Commodore's Message
Dan Mooney
With several important Club events and activities coming up, the Board has been at work to finish the year strong. First up are our annual Board elections. The Nominating committee has put together an excellent slate of candidates which will be presented at our October Club meeting this Wednesday October 21. I will be completing my term as Commodore so we will be changing Flag Officers for next year. We will also be electing a new Secretary and several new At Large Board members. An on-line ballot will be sent out after the Club meeting with a deadline for completion by Nov 4. As is our tradition, the new Flag Officers and Board Members will be officially inducted during the “business meeting” portion of the Commodore’s Gala on Saturday November 14. A big thank you to all those who have agreed to step up and step in to serve on the Board next year.
Speaking of the Commodore’s Gala, the tickets are now out for purchase. The Gala will once again be held at the Useless Bay Golf and Country Club. Kat Bivoino and her planning committee have put together a fun filled Nauti-Oscar themed evening with a bit of glitter and glam for us this year. See the Commodore’s Gala article in this newsletter for more detailed information.
The Yacht Club’s year will wrap up with our annual Holiday Party on Wednesday December 16 at Freeland Hall. So please plan on joining us then for some Holiday Cheer.
Finally I mentioned in my Commodore’s Message last month we are holding a “New Members Social” in the Freeland Hall Board Room starting at 5:00 PM just before the October Club meeting this Wednesday October 21. So if you are new to the Club and have not had an opportunity to attend a new member orientation please consider joining us to learn more about the things the Club has to offer and meet the Board and other new members. Hope to see you there!
Coming Events
October General Meeting
Vice Commodore John Porter
“Salish 100 in Sesame Seed”
Wednesday, October 21
Freeland Hall or Zoom
6 :30 pm – Sips ‘n Dips, Socializing
7:00 pm – Meeting & Speaker
The Salish 100 fleet cruises the length of the Puget Sound – 100 miles from the State Capital of Olympia to the seaport of Port Townsend – with stops each day for cruisers to join together and share the experience. John Porter will share his first-time adventure in the small West Wight Potter.
New Member Open House
Commodore's Gala
We’ll also be offering a costume contest for Best Dressed Award for Male & Female.
2027 Board of Directors Ballot
Please fill out your online ballot for the coming year’s Board of Directors. Each membership level has ONE VOTE. Family is one vote, individual is one vote.
You will first see the ballot form for our fleet officers. Once filled in, you’ll see a Next button that will take you to another form for our Board Members at Large. Here’s the link
Balloting ends on Nov 4.
2026 Founders Award
Each year at the Commodore’s Ball, we honor an individual who has gone well beyond with their time, energy, expertise and encouragement in their club contributions to club activities. To recognize this individual, we come to you for your nominations.
Please take a moment to consider those members who are deserving of this Founders Award recognition. Send your nominations and a brief description why you are nominating this person to the Selection Committee (Jill Brown, Barb Grimlund, Pete Grimlund, and Starke Scott). Feel free to send any questions about nominations to them as well. The deadline for nominations is Friday, October 30.
For more information of the Founders Award, its history, and criteria to consider, visit SWYC website Founders Award.
Award Selection Committee: (Recipients of the Founders Award for the past three years):
Previous Recipients
2007 Bill Brown 2018 Lisa Irwin
2008 Ed Halloran 2019 Kathy Rodgers
2009 Emily McArthur 2020 Debra Richardson
2010 Bob Rodgers 2021 Katy Shaner
2011 Derek Pritchard 2022 Perry Lovelace
2012 Tom Stinson 2023 Pete and Barb Grimlund
2013 Don McArthur 2024 Jill Brown
2014 Russ Ernest 2025 Starke Scott
2015 Bob Boehm
2016 Pat Sasson
2017 Michael Scott
Kayaking by Co-Fleet Captains Nina Fitts and Diane Lagerstedt
Orcas Island Adventure: Paddles, Pedals, and Plenty of Laughs
Nearly 50 members and friends gathered on Orcas Island for a lively getaway filled with paddling, biking, hiking, good food, and the kind of easy camaraderie that turns a club trip into a collection of favorite stories.
With so many ways to explore the island, groups set off in different directions—some by kayak, others by bicycle, and still others on foot. Whether traveling by paddle, pedal, or hiking trail, everyone found plenty of scenery, conversation, and reasons to linger along the way.
One especially memorable kayak outing was the Point Doughty paddle led by Barb, where our small group of 5 departed from West Beach, through the “washing machine” type waters going between the rocks at the point, to the calmer waters on the north side of the island. We loved drifting outside a seal colony, listening to their barking while they mostly feigned indifference to our presence.
West Beach Resort made an ideal home base, with tents, yurts, and cabins offering something for every camping style. The warm showers were particularly appreciated—proof that “roughing it” is a flexible concept.
The gathering continued around sips and dips, a festive group outing to Matthew’s Smokehouse, and a big closing potluck at the Farmhouse, where great food and good company were served in equally generous portions. Warm cinnamon rolls at the West Beach Café and iced banana bread at the potluck earned special mention, although choosing a favorite would require additional research.
Another peculiar evening outing was a semi-spontaneous trip to see “The German Magician” Henry ‘Oz perform his mix of comedy and magic to a full house. Bonus entertainment came from Scott and Barbie unexpectedly getting pulled into the act. They handled the spotlight with good humor and gave the rest of the group one more reason to laugh—and perhaps to choose their seats more strategically at the next show.
Between the excursions, shared meals, and relaxed time at camp, new connections formed and old friendships had room to grow. That may have been the best part of all: nearly 50 people finding their own adventures during the day and coming back together to swap stories afterward.
A heartfelt thank-you goes to Diane and Nina, along with all of the excursion leaders, for making the weekend welcoming, organized, varied, and memorable. Trips like this look effortless only because many people contribute their time, planning, and cheerful leadership.
A special shout-out also goes to Pete, founder of the newly expanded “Kayak Boys” club. Its growing membership suggests the club may be one of the weekend’s most successful launches.
The dates for next year are already set for September 16-19, 2027, giving everyone plenty of time to prepare the kayaks, tune up the bikes, and perfect a strategy for being first in line for cinnamon rolls.
Upcoming Events
(Please RSVP on the Group Me event calendar if you plan on attending any of these events.)
Kayak Leadership Meeting, Monday November 16
Co-Captains Nina and Diane are looking to expand the leadership team of the Kayak Fleet. If you are interested in supporting this growing and vibrant group, then join us to divide and conquer all that goes into keeping this fleet afloat. We could use help with communications, welcoming new members, planning paddles and educational events. If you are ready to dip your toe into helping to lead this vibrant group, we can promise a rewarding and fun time!
Annual Kayaks, Kazoos and Caroling on Deer Lake, Dec 12 : Light up your boat and join us for this chilly silly event. Sign up on GroupMe
Telegraph Cove, August 2027 : We are in the early planning stages for a trip to Telegraph Cove August 2027. There is a chat on GroupMe if you are interested. Please reach out to Dave Davis or Mike Mroz and we’ll get you added to that chat. The basic plan is that we will fill 2 groups for adventures further afield.
Glampers will be arriving at Telegraph Cove July 30 or 31st and then doing a 4-day/3-night camp Aug 2-5. The cost for the outfitter is $1,200 USD. The second group are the Nomad campers who are embarking for multiple campsites a little farther away.
Nomads will be bringing their own gear, Glampers will be provided gear and meals. We will fill the 12 slots available for the Glamping trip and probably the 8 or so slots for the Nomadic trip. Should there be more interest above and beyond we may ask for another volunteer to help organize a third group or folks could forgo the adventure paddling and stay close to Telegraph Cove.
Our group is expanding and doing a one size fits all trip for this diverse set of paddlers is challenging. But because of volunteers like Dave and Mike we will be able to accommodate everyone’s paddle goals.
Thanks Dave and Mike for helping to put this together!
Rescue Training, March 7, 2027 : Sign up on GroupMe for the Pool Session Rescue Training with Whidbey Island Kayaking. We are going beyond basics this year and you will want to be in on this one!
Windward Women
by Fleet Co-Captains Ann Christensen, Gayle Austin and Mary Stewart
On September 30th a dozen Windward Women met at Double Bluff Beach to learn about sand dollars from Janet Sandeven and her research colleagues from the University of Colorado. By wading into the water we could examine the live, fuzzy creatures. Special treats for all were Ann’s tasty sand dollar shaped cookies!
Coming up on October 21 at 10:30 AM is a tour of the newly restored Haller House in Coupeville. The tour will be led by Lynn Hyde, executive director of Historic Whidbey, who showed us through the 1890s structure as the work was beginning 2 years ago. (I remember multiple layers of wallpaper.) Lunch at Toby’s, another 1890 building, will follow.
The season might close on November 6th, 5-7 pm, with a repeat of our social at the home of Debra Richardson. The beautiful home is filled with delightful collections from the Richardsons’ travels and Whidbey Island. There will be time to review the events of 2026 and share ideas for next year. Also, bring sips and dips to share.
– Gayle Austin
Remember, you can always go on the SWYC website for the calendar of WW activities.
All women of the SWYC are invited to participate in Windward Women activities.
Activity Report from Member Ken Rasmussen
Norm Blanchard Regatta on Lake Union
Dear Sailors:
I competed in the Norm Blanchard Regatta on Lake Union yesterday. It was held by the Center for Wooden Boats. The event is open to all wooden sailboats or sailboats originally designed for construction in wood. It is handicap race, so boats can compete on a somewhat equal footing even though they differ hugely in design and size. I sailed my eight foot El Toro pram. I won overall for the 2nd year in a row. I am the first person to win for two consecutive years. The race has been won 7 times by El Toros. I recognize 5 names besides my own as being El Toro sailors.
There are 3 likely reasons for the success of El Toros in the event: 1) The winds are often light, and El Toros sail well in light conditions. 2) Spinnakers are disallowed. So the handicaps of boats that use spinnakers reflects the use of a spinnaker on downwind legs, but since they don’t get to use one, their handicaps are skewed to their disadvantage. 3) There are a lot of El Toro sailboats, and there has been a lot of El Toro racing, so El Toro sailors are often more skillful and numerous.
The competition was much tougher this year. Tanya and Michaela Edden were much improved in their Mirror. The Mirror is faster than an El Toro, and try as I would, I could not beat them yesterday. Occasionally I got ahead, but I couldn’t hold them back. They were always ahead of me at the finish. I wonder if they would have beaten me if they had been allowed to fly their spinnaker? It wouldn’t surprise me. I don’t know how old Asher Ma is, but he looked like ten to me. Asher did some brilliant sailing. He beat me around several marks, and he was threatening to overtake the Mirror in the final race until he made a poor tactical decision on the final leg. If Asher continues to improve as he has, his will be the boat to try to beat in the near future. Young sailors who sail well can’t be beaten by adults in light and medium winds. The only reason that adults usually win is that they know so much more.
I just put my boat away for the season. During the cool months I plan to switch from sailing to working on the wooden El Toro that I want to sail next year. I’ll see you then!
Ken
Sailing / Racing
Pelican Fleet
Our racing season has concluded. Check out the results at Sailwave.
“A Camping Trip to Cypress Head” by Michelle McPeek
Michelle Meek, a long time Pelican Fleet III member and newish SWYC member, has written about her camping trip to Cypress Head. It’s a great piece that incorporates some fun pics.
Laser Fleet
Our racing season has concluded. See the results of all races at Sailwave.
Cruising by Fleet Captains Jim and Kathy Rogers
We had a cruising season that was well-stocked with excitement and friendship. We’ll be posting about next year’s plans in a future newsletter.
View the Cruising Photo Album
Safety Matters #34: Winterizing
Clayton Canfield, SWYC Safety Officer
Winter is approaching faster than I would prefer, so it’s time to winterize our boats. It’s a good idea to clean, dry, and organize everything in the boat, as cooler air, more moisture in the air, and less sunlight will cause things to mildew. And who wants to open up their boat in the spring and find it is a mess or they can’t find what they were looking for?
One of the most critical systems is the water system. When water freezes, it expands. If it is in an enclosed space, the expansion can easily crack a pipe. Best to drain as much of the water as possible out of the system. Since there are almost always areas in the system that don’t fully drain, add anti-freeze made specifically for potable water systems and run the pump for a few seconds to move the anti-freeze into those areas. Water heaters should be drained and disconnected from the main system.
Marine sanitation systems need special care during winterization. Holding tanks should be pumped as dry as possible. Heads, holding tanks, macerator pumps, intake lines, discharge hoses, strainers, and overboard discharge systems can all hold water. It’s a good idea to drain them as much as possible and again add antifreeze to keep those areas that would not drain from freezing.
Outboard engines need to be winterized just as all other fluid cooled systems should. Consult your owner’s manual for this, as winterizing can vary considerably between brands and models.
Inboard engines are critical too, and hopefully yours already has anti-freeze in the system. It’s a good idea to check to make sure the anti-freeze is good to at least zero degrees Fahrenheit.
Fuel systems can also be a source of problems if not winterized correctly. Adding a fuel stabilizer is imperative, as are some anti-microbials for diesel fuels.
Batteries should be connected to a trickle-charger that adjusts the charge based on charge level of the battery to avoid over charging.
It’s common practice to place a small heater in an enclosed boat to maintain temperature above freezing throughout the winter.
Here’s a link to more information that may be more pertinent to your situation than the above: Winterize Your Boat Checklist
– Clay Canfield
New Members
Sheryl Christie
“Love to boat and kayak… I’m a definite water baby. On the water is my happy place.
I have co-owned a few different 21-23′ boats, and spent some vacation time boat camping, on the hook.
Currently I only have a kayak, and haven’t been out nearly enough over the last couple of years. I would like some new kayak partners! Several friends are members and have encouraged me to join.”
Sandra Hoffelt
“I am a novice kayaker. I have taken Whidbey Island Kayaking introduction class and intend to take the other two classes offered next spring. I bought a kayak and have taken it out several times now with my friend and neighbor, Rachelle Bennett. I have always wanted to kayak and am now ready to increase my skills and confidence. I look forward to all the activities you offer to South Whidbey kayakers. “
Youth Sailing Association
YSA meets on Wednesday mornings. The fall meeting schedule and locations are still being planned. Check back to the club calendar in the next few weeks if you’d like to join the group.
2026 Calendar of Events
Check out our Calendar for the dates of all of our Annual Events. And be sure to get them on YOUR calendar!
All Annual Events
SWYC Merchandise
SWYC BURGEE EARRINGS
We now have SWYC burgee earrings for pierced ears. Each earring is 1.5 cm x 1 cm. The posts are hypoallergenic. Each pair is $10. See Barb Grimlund if you are interested in a pair for yourself or as a gift.
As the summer boating season winds down, start to get outfitted in SWYC logo’d apparel and accessories for the chillier fall weather. Looking for a heavier jacket? A sweatshirt or heavier hoodie? A warm vest or hat? Or maybe even a blanket? SWYC merchandise also make cool gifts. It’s never too early to do your holiday shopping.
Our local provider right here on South Whidbey is Washington Design Company, located in Clinton. Washington Design offers a broad range of SWYC-branded apparel and a quick turnaround.
There are three ways to shop at Washington Design Company:
- You can stop in at their store, see the apparel and hat assortments in store, choose an item and have the SWYC logo applied, or in some cases, order the item in a different color or size.
- You can bring in your own clean personal apparel or item and have the logo applied to it, or
- You can visit their website, choose an item and logo you prefer, then have it shipped to your address or pick it up at their shop across from Ken’s Corner.
Washington Design Company
Or visit the shop at : 11247 WA-525 in Clinton (Across from Ken’s Corner)
Land’s End Online Stor
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