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Eight Bells Ceremony and Last Sail for Jim Vaillancourt

Fireworks Flotilla – Sunday, August 31, 2025
Lots of Boats and Lots of Folks!

🚤 Safety Boat Training at PPYC – A Big Success!

Thanks to Richard Lewis and his star-studded team, our PPYC crew enjoyed an outstanding day of safety boat training!

The session combined excellent classroom instruction with a hands-on skills review, capped off by an exciting capsize drill—performed flawlessly by Ania Gorska and Kate Atanian.

And yes, no great training is complete without a sweet reward—we wrapped things up with ice cream! 🍦

Our Instructors:

Richard Lewis – The Old Salt (lead instructor)

Sam Beckman – Setting Marks

Kenny Cooper – Towmaster

Joe Campbell – Boat Review

Ania Gorska – Mermaid

Kathleen Atanian – Mermaid

A huge thank-you to everyone who participated and made this training both fun and valuable. Here’s to a safe and successful sailing season ahead! 🌊

Last Saturday, the Percy Priest Yacht Club pulled off an awesome raft-up sailing and social event that stole the show. Picture this . . .

Last Saturday one of our Hamilton Creek Shipmates lost his life in a boating accident on Percy Priest Lake. Apparently, he went forward on the boat to attend to something and fell . . .

We closed out our Keelboat training series with a sail to Elm Hill's Shipwreck Cove . . .

. . . What an odd little group we are and all suffering from the same affliction: love of sailing. Great conversations, sea stories, laughter, and memories were well represented. . .

On May 9th I joined a Flotilla sailing from Bellingham, WA to Princess Louisa Inlet via the Sunshine Coast of British Columbia . . .

Fiberglass Repair Seminar with Fred Bartrom – July 12 Recap
Our July 12 educational event on fiberglass repair, led by Fred Bartrom, covered a wide range of valuable topics for anyone working with composite materials. With 20 participants in attendance, Fred shared both foundational knowledge and practical tips, including:
• The differences between resins and epoxies—what cures with oxygen, hardeners, or wax additives
• The importance of watching out for amine blush
• Choosing between fast and slow epoxy hardeners
• Fred’s custom cardboard-core fiberglass workbox
• The “Rule of 12s” for fiberglass layups
• Mechanical vs. chemical bonding
• Key safety equipment for fiberglass work
• Best practices for replacing hardware and preventing moisture intrusion
• The “bent nail trick” for removing core material
Fred’s engaging presentation was well-received, and everyone walked away with new skills and insights. Many thanks to Fred for sharing his expertise!

For me, it's a magical moment to see the crews walking down the dock towards the slips, hoisting the sails, removing unnecessary items, and checking the lines, spinnakers, and Genoa cars. It's a moment of concentration, paying attention to every detail that might make a difference.

PPYC sailors took to Percy Priest Lake, rafting up sailboats and motorboats for a front-row view of the Independence Day fireworks.

On Saturday, June 21, the Percy Priest Yacht Club was transformed into a tropical paradise as members gathered for the annual PPYC Luau. Complete with palm fronds, the décor set the stage for a festive evening . . .

Richard (Hook) Lewis was honored at the Luau for his service to PPYC as our Asset Manager.

Percy Priest J/22s Shine in Indianapolis

The GFOD 2025 will go down as a memorable weekend of two extremes!

AKA 50 miler. See more for details.

Really Big Day for Kate!!!

The Exodus Regatta kicked off what will be a summer of dinghy sailing fun on Percy Priest Lake.

Richard Lewis (APBA (America power Boat Assoc) and TWRA test proctor) organized a boat safety class that gave our members great guidance and hands-on experience.

The weather was rough, but several gathered to get a lot checked off of the spring cleaning checklist.

It was a wonderful spring day with lots of blue sky as ten boats competed in our Force Five Regatta.

LATH Online was a fun and informative way to dive into sailing from the comfort of home!

It was stormy on the outside but all smiles inside the clubhouse at our annual Commodore Meet and Greet. It was fantastic to see several new members join Commodore George Heintz and others as we look forward to a great 2025.

On Saturday March 8th several gathered to pick up the skill of line splicing.

Richard knows so much, people were taking notes . He is very well organized, knowledgeable and very patient.

Kenny Cooper and Kurt Berger joined forces to introduce PPYC sailors to the craft and tools of Coastal Navigation.

Local sailors travel to St Pete to compete in the Haley Hanson Sailing World Regatta Series.

Wednesday Night Racing is going strong in 2024. We had 12 boats out, but we have room for more to join in. We compete on the water then many take it to our local cantina to enjoy some tacos and each other's company.

The 2024 Force Five regatta took place on March 23.

Two boats and crew attended the S2 7.9 Mid-Winter championship at Saint Petersburg in February. Then two other boats participated in the J/22 Mid-Winter championship in March at the Southern Yacht Club in New Orleans.

Sam, David and George lead a "rules" class to help sailors prepare for Wednesday Night Races.

Inspirational video for Wednesday Night Racing

I joined after two amazing LATH sessions back in April.  I’ve always wanted to learn how to sail . . .