July 2011 - International Council of Yacht Clubs

July 2011
From the Editor
Welcome to the latest ICOYC
Newsletter. In this edition we are
focusing on the forthcoming Commodores’ Forum in Seattle and the
organization of the Council. Following the AGM late last month
our President has provided a
summary of his report to the
ICOYC board, which outlines the
many developments in the Council
in the past year. In this edition,
instead of a single biography, we
are introducing five new directors
of the ICOYC. As you will see from
their profiles they bring a wealth
of talent and experience to the
Board. To complement these
profiles a detailed Who’s Who in
the ICOYC has also been included.
A feature on the planning of the
Forum provides an insight into the
topics to be discussed in Seattle.
Whilst Bob Miller of Seattle YC
has written a detailed and fascinating article on the cruise following the Forum which is being
organized jointly by Seattle YC and
RVYC. Also, in readiness for Seattle, the final two summaries from
Perth are included which demonstrate the benefits of attending the
Forum and how relevant the discussions are to all ICOYC member
clubs.
This edition also includes our first
Race Profile to celebrate the many
important and long-running
events that ICOYC member clubs
organize. If your clubs has a similar event please let me know and I
will try and include a profile of it
in a future newsletter.
Best wishes, Alison Boyd
Newsletter Editor
[email protected]
Inside this issue:
President’s Report to
AGM, 23 June 2011
1
Preparations for Seattle
Forum
2
Seattle Cruise
3
Perth Summary: Club
Operations
4
Perth Summary: Sponsorship
5
New ICOYC Directors’
Profiles
6—7
Seattle Yacht Club’s Opening Day
7
Who’s Who in the ICOYC
8
Race Profile:
Færderseilasen
8
President’s Report to AGM, 23 June 2011
In my report to the 2011 AGM, I
described 2010 as a seminal year
for the ICOYC. It started with a
very successful 5th Commodores’
Forum hosted by Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club in Perth, Western Australia. This was followed
by a most enjoyable ICOYC
Cruise, for all members of clubs in
the Council, run by the Royal New
Zealand Yacht Squadron in the
Bay of Islands.
Subsequently in 2010 the ICOYC
laid the foundations for a strong
future, developing many aspects
of its organization. There are now
three Vice Presidents as the main
day-to-day contacts with the clubs
in each region. They are Rex Harrison (RSYS) in Asia Pacific, John
McNeill (StFYC) in the Americas
and Gero Brugmann (NRV) in
Europe. Jim Burns, Past Commodore of Royal Vancouver YC, has
taken over from Gero as ICOYC
Secretary.
The Vice Presidents organized the
first Regional Conferences for the
member clubs early in 2011. These
were relatively short events, lasting no more than a day. Several of
the clubs that had been invited as
guests subsequently applied to
join and were approved by the
Board as members. At the time of
the 2010 Forum in Perth there
were 16 yacht clubs in the Council;
there are now 26, with further
possibilities being considered.
Clearly the ICOYC meets a need,
enabling the leading yacht clubs
around the world to get together
and share their experiences for
the benefit of all their individual
members. To retain its present
character the Board has limited
full membership to no more than
40 yacht clubs, with a maximum
of 20 in any one region.
Communications and ICOYC
Identity
The importance of internal communications in the Council was
recognized during 2010 and the
ICOYC.org website was completely overhauled by the end of
the year, supported by sponsorship from ClubEssential for which
we are very grateful. The new
website is considered a great success by all its users.
The Council developed new
branding in 2010 and subsequently made arrangements for
new burgees and pins to be available as insignia, available to all
the individual members of member clubs. It will be expected that
any yacht taking part in an ICOYC
Cruise or other event will fly the
Council’s burgee.
The Newsletter has continued to
provide a useful additional medium and a number of printed
copies of each issue are made
available to all the clubs to underline the relevance and activities of
the Council.
Forums, Conferences and
Cruises in Future
The 6th Commodores’ Forum is in
Seattle in August/September 2011
and it will be followed by the 2011
ICOYC Cruise, run jointly by Seattle YC and RVYC in their home
waters. There will be quite an
armada of yachts with many individual members of clubs in the
Council taking part. It has been
found that the Flag Officers who
attend the Forums often do not
have time to enjoy the Cruises as
well.
Following the Regional Conferences, the Vice Presidents will be
interested in members’ views
about continuing these. Early
indications suggest an enthusiasm
for some short regional events,
possibly lasting a day and a half.
The 2012 ICOYC Cruise will be in
the Solent and South coast of the
UK, taking place before the 7th
Commodores’ Forum at RSrnYC.
The Cruise will be run jointly by
RSrnYC and RTYC, taking participants to their favourite haunts.
Special charter arrangements are
being put in place.
Financial, Legal and General
Meetings
The Council continues to be wellfunded with excellent long-term
reserves. We have been lucky in
being able to harness the considerable enthusiasm for the ICOYC
among past Flag Officers who
have all contributed their time
and expenses at no charge. As the
Council is now growing we must
service the new members more
and more professionally.
Inevitably the day-to-day running
costs will steadily increase, but
there are no plans to change the
subscription level at present and
membership of the Council should
continue to be relatively inexpensive for the clubs involved.
The ICOYC Annual General Meetings have so far been held by teleconference, but, with the Council’s
growth, arrangements are now
being made to hold meetings at
any Forum held in the latter
months of each year. This year
there was a formal AGM on 23
June, with a Special General
Meeting scheduled in Seattle on
31 August to cover a wider range
of issues. Those members unable
to come to Seattle are invited to
advise the Secretary about any
matters they would like to discuss.
Finally
Once again I take this opportunity
to thank all who have helped the
ICOYC so much in the last 18
months. This includes those who
contributed to the last Forum and
Regional Conferences, and those
who are now working on the next
Forums. The Council relies on this
involvement, which is to the benefit of all the member clubs. We are
very grateful for it.
John Stork
John Stork
ICOYC President
[Shortened for publication after AGM
— 24 June 2011]
July 2011, page 2
Preparations for Seattle Forum
To highlight the planning and effort which is put
into an ICOYC Forum I put some questions to our
President about the forthcoming Commodores’
ship surveys – a topic that was only just mentioned in Perth, but which generated considerable interest.
Forum in Seattle.
Editor
Are the topics very different from those
discussed at the Perth Forum?
Yes – time has moved on. There is a real focus
on financial issues this year and less on how to
do sponsorship deals, largely because many
clubs are under pressure and the sponsors
have gone away. Indeed one of the sessions is
about how to manage major events without
sponsorship.
More clubs are buying fleets of boats for their
younger members to use, and also for their
match and team racing. We will have a session
on this topic this year. We will discuss the
classes to consider, how best to manage a club
fleet, and cost-effective approaches to adopt.
Many of the clubs will find this very valuable.
On the yachting side we will also look at offshore sailing possibilities, drawing on the
recent experience and planning of several
ICOYC clubs. We will also be seeing if we can
solve the old conundrum of how to integrate
powerboat and cruising sailors into the rest of
a club’s activities.
Each Forum has drawn on their national experts to introduce topics. In Perth we had
John Longley telling us about the ISAF plans
and his experiences in the America’s Cup;
then we had Peter Gilmour, the head of the
World Match Racing Tour, on the role of yacht
clubs; and 470 gold medallist Belinda Stowell
on training. In Seattle there will be more on
the America’s Cup, bringing the news right up
to date with the key figures from the Oracle
team and San Francisco; the head of US Sailing Gary Jobson will talk about yacht clubs
from his perspective; and our website sponsor, ClubEssential, and other industry experts,
will tell us about how yachting and clubs are
evolving in North America, contrasting it with
the rest of the world.
One group of sessions will again be on membership issues. This was a key topic in Perth
and it remains at the forefront of the Forum in
Seattle. Recruiting, retaining and satisfying
the members continues as a key task for the
leaders of all the ICOYC clubs. This year we
will also pay particular attention to member-
How do you decide which topics to include in the Forum and who is part of
this process?
This year we adopted a two-pronged approach
to see what was on the minds of the Commodores. We started by holding Regional Conferences in Europe, America and Asia Pacific,
where the key item on the agenda was topics
that might be discussed at the next Commodores’ Forum. This gave us a wide range of
ideas and also suggested a number of possible
speakers.
The Vice Presidents who had run the Conferences all shared their views, which I coordinated as the President. I passed the conclusions on to the planning group in Seattle YC.
We prioritized the ideas by carefully reviewing
the annual survey of Commodores’ Concerns
which was completed in the first half of 2011.
When particular topics were noted by several
Commodores, such as key financial and membership issues, we made sure they would be
covered in the subsequent planning. We also
agreed to appoint a Chairman for each of the
main sessions, leaving many of the speaker
decisions to them.
The views of Seattle YC, as the host club, were
taken into account throughout the process. As
a leading yachting organization in the Pacific
Northwest, the club has good connections
throughout the yachting and marine industry
sectors. We were also keen that the delegates
would leave the Forum with a good understanding of their world and how they run their
club.
Are the same topics important for all
the member clubs or are some topics
particularly relevant to particular regions?
Yes, the same topics come up again and again.
The ICOYC clubs share similar characteristics,
so perhaps this is not surprising. There are
some differences, though. While almost all the
clubs have some mooring facilities, a number
own substantial marinas. They can usefully
talk about marina management issues with
each other – the rest have little interest in the
subject.
A number of clubs have problems with their
national governments or local authorities.
Although these are usually quite specific and
local, there may be parallels elsewhere. These
issues have not been included in the programme but it can be worth raising them in
discussions as there is a great deal of free
advice available at a Forum.
Whilst planning the Seattle Forum we noted
that a few clubs had suffered, or could face,
major interruptions to their activities. One
had a fire in 2010, others have faced clubhouse moves. We realized that this was a topic
that could be relevant to any club, and so it
gained a place on the agenda.
I see that some non-members are invited. What is the policy on this?
Each year we have given the host club freedom to invite any other club Flag Officers that
they wish, whether they are local or from anywhere in the world. The only condition has
been that the same non-member club should
not normally come more than once to a Forum, at least while the same Flag Officers are
in post.
As a result we have met a wider spectrum of
clubs than just the ICOYC members and a
number have added very significantly to the
discussions, or have raised questions that
need to be considered.
Seattle YC have invited the larger clubs in
their neighbourhood to the 6th Commodores’
Forum, ranging from West Vancouver, Victoria, to San Francisco and San Diego, together
with the ‘Grand 14’ clubs in the Seattle area. I
was privileged to meet many of the Commodores during Seattle YC’s Opening Day celebrations (ask me about that sometime!) and it
would be good to meet them again during the
Forum. They are all excellent clubs, with committed memberships, even if they do not share
all the characteristics of the clubs in the
ICOYC.
In addition the Officers of the ICOYC have
invited a very small number of other international clubs to sit in during the Forum, partly
to see whether membership of the Council
would be appropriate for them. When we have
done this in the past, the ‘guest clubs’ have
almost all been so impressed that they have
applied to join on the spot!
July 2011, page 3
Seattle Cruise
The ICOYC 2011 Summer Cruise, 5–13 September, features ten days of cruising the
American San Juans and the Canadian Gulf
Islands in the newly named Salish Sea in the
Pacific Northwest. This is the home cruising
area of Seattle YC and RVYC and we have
created a cruise that highlights the outstations
of the two clubs and the beauty of one of the
most gorgeous cruising areas in the world.
The cruise follows the 6th ICOYC Commodores’ Forum being held at Seattle Yacht Club
and is not just for the Commodores, so please
tell all your club members about this opportunity. We are keen to introduce our international friends to the wonderful hidden corners
of the Salish Sea.
We will cruise past many of the 200 plus islands in the San Juan archipelago, visit historic Victoria, BC, the ‘book town’ of Sidneyby-the-Sea, BC, and have a chance to visit the
site of the Pig War of 1859 that threatened to
throw the USA and England into armed conflict. We will visit some of artist colonies that
fill the islands. En route, our fabulous wildlife
can be seen up close, including orca whales,
soaring bald eagles, stately blue herons,
salmon, river otters, sea lions, harbor seals
and shrieking kingfishers. For geology buffs,
the effects of the mile thick glacier ice cap as it
ground on the hard granite of the islands are
very visible, as are two active volcanoes
(Mounts Baker and Rainier). We will navigate
through ice-carved channels over 600 feet
deep as well as wind our way through rockfilled passages with only a few feet of water
under the keel.
Most days we will cruise between 20 and 40
nautical miles, usually departing early in the
morning to get to the next destination by midday, leaving plenty of time for afternoon sightseeing. While most nights we will tie up to the
floating docks of the SYC or RVYC outstations,
we will stay in public marinas in downtown
Victoria, BC (two nights) and Sidney, BC (one
night) to give everyone enough time to enjoy
the attractions of lower Vancouver Island.
Valid passports and visas will be required for
crossing into Canada and back into the United
States. Cruisers from countries other than
Canada and the USA must get an I-68 visa
stamped into their passports when they enter
the USA in order to return after visiting Canada.
The cruise fleet is limited to 30 boats – ten
each from Seattle YC and RVYC and ten chartered boats organized by members of yacht
clubs belonging to the ICOYC. The fleet is
evenly split between power and sail boats. At
the time of writing, we still have space for four
more boats flying the ICOYC burgee. Do you
want to join us? Form a group of 4–6 fellow
ICOYC club members and select your charter
boat from the official providers. All of the details are on the forum website,
www.seattleyachtclub.org.
The cruise preparation starts on 4 September,
immediately following the Forum. Most of the
boats chartered by ICOYC members are based
in Anacortes, WA, about 80 miles north of the
Forum site, while many of the cruisers from
SYC and RVYC will start the cruise from Seattle. On Sunday morning, we will have a bus
available to whisk cruisers to Anacortes where
they can board their chartered boats. The rest
of Sunday is set aside for provisioning and
getting ready.
On Monday, 5 September, the fleet sets sail
from the various starting points and heads to
the first port of call, SYC’s Henry Island Outstation in Roche Harbor on San Juan Island,
WA. That evening, we will celebrate the US
holiday, Labor Day, with a welcoming BBQ
dinner. On Tuesday, the fleet makes the 20–
25 nautical mile run to downtown Victoria,
BC, for a two-day stay. Wind permitting, we
will have an informal sailing race on our way
to each new destination. Tuesday evening we
have a hosted dinner at the Royal Victoria
Yacht Club. Wednesday is open for shopping
(good chocolates here), touring, visiting museums or the famous Butchart Gardens, and
dining on your own.
On Thursday, we make a
short 20 mile cruise to Sidney, BC, and moor in a large
modern marina. The town of
Sidney is full of books, art
galleries, chocolate stores,
and tea shops. A trip to
Butchart Gardens is also
possible on this day. That
evening features another
hosted dinner. Friday sees
the fleet running 16 miles ‘up
island’ to the artist colony of
Ganges on Saltspring Island,
BC. Here we moor at the
somewhat rustic SYC Ganges
Outstation and visit the
town’s galleries, pubs, and chocolate stores
(do you see a trend?) Dinner is on your own in
one of the excellent local restaurants.
Ganges is famous for its farmers’ and artists’
market and many art galleries. On Saturday
morning, one of the largest open air markets
in the region is held in the town park, and all
of the cruisers should visit it before departing
for our next destination, SYC’s Ovens Island
Outstation, 24 miles north in Ladysmith Harbour. This is a primitive outstation with no
water or electricity. However, the solitude of
this small island more than makes up for the
lack of creature comforts. The towns of Ladysmith and Chemainus are a short (5 or 10
miles) dinghy ride away. In the evening, we
will have a Greenbox and pot-luck dinner.
‘Greenbox’ is SYC lingo for pre-dinner drinks
and snacks on the docks. This is a chance for
the cooks on board to shine and to present
their best hors-d’oeuvres and for you to share
your favourite beverages with your fellow
boaters. The potluck dinner means that each
boat brings a dish to share.
Sunday, 11 September, the fleet makes a 15
mile run to the first of the two RVYC outstations. Tugboat Island Outstation in Silva Bay
on Gabriola Island, BC, is our most northerly
stop. We will be here on the RVYC docks for
two nights. The first night features a hosted
wine and cheese tasting. On Monday, RVYC
challenges the cruisers to a bocce ball competition, followed by a hosted Italian dinner on
the lawn.
The next segment, Tuesday, 13 September,
sends the fleet south for a 25 mile run to the
RVYC Scott Point Outstation in Long Harbor
on Saltspring Island. The sail boats in the fleet
may want to take advantage of sailing on the
open waters of the Strait of Georgia, while the
powerboaters can take the more protected
inside route. This evening is the last formal
event of the cruise and is the hosted wrap-up
dinner and awards ceremony. The fleet breaks
up the next day and heads its separate ways.
Many of the SYC and RVYC boats will continue cruising the Salish Sea and the charter
boats will make their way back to Anacortes to
clear US customs and turn in their boats.
From Anacortes, cruisers head home on their
own. SeaTac airport is less than two hours
away and is served by an airport bus service
that leaves from Anacortes hourly.
Go to www.seattleyachtclub.org and click on
Activities/ICOYC 2011 Forum/Cruise for
more information. You can find information
on chartering boats, a detailed itinerary, costs,
the downloadable registration form, a list of
websites to visit, and information on clearing
customs for the USA and Canada.
Bob Miller, Seattle Yacht Club,
ICOYC Communications Committee
July 2011, page 4
Perth Summary: Club Operations
The following two articles conclude the summaries
from the Perth Forum. The previous newsletter
contained summaries of Membership Issues and the
Role of Yacht Clubs. These summaries provide an
insight into the discussions at an ICOYC Forum and
demonstrate the long-term benefits of attending as
the topics discussed are of continuing relevance.
Editor
‘Club Operations’ sounds like a heavy topic as
it lacks the words ‘yacht’, ‘sailing’ and ‘fun’. It
surely is more on the administrative and theoretical side, but it combines many of those
subjects that make a club work as an entity, a
community, and as an ongoing ‘operation’,
which is much needed to let us do what we are
here for – getting on the water – or to the bar.
Insurance
I chose to commence this article with the
seemingly heaviest of topics presented in
Perth, something you cannot see or feel, but
one which can save all our lives one day – at
least our economic lives – insurance. Rick
Wolozny of the Trident Insurance Group was
asked to present this topic, and as a side note,
Rick was one of the many experts Royal
Freshwater Bay Yacht Club had invited to add
to the expertise the club representatives could
share. A very welcome development after the
earlier ICOYC Commodores’ Forums had
intentionally kept the number of outside experts low and focus on the exchange of experience ‘entre nous’ for a start.
Rick managed to quickly show the quality of
catastrophe a yacht club can face, and meant
they had better be adequately insured. These
ranged from the immense values in water
crafts, especially when being sailed close to
each other in a competitive environment, to
risks in large functions, in food and beverage
operations, in employing staff, in entertaining
and training children, and in committee and
volunteer work, all of which may cause damage, etc. I voluntarily left out ‘club house insurance’ in order to highlight it at the end. In
May, the NRV clubhouse in Hamburg was
seriously damaged by a cable fire, and thanks
to adequate insurance all the damage, from
old oil paintings to a substantial collection of
trophies, could be saved by quick and professional renovation.
Anniversaries
One of the major and largely visible ‘one-off’
operations yacht clubs enjoy are anniversaries. The Royal Southern Yacht Club in the
Hamble, UK, will celebrate its 175th anniversary at the same time London hosts the 2012
Olympics and Para-Olympics. RSrnYC’s Commodore John Beardsley and Club Secretary
Mike Rogers gave a thorough insight into the
club’s history and the festivities planed. One
club event per month during the anniversary
year shall adequately cover the occasion, from
members’ dinners, receptions on various occasions, galas and a race from the Hamble to the
Caribbean. An enormous task, necessarily
covered by sponsorship, brought to life by
professionals and a large numbers of volunteers. Such operations keep a club, its administration and members busy years in advance
and through the anniversary year itself.
Funds
Operating a club requires large amounts of
funds, and at the 2010 Forum it was up to the
Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron and its Commodore Bill Wood to educate the auditorium
of new ways to cover the yacht club’s need for
funds. Endowment Funds have been on
RSYS’s agenda to offer a structure for members to let the club benefit from a bequest. A
committee was formed to find a trust structure that leaves the club’s non-profit structure
unchallenged but equips the club with funds
to predominantly be used to cover investment
peaks or emergencies – a rainy day fund for
club finances.
Outstations
An example of rather visible organizational
work was Seattle Yacht Club’s presentation on
its extensive outstation network, given by Vice
Commodore Kim Lorenz and Past Commodore Chris Otorowski. The US and Canadian
Western Pacific Coast is blessed with thousands of islands and coves and Seattle Yacht
Club acquired ten facilities in the archipelago
which allow members to exclusively moor
their boats, use the facilities and enjoy some
of the amenities of their club away from their
club. From the many obvious upsides a network of club-owned outstations offers, one
was highlighted the most – the outstation
network was said to be the major reason why
members join the club. A unique selling point
which helps the
club master the difficulties many others face
with decreasing membership numbers.
Corporate Structure
Back to more theoretical operations, I myself
presented on corporate structure and succession in a German sailing club. Club constitutions and organizational foundations are different from the Anglo-American model, which
presented some chance of making a heavy
subject still interesting by adding the aspect of
the unknown.
Conclusion
This loose arrangement of topics presented
and discussed at the Commodores’ Forum in
Perth is meant to show some examples of the
variety of presentations offered, and the enormous background knowledge and experience
such a gathering can access when a number of
the major yacht clubs of the world convene.
Clubs share experiences and give enormous
benefits to each other in a pleasant environment, which makes us all look forward to
being in Seattle for the 6th ICOYC Commodores’ Forum later this year.
Gero Brugmann
Vice Commodore
Norddeutscher Regatta Verein
ICOYC Vice President Europe
July 2011, page 5
Perth Summary: Sponsorship
During the 5th Commodores’ Forum held last
year at the Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club
in Perth, sponsorship was the topic of the first
morning’s discussion. The following is a summary of the presentations and points made.
Bronwyn Lewis (Executive Director, State
Library of WA Foundation) started the session
with ‘Sponsorship Essentials’. Bronwyn
packed thirty years of experience into just
thirty minutes.
4
5
Ragnar Klevaas, Past Commodore, Royal Norwegian Yacht Club listed:
1
2
She mentioned yacht clubs must be professional about sponsorship and safeguard themselves via contractual agreements. The first
step is branding and brand valuation of potential sponsors. ‘Make sure you research a serious partnership’ she went on to suggest using
marketing students from the local university
for this purpose. ‘You need to have a competitor analysis in order to profile your own prospects. Understand not only your sponsor but
your sponsor’s clients as well.’ There is a need
for clubs to enter into the world of social media such as Facebook, Twitter, etc. Tracking of
events allow the spectators to get involved
thereby increasing the audience. Think outside the square on how you can use what you
are good at to bring in money while you develop a partnership.
3
4
5
1
3
3
2
John McNeill, Staff Commodore of the St
Francis Yacht Club listed:
3
3
Inge Strompf-Jepsen, Past Commodore, Royal
Hong Kong Yacht Club listed:
1
2
Five clubs were then invited to each share
‘Five lessons learned’ when dealing with sponsors.
2
when it is acceptable for a sponsor to direct market to members.
2
4
Understanding that sponsors want eyeballs, reaching people through our activities to sell their products or services.
Work to the sponsors schedule and their
marketing goals.
Set up a press room with a view of the
starting line.
Norway’s public sector is rich due to oil
and the government supports many activities.
There are no big brand names like in Denmark or Sweden.
Popular sports in Norway are winter
sports and football.
Sailing does not receive any media coverage hence very little sponsorship.
Good relations have been built with private banking sponsors.
Russell Murphy, Commodore, Royal Prince
Alfred Yacht Club listed:
The next speaker was Matt Allen, Commodore, Cruising Yacht Club of Australia, who
presented ‘A Club Case Study on the Rolex
Sydney Hobart Yacht Race’. Matt took us
through the event’s beginnings and how it
grew to the international spectacle it is now;
ranked in the top five of sponsored events.
One of the many key elements was the necessity for yacht tracking (and social media) so
that people could ‘go home, log in and take a
look at friends/boats/husbands and track
them all the way to the finish’.
1
Help fulfill their goals without compromising the culture of your own club.
Sell the long term – your best sponsors
should become your good friends.
5
Sponsorship is no free lunch …
Most sponsors with products, profile and
funds have extremely well-managed marketing departments, clubs underestimate
that relationships require professional
management.
At their club, sponsors do not pay in cash,
their sponsors do it in kind.
Relying on cash will make the club vulnerable in case an event sponsor withdraws.
Without proper measurement, yacht clubs
have little understanding of values and
events – making them vulnerable to selling events cheap.
Craig Peploe, General Manager, Royal New
Zealand Yacht Squadron listed:
1
4
5
It is essential that someone in the club is
responsible for account managing the
significant sponsor.
Legwork must include maintaining the
relationship and looking after the more
immediate needs of the sponsor including
regular communication.
The club must provide as much advance
notice as possible to actions expected of
them, functions they need to attend, invitations to other events, etc.
It is a lot easier to retain a current sponsor
than it is for them to leave and have to
recruit another. Significant sponsorships
should be for a minimum three-year term.
The club’s database needs to be protected
– guidelines need to be established for
4
5
Do not promise a sponsor something that
you cannot deliver!
Understand what the sponsor is trying to
achieve – work with the sponsor but manage their expectations.
Help get the sponsor’s message across – if
a request is reasonable look at whether it
is possible to make it happen.
Retain control – the running of the event
should not be dictated by the sponsor!
Respect your sponsor – ensure the sailors
know who the sponsor is and that they
show their respect and appreciation.
‘Raising revenue through corporate relationships’ was the finale to the sponsorship topic
in the form of an interactive session moderated by Past Commodore Iain Crassick of the
Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club.
Quite a few questions were aimed at Matt
Allen in regards to the Rolex Sydney Hobart
Yacht Race, the development of their website
and the tracking systems with the help of
Google Earth, maintaining Rolex as a sponsor
by keeping key people in place and the retention of sometimes second-tier sponsors to
become main sponsors for lesser events.
The next to last subject was on how yachting
can break through the barrier of low media
interest and how to attract the media for
smaller events. Questions and ideas on how to
retain sponsorship for youth sailing programmes finished the morning’s proceedings
and everyone was by then quite happy to take
a break for lunch.
Inge Strompf-Jepsen
Past Commodore
Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club
ICOYC Director
July 2011, page 6
New ICOYC Directors’ Profiles
Gunilla Antas, Commodore
Gunilla is a member of the race committee
Gunilla is married and has three sons, living
Nyländska Jaktklubben, Helsinki,
and served on the board for two three-year
in London, Stockholm and Helsinki. Much of
Finland
terms before being elected Commodore. Being
the summer vacations are spent on a remote
a Commodore is especially challenging now
island in the western part of the archipelago.
that the world is changing so quickly. In a
Gunilla was raised in a sailing family and
Club with old traditions it is important not to
competed for the first time in a ‘Vingboat’
rely on the past but look ahead and make
when seven. Later as a junior she raced Flying
plans for the future.
Junior, Trapetz and 505 dinghies.
When not working and thinking of NJK,
Gunilla has actively participated in club activi-
Gunilla works at Aalto University as a secre-
ties for many years in training camps for jun-
tary for the International Architecture Pro-
iors and also travelled with her own children
gram, where she is in charge of the foreign
to national and international races in Opti-
students.
mist, Europe and Laser dinghies.
Bill Wood, Past Commodore
In more recent times he has sailed in Division
Undoubtedly, the club has been a major influ-
Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron,
1 at the RSYS and has won his fair share of
ence on Bill’s life. His wife Sue is an active
Australia
season point scores.
sailor in twilight racing and his two sons John
and Benjamin went through the Youth Sailing
Bill has spent the past 22 years on various
Bill’s sailing experience commenced at the
committees of the RSYS. He served for ten
Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron in the 1960s as
years in two tranches on the General Commit-
a member of the first intake of the Junior
tee before being elected Club Captain in 1994
Sailing Program at the club.
to 1998, Rear Commodore in 1998 to 2002,
Program and are members of the club.
Vice Commodore in 2002 to 2006 and ComFrom learning to sail in a Mark 11 Moth, he
modore 2006 to 2010. During this time he has
went onto skipper a Jubilee 18 footer and then
served as Chairman of the Youth Sailing Com-
crew as a forward hand on a number of inter-
mittee, Chairman of the Sailing Committee
national one design classes, Solings, Dragons,
and Chairman of the House Committee.
5.5 metre, Etchells and America’s Cup 12 metre yachts.
Mark Inkster, Commodore
Mark began sailing on the River Hamble 42
He works in the family timber business, farm-
Royal Southern Yacht Club
years ago and has been fortunate to have ex-
ing and the leisure industry and has an MBA.
Hamble, UK
perienced boating in many forms and in many
countries since then. He now keeps a twinengine motorboat at the Royal Southern as
Mark became Commodore of Royal Southern
well as a larger yacht in the French Mediterra-
Yacht Club in November 2010 and is probably
nean, where he has cruised extensively. He
the youngest to assume the role in the club’s
has recently completed a three-year restora-
174 years. He has been a Flag Officer for five
tion of a ‘Dunkirk Little Ship’ and made the
years and Chairman of the Executive Commit-
return to Dunkirk in 2010 for the 70th anni-
tee for three years. Over a long period he has
versary celebrations.
served on, and chaired, a variety of committees.
July 2011, page 7
New ICOYC Directors’ Profiles (continued)
Philip J. Smith, Commodore
In addition to serving as an officer and direc-
private equity transactions and in designing
Eastern Yacht Club, Marblehead, USA
tor of the Eastern Yacht Club, he has served
unique governance structures. He has served
on the board of directors and as president of a
as counsel to a number of charitable founda-
number of youth organizations, including the
tions.
Phil has been a member of both the Eastern
Boston Youth Symphony Orchestras, the Kee-
and the New York Yacht Clubs since the early
waydin Foundation, which operates summer
1970s. For many years Phil crewed in both
camps that focus on wilderness canoe trip-
one-design and national and international
ping, and the Pleon Yacht Club, a junior yacht
offshore races. He currently cruises a J/46
club in Marblehead. Phil is a lawyer and was a
named ‘Strega’.
partner in a Boston law firm for over 35 years
where he specialized in complex financings,
Dott. Paolo Caffarena, Director
Paolo started sailing at the age of 13 with a
Paolo was a Paediatric Surgeon until he re-
Yacht Club Italiano, Genoa, Italy
Flying Junior, then began actively racing. He
tired a few years ago.
subsequently sailed in keel boats, taking part
in the more popular races of the MediterraPaolo Caffarena became a member of the
nean and with the RORC. He was an instruc-
Yacht Club Italiano in 1963. Since 1986 he has
tor of young members of the club; then in the
been a Member of the General Direction of
early 1980s he became a judge on the club’s
YCI, taking on a range of special projects for
race committee and at European and World
the club. He has co-operated with other major
Championships.
clubs in the Mediterranean area.
Seattle Yacht Club’s Opening Day, 7 May 2011
A colourful and traditional rite of spring
brought many people to Seattle’s inland waterways on 7 May as boaters celebrated Opening Day of the boating season. Whilst the
boating season never officially ends in the
Puget Sound area Opening Day kicks off the
happy spring and summer days of boating for
many avid boaters in this area. It can trace its
roots to a Fourth of July celebration on Seattle’s waterfront in 1895. In 1920, shortly after
the Lake Washington Ship Canal was completed, linking Seattle’s inland lakes with
Puget Sound, the celebration moved to the
fresh waters of the ship canal, Portage Bay
and the Montlake Cut.
Spectators crowded the shorelines of Seattle’s
Portage Bay and Montlake Cut as boats, many
of them decorated to this year’s theme of
‘Salish Sea Treasures’, paraded past judges
and spectators watching aboard boats anchored along the parade route. The annual
Opening Day parade, sponsored by the Seattle
Yacht Club, included small boats, motorboats,
rowing and paddleboats, sailboats, antique
boats and mega-yachts. Bringing up the rear
of the parade were the Seattle Fire Department boats which moved by in a cloud of
spray.
However, the parade was not just for fun, at
stake were a large number of awards including
the Wilson Seamanship Trophy. This trophy is
awarded each year to the best yacht club flotilla of at least seven boats which can be power
and/or sail. It was judged on a variety of skills
and was won this year by the Classic Yacht
Association. The competition did not end
there as there was also dragon boat racing and
international rowing teams competed in the
2011 Windermere Cup Crew Races.
July 2011, page 8
Who’s Who in the ICOYC
At the AGM in June 2011 it was suggested that
we should provide a summary of who does
what in the Council. The list below shows all
those who will be in the positions indicated
during the Commodores’ Forum in Seattle.
The members’ pages of the ICOYC.org website
give more detail about the various roles. The
President and Vice Presidents are also Directors ex officio.
Officers
President: John Stork – Past Chairman
and Vice Commodore, Royal Thames Yacht
Club, London
Past President: Heinz Rautenberg – Past
Commodore, Royal Vancouver Yacht Club
Senior Vice President/Asia-Pacific: Rex
Harrison – Past Commodore, Royal Sydney
Yacht Squadron
Vice President/Americas: John McNeill
– Staff Commodore, St Francis Yacht Club,
San Francisco
Vice President/Europe: Gero
Brugmann – Vice Commodore,
Norddeutscher Regatta Verein, Hamburg
Hon Secretary: Jim Burns – Past Commodore, Royal Vancouver Yacht Club
Hon Treasurer: Larry Fournier – Royal
Vancouver Yacht Club
Board of Directors (elected)
Andy Anderson – Rear Commodore, Royal
New Zealand Yacht Squadron, Auckland
Gunilla Antas – Commodore, Nyländska
Jaktklubben, Helsinki
Jim Burns – Past Commodore, Royal Vancouver Yacht Club
Paolo Caffarena – Director, Yacht Club
Italiano, Genoa
Alan Fisher – Past Commodore, Royal
Freshwater Bay Yacht Club, Perth
Mark Inkster – Commodore, Royal Southern Yacht Club, Hamble
Flemming Ipsen – Kongelig Dansk
Yachtklub, Copenhagen
John McNeill – Staff Commodore, St Francis Yacht Club, San Francisco
Phil Smith – Commodore, Eastern Yacht
Club, Marblehead
Jack Sullivan – Past Commodore, Seattle
Yacht Club
Inge Strompf-Jepsen – Past Commodore,
Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club
Bill Wood – Past Commodore, Royal Sydney
Yacht Squadron
Honorary Director: Heinz Rautenberg –
Past Commodore, Royal Vancouver Yacht
Club
Club Representatives (and Alternates)
These are decided by each club. See the
ICOYC.org website for the latest appointments.
Board Nominations Committee
Responsible for recommendations about club
membership and key ICOYC appointments
President John Stork (Chairman)
Past President Heinz Rautenberg
Senior Vice President Rex Harrison
Vice President Gero Brugmann
ICOYC Communications Committee
Responsible for providing ICOYC news to
member clubs and others
Chairman — John McNeill, StFYC
Web Administrator — Bob Miller, Seattle YC
Web Editor — Barbara Holder, RVYC
Web Forum – Gero Brugmann, NRV
Newsletter Editor – Alison Boyd, UK
Americas Correspondent – John McNeill,
StFYC
European Correspondent – Wolfgang Weber,
NRV
Asia Pacific Correspondent – Open
Race Profile: Færderseilasen, Royal Norwegian Yacht Club
The Færderseilasen is the world’s largest overnight regatta, with more than 1100 boats taking part. From Oslo’s harbour, south to the
Færder lighthouse and back to Horten, this
most spectacular of Norwegian yacht races
involves the entire boating population of the
country. The race ends with a feast in Horten
harbour, when the thousands of lystseilere
(leisure boatsmen) who participate for the
sheer atmosphere of the thing get down and
drink into the long Norwegian summer night.
1000 by the time of the 50th anniversary in
1997.
This spectacular race has grown immensely,
both in popularity and participation, since its
inception in 1947. The first race gathered a
grand total of six boats, only three of which
managed to finish the race. In 1948 it had
three participants less. The first hints of its
future popularity came in 1949 when the
Crown Prince of Norway, Olav V, participated
(and won) with his wife the Crown Princess as
his crew. In 1971 the regatta gathered 100
participants, a number which by 1977 had
grown to about 600 and there were more than
[As this Newsletter went to press we heard the terrible news of the deaths of nearly 80 innocent people
in Norway. We commiserate with all Norwegians and
are confident they will continue their strong traditions, not allowing the latest events to throw them off
course. JS]
Today the race brings together some of the
flashiest, most spectacular recreational boats
in the North Atlantic area, as well as their
skilled crews and affluent owners, for a maritime race that certainly ranks among the most
enjoyable in Europe.
Wolfgang Weber, NRV
ICOYC European Correspondent
International Council of Yacht Clubs
3811 Point Grey Rd
Vancouver
British Columbia
V6R 1B3
Canada
www.icoyc.org