THOUGHTS FROM THE VOLUNTEER TEAM
As the sailing season winds down, we'd like to take a moment to thank everyone who has been working all summer long to make sure this organization keeps running. From scrubbing the boats and refueling engines, to checking on electrical systems, to planning and pulling off fantastic social events, to all the instructors who teach classes, the skippers who lead Tiller Times and Member Cruise Outings, the people who head up our racing, and the many, many people who work behind the scenes to coordinate and lead all of these programs, THANK YOU ALL! All together, you've given thousands of hours of your time. Sail Chicago runs because of all of us!
And if you haven't had a chance to volunteer yet, it's not too late! Our 2022 volunteer season runs until October 31. There are still opportunities available on the Volunteer Website, and there is plenty of work to be done as we take our boats back to the boatyard and prepare them for winter storage. You can sign up for positions on the website, and if you don't see an empty position that you're interested in, reach out to the volunteer team at volunteer@sailchicago.org.
Finally, just a reminder that volunteering is a part of how you remain a member in good standing. The suggestion is that you provide about 20 hours of service each season. If you don't complete your service time requirement for 2022 by October 31, you will be responsible for paying the $400 opt-out fee when you renew your membership in 2023. Any volunteering that you do after November 1 will count towards your service time requirement for next summer, not this one.
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If you're a Colgate 26 skipper and would like to try a different boat, you can participate in a Rhodes 19 orientation. Orientations are FREE to Colgate skippers. After one or more on-the-water sessions, you'll be qualified to sail our Rhodes 19s. The Rhodes are fun to sail and quicker to maneuver than a Colgate, and they have a different "feel" at the helm. Fees for their use are less than a Colgate's, and as few as two people can sail them. Becoming qualified to sail a Rhodes can give you more flexibility in scheduling private sails during busy times when many of our other boats are in use. To schedule an on-the-water Rhodes 19 orientation session, please contact Tim Rice at 
Join us Saturday morning, October 1st from 8:30 am-12:30 pm at Columbia Yacht Club in the Upper Salon. Fee for current SC instructors - no charge. Sail Chicago members (not instructors) or non Sail Chicago instructors $110. Limited to the first 20 participants. Students learn how to administer CPR, how to administer a shock from an AED, and basic first aid. Learning these skills are invaluable because they allow you to help injured people until we can connect with an emergency medical services team. 
Eleven-year-old Geoffrey Skyles was canoeing and rowing boats on a Wisconsin lake at a scout camp when another scout sped by him on a Sunfish. Geoff decided he had had enough paddling and rowing and learned to sail that summer. Some ten years later in 1998 he discovered Sail Chicago when it was still a part of American Youth Hostels, but it was 15(!) years later before he signed up for classes. In 2013 he took the beginners course (now Crew) with Matt McCormick. In 2014 Geoff took Intermediate (now First Mate) with Simeon Stairs, and Skipper Prep with Bob Lapin. Being a prudent seafarer, he repeated Skipper Prep two more times, once with Jim Monk and once with Monte Lewis. This important decision on his part is in keeping with Matt Stuczynski’s admonition that Skipper Prep instructors should advise some students to get more practice to prepare for a checkout before getting their skipper's ticket. In 2021 Geoff became a cruising skipper with yours truly.
