Minutes of VSC Executive Committee - February 8, 1978
"Present: Altman, Rowe, Garcia, Walcoff, Eisinger, Goodrich, McDowell, Lawrance et al."Treasurer reported that he had found the list of those who had contributed in 1971 for the [Boat Fund] and the amounts contributed. There are insufficient funds in the Boat Fund to completely eradicate the donations. It was decided that he would pay off those contributors who are no longer members of the Club insofar as funds up to $450 would permit. This will be coordinated with Bill Rowe so that the contributors will be invited to rejoin at a reduced rate.
"A letter from Dale Hyerstay, Race Committee Chairman of LCYC, to Gib Smith, Race Chairman of MBBC, was discussed. It appears that LCYC and MBBC may attempt to unite insofar as their handicap system [is concerned] and that this system might well be PHRF. In this case there would be sufficient votes in LCRC to have LCRC race PHRF. It was the opinion of the Executive Committee that Valcour Sailing Club should continue to race MORC as originally planned but would have no objection to scoring LCRC races under PHRF.
"Howard Altman discussed the plans for the Wednesday night series ....... It was ... decided that sail changes down [presumably in size] could be made during the course of a Wednesday night race. However, once a sail change down had been made the yacht could not again move up to a larger foresail. Yachts with roller furling reefing may reef and unreef as well as yachts with headsail reefing may reef and unreef.
"The Mayor's Cup was discussed in some detail and July 8 was suggested as an appropriate date. This will be an invitational race. It was suggested that if LCRC goes PHRF that the cruising yachts be rated under PHRF for the race.
"While the cruising yachts are sailing, Ed Goodrich plans to run several races in the immediate area of Dock and Coal for planing hulls and trailables. Norm Lawrance reported that the Power Squadron plans a cruise on the night of the 8th [July] on the Juniper. It was felt that this could be co-ordinated into the festivities surrounding the Mayor's Cup.
"The possibility of leasing the old yacht club premises at Dock and Coal were further discussed. It was felt that $500 would be a maximum payment for the lease which would include use of the building and property. It would be anticipated that storage racks for Laser and board boats could be built by the club at that site.
"Ed Goodrich reported on his progress with small boat classes. Apparently, he has ten or more people interested. A questionnaire has been mailed out by Tom Harwood on this subject and the results will be tabulated shortly. A Saturday racing schedule for small boats is planned. It was felt that prior to publicity for this, the arrangements as far as Dock and Coal [is concerned], should be firmed up inasmuch as no other suitable site for small boat racing seems to be apparent. Respectfully submitted, David B. McDowell, Commodore
Minutes of VSC Executive Committee - March 14, 1979
"Information from LCRC Meeting: MBBC and LCYC have both voted to use PHRF for their clubs and presumably will want to use this for LCRC competition as well. A Lake Champlain PHRF will be organized with one handicapper from each club. This organization [PHRF Lake Champlain] will supply PHRF handicaps to the individual clubs and to LCRC. There is no individual charge for PHRF handicap but the clubs may contribute to the cost of PHRF. While VSC will run its races under MORC the figures for PHRF will be calculated as well to help Lake Champlain PHRF. (This is modified from the minutes on the basis of communications received from Mike Lynch of LCYC and Gib Smith of MBBC)."Norm Lawrance is still working on the Boat Fund problem. It is now being decided how to disperse the money. People with money in the Boat Fund will be given memberships if they so desire. All persons who do not wish membership will be given back the money vested in the Boat Fund.
"Bill Rowe and Dave McDowell will contact Dock & Coal Marina as to the availability of the old Yacht Club building for use as a clubhouse for VSC.
"The Mayor's Cup Race will be held July 8th. Officials of the Power Squadron, the U.S. Coast Guard, Plattsburgh Air Force Base, and owners of the Juniper have all been contacted and they have all agreed to co-operate fully. A meeting with Mayor Ianelli has been set up to further discuss and finalize plans for this event. More information will be included in the next newsletter.
"The small boat survey conducted by Tom Harwood disclosed that most of the response was for trailerable-cruiser type boats. It was felt that educational seminars should be set up to increase knowledge of sailboat racing and seamanship. Wayne Twining, Peter Hornby, and Hilton Dana were appointed educational committee.
"A public relations committee was also formed. This will consist of Joanne and Joe Garcia.
"A tentative long distance cruise is being formed by Norm Lawrance. All those wishing to participate or needing more information are asked to contact Norm. Respectfully submitted, Nancy Altman, Secretary
Minutes of VSC Executive Committee - April 4, 1978
"No more known about LCRC than was reported in the last minutes. We have received a Race Committee Manual, MORC Timetable, and MORC Measurer's manual all of which will be reviewed by the Race Committee."There is nothing new to report on the clubhouse at Dock & Coal Marina but it was decided that if we do get the clubhouse our dues might possibly have to be raised [RdF - from $30]. If this is the case, the boat fund group who elected to take membership in lieu of their money would be exempt from this except on a voluntary basis.
"Norm Lawrance will be meeting with Mayor Ianelli next week to discuss the Mayor's Cup Race.
"Reminder of the Spring Banquet to be held ... April 28th at the Wharf Skellar. Bill Rowe has contacted a representative from North Sails who is willing to come to our banquet and speak to us along with films. Joe Garcia will send out a press release to the Press Republican to hopefully encourage new members to come.
"The person who has the Commodore's Cup is asked to contact Dave McDowell. He would like it back! ... Respectively submitted, Nancy Altman, Secretary
Minutes of L. Champlain Racing Conference - May 11, 1978
"Meeting included race committee chairmen of the three clubs, delegates from the clubs to the LCRC, and members of the Board of Handicappers of PHRF Lake Champlain."Mike Lynch presented the case for PHRF Lake Champlain. This included a descriptive paper concerning PHRF, its handicapping procedures, equipment, and appeals. There was also a schedule of standard rating adjustments and a proposed set of by-laws.
"The initial action was to incorporate PHRF Lake Champlain into LCRC and to change the proposed by-laws to fit those of LCRC. This was approved unanimously. The group then went through the papers and made changes as noted below: [RdF - line by line changes made]
"The PHRF Lake Champlain Schedule of Standard Rating Adjustments was accepted in toto without changes. 'PHRF By-Laws' were accepted with" [several changes in what appear to be essentially administrative details].
"The LCRC Executive Committee then unanimously selected PHRF Lake Champlain as its handicapping body. The decision to continue with four classes was made, the recommendation as to cutoffs for the classes to come from the Board of Handicappers. It was also noted that there was precedence for a yacht to race in a higher class should she so desire.
"David McDowell was re-elected as commodore. The commodore was authorized to correct the LCRC pamphlet to reflect the changes above.
"Members present: Gorman, Garcia, Shearer, Parker, McGinty, Lynch, Marshall, Brown, Wolvington, Goodrich, McDowell.
Respectfully Submitted, David B. McDowell, Commordore LCRC"
Subsequent to that LCRC meeting, which included greater club representation than was normally the case for LCRC Committee meetings, Jim Connors, the Valcour Sailing Club's first PHRF rater, sent a letter to VSC members indicating that "the Lake Champlain Racing Conference has adopted the Performance Handicap Racing Fleet rating system for use this season. Because this system replaces the CCA measurement system, additional information is needed to re-rate all yachts."
Attached to the letter was a PHRF rating application that essentially included the same information currently being used with the exception of data for ketches and the skipper's estimate of boat speed under power in calm water (hull speed).
The reader needs to interpret these records relating to handicapping in the context of that year. During the spring of 1978, one must understand, there was no experience with the actual problems involved in making judgments about individual boat ratings. There was much less national data than was to be available just a few years latter. David McDowell recalls that the primary concern within the Valcour Sailing Club was that PHRF could favor those skippers who were less than skillful in terms of boat preparation, maintenance, and performance on the race course. Skippers who never placed in races could ostensibly apply for more favorable ratings citing their present rating as unfair (rather than strive towards sailing their boats to its rating through better boat preparation and crew skill).
There are two philosophical aspects of PHRF rating. On the one hand, the boat is to be handicapped "in accordance with the way it actually performs in races. If a .... boat never wins, the handicap is adjusted to a more favorable one; if a boat consistently wins, its handicap will be unfavorably adjusted until EQUITY is approached." On the other hand, "the aim of PHRF is to furnish each boat with a rating that FAIRLY represents the speed potential of the boat when well maintained, fully race equipped including new racing sails and sailed by a highly proficient crew to the full racing capability of the boat. PHRF is not intended to reflect skipper or crew ability and every effort is made to keep to this intent."
One can find skippers on both sides of the 'fence' on this matter depending upon how he/she views his/her position vis-a-vis the rest of the fleet.
In the middle of this judgment call is the PHRF handicapper who must at least appear to be a "mugwumper" with his "mug" on one side of the fence and his "wump" on the other. The Board of Handicappers must exercise experienced judgment regarding the PRIMARY reason a boat may be consistently winning or losing races. The handicapper must, on the one hand, be open to the possibility of an unfair rating for a well-sailed boat, and, on the other hand, guard against rating a poorly sailed boat more favorably. If this cannot be achieved, PHRF encourages mediocrity by striving for 'equity' in race results rather than reward for competitive skills.
Complicating this need for Solomonic judgment is the fact that handicappers are themselves skippers and members of the racing fleets, both within their respective clubs and the Lake Champlain Racing Conference. One experienced handicapper remarked (possibly questionning why he volunteered for this task) that he could not even go into the head at his yacht club to "take a piss" without some skipper following him in there with a complaint about an 'unfair' rating.
One way to avoid the task of making judgments of why a boat is winning or losing consistently is to merely average the national PHRF data, particularly for boats that are ubiquitous in the country's fleets. If this could be done for all boats in the local fleets the Board of Handicappers could be replaced by a computer fed by national data. One has to wonder what the meaning of this would be if all the clubs in the USYRU PHRF network were doing the same thing. There is no escaping the need for judgement in the use of the Performance Handicap Racing Fleet method of handicapping yachts. No system of handicapping, no matter what the sport, is free of human judgement and, it necessarily follows, of human error.
Executive and Race Committee Meeting - July 20, 1978
Members Present: Dave McDowell, Jim & Alice Connors, Joe Garcia, Bill Empsall, Norm Lawrance, Ed Goodrich, Dave Gorman, Howard & Nancy Altman"The first thing discussed was MORC ratings and handicaps. At the present time we are using the MORC print out for our information but since that print out there have been changes. Evaluation of the changes is underway and a new formula and calculations will be made as they apply to members of the club and this will go into effect as soon as possible. It is hoped that these new calculations will be ready for use starting with the third Sunday Series race. It was felt and put into a form of a motion that the Ensigns' rating of 14 feet will be changed to 17.5 feet when this new formula goes into effect. This motion was made by Bill Empsall and seconded by Joe Garcia; all were in favor.
"The motion was made by Jim Connors that the MORC rating be used in our Wednesday Night Series Races. This was seconded by Howard Altman and all were in favor. This will go into effect starting with the next Wednesday Night Series Race.
"We will keep the Working Sails Class for the Sunday Series Races. The Valcour Rule will be used with no penalty for jibs less than 125 percent. It was felt by the race committee that due to the proficiency acquired by Hilton Dana he will not be allowed to compete in the Working Sails Class next year. His boat is fully equipped to make this step into the racing class.
"For next year the Commodore's Cup and Cracked Pot races will be sailed under MORC. For sail inventory with no spinnakers there will be a 0.5 foot credit and for sail inventory with less than 150 percent genoa there will be a credit of 0.5 feet.
"Ken Wolvington from Vermont, who sailed in the Mayor's Cup Race, had some complaints about the class structure of the race which he presented in a letter to Mayor Ianelli. The Mayor in turn gave the letter to Dave McDowell who answered Ken's letter and the matter is now resolved.
"The date for the Second Annual Mayor's Cup Race will be Saturday, August 4, 1979, with a rain date of Sunday, August 5, 1979. All clubs in the area will be notified so that there will be no conflicting activities or races on that date providing they co-operate. [RdF - a letter from Mayor Ianelli's office, dated 15 June 79, set the date for the second race as Saturday, July 7, 1979. Since then, the Mayor's Cup Race has traditionally been held on the first Saturday following the Fourth of July week.]
"Norm Lawrance gave a financial report as to how we stand and how we made out with the Mayor's Cup Race. A full report can be obtained from Norm at your request. He also made recommendations for next year....
"The problem of a club house was brought up again. Norm spoke to Walt Cronin about this and he seems a little more willing to discuss the idea of the Sailing Club using the club house at Dock & Coal as a meeting place. It was suggested that we set up a proposal and and contract to present to Mr. Cronin. Norm Lawrance and Bill Empsall will take care of this. If this does come about our memberships for next year may be divided up so that we have a racing membership for those only interested in racing and a full membership which would include the use of the club house. A further decision will be made when we hear about the club house. Respectfully submitted, Nancy Altman, Secretary, VSC
Valcour Sailing Club Meeting - August 10,1978
Members Present: Dave McDowell, Norm Lawrance, Marguerite & Peter Eisinger, Tim Byrne, Judy & Tom Harwood, Dave Gorman, Joanne & Joe Garcia, Nancy & Howard Altman"The first issue on the agenda was a letter of resignation from Hilton Dana stating his views regarding a recent decision by the Race Committee and Executive Committee that he (Hilton) must move up to the Racing Class next year. Dave McDowell will send an answer to Hilton Dana and hopefully the problem can be corrected.
"In the form of an executive order by Dave McDowell, a motion was made that all decisions regarding the working and racing class next year will be held in abeyance until our annual banquet meeting at which time the Race Committee will present their recommendations and everyone can vote on them. [RdF - Throughout its twenty year history, the records of the Valcour Sailing Club reflect an egalitarian bent for including the preferences of all of its dues-paying members. As in all recreational organizations, the work of administration flows to those who will do it. My own three year experience in the Club has been that if one desires to get involved and make changes, all one has to do is volunteer for the background work that goes into any successfull organization.]
"We are still having problems getting all our trophies for the Mayor's Cup Race from [the business furnishing them]. .... Dave McDowell will get in touch with Ed Goodrich regarding a half page newspaper ad that we would like to have put in the Press Republican thanking all sponsors and participants in the Mayor's Cup Race.
"As regard to the proposed change in MORC ratings based on the new MORC rule, it was decided that we would write to see if there was a new up to date print out available. If none is available we will stay with our present ratings for all boats and change to the new rule next year. We will also request information about becoming a MORC station next year to see if this would be to our advantage.
"A letter to LCRC will be sent giving them our format for our Ile St. Michele Week-end. There will be trophies for the week-end. Saturday's race will be scored under PHRF (LCRC) and MORC because trophies will be based on combined results of Saturday and Sunday. Respectfully submitted, Nancy Altman, Secretary
General Membership Meeting - October 19, 1978
Members Present: Dave McDowell, Harry Walcoff, Alice Connors, Bill Rowe, Norm Lawrance, Skip Berry, Joe & Joanna Garcia, Tim Byrne, Dave Gorman, Peter Eisinger, Judy Belcher, Howard & Nancy Altman"The first item on the agenda was the treasurer's report... Bill Rowe made a motion that we raise our membership dues to $35 next year because of inflation and the rising cost of postage, etc. ... {passed}
"Next was the Race Committee report given by Howard Altman explaining the revised final standings for our Sunday Series and Wednesday night series. The main difficulty which prompted these revisions was the fact that many members who were "Officer of the Day" were not really sure what information should be recorded and how. It was recommended that next year we have a basic policy for everyone to go by who does OD a race and that this policy or instructions plus extra scoring sheets be included in our club's annual booklet. Another problem brought up about Wednesday night races was that many boats are not in the water before June and, therefore, we should not start our Wednesday Night Series before then and because the days get shorter after Labor Day Weekend it was felt that there should be no more Wednesday Night Races after this time. If extra races were desired then maybe some could be run on a Saturday.
"MORC Station Information: After lengthy discussion as to pros and cons for MORC vs PHRF a decision was made on the basis of what would be best for our club. A motion was made by Dave Gorman that for next year we race under PHRF. The motion was passed with the majority present voting in favor of this motion. Respectfully submitted, Nancy Altman, Secretary