By Jason Viseltear, HYC Laser Frostbiting Fleet Captain
Huguenot Yacht Club in New Rochelle, NY would like to invite you to join us on the beautiful winter waters of Western Long Island Sound for our 2016-17 Laser Frostbiting Season. We get underway Sunday, November 6 and will be running races as the rest of the world hibernates, through April 2, 2017.
Laser racers of all ages and abilities are invited to compete in Huguenot YC’s 2016-17 Laser Frostbiting Season.
We run up to six Windward/Leeward, Triangle, Harry Anderson, or No-Jibe courses every Sunday (with an almost leisurely first start time of 1300). The races are run fast and fun, and you still get back to the club with time to debrief and decompress with your fellow racers, enjoy a bite to eat or otherwise kick back.
The season scores are separated into two series – a “Fall/Winter Series” and a “Winter/Spring Series” – with prizes for each and overall. We also bring our away game to a separate New Year’s Regatta at Manhasset Bay YC; participate in The McCauley Regatta which HYC hosts; and end the season as the weather warms with a navigator’s race finale we call the Execution Rocks Race Out and Return (affectionately known as the ERROR Race.)
The series is open to Full and Radial rigged Lasers, which start together but are scored separately.HYC has a comfortable RC boat and a crash boat to catch all your winning moves or occasional capsizes, a warm club room for suiting up, and a warm bar and dining room for post-racing camaraderie and coffee, refreshments and dinner.We’re having a pre-season shakedown on Monday, October 10 (Columbus Day). Bring your boat down and get it on the dock, check to see if all your gear is good, and meet a few folks. If we feel like it, we can head out for some impromptu racing or just mess around. A Meet & Greet follows on Saturday, November 5, and the Fall/Winter Series starts Sunday, November 6.
The program includes Winter Membership, which allows for the above perks of club membership. (Note: You do not need to be a full member of HYC to participate in the Frostbiting season – the program is open to racers not currently affiliated with the club.)
A $140 Dock Fee gets your Laser dock space in protected waters, ready to rig, push off and go; $150 Participation Fee pays for the race management; and a $50 Winter Membership allows you club access. That’s $340 total! (Note: You do not need to keep your boat at HYC if you’ll be making it to the course area from your home berth, so subtract the dockage fee if that’s the case.)
Can’t make it to all the races? No problem! Sign up to “double skipper,” which allows your boat to be shared by an additional team member. In this category of participation, each member pays a slightly reduced 70% Participation Fee. This option allows the boat be kept racing by one of the members of your team even if you have to miss a race or two. And if both members of your team are present, one of you can leave your drysuit off and help run the races from the Committee Boat.
Need to charter a boat? Let us know! Though HYC does not charter boats, there are always a few boats available to charter from individuals and we’ll put you in touch. The fee for this will vary depending upon the charter, but if the past is any indication, it’s been about $500 for the season.A drysuit, PFD, and tow rope are the only mandatory equipment, so start getting your kit together now.
We use a calendar app that allows all participants to know how many racers are planning on attending each Sunday; whether we have room for extra Race Committee Volunteers (yes, you can bring your family and friends to hang out and watch the races from the RC boat); and to basically keep each other in the loop.To sign up, email me at jviseltear@gmail.com and we’ll send you an entry form and waiver. Fill them out, send them in with your payment, and we’re all set. Hope to see you on the water!
