Congratulations to the winners of the 2024 Summer Sailstice Contests! Thanks to everyone who submitted and voted. We also extend our sincerest appreciation to our generous donors who provided us with amazing prizes.
Best Photo honors go to Harry Quinn, member of Chatham Sailing Club, homeported in Savannah, GA. They braved a dubious forecast to have the best Sailstice raft-up yet, with 16 boats (and a few sail-bys from other clubs), live music, fresh shrimp, a sliding board and a pirate invasion!
Harry won a SunPower 1x100Watt bundle donated by Sun Powered Yachts.
The Best Video award goes to Gary Kirkham for his video showcasing the 10th Annual Pluckers and Pirates Summer Sailstice Extravaganza on Canyon Lake, San Antonio, TX! Click HERE to be linked to the one-minute YouTube video to see the fun on and off the water.
Gary is the winner of an OGM Series LED KIS Light donated by Weems & Plath.
The Raft Up Winner was Chatham Sailing Club, Savannah, GA, with a repeat performance from 2023
Commodore Connie Polk writes: We had 16 boats rafted up (one more than last year) at Priest Landing in the Wilmington River, GA. In addition we had two boats from the Savannah Yacht Club and one from The Landings Sailing Club sail by and wave, and another CSC member sailed for 4.5 hours through rough water and high winds from Hilton Head Island only to turn around once arrived, to make the long journey home. Dealing with a tropical system moving up from Florida, we made peace with the weather gods and they obliged us for a really sporty and fun day on and in the water!
They won a Tektite/TEKNA donated prize that we ALL need: a SOSeFLARE** day/night audible USCG compliant flare kit with complimentary float plan app included. Perfect for future club events!
Chatham Sailing Club was also the winner of the WRI Weather Routing Forecast package prize for pinning their event on the map before the end of May. They were provided with a forecast and maps prior to and during their event, and a SeaWeather.net account for the organizers. This undoubtedly contributed to the club's safe and enjoyable raft up!
Safe sailing is always our priority. Margaret Pommert, US Naval Academy Sailing Instructor, is the winner of our Do the Safety Dance Contest.
She explained, We practiced the sailing "Quick Stop" crew overboard rescue pattern on Colgate 26's on the Severn River in Annapolis, MD, with everyone on board getting a turn at the helm.
We also decided to check out these new dockside lifering stations, to see what was inside. Now we know how/where to open them, and what we'll find inside ... in case someone falls overboard in the marina, such as while docking.
Margaret also serves as V.P. for Safety at Sea for The Sailing Foundation, a 50-year-old non-profit organization that, among other things, developed the Lifesling. She's a true Ambassador for Safety!
Choosing a winner of the Restore an Old Sailboat Contest was a tough task for our Summer Sailstice crew. We had six great entries that ranged from dinghies to a small power boat to keelboats. After much deliberation we chose William Moore's restoration of his Compac CP19, "Seahorse."
This 1992 boat was damaged at the dock by wind and waves then abandoned under the pines for 30 years. William worked for over a year to bring her back to like-new condition and is sailing her in Sanford, North Carolina. Great job!
William won Vallon eyewear's donation of The Malizia, the World's Ultimate Sustainable Sailing Sunglasses.
But wait ... we decided that two other Restore an Old Sailboat entries were deserving of Honorable Mentions.
Tom Burden, a member of Richmond Laser Sailors, restored El Toro 11477 that had sat in a dusty Ben Lomond yard in Northern California for 18 years. It now sports a new carbon thwart and foredeck, and a carbon step that fits Moore masts and includes a drain tube that goes back to the cockpit. Tom gets a Latitude 38 hat for his efforts.
Paul Smutz has been refinishing the hull of his 15" Barnegat Bay Sailing Sneakbox named FireFly. He's making huge progress and is giving her a year off from racing with the hope of getting her back in the water next month. She's looking great already and we hope Paul will fly his Summer Sailstice burgee with pride.
Thanks to the generous donation of dozens of prizes, we'll also be randomly selecting winners from the individual plans and public events and demonstrations pinned on our Global Map! Watch for the announcements coming soon!
Save the Date for June 21, 2025 ... Celebrating our 25th Anniversary!
We had 187 individual plans, public event and demonstrations pinned in 2024! We're looking forward to even greater participation in 2025 ... our 25th Anniversay! So mark your calendars and tell your boating organizations and friends to join us for another year of SAILING!
It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end.”
- Ernest Hemingway
