Beacon - Annapolis Yacht Club

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In 1946, the Spring Series was started with three classes—30 Square Meters, Stars, and Chesapeake 20s. By 1948, Moths, Comets, and Hamptons were also taking part. The Annapolis to Newport Race (Newport to Annapolis back then) started in 1947 and has been run every two years since. A dining room was added to the club in the late 1940s and, in 1948, the first Smoking Lamp newsletter appeared as a single page mimeographed sheet. The junior fleet started in 1948, and the first junior trophy was presented in 1953. The first junior boat, Dolphins, was replaced by Penguins, which were next followed by the 420s that the junior fleet still races. Wednesday Night Races were the brainchild of P/C Gaither Scott. After seeing the Wednesday Night Races at East Greenwich Yacht Club in Rhode Island in 1958, Scott inaugurated midweek racing at AYC in 1959. No race committee, no prizes, and no scoring, but there was a picnic supper after sailing. “S” boats, H-23s, 5.5 meters, Bermuda One Design and Rainbows raced. By 1959, membership had risen to 1000 and a new club building was badly needed. The Modern Era, 1960–Today “We stand today on the edge of a new frontier—the frontier of the 1960s, a frontier of unknown opportunities and perils, a frontier of unfulfilled hopes and threats.” —John F. Kennedy, July 1960. The Nation. In the 60s, John F. Kennedy, after the closest presidential election in decades, set the nation off on an ambitious course. The perils were many: the Cold War with the U-2, the Berlin Wall, Castro, the Bay of Pigs and the Missile Crisis; racial tensions, riots, and assassinations; and the beginnings of Vietnam and anti-war protests. But there were also opportunities: the Peace Corps, the Civil Rights Act, The Great Society legislation, Medicare, voting rights, low income housing, cleaner air and water, a man on the moon, and nuclear nonproliferation treaties. The 70s gave us the Pentagon Papers, Watergate, Roe v. Wade, the Nixon tapes, Nixon’s Saturday Night Massacre, the Agnew resignation, Nixon’s impeachment and resignation, and Ford’s subsequent pardon, Jimmy Carter and the start of 444 days of the Iranian hostage crisis. We also had a run at the gasoline pumps and runaway inflation. The 1980s brought the country Ronald Reagan, the largest tax cuts in history, the first woman Supreme Court Justice and the first woman astronaut, along with CNN, USA Today, the MacIntosh and the mouse. In 1987, Reagan and Gorbachev signed the first ever agreement to destroy nuclear missiles, and by the end of the decade, Eastern European communist governments collapsed, the Berlin Wall fell, and the Soviet Union disintegrated. The City. So far as the waterfront is concerned, Annapolis has gone through dramatic changes from the 1960s to today. One has to look very hard to see any evidence of what was primarily a working waterman’s town. As any local knows full well, especially as the spring brings the first of sunny days, downtown is now a full-fledged tourist town. The Club may have decided to remain downtown, but much of downtown left for the new malls. What the Yacht Basin began in the 30s for the big boats of the East Coast, Jerry Wood’s Annapolis Sailing School continued for the rest of the sailing community by starting the country’s first adult sailing classes. In 1968, the Tecumseh project stirred up controversy as it replaced an old marina and provided new residences for weekending Washingtonians. In the same year, Marmaduke’s Pub opened and became a legendary sailor’s refuge. The U.S. Sailboat and Power Boat Shows, begun in 1970, solidified Annapolis’s new claim as the sailing capital of the country. The Club. The same time frame saw the Annapolis Yacht Club mature into the nationally and internationally respected yacht club of today. Just as the city changed from primarily a working class, water-oriented community to a tourist attraction and a recreational boater’s Mecca, the club expanded beyond its small boat, local race orientation into national and international one design and big boat racing and world champions and championships. The 60s laid the strong physical and personnel foundations vital to today’s constant and varied yachting activities. After some discussion and consideration of various Back Creek and Severn River sites, the club decided to remain in its downtown location, and in 1962, the old clubhouse was demolished and new construction began. In order to obtain financing, the club was required to raise membership maximums significantly. The new clubhouse opened in 1963, although the first deck remained unfinished for lack of funds. By 1969, 8 AYC BEACON VOLUME 1, NO. 2
the reinvigorated Wednesday Night Races and the new Frostbite series required more social facilities and the Skipjack Lounge was completed. Finally, in 1969, the Club acquired the land where the Annex is now and the docks and bulkhead were added. The Club’s Race Committee went through a similar transformation, as the old committee and its approach were “demolished” and the foundations were laid for today’s highly respected committee and race management style. Then Commodore Charlie Dell “fired” the 1964 committee, which had a somewhat “social” approach to race committee work, and asked Ron Ward to take over from scratch. Ron, and then Gaither Scott, who served two nine-year terms, studied the ways of the New York Yacht Club and changed the personality and attitude of the committee to the professional levels of today. Gaither later went on to chair the New York Yacht Club’s 1980 America’s Cup Race Committee. And our Race Committee soon was selected to run many world and national championships, beginning with the One Ton Worlds in the 80s, the Mumm 30 and 36 Worlds in the 90s, the Star Worlds in 2000, three Rolex International Women’s Keelboat Championships, and two J/22 World Championships. Today’s committee, under Chip Thayer’s 17-year leadership, has 90 dedicated volunteers. In 2008, the Chesapeake Bay Yacht Racing Association’s Board awarded the Clyde Winters Award for Race Committee of the Year to the Annapolis Yacht Club for the eighth time. AYC sailors of the 50s were primarily small boat racers, such as the most notable Hampton One Design national champions Jack Martin and Sunny Smith (see Gary Jobson’s interview with Sunny Smith in this issue of the Beacon). In the 60s, everyone graduated to bigger cruiser-racers like the Lapworth 24 Gadiators, the 28-foot Pearson Triton, and the Alberg 30. The 1970s were the heyday of the really big boats and the AYC Fall Series began the major event for East Coast big boat programs. AYC was well represented by its members’ boats such as American Eagle, Tenacious, Running Tide, and Merrythought. The 1980s saw some further property improvements of major significance. Although there was still some thought of property outside of downtown, ongoing negotiations with the Yacht Basin finally resulted in a trade of AYC’s 25% stock ownership in the Basin for our present parking lot and cash. At the same time, the White Rocks Marina property (Harborside) directly across the creek was purchased, laying the groundwork for today’s One Design Sailing Center. The 90s brought two significant fleet developments. J-Boats approached the club with an offer for a fleet discount on its then out of production J/22. Eight members put up $1,000 deposit each and production was renewed. Shortly, the club’s fleet, together with J/22s bought by other club members, made the Annapolis J/22 fleet the country’s most important. At the same time, the Club’s dormant Cruising Fleet was resurrected by the hard work of Bill Patterson. It is today one of the club’s largest, and most active, fleets. Finally, in the first years of the new century, after Bill Chambers and Sandy Morse dragged two well used Etchells into town from Texas, AYC quickly became the largest Etchells Fleet in the country. Harborside was changed from a working boatyard to the first class One Design Sailing Center we have today. These major property and fleet developments did not detract from the Club’s total commitment to its Junior Fleet. That fleet, first begun in 1948, went from operations out of the shed attached to the old clubhouse to the Annex facilities of today. In the 70s, it evolved from a volunteer program to its first paid staff. By the 90s, the program had expanded to encompass area high schools, and we now have year-round staff and programs. The program now has close to 400 participants and our junior sailors are competing both on a national and international level. AYC Remembers... Did you enjoy reading this article? If so, you won’t want to miss AYC Remembers—an evening of oral history shared by long-time members who can tell you all about the old days. Perhaps you have a yarn or two yourself? If you have artifacts to lend for the event, please contact Maureen Torgerson at (410) 268 8956. Tuesday, March 23 6 p.m. Cocktails in the Skipjack Dinner in the Third Deck $18.86++ VOLUME 1, NO. 2 AYC BEACON 9
Page 1 and 2: THE ANNAPOLIS YACHT CLUB BEACON VOL
Page 3 and 4: contents RACING CRUISING juniors 11
Page 5 and 6: Celebrating Annapolis Yacht Club Te
Page 7: Photos from AYC Archives The Annapo
Page 11 and 12: Wednesday Night Madness Bobby Frey,
Page 13 and 14: Photo courtesy of Dan Phelps / Spin
Page 15 and 16: Rendition courtesy of National Sail
Page 17 and 18: Chesapeake Destinations Solomons Is
Page 19 and 20: debriefs. AYC is keeping up with th
Page 21 and 22: Gary Jobson Interviews AYC’s Past
Page 23 and 24: Smith: I guess it was late 60s, ear

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