2002 Pymatuning Yacht Club Spring Classic Party

Dear Mom and Dad,

I just have to tell you about my weekend! It was unbelievable! I went to this place called Pymatuning Yacht club for their Spring Classic regatta and I had the time of my life! You know I have never sailed before but my friend needed crew so I thought, what the heck, I’ll give it a go. We got there after dark but there were plenty of people around to help us get our boat situated and after we did that we headed for the clubhouse where they were cooking hotdogs. The first thing they did was slap an ice-cold Labbatt’s beer in my one hand and a tasty hotdog in the other! I met a lot of neat people Friday night at this "Dog Party". They come from all over for this regatta; Canada, Virginia, New York, New Jersey, Illinois, Michigan, even Missouri. Apparently some of these guys are really good sailors; they call them "rock stars". We hung out at the clubhouse till 2 am talking and laughing. Luckily we didn’t have to drive anywhere. What’s cool about this place is that there are trailers everywhere and we were lucky enough to be able to crash in one. The one we stayed in must have been built in the 40’s or 50’s, it looked like it anyway, but what did I care, it was free and there was a roof over my head!

We got up early Saturday morning so that we could do the final tuning on the boat and get everything squared away. Pymatuning Lake is beautiful and this place is set up really nice. They have hoists that lift the boat right up off the trailer and set it in the water – real slick! Like I said I have never sailed before and I had no idea what I was doing. There are way too many lines in these boats and I didn’t even know what a spinnaker was and I was supposed to "fly" one! Luckily there was coffee and stuff for breakfast at the clubhouse so that I could get my act together before the first race. It wasn’t very windy early in the morning but it picked up as we were heading out to the start. I was pretty nervous about racing. There were 46 boats out there on the starting line! I don’t think I’d want to be the one steering the boat! I had no idea which way we were supposed to be going and what we were supposed to be doing. But that didn’t matter, I was having a blast! That was until it was time to hoist the spinnaker! What a fiasco. But I was laughing the whole time even though my skipper wasn’t. I wish we had discussed how to do this prior to the execution but we didn’t. "Set the guy"! "Twing on!" "Trim the sheet!" "No, not that one! The other line!" What other line? My hands are full! What’s a guy and what the heck is a twing?? "Pull up the centerboard!" How am I supposed to do that when I’m not allowed to take my eyes off the spinnaker? Holy cow! And this all happens in a few moments! Well we finally got it flying and just when I thought I was getting the feel for it he says…"prepare to jibe!" Huh? Jibe what? He told me to straddle the centerboard trunk and hold both lines in my hands and wait for directions. "Release the twing!" "Pull the chute around!" Around where? And how? With which line? "HURRY!!! "Twing on!" "Twing on!!" "TWING ON!!!!!" Which twing?? "TRIM THE SHEET!!" WHICH ONE IS THE SHEET??!!! Oh my God!! I had no idea what I was doing and why but somehow it all happened. Let me tell you it’s a little confusing but a ton of fun! What a weird race, though. I was told it was a windward/leeward course. It seemed like at times were doing really well and then we would fall to the back of the fleet. I think the winds were shifty, that’s what my skipper was blaming it on anyway.

After that race we headed for shore and had soup and sandwiches that were made by the Pymatuning ladies. I was starved and it really hit the spot. The wind was quickly diminishing but the Race Committee (they’re called the Three Amigos – Jon Anstrom, Joel Ridge and Dave Hulton) with Mike Werley headed out to the racecourse to try and get a second race off. The wind quit and they had to make a decision to cancel for the day. There was a big cheer from the sailors still on shore that had anticipated that decision.

That gave us lots of time to get the boat put away and get ourselves ready for the evening festivities. You wouldn’t believe the spread that these Pymatuning people put out! They started with appetizers and a cocktail party that was incredible! I think I ate enough at the cocktail party to call it dinner! They had more Labbatt’s beer, a keg, mixed drinks and wine! The barmaids had matching flowered shirts and big smiles; it was hard to get though the mob to get a drink! Dinner was prepared by more PYC people and it was delicious – ham, beans, baked potatoes, salad and scrumptious apple pie. I can’t believe how much I ate that night. But that wasn’t the best part. This club has their own band! They are called the Trailer Trash Band and you wouldn’t believe your ears. They actually sound pretty good for a bunch of sailors! It looked like they all had new instruments but I’m not sure. They played some songs that I knew and a bunch I didn’t but it really didn’t matter. The crowd was getting into it. You could tell that the Fleet members loved these guys! The band’s motto is "the more you drink, the better we sound". Well, there was enough drinking going on that night. Some girl even wound up in the beer cooler! I thought the party was over when it ended at the clubhouse, but I was wrong. I was trying to get to sleep when a couple of PYC partiers came knocking on our trailer door. They rousted us out of our beds and we partied until the wee hours of the morning. I had a lot of laughs and a great time with my new crazy friends.

Sunday morning brought rain and thunderstorms so the race committee fired three guns and we moved on to the awards presentation. It’s not much of a regatta with only one race but they still had trophies to give out. The trophies were really nice embroidered pile blankets. Sean Fidler with Richard Toma and Mike Thomas took first place. George Fisher with Martha Fisher and Dave Alvarado took second. Ernie Dieball with Stacey Brinker and Derek Gauger took third. David Stark with Joe Stark and Becky Stark took fourth and Ryan Flack with Bryon Thornberg and Mark Allen took fifth place.

It amazed me how this club put on such an outstanding regatta. Everyone pitched in and made it look so easy but I know it wasn’t. The Dog Party, the cocktail party, all the great food, all the beer and refreshments – it must take a lot of work and dedication. I suppose I should write them a letter and thank all the Fleet 36 members for showing me such a great time! I should also write a letter to Tri County Wholesale Distributors, Inc of Youngstown for donating the Labbatt’s Blue – That beer always tastes great! Most of all I’d like to thank my skipper for turning me onto sailing because it’s a great sport that is supported by a lot of truly good and entertaining people. I hope he invites me back next year!