Hello again all Mercury Class members near and far!
Yes it’s been awhile since I have address the class with an update. So have a seat, sit back, and hold on as I recap the last part of our 2019 and give you some of what’s ahead for 2020!
Since we last talked we had just completed our High Sierra Regatta. Big thanks to Pat Bradly, Peter and Lynn Baldwin, and their large support staff for once again making the event spectacular! Fast forward to the Labor Day regatta, 12 boats participated in what is probably one of the most beautiful venues the Mercury Class races in. Dick Clark and his top notch race committee crew did another wonderful job. The sunset Saturday night while we enjoyed the BBQ dinner was magnificent!
Onto the National Championships, held at the Richmond Yacht Cub September 13th and 14th. We don’t normally go that deep into the year for the Nationals, but this was the only time RYC could fit us in. Lyn Hines was the driving force to get the regatta to this venue, and he and RYC did a fantastic job! From race committee ( 3rd race on Friday should have been cut short or run the next day. I think many of us thought we should have had running lights installed Friday morning! ) to the dinner Saturday night, the club made the Mercury Class feel very welcomed! Chris Raab and Kenny Dair nailed down their 7th Mercury Championship, although it was probably some of the closest and most competitive racing we’ve had in sometime!
Since then, we had the PCC at LAYC, the Joe Logan at SFYC, Fall Mercury Regatta at RYC, Fall One Design at CBYC, and finally Perry Cup #1 ( Monterey Invitational )…….WOW! Lots of racing packed into just 2 months! Unfortunately Perry Cup #2 had to be canceled due to rough weather. But hey, January 4th is Perry cup # 3, and I know Dick Clark and team will pack in as many races as possible! Then there’s Mid-Winters in February at CBYC, and Pax Davis has the dates for the NorCal series already set at Encinal Yacht Club just get us started. Once we set dates for racing the remainder of the year, they will be posted on the class web site.
Lyn Hines has recruited a group of very good sailors out of the Santa Cruz area ( 4 boats to be exact ) and working on getting them more active in the class. So I want to welcome Phil and Lauri Vandenberg #557, Dan and Kelli Cook # 565, John and Jennifer Andrew # 563, and Paul and Mary Tara # 470…..in addition I would like to also welcome to the class, (racing in his first Nationals) new members Charles McKenzie and Tony Chargin!
Peter Baldwin of the Fresno Fleet has reserved the meeting room at the Paso Robles Inn for our annual meeting on January 18th, 2020. This is the time we discuss all of the past years business and what we have ahead of us for the coming year.
Finally, 2019 was a good year for the Mercury Class. As we look forward, the class is strong and getting more participation and competitive at every regatta! So, remember “Your Boat Wants To Go Sailing, And It Wants To Take You With It!!” Get that Mercury out of the your yard or garage, dust it off and go do some sailing!!!
Happy Holidays to you all, and I’ll see YOU on the water!
Park
Mercury 572