It's already the middle of July, and the sailors have several regattas under their keels. With each regatta, the sailors have shown great improvement. Several residents of Oxford have commented on the convoy of vehicles, boats, and kids leaving town on Tuesdays and Thursdays. As usual, Wednesday Night Racing has been popular this summer, as are the traditional potluck picnics, an old tradition resurrected this summer. As many of you know, our Fourth of July Parade was very colorful, due to the creativity of the Junior Sailors, who decorated their boats with flags, streamers, and balloons. Our Sailors even decorated themselves with facepaint, with assistance from several helpful parents, who graciously volunteered their time and artistic talent.
Our youngest Intro sailors have enjoyed their time spent on the water, and many have requested a return session. It's been a record setting year for the Intro class enrollment. Our fleet of 6 club optis has been a tremendous help in getting our youngest sailors sailing independently. We look forward to their return next year in our Beginner class. Our Beginner class has enjoyed games such as sponge tag and "Captain's Coming", in addition to the numerous drills both on and off the water. They are now being included in the Wednesday Night Racing activities.
The Intermediates have improved by leaps and bounds, and are all very excited to now be members of the official TAYC Regatta Convoy, as they have already attended 2 of the 5 regattas to date, and are excited to be making new friends at these bay wide events.
On the 420/Laser beach, we've seen great improvement with regatta results. The 420 sailors are now profeciently flying spinnakers, and the Laser sailors are roll tacking with ease.
Our Junior Sailing Auction was a great success. Thanks to the proceeds, we have purchased a brand new Carolina Skiff/trailer, named ECHO, who was christened by our Juniors on July 14. There's also a new Laser trailer built by Committee member RJ Cooper and Junior sailing parent Jim Alpi.
We are also excited to announce 2 clinics to be given by Ed Wright, who hails from Great Britain and is currently the 2nd ranked Finn Sailor in the World. For the Lasers, Ed will be here Saturday August 2nd, from 9:30 to 4. For the racing opti sailors, Ed will be here Sunday, August 3rd, also from 9:30 to 4. Be sure to save these dates, as these clinics are not to be missed, and space is limited. Stay tuned for more details.
Thanks for your continued support of Junior Sailing.
Christy Bartlett
TAYC Junior Sailing Chair
