In a couple of months we will start our Sailing Club winter meetings.

This year we will meet at 10:00 a.m. in the Lake Barrington Shores Lodge, on

   Sunday, December 8, 2019,

   Sunday, February 2, 2020,

   Sunday, March 1, 2020.

Put the dates into your calendar. February 2nd is Super Bowl Sunday, but the game starts around 6, so you will have plenty of time to get to your Super bowl party.

At our first meeting we will elect officers, have our Treasurer’s report, fleet captain’s reports, and then we will focus on our 

REGATTAS —

   the success of our five 2019 regattas, 

   an awesome photo show by Larry Kmiecik,

   discussion of regatta entry fees, 

   and scheduling our 2020 regattas.

The fleet captains help to shape our regattas for their class of boat. Let your fleet captain know right away about anything that you want for regattas next year in that class.  A one day event or two day? Co-skippers? Regatta location or date preferences? Check with dates for regattas at other clubs so we do not have conflicts.

At our December meeting we must set the dates for our 2020 regattas. This will let us begin producing the Notice of Race and entry forms, scheduling with the AMYA, and creating the trophies.
I am attaching a map with directions in case you have not been to Lake Barrington Shores. I will send another email as we get closer to the meeting dates.

Let me know your ideas.

Bob Armbruster

Thanks

Marble head Regatta
By Ken Young

Ten skippers from Illinois and Wisconsin converged on Lake Barrington Shores Marina for a challenging day of racing. The ten Marbleheads were divided into three divisions of three High Flyers, four Classics, and three Modern designs.

The big winds that had been predicted all week never showed up, but unfortunately the big rain did, but not until we had completed thirteen races and lunch. Skippers were positioned on top of the boat house looking down on the course. The wind was coming from behind the boathouse which, coupled with trees along the shore, made the breeze pretty fickle, and a real challenge. Patience was, indeed, a virtue.

Finishing positions were closer than you might think with all of the different designs being sailed. The three division winners finished in the top four overall. Clark Fremgen (Modern), Brett Biwer and Bob Armbruster (High Flyer), and Rob Ford (Classic) all had consistent finishes all day. An interesting scoring note is that our three division winners, Rob Ford, Brett Biwer, and Clark Fremgen, dont own Marbleheads. They were all sailing borrowed boats. Plus, Brett and Clark had never even sailed a Marblehead before. Its fun to watch your boat win races. But its more fun if youre actually sailing it.

As the bright yellow areas on radar got closer and closer we decided to give in and packed things up just in time.

A big  thank you to the entire committee and volunteers, and to all the skippers who enjoyed our rooftop sailing.

Summary of 2019 American Marblehead R4RCR

Date: Oct 5

Location: Lake Barrington Shores, Illinois

Host Club: Chicago RC Model Yacht Club

Entries: 10

Winds: 3-8

Races Completed: 13

Scoring: Low Point

Regatta Committee: Registration: Bob Armbruster; Food: Pat Armbruster; RD: Don Zielinski, Ed Jakubis; Trophies and Photos: Larry Kmiecik; Crash Boat: Mike Martin; Course Set Up: Jeff Gros, Ed Jakubis.
High Flyer Division

1. Brett Biwer                     30       Magic Dagon IV

2. Bob Armbruster             33       Badger

3. Allan Thorsen                 96       Magic Dragon IV

Classic Division

1. Rob Ford                         48       Bingo

2. Ken Young                      69        Little John

3. Jeff Gros                          86       Aquilo

4. Dick Choyka                   115         ?

Modern Division

1. Clark Fremgen               16            ?

2. Ron Schloemer              66            ?

Sept  29, 2019--Last Race Day !
.
OK ! that WAS sailing season 2019--how'd you do ?
Today was supposed to be a S/B day ( only 2 boats showed up
and it was drizzling guess what ? no buoys were floated ) Our schedule
had 10 days slated for S/Bs and we only sailed 5 of those days.....all cancelled
days were weather related, and attendance was way down all summer.  In my usual
arbitrary manner I decided a skipper needed to race 3 out of the 5 days to score...
so these are SEASON totals ( drum roll please )
1st. big deal place .............Rich M.............8 points
2nd almost as big a deal...Andy K............9 pts
3rd bronze medal place......Rob F............12 pts
4th place newbie award......Ed J..............18 pts
5th what? place?.............Allan T.............20 pts.
we have a fleet of 22 Santa Barbara's ( on paper) and ONLY 5 guys made 3 or more
races over the whole summer to "qualify" for fleet scoring.
.
What about the Soling Fleet ? similar with 3 days cancelled due to weather the Solings
did slightly better, I decided you needed to sail 4 out of the 7 days to score this summer.
Again, these are SEASON totals, and it went like this for club champions....
1st..........Rich M...............10pts
2nd.........Rob F................17pts
3rd..........Allan T...............22pts
4th..........Andy K.............28pts
5th..........John C..............33pts.
.
Now about frost bite sailing---"we" (me) needs someone to ELSE to spearhead any after
season sailing---I'm done schlepping buoys,tugboat and timers for the year ! if I sail I
intend to show up with a small boat , a radio and a smile...you guys work it out ! LOL.
.
NEXT WEEK SATURDAY OCTOBER 5--AMERICAN MARBLEHEAD R4CR--LAKE BARRINGTON
weather forecast looks good--lets get those old creaky Ms out there and get 'em wet !
.
Next Axehead Chat will be a report on all the regattas we hosted this year, SB R4CR (Rich Matt)
EC-12 R4CR, Soling "Chicago Classic" , J Class R4CR , and the AM R4CR.
.
Lastly--the latest EC-12 class newsletter included a report on awarding the first Dave Brawner
Spirit of Sailing Award ( which went to Chuck Luscomb) at Stowe in Sept. I am attaching a pic
of this plaque--it is beautiful and I wanted everybody to have a chance to see it.
OK, we'll talk next  week!

Allan Thorsen

We have a new National Champion
Congratulation to Ken Young for winning the
United States Vintage Model Yacht Group
2019 National Championship Regatta for
Skipjack/Unrestricted  in Honey Brook, Pa.
September 26 , 2019

--Sept 15 , 2019---Santa Barbara Fleet
Overnight t-storms made today look iffy, driving up River Road Sunday morning
saw a flood stage DesPlaines River lapping at the roadside , winking in a very
suggestive manner and murmuring something untoward. Speeding up soon found
me at a cloudy, very windy pond. the water level there was about 3 inches over the
flagstones along the shore. Ah ! but we fearless sailors ! a clearing sky and lessening
winds made for a great day of sailing . Except for all the problems. including but not
limited to a dismasting (Rich), broken servo arm( Greg), a faulty servo stretcher(Ed).
Eventually three boats finished 12 races, and we boot shod hero's retired the day.
the scores were Bears 16 , Denver 14.
no , wait........
1st...........Rich M-----------17 points
2nd.........John C............27
3rd..........Allan T.............30
Commodore  Emeritus Conley had 3 first place finishes today, citing his success on a
new pair of sunglasses that have a buoy image painted on the lens , so he can see the
marks !  crafty man.
.
You all should be receiving your fall issue of Model Yachting this week-this is a "ballot
issue" , so please take the time to read about the proposed rule changes of the Soling
class and then take the time to VOTE.  The vote returns are historically abysmal , so in
this case YOU can effect change , if you want. or not. whatever.
.
NEXT WEEK SEPT. 22, 2019---LAST OFFICIAL SOLING RACE DAY OF THE YEAR ALREADY!
This is it , all the season's scores could come down to this ! ALL the prizes, ALL the glory ,
ALL the purse money , ALL the honor , it's ALL ALL ALL next Sunday !.....if it's nice out.
.
REMEMBER--Oct 5th at Bob's--American Marblehead Regatta. last I heard Ken Y. still has
some sort of a "Rent-A-M" business going. ( see how he got American Marblehead into the
name ? very clever. Rob F. screwed up his ankle--hopefully he'll recover in time to sail.
OK, enough nonsense.see ya'll next Axehead at Sunday !

 Axehead Chat--Sept 8, 2019-----SolingsAxe head chat Sept 8
Almost felt like frost bite sailing today, a gray day, cool, we even had
light drizzle along with super light NE breeze ( I hesitate to call it wind).
Thanks to John C. for coming down, never put his boat in though.
Oh ! that old dead tree right next to where we sit--broke off at ground level
and fell right in front of where we line up our chairs . base was rotted out,
we assume the wind took it down. ( I sent an email to park dist. about it).
a lot of new weed growth along shore line, IF  it gets worse we may have to
sail elsewhere for the two last sail days ( 22nd & 29th) I'll let you know.
The park was basically deserted. we only had 4 boats sailing today-12 races.
1st.......Rich M..................19 points
2nd......Allan T...................29
3rd......Rob F......................34
4th......Greg R....................40
Floating weeds were a issue, couldn't see them at all with gray sky's--sailing
along and you just stop while other boats move on.
.
NEXT WEEK--SEPT. 15 TH.--SANTA BARBARA'S AT AXEHEAD LAKE !
2 chances left to sail SBs this season, 1 last Soling race day also !
.
Who knows if we will frost bite--record hasn't been good lately, so this is it ,
plus we have so many core guys NOT sailing this year, so ? sail now !
NOTICE : Oct 5 ( Sat) we end our season with the American Marblehead Regatta.
find something 50 inches long with 800 sq. in. of sail area and join in.
alright, see you all next week at Axehead
Allan Thorsen

Allan Thorsen
Axehead Chat--Sept. 1,2019--S/B Rich Matt Regatta
Today we held our annual Rich Matt Memorial Regatta & R4CR up at
Vernon Hills under moderate temps, cloudy sky's and no wind.....yep,
we prepare and assign tasks and make notes and then there we are--
who was supposed to bring the breeze ? oops !
Still out of a potential 18 active SBs we had 12, eleven of which sailed
12 s-l-o-w heats, and with 2 throw outs and four firsts it was decided that
Jeff Gros won the regatta !
Business first : Thanks to Don Z. for being our race director ( with help
from Ken Y. ) and Jeff for once again bringing the chase boat and good
buoys, and Rich's wife for bringing brownies !

So here are the scores.......
1st......Jeff G...........21 points
2nd....Bob A............26
3rd.....Clark F............34
4th.....Rich M...........43
5th......Ron S............46
6th......Andy K..........53
7th......Ed J...............61
8th......Greg R...........66
9th......Rob F.............72
10......John C...........82
11th....Joe R.............92
.
BIG NEWS---the NEW club website is up and running--yes--still a work  in
progress ( wear a hardhat & goggles please ! ) but the basic outline is there.
HUGE Thanks for Rich M and Bob A for spearheading this effort
https://chicagorcmyc.org  try this link for it !
.
NEXT WEEK--SEPT 8--SOLINGS AT AXEHEAD LAKE
We are in the home stretch of our season now, 2 Soling days, 2 SB days and
then we end the year with the American Marblehead Regatta Oct. 5 ( Sat.) up
at Lake Barrington--roof top yachting ! like watching the Cubs from across the
street, but less disappointing, and cheaper. come by and see for yourself.
Lastly--I would like to thank the SB skippers for letting me co-helm John Conley's
boat Sunday--my main servo crapped out, so they said i could sail with John.
OK, see you all next week at the pond
Allan Thorsen

SOLING TOP 5

S/B  9/1/2019

Today we held our annual Rich Matt Memorial Regatta & R4CR up at Vernon Hills under moderate temps, cloudy sky's and no wind.....yep, we prepare and assign tasks and make notes and then there we are-- who was supposed to bring the breeze ? oops ! 

Still, out of a potential 18 active SBs we had 12, eleven of which sailed 12 s-l-o-w heats, and with 2 throw outs and four firsts it was decided that Jeff Gros won the regatta!  

Business first : Thanks to Don Z. for being our race director ( with help from Ken Y. ) and Jeff for once again bringing the chase boat and good buoys, and Rich's wife for bringing brownies ! 

So here are the scores....... 

1st......Jeff G...........21 points 

2nd....Bob A............26 

3rd.....Clark F............34 

4th.....Rich M...........43 

5th......Ron S............46 

6th......Andy K..........53 

7th......Ed J...............61 

8th......Greg R...........66 

9th......Rob F.............72 

10......John C...........82 

11th....Joe R.............92

 EC12 TOP 

Marblhead Regatta  Oct 5th 2019

By Ken Young

Ten skippers from Illinois and Wisconsin converged on Lake Barrington Shores Marina for a challenging day of racing. The ten Marbleheads were divided into three divisions of three High Flyers, four Classics, and three Modern designs.
The big winds that had been predicted all week never showed up, but unfortunately the big rain did, but not until we had completed thirteen races and lunch. Skippers were positioned on top of the boat house looking down on the course. The wind was coming from behind the boathouse which, coupled with trees along the shore, made the breeze pretty fickle, and a real challenge. Patience was, indeed, a virtue.

Finishing positions were closer than you might think with all of the different designs being sailed. The three division winners finished in the top four overall. Clark Fremgen (Modern), Brett Biwer and Bob Armbruster (High Flyer), and Rob Ford (Classic) all had consistent finishes all day. An interesting scoring note is that our three division winners, Rob Ford, Brett Biwer, and Clark Fremgen, dont own Marbleheads. They were all sailing borrowed boats. Plus, Brett and Clark had never even sailed a Marblehead before. I™s fun to watch your boat win races. But its more fun if youre actually sailing it.

As the bright yellow areas on radar got closer and closer we decided to give in and packed things up just in time.

A big  thank you to the entire committee and volunteers, and to all the skippers who enjoyed our rooftop sailing.

Summary of 2019 American Marblehead R4RCR

Date: Oct 5

Location: Lake Barrington Shores, Illinois

Host Club: Chicago RC Model Yacht Club

Entries: 10

Winds: 3-8

Races Completed: 13

Scoring: Low Point

Regatta Committee: Registration: Bob Armbruster; Food: Pat Armbruster; RD: Don Zielinski, Ed Jakubis; Trophies and Photos: Larry Kmiecik; Crash Boat: Mike Martin; Course Set Up: Jeff Gros, Ed Jakubis.

High Flyer Division

1. Brett Biwer                     30       Magic Dragon IV

2. Bob Armbruster             33       Badger

3. Allan Thorsen                 96       Magic Dragon IV

Classic Division

1. Rob Ford                         48       Bingo

2. Ken Young                      69        Little John

3. Jeff Gros                          86       Aquilo

4. Dick Choyka                   115         ?

Modern Division

1. Clark Fremgen               16            ?

2. Ron Schloemer              66            ?

J BOATS

J ClassChevrons: RedDate: May 11, 2019Location: Lake Barrington, Illinois Host Club: Chicago# of Entries: 7Winds: 6 to 10 mphRaces Completed: 7Scoring System: Low Point, Single FleetRegatta Committee: Regatta Chairman Bob Armbruster, RD Don Zielinski, Asst RD Ralph Niedzwiecki, Trophies and Photos by Larry Kmiecik, Food by Pat Armbruster, Course Layout by Jeff Gros and Allan Thorsen.
Seven J Class yachts from Illinois, Wisconsin and New York State gathered on Friday at the Lake Barrington Shores marina for a day of fabulous racing. Four Shamrocks, a Ranger, a Whirlwind, and an Enterprise frequently changed positions as they challenged each other throughout seven races. Unfortunately, two skippers, one from Ohio and one from Illinois, became ill on the evening before the race and could not sail.
These majestic model yachts were sailed by nine different skippers. In the J Class, the boat, not the skipper, is entered in the regatta so multiple skippers can sail a single boat. The additional skippers increases the level of fun and camaraderie.
After launching the 7.5 to 8.5 foot long, 80 to 125 pound J boats from the dock or from the sandy beach, the skippers, race committee and spectators gathered on the rooftop deck of the marina boat house. The rooftop gave us a high, grandstand view of the course and a clear sight of all the marks. The deck also provided a festive location for lunch.  Late afternoon rain sent us indoors for trophy presentations and dinner.
Winds were coming from behind the skippers, so the marina boat house and large trees along the shore created channels of wind from multiple directions and varying in strength from light to strong as the yachts moved through the long, triangular, Olympic course. The race committee set one mark in a protected end of the lake, delivering wind with swirls and lulls near the mark.
The excellent performance of the J skippers is reflected in the close scores among the top three positions. Ron Schloemer’s consistent sailing carried his Ranger to the Regional Championship with 18.6 points. Bob Armbruster and Rich Mieling sailed Bob’s Shamrock into second place with 20 points. Clark Fremgen drove the Whirlwind for a Third Place trophy, also scoring 20 points, but missing second place on the tie breaker criteria.
Our thanks goes out to a great Regatta Committee and eager volunteers for a well organized, delightful regatta. 

2019 — J Class R4CR ResultsPlace Score Skipper  Sail # Yacht1 18.6 Ron Schloemer  211 Ranger2 20 Bob Armbruster and Rich Mieling    19 Shamrock3 20 Clark Fremgen   97 Whirlwind4 26 Jeff Gross and Dick Chvojka 184 Shamrock5 30 Allan Thorsen  152 Shamrock6 36 Mark Fleckenstein 104 Shamrock 7 52 Ken Quast      16 Enterprise DNS Doug Rieger 160  Ranger DNS Ken Young 183 Shamrock