October 2015

Hundreds of Cedar Point Yacht Club members gathered on Labor Day to commission the Westport, CT club’s first major expansion in 50 years, a beautiful open-air pavilion.

This is the ninth installment in a series of dispatches from the Rath family (Colin & Pam, daughters Breana, Meriel and Nerina), who departed Stamford, CT in October 2014 for a worldwide cruise aboard their Hanse 545 Persevere.

Ninety-eight boats from Connecticut, New York, Rhode Island, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Texas and Nova Scotia competed in the 81st running of the Vineyard Race. First sailed in 1932, this Labor Day weekend classic is sponsored by Stamford Yacht Club and as always, boats from local waters were victorious in many of the 15 classes.

It was great to see close to 100 boats in the starting area for the 2015 Vineyard Race The event has bounced back impressively, thanks to Stamford Yacht Club offering different course and rating options to cater to a broader audience.

The Builder’s Cup is a one-design race for the Crocker-designed Stone Horse, which was built by Edey & Duff of Mattapoisett, MA. The race is hosted out of the New Bedford Yacht Club by club member and Dartmouth resident Tom Kenney, the owner of Hull #046, Windfall.

An author, journalist and sailor, Emma Bamford has worked at The Independent and the Daily Express. She lives in Derbyshire, England. You’ll find her entertaining blog at emmabamford.com. Casting Off is Emma’s first book. Whether you choose the paperback or the eBook, it’s a great read.

SAIL BLACK ROCK, which sponsors the intercollegiate sailing teams of Fairfield and Sacred Heart Universities at Captain’s Cove Seaport in Black Rock, CT, hosted its first NESSA high school regatta, known as the Great Oaks Qualifier, on Saturday, September 12.

As the youngest Race Chairman in the history of the Newport Bermuda Race, 34-year-old Alton J. Evans has the helm of the 50th “Thrash to the Onion Patch,” which starts Friday, June 17, 2016.

Australian born, Joe ‘Coop’ Cooper stayed in the US after the 1980 America’s Cup where he was the boat captain and sailed as Grinder/Sewer-man on Australia. His whole career has focused on sailing, especially the short-handed aspects of it.

Mystic Seaport in Mystic, CT is holding its 66th Annual Dyer Dhow Derby on Saturday, October 17, 2015.