A Winter Treat!

Build Your Own TOBOGGAN!

Have you ever wanted to turn back the clock and live during a time when crude snow sledding apparatuses such as garbage can tops, cafeteria food trays and flying saucers were not used for riding down slippery slopes, hills and mountains? Transporting yourself to a time when toboggans reigned supreme? Ladies and gentlemen this time is at hand!

Wooden boards of chestnut oak and maple will scent the air and tingle your senses as you come alive building your own toboggan from scratch! Awaken to the texture of fine wood grains as they run through your hands and sounds reminiscent of Santa's workshop as you cut and mold wood pieces to fit your toboggan perfectly. Your curiosity heightened as you steam bend the very boards you will attach to your toboggan making it aerodynamic and strong! Simultaneously meeting people who share your tobogganing passion.

Join us at the Western Waterfront the weekend of December 18th and 19th to build your own toboggan, you can do it as an individual, with friends, or your family! The entire process will take approximately 5 hours from start to finish and we are providing everything you need. Four sessions are available, two each day. The first session begins each day at 9am lasting until 2pm and the second begins at 3pm lasting until 8pm. Each toboggan you build is $50 and please come prepared to bring it home that day. Call the WaterFront Center for more information and to reserve your spot at 516.922.7245. 

This could be you!

Christeen - A Small Miracle

Small miracles transpired the Wednesday before turkey day.  Repairs to the Christeen are beginning to pick up momentum with a very successful volunteers meeting and now we are beginning to take her apart. The engine and shaft were removed from the boat for access to the keel.  The engine was found to be in excellent shape only needing some minor repairs - great news! Bottom paint was completely stripped from the boat, THANK YOU volunteers for giving your time to make this happen so quickly!

Volunteers work to remove the bottom paint

But the wondrous happening on Wednesday was the removal of the first two planks from Christeen's frames. In hopes of trying to save time and money our shipwrights, Josh and Joe, endeavored to remove two major planks without cutting or breaking them.  Expected to be near impossible, and expecting to resort to the use of cutting implements, hopes were not high entering into the task. However, as the planks begin to be pried away from the boat it became more and more of a possibility. After a few hours of negotiating the planks off the frames, all that stood between a small miracle was a small knot at the end of the final plank about 25' long. After careful nudging and the construction of a wedge the shipwrights and volunteers were indeed successful in the removal of both planks from the starboard side and in theory making the removal of the rest of the planks on this side easier.  Cross your fingers! As we hope all planks needed to be removed from the boat are off by Friday!

High School Sailing - Fall Championship Regatta

November signals the end of the sailing season for most of us in the northeast, shorter and colder days make it hard for most to get out on the water - especially in a dinghy.  Our high school sailors lucked out on a weekend in November with temperatures touching 60 degrees with a moderate northeast breeze.  It was a great day for sailing. Competitors eagerly rigged their boats in the morning in preparation for the racing ahead - practicing their tacks and jibes as they headed out towards the racing area. Kids weren't the only ones having fun, parents were able to spectate on the water from our launch bringing them face to face with the action - a chance to see what High School Sailing is all about - fun!

Ben Israeli & Ryan Buccellato

Tom and Jerry - Harborfields High School

A few of the local schools were well represented including Harborfields, Oyster Bay and Cold Spring Harbor and Saint Anthony's.  Harborfields sailors Jerry Callan and Tom Pluchino grabbed top honors for the day with Ben Israeli and Ryan Buccellato coming in second place. After racing the competitors and parents stayed for dinner and awards. Stories were shared from the season as well as well as an award for most improved sailor during the fall season, awarded to Nick Manfredi.  After the awards ceremony a slide show was shown with the pictures of the days racing.

We look forward to seeing everyone back for the spring season!

Help Save Christeen!

Josh and Joe, Christeen's professional shipwrights have been busy this week in preparation for the deconstruction allowing them access to the nagging problem area, the keel.  The infrastructure designed to support her during the repairs is nearly complete and by the end of the week there should be splinters flying!

The exciting part of the project is on the Horizon, and with news today that the new mast is on its way over from the great state of Washington, the pace will quicken!

On Monday November 22nd beginning at 3pm we are calling all volunteers to an informational and signup meeting at Building J (where the Christeen is located) at the Western Waterfront.  Josh will go over details regarding the scope of the project and we will have sign ups for current and future projects.  WE NEED YOUR HELP!  The meeting will last a couple of hours, so if you cannot show up until 5, no worries, we will still be there!

Be sure to check the blog for updates and pictures as the renovation rolls on!

Winter Sailing

Looking to keep your sailing skills sharp this winter, but not sure where to turn?

Well there are certainly plenty of different fixes to take care of all your needs throughout Long Island. Frostbiting has been around for a long time, and started in the days of no goretex (gasp!) and during pre-neoprene era (the horror!). But today we have all the fancy keep you dry and warm materials you could want and more. If you are brave and maybe even a little crazy, get out on the water this winter at one of the locations below. Many offer demo boats to get your feet wet before you commit to buying one of your own if you don't already.

 Check out the information below and get plugged in!

Oakdale, NY
JY 15's - stored at the Snapper Inn Restaurant - daily results and awards in their bar after sailing. November – April, alternating weekends.
Demo boat available. snapperinnfrostbitefleet.com, Jim Ryan: 516-987-9099

Centerport, NY
JY15s November - March. New Year’s Regatta Rich Rubel: rubel.richard@gmail.com
 This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Oyster Bay, NY
Lasers and Dyer Dhows. Several Dyers are available for season charter. November - April. 1:30 pm start. Training seminars, team racing and match racing held on select Saturdays. Open to SCYC members and non-members. seawanhaka.org, seawanhaka.wintersailing@gmail.comThis e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Hempstead Harbor.
InterClubs, Lasers, and Ideal 18's. November-April. Open to MBYC members and Winter Frostbite members. Visiting sailors welcome.
For particulars visit Manhasset Bay's website at: www.manhassetbayyc.org or contact MBYC 516-767-2150

Sea Cliff Yacht Club, Sea Cliff, NY, Sunfish Fleet #517;
516- 671-7374, www.seacliffyc.org;
Doug Wefer: doug@wefer.netThis e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

If this doesn't get you excited......

Calling all Volunteers!

Christeen is in Building J and the shipwrights(Josh & Joe) are on location! Give us a call at 516.922.7245 and find out about when we need volunteers! It is a great opportunity to work along side some very talented shipwrights and also be a part of history as you help restore the oldest Oyster Sloop in North America. The original keel dating back to 1883 must be replaced - this is a very complex and time consuming job because of the way boat building was done at the turn of the 19th century. The frames are mortised into the keel making it extremely difficult to pull the keel out from the boat, some use of chainsaws and other cutting implements will be required - fun!  The mast will also need replacing, what better way to learn about how to they rigged a boat nearly 150 years ago then to get your hands dirty rigging one yourself!

Josh and Joe are more than willing to impart their knowledge to those who help out and hopefully you will come back for some family boat building in the near future. But for now we need to keep our eyes set on Christeen and getting her ready for the April 2011 re-launching!

Christeen safely in her temporary winter home