Boom! Party time.
As stated in a 1934 Yaquina Bay News article about the need for a local yacht club, “There is a Newport Yacht Club in California and there is a Newport town in Washington, whereas there is but one Yaquina Bay in the world.”
Ironically, that publication folded in 1947, the same year that the Yaquina Bay Yacht Club officially formed.
On Sunday, Nov. 13, the club will celebrate 75 years of sailing on the bay with light refreshments, a silent auction and music from the Lucky Gap String Band.
Proceeds will benefit the youth sailing program, which offers high school sailing classes from February through May.
“Personally, I have witnessed the confidence surge in young sailors who have learned sailing skills,” Commodore Peggy O’Callaghan said. “Sailing is like no other sport in that you have to adapt to changing weather conditions, like wind direction, velocity and tidal influences. Learning to work with Mother Nature can be challenging. One of the exercises is to purposefully capsize the boat in the bay and to right it again.”
Club historian Dorothy Bogumil has been a member since 1980.
“I’ve been a secretary and treasurer and served as commodore three times, which is like being a president for most clubs,” she said. “When I joined there was no clubhouse, so we met at the Embarcadero or in people's homes. The clubhouse was built in 2004 and it is so nice to have your stuff all in one place.”
At 81, Bogumil says she’s “no spring chicken,” but admits that, although some of the other members are no spring chickens either, sailing is a sport that can be enjoyed late in life.
“The person who got me involved continued sailing until the age of 90,” she said.
The camaraderie and members of all generations is what has kept her coming back for more than 40 years.
“Our members have so many different occupations and backgrounds, but they all love the water and boating,” she said. “This year, we got a lot of new members and it's so nice to have fresh blood and new ideas.”
Bogumil said that when the club was formed in 1947 it was mostly a social and dancing club, and though over the years the emphasis has shifted to the sailing races and lessons for kids and adults, the social aspect has never gone away and she is looking forward to the anniversary celebration.
“It sounds like there have been a lot of really neat donations for the auction,” she said. “It's a fun group and I’m sure it’s going to be a fun party.”
The event begins at 1 pm at the Yaquina Bay Yacht Club, located at 750 SE Bay Blvd., Newport. For more information, go to yaquinabayyachtclub.org or call 541-961-4423.