Dear Fellow CYC Member:
Please register for and attend the CYC Annual Membership Meeting on November 18, 2020. The meeting will be held using Zoom and instructions for participation will be provided after you register. [Read full letter from Commodore...]
Meeting Registration Closed Voting Closed
Electronic ballots must be completed by 7pm, Wednesday, November 18
Meet your Candidates
Candidate for Commodore, Shelagh Hansen. Shelagh Hansen has been sailing in Seattle for 15 years, starting by working the bow on her father’s boats, KatFink and Absolutely. She has also been fortunate enough to be involved in other programs including Neptune’s Car, Flash, Smoke, J/80s, J/24s, Moore 24s and others. Her true passion is racing and ensuring that the sport continues to grow in the Seattle area for all boats. Shelagh is excited to continue to support Seattle sailing and continue driving a plan for long term sustainability of the club.
Candidate for Vice Commodore, Charlie Macaulay. Charlie Macaulay has been a member of CYC since 1981, shortly after moving to the Seattle area. He caught the sailboat racing bug while at the University of Florida, sailing in the Gator Sail Club in intercollegiate regattas. He has raced on boats from Sunfish to 420s and FJs in college to Lightnings, Thunderbirds, J/24s, Farr 30s, and a variety of IOR and other keel boats. His current boat is the Farr 39ML, Absolutely. In addition to racing, Charlie is a US Sailing Judge and Judge Instructor and supports the sport on protest committees around the NW, including umpiring high school and college team racing. He is a past Regional Administrative Judge for US Sailing. He was also CYC Fleet Captain Race in 1989 before resigning after being sent into exile in Houston, TX for a job offer he couldn’t refuse. He’s ready to again spend more time directly supporting CYC. Outside of sailing, Charlie is an avid skier. He is the Chief Engineer for a global property loss control consulting company.
Candidate for Rear Commodore, Wanda Creitz. Wanda grew up in Olympia, Washington above Budd Inlet watching sailboats from afar. Fleets of boats on a spinnaker run could catch her attention. The first time she stepped onto a sailboat was in high school at Camp Malibu in BC. The current of Sechelt Inlet swept her away and she had to be towed back to the dock. The next time Wanda stepped onto a sailboat was in her 20’s when she moved to Seattle and in time found her way into keelboat racing. Wanda met her husband Nate racing on the J/29 Here and Now. They fell in love at Whidbey Island Race Week and in time purchased their Olson 25, 3 Ring Circus. With her family, Wanda lives aboard a 40-foot Cruise-A-Home in the Lake Washington Ship Canal. Her son Dieter (a CYC summer sailing camp alumni) is an active sailor and racer for some time now of many different crafts. Wanda enjoys spending time at their cabin in the Gorge, paddle boarding and has worked in the legal field for over 19 years. She joined CYC in 2011. Wanda previously served on the Board as Secretary 2013-2014 and as a Director 2015-2016. Wanda is looking forward to guiding the club.
Candidate for Treasurer, Remmert Wolters. Remmert was born in the Netherlands and moved to the US in 1973 to settle in the Seattle area in 1979. There was a boat in the family (a converted sailing flat bottom fisherman) and his first boat in Seattle was a San Juan 24. Joining CYC in 1981, he raced on the Lake until 1989 when he purchased a C&C 40. For the next 10 years, he crewed on various boats on the Sound and returned to the San Juan 24 fleet in 2001. Bandit had a trailer accident and it was replaced with a J/24 Seepaert fifteen years ago. Remmert has been on the Board a couple of times and was Treasurer 10-12 years ago as well as this year. This past year has been interesting and full of financial challenges. The Board all hunkered down and the membership stepped up big time and allowed the Board to make significant investments in the future of our yacht club. Remmert enjoys being surrounded by people who are so committed to the sailing community in Seattle.
Candidate for Secretary, Christa Bassett Ross. Christa has been sailing most of her life, initially day trips and cruises with family and then after college met some friends who introduced her to Duck Dodge, and from there started racing. After each new racing experience, she would hear about the next adventure coming up on the calendar. Christa learned that you could sail all year long, and every night of the week in the summer, and then started to learn about longer distance races; Swiftsure, Southern Straits and Van Isle 360, not only could you sail for multiple days but there was this extra adventure of going somewhere new. She has done a VicMaui and a couple Pacific Cups, and hopes to add R2AK to the list. She is currently one of the J/24 Fleet Captains and has volunteered with other fleets over the years. She’s raced on a large variety of boats over the years and has owned a couple sailboats during that time. Currently she’s pared her sailing down toTeam Sail Like a Girl and the J/24 Tundra Rose.
Candidate for Fleet Captain Race, Matthew Wood. Matthew is nominated for a fifth year in this position. Matthew and his wife Kim have been active members of CYC since his move to Seattle in 1999. He has been active in both organizing and participating in racing since the mid 70's in Canada and the US. After living on Lake Union and helping his wife Kim DuBois organize Duck Dodge for a dozen years, they moved to Ballard near Shilshole Marina. He has over 30 Southern Straits, Swiftsure's and Whidbey Island Race Weeks under his keel, as well as several national and world championship regattas. He has served as the CYC PHRF Handicapper since 2000 and is excited to continue growing and improving the CYC Racing experience, especially bringing new people into the sport!
Candidate for Fleet Captain Cruise, Chris McMuldroch. Chris has enjoyed the communications and interactions of Fleet Captain Cruise these two years: e-mailing welcomes to new members, setting up ZOOM and potluck socials, meeting in person, and participating in rendezvous. He would like to pass the position to another enthusiastic cruiser, with his support and that of our cruising advisors and enthusiastic cruisers. It is important to offer as many members as possible volunteer positions, so they can engage, contribute, and be stakeholders in the group. Unfortunately, none of the cruisers we asked will be available in 2021. 2021 will be challenging as we navigate the next phases, vaccinations, and hopefully the end of Covid-19, providing activities for members, monitoring the finances of the club, while being affordable to a wide range of boat owners, non-boat owners, and crew - continuing Brian Watkins’ new club business model. Chris is willing to continue as Fleet Captain Cruise, with the support of our cruising advisors and all the other cruisers. He has two goals for 2021. The first is to find a new Fleet Captain for 2022 - hopefully someone who has been a participant at normal in-person activities, but for sure someone with enthusiasm and engaging people skills! The second is to build our cruising families with kids onboard into a larger vibrant network of families who enjoy meeting on cruises - an experience he had growing up boating. He hopes fun club cruising experiences for kids might lead them to become lifelong sailors, and hopefully club members.
Director Nominees for 2021-2022
Mark Bradner, Director. Mark has been a member of CYC for more than 25 years. After several years of crewing on other boats and racing a Coronado 15, he acquired a San Juan 24, Return, which he has been sailing and racing out of Leschi since 1998. Mark served as the Secretary of CYC for four years in the ‘00s and has done several stints as Fleet Captain for the SJ24s.
Mary Cronkhite-Johns, Director; Mary started her love for sailing in 2002 as a "rookie" with the J/24 fleet on RYLAH. Over the years, she has been honored to experience crewing for the Oregon Offshore, two Swiftsures, the Center Sound Series, Winter Vashon and a multitude of J/24 regatta racing on the West Coast.She would be honored to serve on the Board as a signal to her commitment to strengthen the sailing community through the voluntary actions of its members. Mary brings with her prior Food & Beverage experience at the leadership level from past roles held with Elk's Lodge memberships. She looks forward to working with the CYC Board and to keep the club moving forward.
Peter Nelson, Director. Peter has been sailing for 50+ years and has been a fixture around the Puget Sound racing scene for the past 20. He successfully campaigned his Beneteau First 375 Time Warp many years ago. He and his family then cruised the Mediterranean and Caribbean for two years before returning in 2011. He currently races on Different Drummer and is excited to have recently purchased a Farr 395 he expects to race next season. Above all else, most people know Peter as "the Hobie guy". His passion for Hobie Cat sailing is unbridled (and infectious, so be careful!). Peter competes at the national and world level in Hobies. His son, Will, and he won the Hobie 18 North Americans in 2018. As Executive Director of MY SAIL Foundation, Peter is excited to bring his multihull expertise to CYC's burgeoning junior program.
Director Nominees for 2021 (One Year Term)
Mara Barckert, Director. M Mara began sailing as an infant on her parents Buchan 37 which she was named after. Growing up, Mara's boating experience included lots of CYC and Puget Sound racing and month-long expeditions to BC in the summers. Fast forward to more recent times when Mara took over the Mara from her parents, lived aboard for 2.5 years, married Greg (who's involved in the sailing community and was a mark setter for CYC), and they continue to enjoy sailing and cruising the Mara which has been extensively renovated. Before being a mom and running her own business, she got the chance to crew on some other local race boats as well. Mara is interested in helping out CYC on the board and imagines that her project experience, junior sailing interests, and passion for all types of boating adventures will fuel assisting the club on many fronts.
Cathy VanAntwerp, Director. Cathy is fairly new to the sailing community and she must say that she has met the most welcoming folks at CYC. She took up sailing two summers ago and racing last summer. She is completely hooked on the sport and looks forward to many years of improving her skills. Cathy is the owner of new to her J/111 Valkyrie. You might have seen them this past summer in the Salish 200, Northern Century, Women at the Helm regatta and STYC Ballard Cup. On a personal note, she lives in Ballard and has two amazing kids, Alex and Penny, who she hope to grow into sailors. Cathy is in the software industry working at Salesforce.com. She has served on many boards in the past, including Sports in Schools, and the Seattle chapter of Room to Read where she served as Co-Chair. Cathy is honored to be nominated to serve on the CYC Board of Directors. She looks forward to working with the Board to keep CYC moving forward.
Continuing Board Members
David Barnes, Junior Staff Commodore. Current Commodore David Barnes becomes Junior Staff Commodore in 2021. He and his family have been CYC members for over twelve years. David grew up sailing and racing on Long Island Sound and raced in College only taking a break from racing when serving as a US Navy Officer. His involvement with the club started with J/24 racing back in 2002. David, Karen, and their three boys cruise their Hanse 415 Gratitude as often as possible, in summer 2019 making it as far north as Desolation Sound. In 2019 they also cruised with CYCers in the Commodore Gibson and Blakely Rock Cruises. David, and increasingly his boys, also race Gratitude in a number of distance races to include the Center Sound Series, Winter Vashon, and Swiftsure. Rounding out the family’s involvement in the Club, one of his High School teenagers is a member of the CYC Ballard High School Sailing Team.
Stuart Burnell, Director. Continue serving the second year of his 2020-2021 term. Having served on the board in various capacities beginning in 2001 as Treasurer and later as Commodore, Stuart feels it would be an honor and a privilege to serve once again as a Director on the CYC Seattle Board. With the 75th anniversary of CYC taking place this year, it makes it that much more special to be on the Board. Stuart actively races his J/109 Tantivy and previously owned and raced Thunderbirds and an Olson 30. He has competed in a number of Van Isle 360s, Swiftsures and several Vic-Maui Races.
