FROM THE EDITOR...
By Steve VanderVoort, Telltale Editor
Spring is definitely here! The weather’s warmer, classes are full and the first ones start May 15. Our boats will be in the water in the next week or so, and we’re on our way to another successful sailing season. Let’s make this one the safest ever!
Perhaps it’s time to step back for a minute to thank all our volunteers who make this possible, particularly those who spent countless hours in the boatyard earlier this year when the weather wasn’t nearly so nice. It takes a lot of work to get our fleet into shape for the season, and we couldn’t do it without you. You allow us to keep our costs down and to therefore make the joy of sailing affordable for a much wider Chicago community.
Our thanks also go out to the volunteers on our IT staff who continue to make it easier for the rest of us to sign up for the programs that we’re interested in. Automation saves us tons of work that would have to be done by hand, thereby taking up valuable human resources that are better employed elsewhere. We’re grateful for your dedication and hard work.
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RULES AND REGULATIONS CHANGE
By Gerry Stacy, Chair
During the offseason, the Board of Directors approved some changes to the Sail Chicago Rules and Regulations. Here's a summary of what's new:
- Sail Further South: The southern boundary for small keelboats has been extended to 67th Street. You can now sail as far south as Jackson Park! (Rule 4.8.3).
- New Members with Sailing Experience: Everyone who joins Sail Chicago must pass our Skipper Prep course to be certified as a skipper. However, the board, at its discretion, may decide to waive other new skipper requirements for members who come to Sail Chicago with significant past sailing experience and skill. This allows highly skilled sailors to move more quickly into program sailing positions (e.g., instructors, tiller time skippers) where their experience is needed (Rules 4.13.3 and 4.14.3).
And with the start of the sailing season here, it's certainly a good time to reacquaint yourself with all the Rules and Regulations. Take some time to read through them again!
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NEW PRE AND POST-SAIL CHECKLISTS
When you set sail this summer in our small keelboats, you'll find new pre- and post-sail checklists to complete. These new checklists connect directly to our reservations and boat maintenance system, and automatically notify the maintenance team when you report boat issues. As a bonus, completing a pre- and post-sail checklist each time you sail populates a Sailing Resume report that you can use to keep track of your time on the water!
Every Ideal, Rhodes, and Colgate has laminated sheets with QR codes that you can scan to connect to these forms. Or you can bookmark these links in your smartphone now:
We also have a new link that any non-member guests you bring aboard can use to complete the required waiver of liability.
Remember, having your non-member guests complete the liability waiver is a requirement and part of our Rules and Regulations (Rule 4.13).
Here are some other things to keep in mind when using the pre- and post-sail checklist system:
- You must have a reservation in the system in order to complete a pre-sail checklist. Pre-sail checklists are tied directly to reservations. You should not be sailing one of our boats without a reservation, ever. This is a serious violation of the rules.
- Pre-sail checklists must be completed while still at the mooring, before you set sail. You'll only find your reservation in the pre-sail checklist on the day of your sail.
- You have to complete a pre-sail checklist in order to complete a post-sail checklist. You begin the post-sail checklist by selecting your corresponding pre-sail checklist. This connects the two records together.
Have a wonderful summer out on the water!
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NEWS FROM THE SOCIAL COMMITTEE
By Deb Griffin, Social Coordinator
Season Kickoff - The 2023 Sailing Season Kickoff event is fast approaching! It will be held at the Chicago Yacht Club Rail Deck on May 20th, from 3:00 to 5:00. Please register here by May 9th so we can plan for the food and drinks. CYC needs the order by May 10th.
Future Events - Mark your calendar!
- 2023 Family & Friends Picnic - Belmont Harbor August 12, 2023 10:00am-5:00pm
- 2023 End of Season Dinner - October 12, 2023 Columbia Yacht Club 6:30pm-9:30pm
- Happy Hours - The June Happy Hour will be held on Thursday, June 15th at Slightly Toasted, 22 N. Clinton, from 5:30 to 7:30 PM. The sign-up for this event will be sent in the June newsletter. July and September Happy Hours are also being planned with dates and locations to be announced later.
Maritime Museum Visit - Sail Chicago's event at the Maritime Museum was featured in their newsletter. Take a look!
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 DEI SAILS - VOLUNTEER SKIPPERS NEEDED
By Rebecca Sheehy
The DEI Committee is excited to be bringing back DEI Sails for the 2023 season -- but we need your help to make them happen! These sails are similar to the traditional Member Cruise Outing, but are focused on specific groups that are under-represented in Sail Chicago (and in sailing generally). Last year we started with Women's and BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, & People of Color) Cruises, and this year we'll be adding LGBTQ+ (Lesbian, Gay, Transgender, Queer) Cruises! The cruises provide opportunities for our minority members to meet, connect, and sail with each other in a safe and supportive environment. But we need volunteers to make these cruises happen! If you identify as a woman, BIPOC, or LGBTQ+, have been a Skipper for at least a year, and are interested in hosting DEI Sails, please reach out to Rebecca Sheehy at rebeccjsheehy@gmail.com. Hosting DEI Sails counts toward volunteer hours just like hosting MCOs.
The cruises will be available on the normal reservation page. Please make sure to only sign up for cruises if you identify as a member of the target audience.
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 SAIL CHICAGO TO NET LAKE LITTER
By Tom Simms
What could possibly make Lake Michigan even more beautiful? How ‘bout removing litter! Sail Chicago is implementing a pilot program to equip each Colgate with a net to remove lake litter. In addition to cleaning up the lake, netting litter can be good practice for “making an approach to a mooring.“ A successful pilot program will expand our efforts to include nets for our Ideals and Rhodes.
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BOOKKEEPER NEEDED
Do you have finance/accounting experience? We need your help!
Jay Owens, our long-serving bookkeeper, is moving to Colorado this month! We wish Jay smooth sailing and all the best in his new home and give him a huge THANK YOU for his many years of service. However, this means that we need someone to pick up this important work.
If you have experience working in accounting or bookkeeping, please reach out to the volunteer team (volunteer@sailchicago.org) to explore helping out in this position.
Worried that this might be too much work? While our organization is bustling with activity, our financial life is considerably more sedate. You probably have more transactions in your checking account in a month than we do in six. Please consider helping out!
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 SAFETY AT SEA REQUIREMENT
Sail Chicago has a new requirement for all Program Skippers aimed at bolstering our collective preparedness and promoting safety. Effective May 1, 2023, all Program Skippers are required to have passed US Sailing's Safety at Sea: Coastal online course in order to continue in these roles. This requirement applies to all Instructors, Tiller Time Skippers, Member Cruise Outing Skippers, and Community Cruise Outing Skippers. The course costs $50 ($45 if you're a US Sailing member), and Sail Chicago will reimburse you this cost once you provide proof of having passed the course. If you haven’t already completed the course and would like to remain a Program Skipper, please do so now.
You can upload your course completion certificate and apply for your reimbursement here.
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 SPOTLIGHT ON VOLUNTEERS - KENN SINKO
By Pat Webster
There are so many ways that Sail Chicago members can support the organization, and Kenn Sinko has been one of our stand-out maintenance volunteers. He has been very involved with getting our 18 ft Ideals seaworthy each season for the last 9 years and maintaining Solstice throughout the season, as the Boat Manager. Sometimes Kenn feels the Ideals are “the orphans” of the fleet, since they are so different from the rest of the Sail Chicago boats. They are light, they sail in next to no air, they can be single handed (with prior training), and they are an easy sail off and on the mooring since they’re so close to the harbor mouth. However, they are relatively small boats, with no motors or lights, a downside for some. Skippers who sail the boats love them, and Kenn would encourage others to get out on the Ideals and give them a try. He is also encouraging others to get involved with the maintenance of both the Ideals and our other smaller keel boats, the Rhodes. Right now he would be happy to hand off the Solstice Boat Manager role to someone who is looking for that kind of position as he is turning more of his attention to maintaining Priorities, our 34 ft Hunter. (Contact him if you’re interested.) He enjoys both working on Priorities and sailing her, and has been part of that maintenance crew for the last 11 years. He was also involved with Emotional Rescue, the cruiser preceding Priorities. His hope is that our cruising program will expand, perhaps by purchasing another cruiser and doing more organized port-to-port cruises.
Kenn grew up near the Great Lakes in a suburb of Cleveland. Since then he has always lived in close proximity to the Great Lakes. His sailing career with Sail Chicago began in 2007 when his wife bought him a membership and a series of classes on the Rhodes, our teaching boat at the time. He appreciates the great instruction he received from former members Bob Lapin and (the late) John Lemon, learning how to maneuver in the harbor without a motor. In the more recent past he has taken the Navigation class preparing him for port-to-port sails. His hope is that our cruising program will expand, by doing more organized port-to-port cruises.
Kenn has been retired since 2017 from his career in automotive engineering, although he is still involved in the field. He possesses both a Masters and a PhD in mechanical engineering as well as an MBA. He and his wife live in Oak Park, where he plans to enjoy his new hobby of working on his recently purchased 64 Corvair Monza Convertible.
We wish him well and appreciate his service and continuing support of Sail Chicago.
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SAIL CHICAGO REMINDERS
Whom to Contact
Need information on an area in Sail Chicago, but don't know who to contact? Just click here.
Join or Renew Your US Sailing Membership at a Discount Through MVP
Sail Chicago members can join or renew their US Sailing membership at a $10 discount through the US Sailing Member Value Partner program.
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Missing Previous Issues of The Telltale?
You can always find the current issue and an archive of previous issues of The Telltale at the first (and open to the public) page of the Sail Chicago website. Look under "News/Newsletter."
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IMPORTANT INFORMATION
Click on the links below to find more information about Sail Chicago.
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