The 2005 Membership Application (80 KB) is now available on the Membership/Dues page. The 2005 dues structure has also been posted; initiation fees have increase a modest 3.5% while the dues structure has been reworked to be more consistent between the different membership levels. Please contact Mary Fridlund, Membership Chairperson, with any questions at (XXX) XXX-XXXX or mfridlund@earthlink.net.

US Sailing today named a new Executive Director to replace Nick Craw. From the press release:

US SAILING, national governing body of the sport, announced today that it has named Charles Leighton of Middletown, R.I., as its new Executive Director. Leighton will take the organization’s helm on January 31, 2005.

Leighton comes to US SAILING with extensive experience in sailing and corporate management. Leighton is a life-long sailor, having competed in numerous adult National Championships and the U.S. Olympic Team Trials, as well as the U.S. Junior Triplehanded Championship (Sears Cup). He has been chairman of an America’s Cup syndicate and is a winner of numerous offshore races, including the Marblehead-Halifax race, and currently races his Hinckley 42 Competition, Whitecap.

Leighton has a substantial background in the corporate sector. He was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the CML Group, Inc., a NYSE listed company that specialized in retail and direct marketing. Among many other activities, Leighton is currently a Director of MetLife and a Trustee of the Lahey Clinic (Burlington, Mass.) where he co- chairs their capital campaign. He holds a bachelor’s degree and an honorary law degree from Bowdoin College and an MBA from Harvard Business School where he was a member of the faculty and later president of the alumni council.

The NOR for the Spring Laser Regatta has been posted. The regatta is scheduled for the weekend of April 16-17. Last year 41 boats attended; if you weren't one of them, how about coming this year and seeing why ISC gets such good attendance at their regattas.

For more information you can take a look at the Laser forum or contact Scott Hicks at (XXX) XXX-XXXX or csail168516@netscape.net.

The House and Grounds Committee will be installing a new brick walkway outside the front entrance to the club as part of the 50th anniversary celebration for ISC. For $50 a brick may be personalized with up to 2 lines of 14 characters each (an additional line is available for $10 extra). Details and an order form can be found here (70 KB)

If you're itching to get out on the water this year, you can download the 2005 ISC Racing Instructions (50 KB) and do a little off-season preparation for the upcoming 2005 racing season.

Thinking about doing some frostbiting? Here's some thoughts from Dave 'n Joe...

"Dave 'n Joe" is created by Dave Foster

US Sailing's Racing Rules Committee has announced that  a few changes were recently made to the 2005-2008 Racing Rules. Changes were made to Racing Rule 3(c) by ISAF and to Appendix F by US Sailing. The full text of the affected rules can be viewed here.

For all those that want to beat the rush later in the year, the 2005 Sailing Camp application (51 KB) is now posted. You can find out more about ISC's Sailing Camp and Junior Training program here.

US Sailing has now posted a complete list of excerpts from Dave Perry's Understanding the Racing Rules of Sailing Through 2008:

• Definition of Proper Course
• Definition of Finish
• When Boats Meet, Right of Way
• The Slam Dunk
• Rule 14 - Avoiding Contact
• Rule 16 - Changing Course
• Rule 17.1 - On the Same Tack; Proper Course
• Rule 18.2b - Overlapped at the Zone
• Rule 42.2 - Prohibited Actions
• Rule 61.1 - Informing the Protestee