In addition to daylight savings, March brings annual events such as the Festival of Whales in Dana Point Harbor, March 1st-3rd. This year, WSA-OC is a proud sponsor of the Cardboard Classic and Dinghy Dash hosted by Westwind Sailing, which will take place during the festival on March 2nd from 8:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m. If you don’t want to have “Fear of Missing Out” (FOMO), join our Members-Only Facebook Group. We regularly post invites to seminars, clinics, sailing/boating opportunities, meetups, pop-ups and other general information.
Off We Go!
I am excited because as I write this, I am preparing for our first OTW Event, Galentine’s Day, in Newport Beach.
Were you one of the thirty-six members that experienced a thrilling day on the water with like-minded sailing friends? Thank you to our February OTW Skipper Members: Capt. Jim Coleman, Clive Gurwitz, David Camerini, John Oddo, Deborah Osborne, KT Reiter, and Karen de Peralta, for making this event possible for so many members.
Your next opportunity OTW is coming soon: March 16th OTW St. Patrick’s Day Event is in Newport Beach, 10:30am - 2pm!
As with all our OTW events, the link to sign up for St. Patrick’s Day OTW will be emailed to CURRENT MEMBERS IN GOOD STANDING at the address we have on file and posted in our Facebook Members-Only Group approximately two weeks prior to the event. Once the sign-up link is live, you will receive a text message referring you to your email/and or Facebook. Click on the registration link to sign up immediately upon receiving notification, as our last event sold out in less than an hour. If you click the link to register and the event is already sold out, put your name on the waitlist. A slot may become available if we can secure another boat or if any registered members cancel.
Upcoming 2024 OTW Plans:
Please note: OTW dates and locations are subject to change based upon boat availability and weather:
Sat April 13 – Spring Fling – Alamitos Bay Sat May 18 – Newport Harbor Cruising – Newport Beach Sat June 22 – Summer SAILstice – Alamitos Bay Thurs-Sun July 25 – 28 - Annual Trip to Catalina – Two Harbors
March 1-3 - Festival of Whales
March 2 - WSA Booth @ Festival of Whales/Dinghy Dash
March 3 - Stand up to Trash Beach Cleanup @ Festival of Whales
March 10 - Daylight Savings Time
March 13 - General Membership Meeting
Location: The "Hut" at ALYC
Time: 7:00 pm (HH 6:30)
March 16 - WSA St. Patrick's Day OTW
March 17 - St. Patrick's Day
MARCH RACING CALENDAR
BCYC
March 2 - Angelman Series #2
March 16-17 - Bogart Race (To Avalon)
DPYC
March 9 - Dana Point Series # 1
March 23 - Dana Point Series #2 & #3
SSYC
March 16 - Jim White Winter Series #4
ALYC
March 23 - Whale Regatta
I hope you enjoyed the speaker at our General Membership Meeting last month and learned all about the different types of sails. I am excited to announce our speaker for March: Paul deCapua, Race Committee Chair and Distinguished Racing Member at Bahia Corinthian Yacht Club for the past 15 years. Paul was also previously Race Committee Chair, Commodore, and Director for the Newport Ocean Sailing Association for 10 years and served on the Regional PHRF Board as Data Systems Officer for 10 years. He will speak to us about race management, including how to build and run a race committee, the personality attributes needed, training required, and how being on a race committee makes you a better racer.
The annual Festival of Whales in Dana Point will take place on March 1-3. During this wildly popular weekend-long event, WSA-OC will have a fun and educational booth set up in the grassy area behind Baby Beach on March 2nd to promote sailing, boating, and safety education in the community. Come stop by our booth!
WSA-OC will also be sponsoring a boat built and raced by one of Westwind Sailing’s Dinghy Dashers which may include at-risk-youth groups, school groups, or adaptive groups (boaters with special needs). Visit the event page for more information about the Dinghy Dash.
We look forward to seeing many WSA-OC members at the festival.
Happy Birthday to Our Members
At WSA-OC, we celebrate our members’ birthdays by recognizing them in our newsletters and at our monthly meetings. We celebrate the following members with birthdays in March:
Bill McNamara - March 1 Maureen Vild - March 3 Karen de Peralta - March 12 Julie Bini - March 26 Natalia Martinelli - March 26 Robin Nielson - March 29
Membership Auto-Renewal Process
During 2023, we announced a new process for renewing your membership. Great news: your membership will automatically renew on your membership anniversary date. There is no need to remember to renew manually. Now, you will receive an email two weeks prior to your membership anniversary date notifying you that the card we have on file from last year will be charged for the next year of membership. If you no longer want to renew your membership, you can opt out or cancel your membership and you will not be charged for the renewal. To do so, email me: membership@wsaoc.org.
I hope you have enjoyed this month’s edition of The Whistle.
As the year progresses and our Board of Directors finalize plans for events and meetings, you can remain informed by visiting our website, which includes our calendar of events and meetings that I update regularly when event/meeting organizers solidify details. I also email all members at the address we have on file with the details of events (including links to sign up) and meetings, and I post those details in ourFacebook Members-Only Groupand Public Facebook Page as well, so be sure to keep an eye out for opportunities to get involved. You can also find our past editions of The Whistle on our website if you miss the email I send on the 1st of every month.
Get Your WSA-OC On!!
Grab items from our store and show off your pride as a member of WSA-OC! Come to our next General Membership meeting to grab some of our new inventory!!
Women's Sailing Association-Orange County is dedicated to enriching the lives of women through expanded access to sailing-related activities and educational opportunities. WSA-OC is committed to preserving and protecting our oceans and contributing to our local community through on-the-water philanthropic activities.
WSA-OC is committed to providing reasonable accommodation in its programs and activities for individuals with disabilities. Those who require a reasonable accommodation should contact commodore@wsaoc.org at least one week in advance, where possible, to make a request
Women's Sailing Association - Orange County, PO Box 11041, Costa Mesa, CA 92627, United States