Practice Today + Goals/Pairs Form + Team Gear Orders DUE TOMORROW

Good morning,

Our first dryland practice is today! We will be meeting at the Bellingham Yacht Club from 3:45pm-5:30pm. Sailors do NOT need to bring sailing gear, but should always bring a jacket or extra layer to stay warm in case we go outside.

Thank you to everyone who has filled out the Regatta Sign Up sheet so far.

Sailors will have time today at practice to complete the Goal/Pairs form. 

Whatcom Sailing Gear Orders are due tomorrow at noon, Thursday 9/17: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1qxkjrijxtQsvLmD1UagUDeuK7_GIqOOLPR7XlGoKD10/edit?usp=sharing 

Thank you to those that have filled out the form already. We will be reminding sailors at practice today. Please contact Jayna Neuman 360-393-5020 with team gear questions.

Best,

Anna & Cooper

Meeting tonight 7pm on Google Meet

Good evening,

Just a quick reminder that the All-Parents All-Sailors meeting is tonight at 7:00pm on Google Meet! The online meeting link is available here: https://meet.google.com/yes-zhfn-qtp

Or dial: ‪(US) +1 909-451-9659‬ PIN: ‪727 641 219‬#

More phone numbers: https://tel.meet/yes-zhfn-qtp?pin=4777144883423

Please make sure to be there. We will be discussing the regatta schedule, fundraising, team gear, and more! 

Best,

Anna

All-Parents All-Sailors Meeting Monday 7:00pm Online

Good afternoon sailors and families,

I hope everyone is enjoying the long weekend! Thank you all for a lovely first sailing practice on the water on Thursday. 

To allow all families to attend from home easily, the mandatory All-Parent All-Sailor Meeting will be online, NOT at the Bellingham Yacht Club! The online meeting info is here:

All Parent All-Sailor Meeting: Monday, September 7th from 7:00-8:00pm on Google Meet.

Video call link: https://meet.google.com/yes-zhfn-qtp

Or dial: ‪(US) +1 909-451-9659‬ PIN: ‪727 641 219‬#

More phone numbers: https://tel.meet/yes-zhfn-qtp?pin=4777144883423

We will be discussing 4 main things for the fall season at this meeting:

1. Weekend Regatta Schedule and Regatta Signup Sheet

Please have an idea of your fall weekend availability before this meeting to help inform which events you / your sailor will be at.

2. Carpools

We will be using this meeting to allow families to connect about carpools from school to practice in the afternoons. Sailors are not required to participate in carpools.

3. Bellingham Sailing Foundation Fundraiser Oct. 17
Bellingham Sailing Foundation, a nonprofit that supports both Bellingham Yacht Club sailing and our program Whatcom Sailing, is having a fundraiser dinner and auction.

4. Team Gear- Sweatshirts, Hats, Long Sleeves

We will be also sharing optional team gear orders for students and families, organized by Squalicum sailing parent Jayna Neuman (thank you Jayna!!). She has Whatcom Sailing - branded sweatshirts, hats, and long sleeve quick dry shirts and will be making an order for fall season.

We look forward to seeing you all on Monday!

Please email us at coaches@whatcomsailing.com if you have any questions.

Best,

Anna

Practice Plan today- Start @ BYC due to weather

Good afternoon everyone,

Due to the current and forecasted wind, we will be starting and ending our first day of sailing practice at Bellingham Yacht Club. The address is 2625 S Harbor Loop Dr., Bellingham, WA. We will be meeting downstairs in the basement, the same location as the New Parents and Sailors Meeting last week.

We will still be doing some time on the dock and on the water today, including a rigging demo, a make-up swim test for those that did not get to Arne Hanna, and a capsize/recovery practice. All students should still come to practice ready to get wet and get in wetsuits today. We will have more changing rooms and opportunities to try out wetsuits at Bellingham Yacht Club.

The walk between the Bellingham Yacht Club and the Zuanich Point Park Youth Sailing Dock is around 10 minutes, and the team will be doing this walk as a group after everyone has the correct gear fitted. We will likely not sail for any extended period of time due to wind forecasted at 15-20knts, which requires a significantly reduced number of sailboats on the water. 

Similarly, for Wednesday there is a gale warning all day and has wind over 25knts forecasted, which is more wind than we can safely sail in. For tomorrow, we will also plan to meet at BYC, and will NOT be doing any time on the water due to extremely high winds. Practice will still be from 3:45pm-6:30pm, but will be fully on shore. Students should dress to be outside in stormy conditions, but do not need to bring wetsuits to Wednesday's practice.

Thursday's forecast is looking much calmer than Wednesday, and for now we plan to sail on Thursday and meet at Zuanich Point Park as normal. We will update on Remind if that changes.

Please let me know if you have any questions! We look forward to seeing you all shortly.

Best,

Anna

First Fall Practice Tuesday 3:45pm

Good afternoon sailors and families,

We look forward to seeing everyone at our first day of sailing practice tomorrow! 

Please make sure you or your student is fully cleared for school athletics in Final Forms, and has submitted the separate club sport registration at Whatcom Community Sailing. The Whatcom Sailing registration can be found online here: https://www.whatcomsailing.com/registration  Both Final Forms registration and Whatcom Sailing registration must be complete for students to get on the water tomorrow. If you are having issues with either system, please reach out. Thank you to everyone who has completed both so far!

We do not what cost to be a barrier to joining sailing. If you need a full or partial scholarship for Whatcom Sailing fees, please fill out this scholarship request: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeuUEQ_0m5KXttSPMyB3Kso0yyRR_X3IcezpGeOXaQhPlvGEA/viewform?usp=header 

Tryouts practice will be 3:45pm-6:30pm on Tuesday (tomorrow!), September 1st. We will plan to meet at the Zuanich Point Park Youth Sailing dock, our normal practice location. 

In the case of severe inclement weather that requires us to move indoors, we will send out a message via Remind to alert everyone that we will be moving inside to the Bellingham Yacht Club. Please make sure you are on the Whatcom Sailing Remind by texting @sailboats to 81010 or by entering @sailboats on the Remind app.

Tryout week practice schedule- Tuesday 9/1, Wednesday 9/2, and Thursday 9/3

3:45pm Practice starts. Students should be at the Zuanich Point Park Youth Sailing dock in the clothing they plan to sail in by this time.

We will begin practice with introductions, then talk about safety decisions and our plan before getting on the water. Students will work together to rig all boats.

Between 4:15pm and 4:45pm Launch boats and start sailing. Our goal is to be on the water as soon as possible, but in the beginning of the season it takes more time.

Once on the water, we will do races and easy sailing drills, with new students rotating in from the safety boat so they have a chance to both watch and sail.

~6:00pm Return to the dock

Students derig boats, put sails away, and rinse equipment. Then, we review practice on the chalkboard and talk through what we may not have been able to say on the water. Sailors change out of wet clothes if they have time, or change at the end of practice.

6:30pm Practice ends at Zuanich Point Park*

*If we had to move to Bellingham Yacht Club for inclement weather (in which case, that would be sent out on Remind), students end the day there instead.

********After this week of tryouts, Thursdays will start 1 hour earlier at 2:45pm due to early release. We will only meet every other Wednesday for dry land practice.*********

 

Please review our website for what to wear and what to expect at practice. We will have spare PFDs (aka lifejackets) and wetsuits available for students to borrow for the week or the season. If you or your student needs to borrow a PFD or wetsuit, please let us know ASAP and include a shirt size so we can make sure to have enough of the correct sizes tomorrow.

If you have any other questions, please let us know. See you tomorrow!

Best,

Anna

Swim Test Tonight, Practice Next Week

Hi everyone, 

We are excited for the fall season to start! 

Thank you to the new parents and sailors who were able to make the info meeting on Monday. For those that could not, the Info Meeting Slides are attached to this email.

Swim Test is tonight, August 26 at 7PM at Arne Hanna Aquatic Center.

Anna will be in the front room, please check in with her before entering. The swim test is relatively short, we are squeezing in between swim practice ending and lap swim starting so expect to be there and ready to swim or swimming for only 10-15 minutes, plus time to change on either end. If you cannot make it, please let us know.

Registration for Whatcom Sailing Fall 2026 is Now Open!

BHS, SHS, and SQHS students make sure you are also cleared in Final Forms.  

https://www.whatcomsailing.com/registration

Scholarship requests here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeuUEQ_0m5KXttSPMyB3Kso0yyRR_X3IcezpGeOXaQhPlvGEA/viewform?usp=publish-editor

NWISA (Northwest Interscholastic Sailing) Eligibility Form

All students must complete this form by September 9th in order to be eligible to compete. This form requires your name, graduation year, and school name all in one photo. Once completed and approved, students are good for the school year.

For homeschooled and Options High School or other Alternative Learning (ALE) students, there is an additional form that must be submitted by September 2nd. Once completed and approved, students are good indefinitely- as long as they complete the NWISA Eligibility form annually!

Schedule Changes 

Regattas are now confirmed and updated on the website:

September 19-20 WINB Quals Olympia* 

September 26-27 Laser Quals Seattle

October 3-4 North Regional Bellingham*

October 3-4 Keelboat Quals Bainbridge

October 10-11 Cascadia Cup Seattle  

October 17-18 PCISA WINB San Diego 

October 24-25 Fall Champs Oak Harbor

October 1 - November 1 Trick or Treat Team Race Seattle 

*Please note that WINB quals and North Regionals have switched weekends

Tryouts

Tryouts are a time for new and returning sailors to see what the team is like. Sailors are trying out the team just as much as coaches are seeing if sailors will be a good fit for the team.

Tuesday, September 1st 3:45 - 6:30 at Zuanich Point Park Youth Sailing Dock

Wednesday, September 2nd 3:45 - 6:30 at Zuanich Point Park Youth Sailing Dock

Thursday, September 3rd 3:45 - 6:30 at Zuanich Point Park Youth Sailing Dock

What we do each day is dependent on the weather. We plan on covering the items below:

• Introductions
• High School Sailing overview
• Rigging (setting up sailboat)
• Sailing knowledge test
• Drills overview 
• Basic windward/leeward racing
• Lots of sailing 

Please bring the following items:

• Sailing gear (no cotton)
• Life Jacket (let us know if you need to borrow one)
• Wetsuit  (let us know if you need to borrow one)
• Towel
• Change of clothes

Please let us know if you have any questions! We look forward to seeing everyone soon.

Best,

Coaches Cooper and Anna

 

New Parents / Sailors Meeting Tonight, 7pm

Bellingham Schools
via FinalForms

Good afternoon,

Our New Parents and Sailors Info Meeting is tonight, 7:00pm at Bellingham Yacht Club (BYC). The yacht club is located at 2625 S Harbor Loop Dr, Bellingham, WA. The meeting will be downstairs in the BYC Ward Room. Please reach out if you have any questions or are a new parent or sailor unable to make tonight's meeting!

Returning students and parents do not need to attend this meeting- although they are welcome! We will have another meeting in February for spring sailing students and parents who are unable to make tonight's meeting.

Best,
Anna

Whatcom Sailing

whatcomsailing.com

Thank you,
Anna Morrow
Bellingham Schools Athletics

Click here to access FinalForms