LHYC

www.LHYC.org November 2009

Mission Statement:

The objects of the Lloyd Harbor Yacht Club shall be to encourage and promote interest in, as well as to foster the art and enjoyment of, the sport of sailing by providing the opportunity and means for the development of individual skill and knowledge, encouraging excellence in seamanship and navigation, and by providing participative events wherein these qualities can be exercised under the aegis of the LHYC burgee.

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November 2009

The Lloyd Harbor YC has certainly done its part for the economy, purchasing nearly 100 trophies for our November 7, Awards Dinner at Northport YC. Once again, VC Joe Scarpulla, working with Northport’s Manager Peter Doogan arranged a dinner that was a complete hit. Thanks to PC Leigh Sterflinger who did an awesome job in her trophy selections. While the cost of putting on such a grand dinner is rising, the Board consciously seeks to keep the cost as low as possible, to provide our fleet an opportunity for owners, crews and significant others to all come together to celebrate the successes of the season. This year, the sit-down dinner allowed us more seating, accommodating a growing crowd and allowed for the better distribution of trophies. Also, the use of the Regatta Manager to compile the reservations, pay by credit cards and not have to fumble around for money at the event seemed to be well received by the organizers and guests alike.

In case you weren’t there and/or could not hear above the din, one salient point that I shared with the group, as well as a few well placed jokes, was that the vast accumulation of awards were won by approximately 40+ different boats. We all know that there are still perennial favorites, family dynasties and our class front runners, but interestingly, interspersed amidst those ranks are the newcomers, those who started at the bottom and are working their ways through the divisions and getting better with each season and with each race. At the risk of repeating myself, this shows the strength of Lloyd Harbor’s racing program, fleet and enables us to keep winning the Huguenot YC Team Award for best performance at Manhasset’s Fall Series.

With the Thanksgiving holiday upon us, it gives me pause to reflect and be thankful for our numerous blessings. Hopefully we are all weathering the economic slow down, but are buoyant about a swift recovery, our families are healthy and happy and our respective boat speeds are where they should be. But in addition, I am thankful for the opportunity to serve our club. It is indeed an honor and pleasure to serve as Commodore for such a prestigious group of sailors. I want to wish everyone a happy Thanksgiving and look forward to seeing everyone at December’s holiday party.

Rich Rubel Commodore LHYC

Harbor Water Quality by Mark Bigelow

Angel Dybas, of Cornell Cooperative Extension spoke on Nov. 15, of the different forms of pollutants in our harbors and bays and offered practical suggestions for how we may all help to improve water quality at a program held at The Congregational Church of Huntington. The two most important threats to water quality are bacterial contamination and hypoxia, low levels of dissolved oxygen. Historically, high levels of bacterial contamination are what led the Suffolk County Department of Health to close the beach at the Centerport Yacht Club. The report on 2009 testing in Northport Harbor will be released by the end of the year.

Hypoxia is an ongoing threat that affects 25-30% of Long Island Sound each summer. This leads to migration and die-off of fish and shellfish in many parts of the Sound from New York City to Port Jefferson. Ms. Dybas directs a water logging program that is monitoring dissolved oxygen as well as many other factors throughout the Lloyd Harbor, Huntington and Northport harbors and bays.

One of the primary sources of both bacterial contamination and nutrients that cause hypoxia is storm water run-off. Individuals can help stop this problem by reducing run-off from homes and yards. Some suggestions include: use low-nitrogen fertilizer on lawns, never fertilize before a rain storm, direct downspouts to lawns so water may be absorbed, consider rain barrels to catch and re-use rain water, and clean up animal waste so it doesn’t wash into the water system. Boaters should, of course, use holding tanks and pump-out stations.

You can find out more on Cornell’s water logging program, view their results and learn how to volunteer to collect water samples at http://ccesuffolk.org/water-logging-406/.

Miscellaneous Illuminations: Did you know there are 2,650 captain's hats for every boat in the world; some of our members, however, skew that equation towards more boats. ~~__/) The Annual Moosehead Awards Luncheon was held at Northport YC on Nov. 1 and nary a mention was made of LHYC. Not so for our friends at Northport, who won a fourth class distinction for running a race without the aide of any audible signals. I am reminded of the philosophical question regarding no one hearing the falling tree in the forest; for their Fleet Capt’s peace of mind, maybe the race never existed? ~~__/) The 2009 – 2010 JY 15 Frostbiting season commenced on Nov. 8. We are very pleased to welcome Geremy Chelius and his brother Geronimo into the fleet and promise that there will be way more wind ahead. To keep everyone better informed of frostbiting affairs, the Nautical Exposure web site design team put together a new site for Centerport’s JY 15 Fleet #104. Check out the attached link for results, photos and dinghy tips; pls feel free to forward any comments and check us out on race days. www.wix.com/jy15fleet104/jy15 ~~__/) PC John Storck Jr. placed fifth out of a 26 boat fleet at the J -80 North Americans in TX ; World Champ Kerry Klinger won with the event, but Rumor rounded out the top five with a bullet and a couple of seconds.

Board Meeting Bullets: The November Board Meeting hosted by the Sterflingers addressed the following as part of our agenda:

· The Treasurer’s dues notices will go out in Nov., electronically and herewith, and as stated in the by–laws are payable by Jan. 1.

· The calendar for 2010 is being finalized. Our Spring Regatta is being developed by Glenn Suss, Doug Vaughn and Dave Willis and is tentatively planned as a two day event to be held by Gong 15 to attract Oyster Bay, CT and western LIS boats, as well as various one design and IRC classes.

· New burgees were purchased from Prestige Flag and are ready for sale by the Rear Commodore.

· The 2010 slate of officers was announced: Comm. Joe Scarpulla, Vice Steve LaPorta, Rear Dave Willis, Flt Capt. John Belle, Treas. Bill Maher, Secty. Don Rave and new Directors include Bill DeCarlo, Mike Olsen and Jordan Mindich.

Greater Huntington Council of Yacht and Boat Club’s November Meeting Minutes Provided by our Liaison and Council Secretary, June Kendrick:

The Greater Huntington Council is encouraging Lloyd Harbor members to become Council representatives or alternates (either for LHYC or the other clubs they are members of, i.e., Centerport, Northport, etc.). Attendance is flagging at the meetings and our help is needed.
The GHCYBC is encouraging all members to vote on Dec. 22, and are divided on being pro or con for the proposed council districts.
The town still has not found a replacement for Susannah Mrazek as a liaison between the town council and the GHCYBC.
The installation of the radio keyed fog signal on the Huntington Lighthouse has been set aside for further review. Thanks to all that responded stating what a harebrained idea it was. It took only eight days from the time we became aware of the planned installation until it was effectively dead; our town, county, state and federal representatives contacted the Coast Guard to voice their displeasure.
Supposedly the State DEC has signed off on the permits to allow Centerport to be dredged, but no one has actually seen the permits, so there is some skepticism that it has been done. There are still some questions, such as where to de-water 17 acres of spoils, which reportedly were to be put back on the beach. As for dredging Northport, it not only needs a place to be de-watered, but also needs a place to put the spoils.
The salt water fishing license is a reality. If New York hadn't implemented a license, the Feds would have, keeping any fees charged. There are still discussions at the state level regarding how much is being charged and the term of the license, but its existence is fact. The fishermen weren't happy that they were being charged $10 in Oct. and would be charged another $10 in Jan. A note to anyone that fishes on LI Sound: Connecticut has their own salt water fishing license for their waters, so if you want to fish off 11 B, you will need a Connecticut license as 11 B is in Connecticut waters.

Your nominations are needed and requested for our prestigious club awards: the Boner & Grounder Trophies. Do not think that the incident you witnessed or heard about is too slight to report; we can fix that in the presentation. All submissions are welcome and will be held in strict confidence.

Please forward them to Commodore@LHYC.org

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