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The Crystal Lake Yacht Club is a summer sailing club of about 250 member families, located on the west shore of Crystal Lake in Benzie County, Michigan.
Our primary goals are to sponsor competitive sailing among
members of all ages, and to encourage safe and fun boating on Crystal Lake.
Our Junior Fleet is the nucleus of our club's activities, and it provides education,
competition, and camaraderie for youngsters through the age of 16. We
typically hold sailboat races five or six days per week, starting in the middle of June
and ending in the middle of August -- between school's out and school's in. Since the CLYC is located in "Scow
Country," our primary fleets consist of E-Scows, MC-Scows, and Butterflies.
As a summer sailing club, open for about 9 weeks starting in
mid-June, we are very much a volunteer operation. Our Junior Fleet program
is run by parents, who turn out en mass to cheer on the competitors, and to
ensure their safety. We plan three pot-luck dinners per summer, organized
by hardworking members who plan and decorate the affairs -- and the food is
absolutely fabulous! When the dock needs repair, or something else needs
fixing, usually one of our members solves the problem.
We also have a small staff of young adults who serve as sailing
masters, as sailing, swimming, and tennis instructors, and as the house
master. These are wonderful jobs for members' kids who have outgrown the
Junior Fleet, but want summer work.
About Our Location
We are blessed to be located on one of the finest recreational lakes
in the world. Crystal Lake is quite unique in that its watershed is
smaller than the water area of the lake. Combined with sandy shores and a bottom
deeper than Lake Erie, this unusual situation results in water that is crystal clear,
with the bottom visible to a depth of
20-30 feet. Our sailors can refresh themselves by scooping up water right
out of the lake! By August the water temperature is in the mid-70s, but by
February cars can drive across the frozen lake. There's trout fishing in
the summer, and ice fishing in the winter.
Located just inland of Point Betsie, the west end of Crystal
Lake is surrounded on three sides by Lake Michigan, so north and south winds
blow unimpeded across the water, usually without kicking up much wave action. The lake is roughly a rectangle
of about nine by three miles, and there is plenty of room to set optimal racing
courses. Crystal Lake is a perfect setting for sailing the fast, exciting
inland lake scows! And, it's a water-skiing, wake-boarding paradise!
Thanks to the foresight of our grandparents, the CLYC enjoys
superb facilities. Our pristine sandy beach and deep blue swimming hole are flanked
by a pair of docks for boats of all sizes. A floating trampoline is in use
by "kids" of all ages from dawn until dusk (and sometimes by
moonlight). Our clubhouse, designed by a well known architect, Alexander McColl, can host 250
dinner guests in a traditional, white cedar-paneled setting. And, our
tennis and volleyball courts are great for land-based competition.
Nearby are some of the finest summer activities in
America. We share our facilities with the Crystal Downs Country Club, a
world famous golf course designed by Alister MacKenzie that has been ranked among the
top twenty courses worldwide. The Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes National Park
about five miles north includes beautiful clear-water river cruising and hiking on the
tallest sand dune in the world. Lake Michigan provides salmon fishing and miles of
pristine, sandy beaches. Northern Michigan in July and August offers
beautiful weather, gorgeous lakes and forests, and pleasant shops and
restaurants.
Not surprisingly, CLYC members sustain themselves through the
winter by anticipating summers at Crystal Lake, as beautifully described in the
following poem:
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Oh what is so sad as a day in September!
With the skies weeping tears on the campfire's last ember.
The Yacht Club is closed -- the pier piled on the beach,
All equipment -- stowed out of reach.
The "C" boats are gone -- and the Wood-Pussies, too
And all that is left is our Crystal Lake view.
No races -- no guns -- no bright flying flags!
No watches -- no warm-up -- no last minute flags!
No cheers from the crowds as the sailors come in
No hot cup of "jo" to warm up within!
The fast boats that followed the Wood-Pussies 'round
Are safe in their cradles -- high up from the ground.
The wee little dinghy that took us ashore
Now saucily sits by our back kitchen door!
The lads and the lassies that sailed the blue seas --
Are now struggling for grades that they hope will be "B's."
Oh what is so sad as a day in September!
The Yacht Club is closed -- but we love to remember
The wonderful times -- and the fun that was had
By all of the sailors -- plus Mother and Dad!
Charlotte & Grant Brown, 1947 |
As stated in our By-Laws
adopted in 1947: “(Our) object
shall be to encourage an interest in all forms of yachting, to sponsor racing
contests in the various classes of craft on Crystal Lake, Michigan; to encourage
good fellowship and sportsmanship among (our) members; and to assist in the
development and enforcement of pilot rules and such other rules as may increase
the safety and welfare of (our) members at Crystal Lake, Michigan.”
Mission Statement
Simply put, the CLYC is a
summer sailing club. Our
members do not own “yachts,” nor do our members expect the ancillary
services and facilities typical of many ocean-based “yacht clubs.”
Our central goal is to sponsor sailboat races for the enjoyment of our
members and the education of our children.
Because we wish to include members of all ages and careers, we aim to
achieve this goal at a very modest cost.
In many respects, the CLYC is a
“family affair” of Crystal Lake residents.
Most of our members have or will have children, and we are anxious that
the Club will stimulate in our kids the same camaraderie and love of sailing
that we have enjoyed. Thus, we
strive to excite and entertain our kids, and to leave them a healthy, vibrant
Club – one they will be proud to join and carry on.
As in any family, we expect our
members to pitch in and help make the Club work. Because we are a low cost, summertime operation, we cannot
afford a full time staff of employees to operate our Club, nor can we maintain
fancy facilities. Working together,
we aim to have a Club that meets our expectations for sailing, that excites and
educates our kids, and that we can be proud of.
Sailing: Our Raison d’Etre
As a sailing club, our summers
revolve around our racing fleets:
- Weekend fleets: Weekends are our busiest sailing times, because many of
our working members can only compete on weekends. Our open fleets (currently E-Scows and MC-Scows) invite
members of all ages, and we welcome participation by visiting sailors from
other clubs.
- Junior fleet:
For our children through their sixteenth year, we sponsor racing
during the week, currently in Butterflies. Education is a central aim of our Junior Fleet program,
so we offer both sailing clinics and lots of parental guidance.
- Special fleets: We welcome the formation of special fleets that sponsor
competition outside of our weekend and junior programs.
Examples of such fleets have included the Ladies Butterfly Fleet, the
Over-Sixteen Wood-Pussy Fleet, and the Welcome MC Fleet.
In effect, we encourage competitive sailing for whatever excuse the
participants care to invent.
In addition to our
regularly scheduled races, from time to time we host regattas that bring sailors
from other clubs to Crystal Lake. These
regattas, which depend upon volunteer help from our members, represent “Super Bowl” events for our sailors – with opportunities to meet and
observe top tier competitors in our various fleets, to learn about new sailing
technologies, and to repay the hospitality of other clubs who invite us to their
regattas.
Regattas also give us a chance
to show off our Lake and our Club to visitors who can really appreciate the joy
of sailing on Crystal Lake. And, as
in any household, having visitors from time to time provides great stimulus to
“cleaning up the parlor.”
At the CLYC, sailboat racing is
in the front seat, and everything else is in the back seat.
Activities That Support
Sailing
While sailboat racing is the
central focus of our club, we are fortunate to be able to provide other
organized forms of enjoyment to our members:
- Junior outings: During mid-weeks, we sponsor Junior Fleet outings to
places like the Platte River, South Manitou Island, miniature golf courses, or the
Lake Michigan beach. These
parent-supervised events are designed to be fun for our kids and to increase
their enthusiasm for our Junior Fleet.
- Education:
We aim to offer lessons in sailing as well as in swimming and tennis
(depending upon the availability of teachers).
We invite the Benzie County Sheriff to use our facility for boating
certification courses. We view our Club to be the principle institutional source of boating
expertise on the west end of Crystal Lake.
- Pot-luck dinners: Three Saturday evenings per summer we hold pot-luck
dinners for member families to congregate and socialize. Over the years we have found that it works best for us
to provide a main-course for usually about $10 per head, and to have
members bring their favorite casseroles, salads, or deserts.
- Light lunches: When our fleets are racing, we offer modest,
sandwich-style lunches. We
cater to the demands of hungry sailors and kids, with no pretense of
competing with local restaurants or Mom’s refrigerator.
We strive to make these
non-racing activities as enjoyable as possible, with the goal of enhancing our
sailing programs. They are,
nevertheless, the “tail of the dog” relative to sailing.
Facilities
Our management of facilities is
subject to two overriding considerations: we
are only open for about 60 days each year, and we wish to keep costs low so that
dues are not a barrier to resident sailors of all ages and careers.
Because of these constraints, we aim to have reasonably functional and
aesthetically pleasing, but relatively modest facilities.
In this regard, our spending
priorities are, in order: (1)
maintain our existing facilities in a condition that fully supports our summer
activities, ensures the safety of our members and visitors, and instills a sense
of pride in our membership; (2) add
new, enhanced, or expanded facilities as our cash flow permits and our members
wish.
Our facility assets include:
- Land: All
residents of Crystal Lake share a common goal:
to preserve the unique clarity and cleanliness of our water.
Consequently, we aim to manage our property in a lake-friendly way,
which means no fertilizers or other toxic chemicals (except for poison ivy
killer!). Our goal is to have
the Club grounds appear neat and well cared-for, but relatively natural.
- Clubhouse:
Built in 1942 and expanded in the mid-70s, our clubhouse is typical
of Northern Michigan summer structures, with a simple white clapboard
exterior and a white cedar paneled interior.
We maintain it in a fashion that shows well to visitors and will
ensure that our grandchildren can enjoy the same clubhouse we played in
during our own childhoods. We
are not interested in improvements or expansions which do not increase its
functionality as a headquarters for summer sailing.
Because our facilities spend about ten months out of each year closed
down, we need to be very practical about the level of sophistication we
build into our equipment inventory. And,
we are always sensitive to controlling the cost of our facilities
- Docks and hoists: Because we are a water-oriented club, our facilities
which reach out into the Lake are central to our activities.
Thus, we prioritize our spending so that these assets are in good
repair and capable of serving our needs.
- Boats: Although
we no longer maintain a small fleet of sailboats as during our Club’s
early years, we must maintain motorboats equipped for running our sailboat
races. These boats are
relatively modest craft, but completely equipped for ensuring the safety of
our sailors and the quality of our races. We do not compromise on the functionality and
maintenance of our racing equipment.
- Beach and swimming hole:
Many of our members – in particular the smallest children –
derive great pleasure from our pristine beach and swimming hole.
Thus, we aim to ensure that our beach front remains a delightful
place for adult-supervised play.
- Tennis courts: Because many of our members enjoy tennis, we maintain a
pair of tennis courts in ship-shape fashion for members who pay an annual
fee. We also have an older court for all members (and especially young
kids) to use free of charge..
- Parking: For
most of our racing sailors, our Club grounds are a convenient and collegial
place from which to dry-sail their boats.
Actively raced Butterflies are parked on our beach.
As space permits, we also provide parking for non-racing sailboats,
motorboats, and empty trailers.
When our Board of Directors is
convinced that our membership wishes to go beyond routine maintenance of our
facilities, we then carefully undertake enhancements in a fashion that will
preserve the modest funding requirements of our club.
Neighboring Clubs
Many of our members are also
members of two other organizations located at the west end of Crystal Lake.
As a result, we strive to maintain cordial and productive relationships
with these organizations, and whenever possible to schedule our sailing programs
at times that do not interfere with their special events:
- Crystal Downs Country Club:
We have a special relationship with the Downs that originated with
the early benefactors of both clubs, and we share with them ownership of the
land on which our facilities are built.
As a result, members of the Downs are always welcome to use our
beachfront, boat launching and parking areas, and clubhouse facilities.
- Congregational Summer Assembly:
Over a quarter of our members are also Assembly members.
We appreciate the wonderful programs for children sponsored by the
Assembly, such as the annual Operetta, so we make special efforts to ensure
our kids can participate without compromising their race standings.
Things We Eschew
Over the years we have found
the following to be incompatible with our style of operation and social
character:
- Adult beverages: We discourage alcoholic consumption on Club property,
other than those refreshments brought by members in a discrete fashion and
in small amounts to specifically designated occasions.
- Fancy facilities: Our objective of keeping membership costs easily within
the budgets of all sailors at Crystal Lake, coupled with the fact that we
are shut down during about ten months of severe Northern Michigan weather,
rule out fancy facilities. Our
toilets are clean, but rustic; our
kitchen functional, but Spartan; our
furnishings comfortable, but rugged.
- Dining room service: As a summer club, we provide simple lunch food to supply
calories for our sailors, and we sponsor pot-luck dinners primarily as an
excuse to socialize. Our
members look elsewhere for restaurant-style meals.
- Day care services: We do not operate as a drop-off center for kids.
Although parents are not expected to be present at all times, we
expect them to take turns supervising our Junior Fleet activities.
We do not provide life guard coverage of our beach.
- Destination resort services:
Our clubhouse is open most of the time, and our beach, docks, and
tennis courts are open throughout the summer.
While we have a staff of teen-agers who perform light janitorial
services, we expect the members who use our facilities to pick up after
themselves and to help out around the place.
Nobody gets waited on.
Overall, these exclusions
reflect a family-oriented Club, operated largely through the efforts of our
membership, for the sake of sailing.
Membership Policy
As the population around
Crystal Lake grows, we believe that our process for admitting new members will
have to become more selective – just as have those of our neighboring clubs.
This selectivity arises not from a wish to exclude anyone, but simply
from the physical constraints imposed by our facilities.
Following are our primary
criteria for encouraging membership:
- Children of members: As a family affair, all of our members look forward to
the days when their kids will assume leadership roles in our Club.
- Dedication to sailing:
Ideally, new members have or are buying sailboats with the intention
of racing them. Also, our fleets are always looking for willing crew
members, so we welcome families who wish to participate in our racing
without launching their own sailboats.
- Residence on Crystal Lake:
Because we are a modest Club focused on sailboat racing, it seems to
us that the ideal new members are drawn from the immediate neighborhood.
Otherwise, it is unlikely that they can truly contribute to our
programs.
- Willingness to volunteer:
We clearly favor families who want to get involved, who think
pot-luck dinners are fun, and who understand that their dues are
insufficient to run the Club in the manner we all wish.
- Strong moral character:
As a family oriented club, we aim to provide role models for our
kids. Here in Northern
Michigan, we don’t really lock up at night, so trust is important.
Of course, many of our older,
long-standing members can no longer be active in our fleets.
Our hope is that they will continue as members in order to support
sailing at Crystal Lake and to come to our family affairs.
And, we hope they will encourage their children to be active participants
in our racing programs.
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