City Island Yacht Club

Incorporated 1907

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May be an image of one or more people, people boat racing, people sitting, sailboat and oceanMessage from the Commodore

Please see our Membership page for further information. We welcome new and prospective members to visit and to tour our facilities. Call the Club office at 718-885-2487.l

Please see our Membership page for further information. We welcome new and prospective members to visit and to tour our facilities. Call the Club office at 718-885-2487.

Please see our Membership page for further information. We welcome new and prospective members to visit and to tour our facilities. Call the Club office at 718-885-2487.

 

 

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  • News & Updates Option 1

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    News & Updates Option 2

    Open House at CIYC

    Start the new year right. Come and learn about CIYC.  Bring a friend. Bring the family. See this great sailing facility that's so close to home.  ...

    News & Updates Option 3

    Open House at CIYC

    Start the new year right. Come and learn about CIYC. 

    Bring a friend. Bring the family.

    See this great sailing facility that’s so close to home. 

    Join us for our open house Sunday, May 21st starting at 10:30 am to find out more about our membership packages and sailing offerings:

    RSVP online at https://CIYC_OH3.eventbrite.com

    For more information: (718) 885-2487

     

     

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    News & Updates Option 4

    Sayers Series Trophy City Island Yacht Club
    Sayers Series new logo

    One of City Island Yacht Club’s most popular races always takes place in September, toward the end of the all-too-short sailing season. The Sayers Series, potentially the longest-running race in CIYC’s history, is named after past commodore Henry Sayers who started the club’s “Family Day” races sometime in the late 1940s.

    Sayers managed the Family Day races for several years, and as the story is told by a few current club members, Sayers would give each boat in the race a rating he thought it should have, not the rating determined by traditional methods. 

    Today’s Sayers Series carries on the spirit of the original family day races from which it was born, explains Rich Coar, CIYC member and owner of Chaika.

    “It’s a big social event. It’s an opportunity for people who don’t race that often to see what their boat can do,” says Coar about the Sayers Series and why all members should partake.

    CIYC Members gather at The Galley Restaurant pub.

    CIYC Members David Zedlovich (R) and Rich Coar (L) sat down for a drink after sailing to tell the story of the Sayers Series.

    This year’s Sayers Series is scheduled for Saturday, September 23 and as is tradition, the first race in the  morning is a lap around the buoys and then members come back to the club for lunch. The afternoon race, around Hart Island, is a test of knowledge about the currents, the tide, rocks, and the wind. Coar has managed the race since 1983 when he was Regatta chair at the time, and he describes the much-anticipated event as “anybody’s race to win.”

    Sayers Series trophy and invocation at City Island Yacht Club

    Pictured above from left to right: the Sayers Series trophy, made in 1911 as CIYC’s first trophy for its annual regatta. Engraving detail reads: “The Regatta committee of City Island Yacht Club at their first annual regatta, held June 18, 1911, presented to Gertrude K, winner of the trophy.”; the Sayers Series invocation written by Brad Stone, former CIYC Commodore; photo of the Gertrude K, recipient of the trophy in 1911.

    Members who have participated year after year agree. It’s not only the perfect race for a beginner sailor to get a taste of racing, cruisers and experienced racers also appreciate the less competitive nature of the race. The Sayers is also different in that it has a pursuit start, meaning each boat has a rating assigned, the slower boats start first and the faster boats “pursue” them.

    “You don’t start with a whole bunch of other boats and then get your handicap taken off at the end,” Coar explains. “The advantage of having the boats start on their handicap rather than all start together and take the handicap at the end is it doesn’t spook people at the start and when you’re doing results, all you’ve got to do is see who came in first, second, third because the handicap is already there.” 

    It’s Anybody’s Race

    So which is the boat to beat this year? Coar is quick to answer. “Anybody could win it,” and names some obvious and not-so-obvious past winners: Ernie Bivona on Eagle and another member who won it with a cat boat one year. But this year’s defending champ is Chru Brar, owner of Bibi

    The real challenge Sayers presents is the choose-your-own-adventure approach for the afternoon race around Hart Island. Participants can go either way around but must utilize some navigation skills to steer clear of the rocks known as “The Blouses” and “No Nations.”  

    Sayers Series invocation written by Brad Stone, former Commodore 2010-2012.

    The Sayers is also the only race at CIYC with an actual invocation, written by Brad Stone when he was Commodore from 2010–2012. The prose of which teases both the cruiser persona and the racer persona in all of us: “I ponder if my boat’s a fit, with all the gear I’ve put on it” and asking, “How can I lose, is this a trick?

    “It’s not a trick,” Coar insists. “The Sayers Series is the one race you don’t want to miss.”

    Register on Eventbrite.

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    CIYC members participated in the 2023 Governor's Cup Regatta on August 19, 2023.

    City Island Yacht Club members won the 2023 Governor's Cup Team Award on August 19, 2023.

    Recipients of the 2023 Governor’s Cup Regatta Team Award from L to R: Stuart Markowitz (Galatea), Steve Schwartz (Adagio) and Ernie Bivona (Eagle).

    Members of City Island Yacht Club (CIYC) joined the Huguenot and Orienta Yacht Clubs on Saturday, August 19 for the 8th Annual Western Long Island Sound Governor’s Cup Charity Regatta. The Huguenot Yacht Club was the organizing authority for this year’s event, a 14.7 nm course rounding Hart Island and Execution Rocks Lighthouse; from Mamaroneck Harbor to Eastchester Bay.

    Eagle Crew skippered by Ernie Bivona

    Eagle Crew skippered by Ernie Bivona

    Galatea crew skippered by Stuart Markowitz

    Galatea crew skippered by Stuart Markowitz

     CIYC Members won three awards:

    • 1st place, Division Spinnaker 2: Eagle, ski. Ernie Bivona  (commemorated on Walter Cronkite Perpetual Cup) 
    • 2nd place, Division Spinnaker 2: Galatea, ski. Stuart Markowitz
    • 1st place, Fleet Award: Eagle, ski. Ernie Bivona
    • 2nd place Team Award: CIYC

    Other CIYC members participated in the regatta, including Adagio, ski. Steve Schwartz; American Robin, ski. John Stathopoulos; Insatiable, ski. Baris Ozturk.

    CIYC members participated in the 2023 Governor's Cup Regatta on August 19, 2023.

    CIYC members participated in the 2023 Governor’s Cup Regatta on August 19, 2023.

    An awards ceremony and dinner was hosted at Huguenot Yacht Club directly after the event. See full results here.

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    The City Island Yacht Club cordially invites all cruisers, day sailors, and racers alike, to come out for a series of relaxed Sunday jib and main races. The races will be short, approximately one hour, and the courses will be triangles. No windward–leeward courses and no spinnakers. Also, no poling out jibs or genoas with spinnaker poles or whisker poles. Non-racers and racers are encouraged to bring family members, sailors, and non-sailors.

    DATES: July 23, August 6, August 20, September 10
    LOCATION: Approx 1/2 mile north-northwest of buoy 46A
    START TIME: 4:00 p.m.

    There will be a long start line with plenty of room for everyone to start. The start line will be between a white mark and the yellow flag on the Race Committee boat. You will not be able to miss it. The committee boat will monitor VHF channel 71. Results will be announced on the CIYC porch after the race. Boats will be scored PHRF, time on distance, and racing boats will be scored separately from cruising boats. If you don’t have a PHRF certificate, we’ll figure out what your rating should be. There is no entry fee. If there is a NOAA small craft advisory in effect as of 10:00 a.m. on the day of the race, the race will not be held. If you want to come out, contact Jim Dennis at or 914-714-2195.

    Download the race instructions

     

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    On Mar 4th, 2023, Frank Palmieri and Rick Cecilio of the City Island Yacht Club Cruising Committee gave an in-person class in Electronic Navigation using the OpenCPN software. Frank covered the basics of OpenCPN options and how to transfer routes developed in OpenCPN to a chartplotter. Rick taught basic OpenCPN download and installation. He walked the class through downloading nautical navigation maps to a laptop and then activating the maps in OpenCPN. Interactive exercises in creating waypoints and routes helped the attendees to
    understand the concepts and process of using OpenCPN. 

    Twenty-two CIYC members and guests attended the class. Feedback from the students was very positive. Josh Jorgensen, CIYC member, said “The eNavigation course walked us through all the steps needed to access charts, plan out routes and export as waypoint lists or into Navionics. Rick and Frank were excellent instructors, making the course practical and hands-on.” Josh added he has already been able to use OpenCPN to plan weekend cruises to Oyster Bay and beyond. Frank and Rick say they look forward to teaching this class again in the future.

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    Start the new year right. Come and learn about CIYC. 

    Bring a friend. Bring the family.

    See this great sailing facility that’s so close to home. 

    Join us for our open house Sunday, May 21st starting at 10:30 am to find out more about our membership packages and sailing offerings:

    RSVP online at https://CIYC_OH3.eventbrite.com

    For more information: (718) 885-2487

     

     

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