Hello Mercury Class Members!! Our racing season is off and sailing for 2018!
Perry Cup was a big success! There were 15 boats the first 3 weekends, then finished up with 11 boats the last Saturday! Jim Bradley has finished first overall, securing the lead for the Travel Trophy thus far. Scores of thanks to Dick Clark, and all of his crew, for doing a wonderful job putting on the series. Another big Thank You to the Monterey Peninsula Yacht Club for continuing to host the Perry Cup!
The MCYRA Annual Meeting was held in January, at the Paso Robles Inn. Old and new topics were discussed. Most notably, were the rules covering measuring sails and boats, the fairing of a mercury hull vs altering the shape of the hull or keel.
It was determined and agreed upon, as well as, taken to a vote; that if a skipper who has purchased new sails and plans to use them in the National Championship series - It is the skipper’s responsibility to make sure the sails measure in. Any sail that does not measure, per the MCYRA Rules, will not be allowed to be used. No exceptions. It was also brought up, that in the last 3 or 4 Nationals, the feeling was the class was getting lax on checking that each boat had the required safety equipment on board or that there was no spot checking measured items i.e. mast length or placement of sail bands on the mast and boom. All agreed, moving forward, there will be measurement checks of 1 or 2 items at the beginning of each championship series. With regard to fairing vs altering the shape of one’s hull…..the rule is pretty clear. However, Chief Measure, Dave West, sent out an email to the class to help clarify any confusion. In a nut shell, you cannot alter the shape of the keel or hull of your boat. You can, however, fill in low spots or fair high spots on the keel or hull.
Peter Baldwin, who is our Fresno/Monterey District Representative, reported that it is a bit too early to know if there will be enough water for Huntington Lake this year. So, stay tuned as updates will be fourth coming! Damon Guizot, who is an associate member of the class and the Commodore of the Los Angeles Yacht Club, submitted a bid to have LAYC host the 2018 National Championships. This was approved and agreed upon unanimously!
Mid-Winters is just around the corner (1 week away) February 17th and 18th hosted by CBYC. This is always a well-organized and well attended event. Don’t miss out!! Pull your boat out of the garage or out from under that tarp, dust it off, check those tires and trailer lights and make your way to L.A.!
The 2018 racing calendar is full! There are many opportunities for you to get out and do some sailing in your Mercury! As I have said before, there has to be a Saturday of racing or weekend regatta that will fit into your schedule. Don’t delay, look over the schedule and pick a couple races to sail. You are sure to have fun, and your boat will love you for it!
See you on the water!
Park
Merc 572