Fishing Bay Yacht Club is proud to be invited to compete in the New York Yacht Club Invitational Cup’s Qualifying series, a “high-profile Corinthian Classic” event in the words of Sailing World magazine.  In the inaugural Invitational Cup of 2009, 19 amateur yacht club teams from 14 nations competed in chartered NYYC Swan 42s at Harbour Court, the NYYC’s on-the-water clubhouse in Newport, R.I.  

To many observers and sailing veterans, the event dramatically superseded the America’s Cup as the world’s foremost international yachting competition.  Ladies and gentlemen, FBYC is going to this party and we won’t be leaning against the wall when we get there.  To make this happen our team needs your support.

The 2009 Invitational Cup saw teams from Japan, Germany, Finland, Spain, Bermuda, Canada, Ireland, Denmark, Hong Kong, New Zealand, England, Italy, France and the United States, including the host and eventual winner, the NYYC.  Numerous yacht clubs throughout the U.S. sought to participate in the 2011 Invitational Cup, leading NYYC to establish the 2010 Qualifying Series in Sonars and J-22s to select three U.S. teams to race in the 2011 event.  NYYC extended Qualifier invitations to only 26 U.S. yacht clubs, truly a who’s who of great competition, including our regional rival, Annapolis YC.  

(Invited American yacht clubs are American in Rye, N.Y.; Annapolis; Bayview in Detroit and Little Traverse in Harbor Springs, Mich.; Boston and Eastern in Marblehead, Mass.; Carolina in Charleston, S.C.; Chicago; Fishing Bay in Deltaville, Va; Fort Worth Boat Club; Houston; Ida Lewis in Newport, R.I.; Indian Harbor, Pequot and Stamford in Connecticut; Larchmont, Rochester and Seawanhaka Corinthian, also in New York; Long Beach, Newport Harbor and San Diego in Southern California; St. Francis and San Francisco in Northern California; Southern in New Orleans, La.; St. Petersburg in Florida; and Seattle.)
FBYC’s Legacy of Competition Since Lloyd Emory won the Hampton One-Design National Championship in 1948, numerous nationally ranked competitors have emerged at FBYC.  Hosting national events at FBYC has become routine.  The Albacore Worlds; Mobjack Nationals; Laser events such as the Atlantic Coasts, Pan Am Qualifiers, District Championships, Chesapeake Bay and U.S. Masters; the Lightning Mid-Atlantics; MORC East Coast and International Championships; Optimist Atlantic Coast Championships and US Sailing Junior Olympics; Flying Scot N.A. Championships; and this year the USODA Optimist Nationals, with projected attendance of over 300 competitors.  For more on our history of championships, see http://www.fbyc.net/Club/History/Articles/55.

FBYC has been a frequent competitor in the U.S. Offshore Championship for the Lloyd Phoenix Trophy, conducted by the Naval Academy in Annapolis, which Commodore John Hawksworth won for FBYC in 1974.  Rives Potts, son of Past Commodore Allen Potts, served as Project Manager and crew on the America’s Cup Defender “Freedom” and Challenger “America II” skippered by Dennis Conner and John Kolius.  Four FBYC members sailed in the inaugural NYYC Invitational Cup regatta, one on the winning team.  Fishing Bay has repeatedly achieved national prominence by the success of its Leukemia Cup Regatta, ranking in the top three of fundraising nationally in a competition that includes significantly larger clubs (based in astoundingly larger towns).  

Recent FBYC Junior members' participation accomplishments include 1st 2010 NESSA Women's Invitational (Herreshoff Trophy); 1st 2010 NESSA Team Racing Championship (Mark Trophy); 2009 CBYRA Laser Radial final standings of 1, 2, 6, 7, 9; and single-digit standings in many other Junior Olympic and CBYRA competitions in both Laser Radial and Optimist classes.  Many past FBYC juniors have gone on to play significant roles on college sailing teams around the country and earned national titles as a result of their hard work.  

FBYC’s nominated Qualifying Series skipper Travis Weisleder first achieved prominence on the intercollegiate circuit at College of Charleston as sparring partner for the 1st place National Sloop Team, and finishing 4th in the Intercollegiate Singlehanded Nationals.  Subsequent honors in the Melges 24 Class, where he serves as class Vice-Chairman, include Charleston Race Week 1st (2008) and 3rd (2010).  In the Flying Scot class, results include top five overall finishes in both North American and Mid-Winter events.

In summary, our little yacht club in a boatbuilding and watermen’s town with a population of 1,700 has proven itself “the little yacht club that could”.  But never has FBYC been honored or recognized at the level of the NYYC Invitational Qualifier.  As with so many challenges in the past, we know that you will rise to the task, and shine proudly in the spotlight.  Our immediate goal is to finish in the top three of the qualifying event so that the FBYC burgee will fly at the 2011 Invitational Cup.  When this happens, my friends, you will never again hear the word “huh?” when inquiring about reciprocity at yacht clubs like Eastern, St. Francis, Chicago, or San Diego.

The FBYC Campaign The Invitational Cup Qualifying Series Campaign brings together FBYC’s most enthusiastic sailors and their supporters for training sessions that will field the most competitive team possible in September.  One-design, offshore, and Junior sailors will all be part of the sparring teams and candidates for crew selection.  Many sessions will be conducted by nationally-recognized professional coaches, who will be critical to improving the quality of practice, in determining the final crew of Team Fishing Bay, and in enhancing FBYC’s chances of success in the Series.  If this seems radical, consider that for the 2009 IC competition some contestants purchased multiple Swan 42s just for practice, topping seven digits each.

The cost of competing in the I.C. Qualifier is meaningful, estimated at about $30,000.  This does not include travel and lodging expenses for the participants, who will pay their own way.  Every single member of FBYC will be beneficiaries of the training, networking, visibility, and recognition from this event.  The culture and reputation of FBYC is about to take a national bow.  We need to support our representatives and do everything possible to make sure our team succeeds.  For every one of you – junior, cruiser, and racer alike - the open invitation from NYYC for participants’ fellow Club members to attend the race week’s activities at NYYC’s splendid Newport facility, Harbour Court, is a singular opportunity.  When this ship sails in September, you definitely want to be on board.

Individual Sponsorship Donors Individual voluntary donations are requested from FBYC members, and are essential to enable our team to succeed.  A commemorative trophy plaque with a Sonar half hull, the IC Qualifying logo, and brass plaques engraved with Platinum, Gold, and Silver donor names will be displayed in the FBYC clubhouse.  All donors will receive a complimentary tee shirt.  Donors, Team members and other FBYC members participating regularly in Campaign training sessions will receive FBYC Team apparel.  Donors are invited to attend team practice de-briefing sessions, including video footage, with North America’s premier coaches.   

Individual Donor recognition levels will be: