Cedar Point Yacht Club Junior Sailing Program 2024
written by Erin Wojdaszka, JSA Communication Manager
As you cross over the one lane bridge and go through the neighborhood of Saugatuck Island, you will find Cedar Point Yacht Club (CPYC) at the end of the road. It sits between the entrance to the Saugatuck River and Long Island Sound. You will find a basin where both Longshore Sailing School and CPYC kids sail up and down. CPYC is an all-volunteer club that is known for its racing.
I was able to meet with both Kathy Thompson and Tino Galan to get an overview of their program. Kathy is the Jr. Sailing Governor and also helps out with the junior sailing program. Tino Galan, Director of Jr. Sailing, has an extensive background as a professional sailing coach and working with kids to provide strong program oversight, lots of fun, and the sailors with good guidance if they are pursuing racing at a higher level. Tino commented, “the majority of kids who sign up for the junior sailing program at this club want to race.”
I was able to visit the club’s program right after their sailors returned from the three day Larchmont Junior Race Week. Kathy said, “ They all are wiped out and tired from a full three days of fun. They did not get much wind this year, so they only had one race, but they had a lot of fun doing other land activities.” Tino said, “Today they are going to take it easy, put their gear away, and have a fun day sailing out to nearby Cockenoe Island. While we put a lot of focus on preparing and practicing skills for racing, sometimes they just need some downtime to recharge.”
One of the challenges the program has come across this year is a lot of their older juniors aged out last year and went on to be instructors at a variety of other clubs this year. To address this, CPYC has created programs to attract new sailors and sustain their focus on racing. Tino started a new morning clinic that allows sailors to participate in team racing in the Club 420 boats. Tino coaches the clinic two or three mornings each week. He introduces sailors to team racing and helps them prepare for participation in high school and college sailing teams.
The CPYC junior program is split into AM and PM classes, with nearly 80 sailors participating. Approximately 20 beginner and intermediate Optimists sail in the morning. In the afternoon, the classes focus on the older or more experienced sailors. In the afternoon CPYC also offers a class for kids who want to sail the RS Feva with beginner to advanced experience. All of these are offered for periods of four weeks or eight weeks.
CPYC’s Jr. Sailing program is open to both members and non-members, ages 6-18. One of the highlighted programs CPYC is running is called Basin Bandits for the youngest sailors. This program is designed for seven-year olds who sail with an instructor in an Optimist or a Sunfish. Kathy and Tino hope that this will lead to developing and adding more sailors to their sailing programs and help kids build a love for being on the water.
Each summer, CPYC hosts at least three Junior regattas: the JSA Race Week for Club 420, ILCA (Laser), and RS Feva boats, an Optimist regatta for JSA Area C, and a Green Fleet regatta for beginner sailors to experience racing in a fun, low-stress way.
