sailors at every opportunity that they had to keep their sail trimmed and tell tales flying. For many of our sailors (Jake, Miles, Stephen, Jack, Bobby, and Anna) maintaining proper trim and point was the most noticeable difference between their good races and bad races.

We also discussed with the sailors the importance of being on the line especially in light air. When a sailor starts anywhere except the front of the pack the boats in front of them block the wind and sailors are forced to sail in what is called bad air. In light air being anywhere except the front is suicidal. We saw this in the first race on Sunday (race 7). Many of our sailors started in the middle to back of the pack and were as far 20-30 boat lengths behind the leaders by the time they got to the starting line. With what little breeze they had being blocked by the boats in front of them they had no ability to gain boat speed and catch up. Five of our sailors had their worst race of the regatta in race seven because of this effect.

This weekend I began to introduce to several of our sailors to factors that affect the wind on the course. We covered topics from just watching for puffs on the water to anticipating changes in wind speed and velocity. I talked to the sailors during and after lunch about connecting the puffs on the course. By staying in more pressure and always sailing toward the next puff, sailors can maintain higher boat speed and work up the course faster. I also discussed how the storm clouds we had roll over midway through the day caused a shift in direction and a velocity change of the wind. Lucy, Isa, and Tye were all able to improve their results midway through the day by applying this information.

It was great to coach all the kids this weekend and see them improve throughout the days. I want to give a shout out to Jake who completed every race in a regatta for the first time. I clearly remember how defeated I felt as a coach trying to talk him down from tears with less than 3 minutes till the start of the first race. As I pushed him off reminding him that it was just like practice and there was nothing to worry about, I was worried he would just give up. Instead he blew my mind and sailed his best race of the regatta finishing 25^th and rounding the top mark in the top 15. We all can learn from Jake as he very clearly demonstrated how mental this sport is. In a matter of seconds a choice to never give up can be the turning point in a regatta and one’s sailing career.

Great job this weekend team LYC.  I look forward to seeing all of you this weekend for practice. Results from this weekend can be found at http://www.regattanetwork.com/event/7326#_newsroom+results

Kyle

US National Team Practice @ LYC (March 13-16)

Hello Opti Families!

LYC has been granted the honor of Host Club for the upcoming USNT Practice. As the host club, we are required to secure housing for the optimist national team who will be holding practice at our club on March 14-16th with sailors expected to arrive on March 13th between 3-6pm.   We anticipate approximately 20 sailors.

It is my understanding that host families are only providing a place to sleep.  The USNT has given us a stipend to provide all meals at the club.  The attached notice of practice has more details- kids are really only expecting a couch to crash on!  These are not only great sailors but well behaved kids who are extremely independent and great role models for all opti sailors. It appears they'd prefer to keep groups of 3 sailors to a host family- not sure if this is feasible for all- so maybe a minimum of 2 or more.  If you're unable to house anybody- we will be in need of parents who can help with transportation needs especially airport pick ups/drop offs. Also if you are interested in holding the farewell dinner at your home (expenses will be covered by the stipend) let me know.

We desperately need every family's participation in some capacity to make this a success.  Thank you in advance for your assistance!
Please email me or call with what you can do to help out. THANKS!!!!

Sincerely,

Wanda Casaretto
Email: Wandacasaretto@yahoo.com
Cell: 954-258-1410

Check out Luke, Chase, Juan, and LYC Sailing!!

"The kids are well trained for dangerous situations..."

Re-verify our range to target Luke.  One ping only, please.

Sure beats bleachers.

Martin County USODA State Champs Hotel-typo

The area code for the hotel is 727, not 772.

Have a great weekend!

Martin County USODA State Champs Hotel

Hello LYC Sailing Families,

In anticipation of another fun weekend March 8 & 9th for Martin County's Sailing Center "USODA State Championship",  we have secured a block rate for rooms at the Clarion Inn, Stuart.  Check out http://www.clarion-stuart.com for further information.  It's a nice, clean place about 12 minutes to the venue. 

                                                            CLARION INN STUART

                                                            1200 SOUTH FEDERAL HIGHWAY

                                                            STUART, FL  34994

                                                            PHONE: 727-287-6900 

The regular rate is $89 per night, but we have been given the special rate of $65, which includes breakfast.  All you have to do is mention Lauderdale Yacht Club to receive this rate.  The hotel has renovated their Tiki bar with complete menu that we could use for our Saturday evening LYC team get together around 6:30 pm.  The pool is heated, so the sailors can enjoy some swimming if they wish.  Please let me know if you plan on staying at the hotel or only plan on enjoying the Saturday evening event.  The hotel staff would appreciate some advance notice so they can accommodate our group at the Tiki bar/restaurant. 

Thanks,

Virginia Holden

vholden@bellsouth.net

Buccaneer Blast & Silver/Gold Weekend Practice

LYC Optimists,

We have a busy weekend with sailors traveling to the Buccaneer Blast regatta and the LOCR regatta hosted by LYC.

Buccaneer Blast Sailors:

Kyle will be coaching at Buccaneer Blast and he plans to leave early on Saturday morning. Green and RWB are sailing on the same course so he will be able to coach both fleets.

Parents, remember to bring snacks, and plenty of water to stay hydrated.

Saturday 

0815 - LYC Truck arrives at Upper Keys Sailing Club

0930 - LYC team meeting at flagpole (Rigged and Ready)

1000 - Skippers meeting

1730- Dinner/Raffle at Upper Keys

Sunday

0815 - LYC Team meeting at flagpole (Rigged and Ready)

0900 - First warning on the water

1200 - Last warning signal

Remember Sailors to complete a regatta report to share at practice next week.

Silver and Gold Fleet,

Joakim and Juan will be coaching a combined Silver and Gold fleet practice at LYC this weekend. Depending on the breeze and time, practice will most likely be held inside.

We are running practice around the LOCR regatta. To avoid traffic, Optis should be launched from the front East lawn and stored there over night on Saturday. You can move Optis to the front lawn after practices this week.and

Plan on arriving at the club around 10am to rig and move boats to the front east lawn. Practice will start at 10:30am. Meet the coaches at the flag pole at this time.  Practice will run until 4:30pm. Practice times will be the same time on Sunday. Move Optis back to the sailing center after practice on Sunday.

Practice summary: Gold & Silver Fleet

 

Sat 2/8 10:30am-4:30pm

Sun 2/9 10:30am-4:30pm

I will be coaching a high school regatta in St.Petersburg on Saturday (I hope we have wind!).  I will be back on Sunday.

Good luck to those traveling to the Upper Keys! I hope you have a lot of fun.

Julia Melton