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Sayville Yacht Clubs’ North American J-24 Regatta A Huge Success!

There is no doubt the last year and a half has been a particularly trying time for everyone. Recently, however, there have been some bright spots in the water world of competitive sailing. With the easing of Covid this year, the Sayville Yacht Club proudly hosted, in conjunction with the title sponsor, the Good Samaritan Hospital in West Islip, the J-24 North American Sailboat Championship. Last summer the event was canceled due to Covid. The Great South Bay has a long history in competitive sailing. Though today the western bays from Hewlett to Seaford has a smaller share of sailboats, competition sailing geographically began at the Unqua Corinthian Club in Amityville and stretched out east to Bellport. This was due to the absence of congested islands and thatches that impede broad reaches necessary in competitive sailing which the openness of the eastern Great South Bay allows. Hence, yacht clubs from Amityville east drew a higher percentage of sailors. Some of these clubs have sadly moved from their commitment to the traditions of sailing and have turned themselves into social clubs for power boaters to economically survive. Yet there are still strong traditionalist yacht clubs promoting sailing and racing on the South Shore, Sayville Yacht club and Bellport Yacht club being two of the most active. The Sayville Yacht Club was originally a split-off from the North Shore Seawanaka Corinthian Yacht Club of Centre Island. Initially named the Southside Yacht Club, its first commodore was John Roosevelt who owned an estate called Meadowcroft which presently is a museum and winery along the old South Road east of Sayville. His cousin, Teddy Roosevelt, would often ride on horseback from Oyster Bay to visit his cousins. He partook in many club-sponsored races with his uncle Robert Roosevelt and cousins. Through the 1930s the club continued to sponsor races. When the club was re-organized in the 1990s in Blue Point it rededicated itself to making racing the mainstay of the club by hosting many national and international regattas. Every type of sailing vessel from small Sunfish, traditional catboats, Hobies, O’Days, Blue Jays, numerous Laser regattas, and on to J-24s all have competed at Sayville Yacht Club racing competitions. This organization is truly devoted to the continuation and upgrading of this great sport. The 2021 Sayville Yacht Club National J-24 Regatta took place from June 16 through June 20th. The weather was picture-perfect, as you see on these pages featuring the magnificent photography of Rich Labella, a talented nautical photographer. As I write this article on July 16, it seems as if those days were the last time the sun graced the bay with cool breezes and less than stifling humidity. With bright sun, there is nothing more spectacular than the vision of competing sailboats going through their paces on the Great South Bay. The best place to view is from shore with a good pair of binoculars. You don’t want to be in your boat getting in the way of the competitors. The J-24 is a unique sailing vessel with a very strong following. They are built for racing competition and not for canapes and drinks on the aft deck! I believe to do so would curse the vessel except when Champagne foams out at the end of a strong performance in a race. The J-24 was designed and built by Rodney Johnstone in his garage in Stonington Conn. in 1977. The first completed hull was called Ragtime and it became the master for all subsequent hulls. Over 6,000 exist today worldwide. J-24s are fixed keelboats, made primarily of fiberglass with decorative wood trim. Its stem is raked making her appear fast even out of the water. They all have tiller-controlled rudders. It needs a crew of 3-5 who get weighed before each competition for load compliance which automatically bans me from any deck of a J-24. They are monohulls with a 4ft draft, 24ft LOA, and a beam 1inch nigh of 9 ft. Between the mainsail, jib, and spinnaker, each carries a total of 710sq ft of sail capacity and are fitted with 5-6 HP outboards for docking convenience and when the wind just dies for what seems like forever and especially when the green flies find you. Generally, her hull speed capability is in the range of 6– 10 knots which allows you to feel the wind and get close to the sea as opposed to that *!@$% who just blew by with five 400 HP outboards on the transom. Below decks are accommodations for a crew of four with bunks, a head and a small galley. Since the J-24 can use a crew of up to 5, the fifth usually sleeps sitting on the “head if the weather is too foul for sleeping on deck. This vessel is easy “trailerable” and weighs in at 3,100 Lbs. The “International J-24 Class Association’’ conducts and manages all competitions. Starting in 1977 there have been 42 International J-24 Championship competitions all over the world. Currently, there are 3,600 competing members from over 30 different countries. Over the years Americans have taken the gold 24 times with Italy coming in second with 5 and the rest divided between Australia, Japan, Brazil, Argentina and Germany. There are also silver and bronze medals awarded at every championship race. This June race was strictly a United States and Northern Hemisphere competition with vessels from Rhode Island, Florida, Washington D.C., California, Washington State, Vermont, Mexico, Conn, Maryland, Maine and South Carolina all competing with many vessels from New York. Some boats had additional crew members to rotate for each race and some sailed with as few as the same four in every race. Every crew gave their all no matter what situation they found themselves in. Yacht folk are very attuned to being courteous and sportsman-like during the challenge, on the dock, and when celebrating. After the three intense days of racing that was broken up by a dinner social on that Saturday night, it came time to announce the winner who had been watched, timed and judged from the Sayville Yacht club Command Boat. The North American Perpetual Trophy was presented by Col. John McMurry to owner/skipper Keith Whittemore and his crew on Fureo. The Master Trophy went to Aiden Glackin of Mental Floss and the Youth Trophy went to Mike Stasko. The top Female Skipper was Katie Morgan of Quirky and the Kelly Trophy for best Sayville Yacht Club Finisher was awarded to Matthew Miranda of Outrageous. The Sayville Yacht Club wishes to thank all the competitors, judges, Good Samaritan Hospital, and all its members for the success of this race. Long Island Boating World sends its congratulations to winners and competitors alike. Keep Sailing Alive!

All Photographs are Copyright 2021, all rights reserved by Rich Labella They have been used with his gracious permission

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Published in August 2021

• Mark C. Nuccio

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J/24 North American Championship at Sayville Yacht Club - Day 2

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Sayville Yacht Club

Racing is the mainstay of the Sayville Yacht Club and we’ve held regattas every single year since we became reestablished in Blue Point.

The Sayville Yacht Club has come a long way since 1901. Its name is known for the sailing events that have drawn sailors to its waters from the United States, South America and Europe. Some Sayville Yacht Club sailors have become well known for their sailing accomplishments on the Bay, nationally and abroad. Besides traveling to national and international championships some sailors have endured stringent Olympic trials.

At The SYC 

In addition to a sailing tradition the SYC is equally proud of its hospitality. Sailors should feel free to avail themselves of club amenities. Cash is accepted at the bar and snack bar. No dress code exists.Getting to the SYC 

Sayville Yacht Club is located at Lat 40° 44’00” N, Long 73° 02’07” W. The light signal on the flag pole is Red over White over RED 

The area is serviced by three major airports and several civil air fields. The closest and easiest is Long Island Macarthur with Southwest Air being the dominant carrier. 

John F. Kennedy International Airport has flights to most places in the US as well as the world. From JFK public transportation is available via the Airtrain with a connection at Jamaica Station to the Long Island Railroad.

Take the Long Island Railroad to the Sayville Station and its is approximately a $10 taxi ride to the Sayville Yacht Club. The third airport is LaGuardia. While many domestic carriers serve this airport it is the most difficult to use, having little public transportation. A taxi from here will be in excess of $120. Private cars are a better alternative and service both JFK and LaGuardia however the cost is about the same and advanced booking is required. 

The Long Island Railroad services Long Island from Pennsylvania Station at 34th St. in New York City. Amtrak has some service to Penn Station. Boarding at Penn, look for a Montauk or Babylon Branch train with stops at Sayville. Again, approximately a $10 taxi to the club from Sayville Station. Rail schedules can be found at http://new.mta.info/lirr. 

From Long Island Expressway

-I495 - LIE I495 to Exit 62 South Rt 97 Nicolls Road South to Blue Point

-Follow directions for Nicolls Rd below 

From Southern State Parkway

- **Passenger Cars Only, No trailers, No RV’s, low clearance bridges  - Southern State Parkway East to exit 44 East - Sunrise Hwy Rt 27 East  - Sunrise Hwy (rte 27) east to exit 51 Nicolls Road Rt 97 South to Blue Point  - Follow directions for Nicolls Rd below 

From Eastern Long Island via Sunrise Hwy Rt 27 

- Sunrise Hwy (rte 27) west to exit 51 Rt 97 Nicolls Road South to Blue Point  - Follow directions for Nicolls Rd below 

From Rt 97 Nicolls Rd. 

- Rt 97 Nicolls Rd south towards Blue Point to the end to Rt 85/27A Montauk Hwy  - Bear Right onto Montauk Hwy west to first traffic light - Gillette Ave.  - Left Onto Gillette Ave South to 2nd stop sign (blinking traffic light) Middle Road  - Left onto Middle Road two blocks to Boylan Lane.  - Turn right onto Boylan Lane – Sayville Yacht Club near end of street on left behind gate.

Long Island Railroad  www.lirr.org 

Airtrain  http://www.panynj.gov/Airtrain/

Remember that the “Parkways” of Long Island prohibit trailers.

Limited (Rustic) camping available on a first come, first serve basis.  Small camper vans are welcome however no facilities exist to support them in  terms of electric hookups or water. 

Please leave your pets at home. Dogs are only allowed on club grounds  while leashed and en route to a member's boat in the yacht basin. This club  rule is strictly enforced. Please email  [email protected]  if you plan on camping for availability.

Islandia Marriott Long Island  www.islandiamarriott.com  (631) 232-3000  Hampton Inn Islandia  www.hamptoninnislandia.com  (631) 234-0400  Courtyard Long Island MacArthur Airport  www.marriott.com  (631) 612-5000  Econo Lodge MacArthur Airport  www.econolodge.com  - (631) 588-6

3485 Veterans Memorial Highway  Ronkonkoma, NY  631-738-7800

25 Middle Ave  Holtsville, NY  631-475-9500

3845 Veteran Memorial Highway  Ronkonkoma, NY  (631) 585-9500

10 Aero Rd.  Bohemia, NY  631-881-7700

70 Browns River Road  Sayville, NY  631-589-2040

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North American sailing competition returns to Sayville Yacht Club

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