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2015 Calendar of Events on Page 4
THE CURRENT
RIVERTON YACHT CLUB
FEBRUARY 2015
Phone at the Pier (856) 829-9894
RivertonYachtClub.org
Commodore’s Corner
Get Ready for a Busy Year of
Celebrations, Old Favorites and
New Events
By Mary Keppel
No Sailing Today, by Mike Kearney, January 2015
UPCOMING EVENTS
Feb 21: Night at the Races Fundraiser for RSLF
Mar 28: First Work Party
April 4: Second Work Party and General Meeting
April 11: J Class Model Regatta Demonstration
April 29: Wednesday Night Racing Begins
Get out your hat
and bow tie!
Benefit for Riverton Steamboat Landing Foundation
Dinner, Beer, Wine and Soda. Catering by Bacio.
Mint Julips by Dave Breinig! $35 per person
Ready? This will be a year of exuberant celebration
for our iconic club. We’re celebrating RYC’s
Sesquicentennial! Did you know that RYC’s 150
years make it the oldest yacht club on the Delaware
River, the oldest yacht club in New Jersey, and one of
the oldest yacht clubs in the nation? For this year
only, we’ll fly the original swallowtail burgee, flown
at the club until the 1880s. (See page 2 for a history
of the club written by Nick Mortgu.)
But that’s not all we’re celebrating. This is another
year of growth for RYC. We welcome two new J-22s
and a new Flying Scot. In the Mariner Fleet, Bill Mills
purchased Silk Purse from Dave Reily’s family. Our
Lightning Fleet was awarded the International
Lightning Class Association’s Steketee Trophy for its
involvement at the local, national and international
level. A special note of thanks goes to Mark
Schneider for his decades of involvement in the class.
And finally, congratulations to Rear Commodore
Dave Breinig for his national victory in the American
Canoe
Association’s
Canoe
Sailing
Class
Championship in September 2014.
The year’s first night of racing will be on February
21. Feel the tug? We’re off to the races, horses that is,
for our third annual Night at the Races fundraiser for
the Riverton Steamboat Landing Foundation. This
year we’re gathering Kentucky Derby style. I hope to
see you at the Moorestown Field Club wearing your
casual attire all gussied up with that special hat or
bow tie. Bacio of Moorestown is catering this year.
See page 4 for a full list of events including the radio
controlled J Class Model Boat Regatta, a Rules
Seminar, a Tactics and Strategy Seminar, Tall Ships
in Philadelphia, a Sail a 12 Meter trip in Newport R.I.,
the Duster Nationals, and, of course, the N.J.
Governor’s Cup, on a new weekend, June 6 and 7.
2015 Calendar of Events on Page 4
Riverton Yacht Club
150 Years of Racing and More
By Nick Mortgu
This year, RYC is celebrating its 150th
anniversary. The club is the oldest on the Delaware
River, oldest in New Jersey, and one of the oldest in
the United States with continuous service. Today’s
members show the same enthusiasm for sailboat
racing as the founding members did when the club
was officially founded in 1865.
Not long after the town’s founding fathers
purchased
the
Joseph
Lippincott
farm,
transportation was needed for building materials and
for homeowners to get to work in downtown
Philadelphia. In 1851 the Iron Pier was completed.
The pier ran out to the Delaware’s deeper water so
that larger ferries could land at Riverton. Along the
sides of the pier, locals tied up small craft. Sailboat
racing began once the second sailboat arrived in
Riverton and continued to grow as more boats
appeared on the scene.
Racing boats were divided into three classes: First
Class, 25 feet and above; Second Class, 20 to 24
feet, and Third Class, under 20 feet. It wasn’t until
July 1, 1865 that the RYC was formally organized,
at 503 Bank Avenue, the home of Edward Ogden.
That day, Caspar W. Morris was elected as
Commodore, Jacob G. Morris as vice Commodore,
and Edward H. Ogden as Secretary Treasurer. The
first year, membership grew to 50 members.
The club’s burgee was designed at a time when
the country was alive with patriotism after Abraham
Lincoln’s assassination in April 1865. The members
chose stars and stripes on a swallowtail flag, much
like the pennant burgee we fly today. In the fall of
1865, Congress passed a law that no private signal
could use the stars-and-stripes design. For that
reason, you will not see another organization in the
U.S. using a design close to ours. The swallowtail
design was used until the late 1880s.
With so many members and boats, the club was in
need of storage and a meeting facility. In 1881 the
clubhouse at the end of the pier was completed. The
only stipulation for design was that the clubhouse
have a waiting room for the ferry passengers. In the
early 1900s, club members shot trap at the end of
the pier after the sailing season was over. As the
shooters became more proficient, shooters moved
farther from the trap. Eventually, the building got in
the way as they shot towards the river. To insure the
shooter was the correct distance from the trap they
moved the clubhouse 20 feet closer to Main Street,
where it now stands. The building has had three
major restoration projects over the years. This last
restoration, with the help of a grant, brought the
club back to its original design and colors and added
many new amenities.
Racing is as important now to our members as it
was 150 years ago. The Wednesday evening race
series has run since the early 1930s. Over the years,
more than 100 world, North American, national,
America’s Cup and Olympic champion sailors have
called RYC their home. This is a source of pride for
all of our members.
The yacht club has been very active in the
community. In 1897, members Charles Davis and
Albert Briggs founded the popular Children’s
Parade held each year on the Fourth of July. The
parade, now more than 100 years old, originally
ended at the yacht club for patriotic speeches, yacht
races, band concerts, and aquatic events, and the day
concluded with fireworks on the pier. Today the
parade starts at the yacht club and proceeds to
Riverton Park, where larger numbers can participate
in athletic events for children. The club hosts the
popular Fourth of July fund raising cocktail party
each year on the pier as a community service.
Our 150th year will be full of special events. Find
more RYC historical information and photos
throughout the year on the club’s history page at
www.rivertonyachtclub.org/history.shtml
2
2015 Calendar of Events on Page 4
Upside Down Trophy 2014
Night at the Races Fundraiser Feb 21
Live the sporting life and raise money for maintenance of the
club at the annual Night at the Races Fundraiser on Saturday,
Feb. 21. This year’s theme is the Kentucky Derby. Women need
to dig out their best bonnets and men need to find their bow ties,
racetrack hats, and, of course, their money clips gaping with
cash. Emcee Craig Greenwood will judge the bonnet and bow
tie competition. RSVP to Mary Keppel. You can buy horses in
advance from any RYC board member until Friday, Feb. 20.
(See the ad on the front page for time and place.)
Sail an America’s Cup Yacht in Rhode Island
The club is organizing a day sail on the 12 Meter yachts
Intrepid and Weatherly in Newport on August 1. Details are still
in the works. Cost to sail would be $200 to $250 per person (not
including travel, accommodations, food, etc.). Contact Hugh
Hutchison. See the boats at www.americascupcharters.com.
Scholarships for Maritime Training
The Ports of Philadelphia Maritime Society offers three
$1,500 scholarships for maritime education and training.
Deadline for 2015 applications is March 31. For more info, go
to www.portsofphilamaritimesociety.com
Visit Cherubini Yachts Boatyard on Feb 21, 10 am-Noon
David Cherubini hosts a tour of his yard in Delran, NJ. $25, includes
lunch afterwards at Whistler’s. Call David Shinkfield of the Corinthians
Philadelphia Fleet at 609-466-1382; www.thecorinthians.org
Cartoon by Tony Kozarek
Jim Irwin Graciously Accepts
Club’s Most Inglorious Award
A capsize on a breezy Sunday earned Mariner and
J-22 skipper Jim Irwin the 2015 Upside Down
Trophy. While most sailors tend to forget about a
dunking by the time they’re dry, Jim’s crew that
day, John Burns, was so disquieted by the
experience that he commissioned an artist to
capture the event in ink and presented the
illustration (above) to his skipper at the
Commodore’s Banquet in December.
Fleet News
Flying Scots: The Scots held their fleet meeting
and dinner party January 17 at the Mangans’
home. Of note: The Scots welcomed the
Breinigs; Bruce Nicholson was reinstated as
fleet captain, Gene Mopsik as treasurer and Bob
Keppel as secretary. The Scots are planning a
rigging party for April 25th or 26th.
Lightning: The International Lightning Class
Association awarded Fleet 228 the Neal
Steketee Trophy for the fleet’s active
Wednesday night racing, hosting of regattas,
regatta attendance, and help loading boats into
containers to be shipped abroad.
Please send any fleet news to Kent Steinriede
Photo courtesy of Barb Smyth
History Corner by Barb Smyth
All Eyes Were on the Pier Every Fourth of July
Did you know the Riverton Fourth of July fireworks used to be
launched from the end of the Riverton Yacht Club pier? We know
this was happening as early as 1901. The banks of the river were
packed with people, many who came from neighboring towns.
Strangers reportedly entered homes to use bathrooms and
vandalized private property. Sometime in the mid-1960s, there
was an explosion on the pier while the fireworks were being
launched. The force knocked a man into the river. At this point, it
was decided that it was not safe to continue using the yacht club
for this purpose.
3
The Current – February 2015
2015 Riverton Yacht Club Calendar of Events
Events are subject to changes. Please see the website for updates.
FEBRUARY
21
MARCH
28
APRIL
4
11
MAY
JUNE
Horse Racing Fund Raiser for RSLF, 6:30pm, (Moorestown Field Club)
First Work Party
11
14
29
2nd work party & spring general meeting
Opening Day: Kick off of our 150th year: raise the swallowtail burgee & colors; fire
the cannon; history of the club; burning of the socks ceremony.
J Class Model Regatta (radio controlled), a special demonstration, 10am -3pm.
Racing Rules Seminar, 6:00pm at RYC, (Glenn Smyth Jr.)
Wednesday Night Racing Begins
3
7
16
Sunday Mariner Races begin
Tactics & Strategy Seminar, 7:00pm (Billy Martin)
Rex Showell Pursuit Race & J-22 Dinner
1
6/7
22
23
25-28
27
Monday Night Laser & Opti Races Begin
NJ Governor’s Cup Regatta (all fleets hosting)
Junior Sail Camp Session 1 begins (ends 7/3)
Adult Sailing, session 1 (June 23, 25 & 29; July 2, 7 & 9).
Tall Ships at Philadelphia Seaport Museum & Camden’s waterfront
RYC Sail to Penns Landing (Tall Ships)
JULY
4
Fourth of July Raft Race
5
Club 420 Round Robin
6
Junior Sail Camp Session 2 begins (ends 7/17)
20
Junior Sail Camp Session 3 begins (ends 7/31)
25
Pursuit Race and BBQ – Autism Speaks Fund Raiser, (Mariners)
AUGUST
1
Sail a 12 Meter, (Newport RI; contact Hugh Hutchison)
3
Junior Sail Camp Session 4 begins (ends 8/14)
15
Single handed race
16
Club 420 Round Robin
24
Final Monday Night Racing
SEPTEMBER
2
Final Wednesday Night Racing
18
Overnight Pursuit Race
19
Luau
20
Bart’s Bash Regatta Pursuit Race
t.b.d. Philadelphia Cup Regatta; Phila. Seaport Museum
OCTOBER
11
Sunday Mariner Races end
17
Pursuit Race and the Mariners “The David Reily Memorial Regatta”
17
Oktoberfest, hosted by Flying Scots
31
Fall Work Party, followed by meeting (election of officers)
NOVEMBER
7
2nd Fall work party, (if needed)
13
Commodore’s Banquet
4