February 16, 2021
To all the members that support the ECSC Junior Sailing Team...thank you for donations, again.
This year, as in the past, your team will do battle against much larger teams, but we have something they don't have, your support!
Some of the Lake Erie Clubs have a $30,000 budget and field 10 - 15 sailors. We are a small club with a limited budget, but our size is our strength.. We are like David vs. Goliath.
Your junior sailors have finished in the top ten so many times, it's hard to count. But this is a new year, with some new faces and skills.
Our 2 returning team members are:
Sam Riley, age 16, from Zionsville, plays hockey for his school, and loves sailing and racing. He comes from the Opti Class and has done battle on the East coast. In 2019 at his very first Junior Bay Week, he finished 9th in the gold fleet out of 40 boats. Sam is also training to be an instructor. Last year he completed his first part of US Sailing Level 1's and is waiting this Spring to finish. Sam's father owns a race team called "Riley Motorsports", so racing is in Sam's blood.
Olivia DeGrella is also 16, from Carmel, a straight-A student, and has many hours flying "tail dragger" airplanes (as she calls them). Last year she finished her difficult, one-week-long Wilderness Medical Course. She has her CPR and Red Cross First Aid certifications and is working toward the US Sailing Level 2's this year. She is also the team "Medic". She loves racing, sailing, teaching, flying, kick boxing and climbing.
Our support team this year is:
Ralph Merriman. Ralph is a long-time supporter of the team who volunteers to drive and provide safety on the water.
Katie DeGrella is our assistant chair of Jr. Program and my right hand.
Reagan Lessick is Head Coach and previous Junior Racer.
Dennis Robertson Jr. is Assistant Coach and Jr. Camp Instructor
Deanna Nichols is Jr. Camp Instructor,
Sue Tennant is Jr. Camp Advisor
Captain Tony Hubbard volunteers his 32' yacht for Jr. Bay Week,
Amy Sheppard (IUPUI sailor) is our trainer and physical therapist.
ZAT Graphics, (Chuck & Jacqui Lessick) provided our team and camp T shirts.
I have in the works two more possible Jr. Team members to be named later.
I'm always looking for more potential sailors, so if you know of someone, please send them to me for a try out this Spring...practices start in April.......
The team's tentative schedule for 2021:
April...... Practice
May........at ECSC
May........at ISC
7 Saturdays on the road, Buckeye Lake, Hoover, North Cape, Edgewater, Vermillion, Cowan and Erie for the I-LYA Traveler Series.
US Sailing Smyth Area E Championship at Sandusky (2 days)
USA Junior Olympics at Mentor Harbor (4 days)
Jr. Bay Week at Put-In-Bay (4 days)
Orange Bowl at Miami (4 days)
The Jr. Sailing Camp News will be out March 1st on our "ecsail.org" web site. There will be a 5 week camp this year. We are opening the camp to 8 - 10 year old for the first time. There will be a limited number of campers each week due to COVID. Come check us out during the sailing camp!
For more information on the team and to see pictures of our regattas check out our ECSC Junior Sailing Team Facebook page: www.facebook.com/groups/ecscjr
Wayne Myers
Junior Sailing Chair
Below is the I-LYA Junior Bayweek Trophy for Lasers. The 2008 - 2018 trophy winners are shown. ECSC is listed the most out of any club with our Juniors earning it 3 times across those years. Let's go ECSC Junior Racing!
November 30, 2020
A new Committee has been formed to encompass everything involved with the Junior Program. This includes the two-week junior sailing camp that 60+ children from around Indianapolis participate in each Summer as well as the Junior Race team that ECSC is proud to sponsor at various Regattas around the country. Our very own Wayne Myers will be leading this new committee. We wish him luck with the 2021 season.
EJ Williams
September 27, 2020
A tip of my hat, to EJ this past month. He organized racing on our FJ fleet and the single handed Laser fleet.
The juniors are back at school. Sam is doing his thing in hockey and Olivia is recovering from a accident and out for the year.
I be glad when 2020 is replaced with 2021!
Wayne Myers, Safety & EducationAugust 21, 2020
The junior sailing team has been out practicing periodically at the club. Unfortunately there is nothing else to report.
Wayne Myers,
Safety & Education
July 12, 2020
See pictures below of the Junior race team's practice at North Cape Yacht Club in Michigan.
[Best_Wordpress_Gallery id="21" gal_title="Juniors NCYC 2020"]
June 15, 2020
The Junior team is currently at North Cape Yacht Club (just over the Michigan border, north of Toledo) to practice with the NCYC junior team. We went out today in 17 knots of air with everyone doing fairly well. Only a couple capsizes. It was a great open water practice!
Tuesday and Thursday this week is more practicing with the North Cape juniors on lasers. Wednesday the ECSC juniors will jump on keel boats for the NCYC Wednesday night beer-can racing. (No beers for them though!)
June 25th - 27th, our team is going to Sandusky for big boat sailing with Tony Hubbard on the infamous Integrity, a 35ft dual-masted wooden sailboat.
July 10th/11th ECSC juniors will be back at NCYC for a hobie/laser race. After that the team will travel to Sandusky again to practice until the 19th. On July 20th, the team will head over to Put-in-Bay State Park to practice on the island. Since Junior bay is cancelled, we will be running our own practice and races up there.
Last week, the ECSC Juniors cleaned up the beach, picked up the cinder blocks around the parking lot, and cleaned up trash around the club. They also cleaned the sailing school & equipment shed, washed down the lower shelter & picnic tables, and washed the main shelter picnic tables & floor. They kids did a bang-up job cleaning our coach boat (racing's old RIB). It looks brand new, especially with its upgraded 50hp motor.
We also added some dirt to the lower shelter grass area. There was a large 18" drop that needed fixing. You'll see a new bed of dirt that needs watering and grass to grow.
MOVIE NIGHT NEXT WEEK: June 24th (Wednesday) we will be having an outdoor movie night at the lower shelter. All members are welcome to join. BYO-everything (chair, food, drinks). We will be starting at 9pm, but you can arrive early to hang out.
Wayne
Safety & Education
May 11, 2020
It is with a heavy heart we share that the 2020 junior sailing camps have been cancelled. Gathering 40 kids together at any point this summer would pose too large a liability for the club. We have refunded everyone's money and hope to see them next year.
The ECSC junior sailing team is adhering to the I-LYA and US Sailing guidelines and protocols for COVID19 safety. Marion County is still under a stay-at-home order, so Junior Sailing has not had any official practices yet. We will have more in a report in a few weeks.
I-LYA has cancelled all travelers series in June. Bayweek is also cancelled this year. I have been working with I-LYA, lawyers, and insurance agents in figuring out a path forward.
Sam and Olivia were supposed to have their level one training course in Cleveland, OH, June 1-4 but this has been postponed. We are hoping the Mentor Harbor Junior Olympics will still happen on July 11th/12th.
US Sailing is pushing single-hand racing this year to adhere to the social distancing mandates. This is easy for our laser team. Technically they are allowing 420 racing if you race it single-handed with no jib...
More to come in my report.