wawasee yacht club junior sailing

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Sailing program begins at Wawasee Yacht Club

Andrew Wallach, standing, junior sailing lead instructor, explains knot tying to the sailors. Photo by Mary Hursh.

By Mary Hursh Guest Columnist

LAKE WAWASEE — At the end of the first day of the five-week junior sailing program at the Wawasee Yacht Club, young sailors made their way into the clubhouse toward the long tables arranged in a horseshoe shape to discuss the day’s sailing on Lake Wawasee.

The 20 plus students, clad in bathing suits, life jackets and a variety of hats and Crocs shoes (with charms) took their places in front of two pieces of line (rope) which they would later use to practice making a figure eight knot. Lead instructor Andrew Wallach and his five junior assistant instructors reviewed the day’s positives and the days “work-on-for-next-time” aspects of sailing. Wallach pointed to a pram set up on the porch to explain various concepts of sailing . He stressed that if a sailor felt he or she was struggling with any part of sailing to call out for an instructor. “That is what we are here for. We want each of you to be safe,” said Wallach.

Basic sailing is offered for all sailors ages 8-13. Sailors are grouped according to size, experience and ability. The focus is on basics of sailing such as boat handling and wind awareness. Optimist, O’Pen Bics and Sunfish boats are used. The advanced program is recommended for experienced sailors ages 13-15. The focus is on practicing advanced boat handling techniques, racing skills and teamwork aboard multi-crew boats. Sailors are encouraged to crew aboard Lightnings or E Scows and/or to race Sunfish during club racing weekends.

“The key takeaway for beginners is to keep their boats up, manage main sheet and tiller control and sail perpendicular to the wind. The takeaway for the advanced kids is to tack to the upwind mark and sail back to me,” said Wallach.

The junior instructors working at the club so far are Grant Garner, Rory Nelson, Graydon Holt, Jack Winter, Anna Winter, Audrey Wallach, Mia and Wynn Wellington.

Friendship plays a big part in the experience of sailing. “The kids love to see their friends from the year before. Our sailors come from all over the country,” said Wallach.

The first week of junior sailing at the Wawasee Yacht Club brought many friends together. Photo by Andrew Wallach.

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Where kids, adults can go in Michiana to learn how to sail

Satisfy your dreams with classes across michiana.

“Teach your kids to sail. They’ll never have time or money for drugs.”

Have you seen that meme drifting around Facebook?

Learn-to-sail classes for youths and adults start up across Michiana this month. Goshen parks will even let kids dabble for free on a small boat this Saturday. The I Try Sailing Clinic at Fidler Pond, a round, clear lake over a former quarry, aims to whet youths’ appetite for the one-week sailing camp that will begin a week later.

“Kids appreciate the feeling of independence and sailing on their own,” says Jeff Schmahl, who coordinates the youth sailing instructors at the Wawasee Yacht Club. “It’s like our first time riding a bike around the block.”

For the third year, experienced kids from the Lake Wawasee club’s junior sailing program will teach the clinic and camp with help from one or two adult members, Schmahl says. The young instructors, ages 15 to 18, typically have about five years of experience in the club’s junior program — so they’ve mastered the basics.

One of the first lessons, practiced in the shallows, will be how to right the boat after it’s tipped over. Once they’re out in the wind, that inspires a lot of kids to beg, “Can we tip over?”

Kids quickly gain skills and confidence in a sport with many parts and procedures — from nautical terms to knots and reading the wind — and they pick up new buddies, Schmahl says.

At the South Haven Yacht Club, junior sailing director Jim Spiegel says, instructors will take 8- to 10-year-old kids onto Lake Michigan, where the kids will say, “Where’s Chicago? I want to go there.”

Of course, several local yacht clubs also teach adults, and some offer instruction and sailing just for women. None of this means that you or your child will be indentured to a boat loan. That’s right, you don’t always have to own a boat. A lot of clubs have members who need an extra hand on their sailboats to serve as “crew.” Check out the club websites we have listed here, call or visit to see if someone needs help. Once you’re really proficient, you might even hook onto crew opportunities with big rigs and multi-day tours.

The Wawasee club in Syracuse, which is about a 20-minute drive from Goshen, will use a trailer to bring the 25 small, beginner boats that it uses for youths on Lake Wawasee: starting with the Optimist Pram, then the Bic and the Sunfish. But Schmahl says the parents often bring a dream that they now pass to their children: “I always wanted to learn to sail.”

Outdoor Adventures author Joseph Dits is at www.southbendtribune.com/outdooradventures, 574-235-6158, @SBToutdoors, [email protected] and www.facebook.com/sbtoutdooradventures.

Goshen lessons

• I Try Sailing Clinic: Kids ages 8 to 15 (who can swim) can try sailing for free from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at Fidler Pond Park, 1424 Lincolnway E., Goshen. All equipment and materials will be provided. Call 574-534-2901 by Friday if you’re going to attend.

• Sailing Camp: Daily from June 19 to 23 at Fidler Pond Park. From 9 a.m. to noon for ages 13-15 and from 1 to 4 p.m. for ages 8-12. Cost is $110. Register by June 14 at 574-534-2901. Kids must be able to swim.

Learn with yacht clubs

• sailmichigan.org: Lots of sailing resources and clubs across Michigan.

• South Bend Sail and Power Squadron: Boat safety information and courses each spring. sbsps.org, 574-367-8572.

• Free Sailing 101 seminar: Wolf’s Marine and Freedom Boat Club will host a free seminar Thursday, June 8 that will offer a preview about sailing, looking a sailboat and how it works. It will be from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at Wolf’s Marine, 250 Main St., Benton Harbor. RSVP at 855-426-2863, ext. 2.

• Wawasee Yacht Club, 6338 E. Trusdell Ave., Syracuse, Ind.: wawaseeyachtclub.com, 574-457-2321. Youth classes.

• Maxinkuckee Yacht Club, on Lake Maxinkuckee, Culver. www.myc-culver.org/junior, 616-304-8312. Youth classes. Ladies sailing at 9 a.m. Sundays includes instruction; need to be a member ($75).

• Eagle Lake Sailing Club, 24046 S. Shore Drive, Edwardsburg, eaglelakesailingclub.org. Youth classes.

• St. Joseph Junior Foundation, 7 Lighthouse Lane, St. Joseph. sjjf.org, 269-983-5441. Sailing school for youths and adults. New this year is an adult women class.

• Diamond Lake Yacht Club, 21324 Shore Acres Road, Cassopolis. www.dlycmi.net, 312-286-9114. Youth classes. Adult classes are in the works (check website later this summer).

• Paw Paw Lake Yacht Club, 5097 Shoreview Drive, Coloma. pplyc.org, 269-468-6300. Youth and adult classes.

• South Haven Yacht Club, 401 Williams St., South Haven. southhavenyachtclub.com, 847-848-4988. Youth classes.

SUMMER PLANS

• Robinson Woods hike: Harbor Country Hikers takes its next educational hike at noon Saturday on the 1.25-mile trail through the Robinson Woods Preserve, on East Road, just east of Red Arrow Highway in Lakeside. The hike is open to all, though membership is required ($20 per person, $30 per family). Contact [email protected] for details.

• Pumpkinvine work day: Weed and mulch along the Pumpkinvine Nature Trail from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday. Snacks provided. Meet at trail intersection with County Road 43, east of Middlebury and north of County Road 16, but first register by Thursday at 574-535-6458.

• ‘JeopBirdy’: You don’t have to be a bird nerd to try your knowledge in this free version of the TV game show at 6:30 p.m. Saturday in the one-room schoolhouse at Bonneyville County Park, 53373 County Road 131, Bristol.

• Hike Mount Baldy: Join an Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore ranger at 10 a.m. CDT Sunday and June 18 and 25 for hikes up this dune that’s still closed to general access. Meet at visitor center, 1215 N. Indiana 49, Porter, Ind., one mile north of Interstate 94.

• Dunes Learning Center: Families can hike with a naturalist, identify birds and trees, go for scavenger hunts, try a kayak and do nature crafts in a free open house from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday at the Dunes Learning Center, 700 Howe Road in Porter, Ind., between U.S. 12 and 20. If you can, bring a reusable water bottle to fill on site. Donations of gently used rain gear will be collected for youth programs. Registration is required at DunesLearningCenter.org or 219-395-9555.

• Nature Play Days: Kids will create nature art, explore music and movement, go on scavenger hunts, build forts and other activities, all relying on sticks, stones, soil and such. Nature blogger Carla Gull (insideoutsidemichiana.com) is working on this with the parks as a way to beat nature deficit disorder. Drop in for free from 6 to 8 p.m. Monday at Allan Kauffman Park, 212 Prospect Ave., Goshen; from 1 to 3 p.m. Tuesday at Wellfield Botanic Gardens, 1011 N. Main St., Elkhart; from 1 to 3 p.m. June 14 at Elkhart Environmental Center, 1717 E Lusher Ave., Elkhart; and from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. June 16 at Riverbend Park, 511 E. Warren St., Middlebury.

• Muddy fun: Make mud pies and mud paintings and go for a swamp stomp (wear old clothes and lace-up shoes) from 6 to 8 p.m. June 14 at St. Patrick’s County Park, South Bend. Bring towel.

• Father’s Day ‘float’: Paddle four miles with Dad June 18 on the St. Joseph River, then have ice cream at St. Patrick’s County Park in South Bend. All equipment and basic instruction will be provided. Register by June 14 at 574-654-3155.

• Junior Indiana Master Naturalist: Day camp from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. June 19-21 will teach youths ages 9 to 12 about wetlands, fishing, forestry, wild edibles, geology and other topics through hikes, games and fun activities in Elkhart County. It will meet at DeFries Gardens near New Paris, at Dersken Wetlands Area in Nappanee and at Fidler Pond Park in Goshen. Once done, another six hours of volunteer service will gain a certificate and pin. Cost is $60. Register by Monday at 574-535-6458.

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WELCOME TO THE WAWASEE YACHT CLUB

The Wawasee Yacht Club (est. 1935) is located in Northern Indiana on the state's largest natural lake. Lake Wawasee boasts a surface area of over 3,000 acres and some of the best inland lake sailing in the region. During the season WYC is home to four competitive one-design fleets, a successful junior sailing program, and also hosts a number of premier regattas. Our mission is to foster, promote and encourage the sport of sailboat racing, and to promote the science of seamanship. If you are interested in joining the club we have a variety of membership options.

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6338 E. Trusdell Ave

Syracuse, IN 46567

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 Print This Page
 Text Size
 Scroll To Top

Join The Club!
Classifieds
Photo Albums
Junior Sailing Program
Hoosier Regatta
E-Scow Regatta
I-Scow Nationals
Sunfish Midwest Regionals
WYC Race Schedule
E-Scow Fleet
Lightning Fleet
Sunfish Fleet
Crew / Learn to Sail
Sailing Instructions
Scoring Info
Event Calendar

June 8 - 9, 2024 Wawasee Yacht Club Syracuse, Indiana Notice of Race (PDF)