Customer Spotlight: the Long Beach Yacht Club
We realized we’ve been working with the Long Beach Yacht Club for more than five years, and so we’re featuring them as our July customer spotlight! We asked Andrea Hart, director of member services, for more information about the club.
We’d love to learn more about the past and present of the Long Beach Yacht Club. Can you give us some insight on what it’s like to be a member?
Long Beach Yacht Club began in 1929 as a direct result of an inquiry from the Associated Boating Industries of Northern California about the possibility of a powerboat race between Long Beach and San Francisco. The combination of the inquiry and the subsequent race is what led to the formation of the club we have today. Long Beach Yacht Club is still committed to fostering community and promoting good sportsmanship and camaraderie through events, programs, and boating.
“It is the passion for yachting that brings members to Long Beach Yacht Club, but it is the sense of community that helps forge the long-term relationships that make it their second home.” Staff Commodore- John Busch
As a matter of fact, Long Beach Yacht Club just celebrated its 89th birthday on Saturday, June 2nd!
I noticed you just hosted the Congressional Cup, which seems like a fun event! Can you tell us more about this race?
It is an extremely fun event for both racers and viewers! The Congressional Cup is considered the Grandfather of Modern Match Racing. Pure match racing means the boats are precisely uniform, which creates an opportunity to truly measure sailing strategy and skills. In this regatta there is no margin for error: It’s like a chess game on the water, and year after year the Congressional Cup delivers excitement. This past 2018 Congressional Cup marked 54 years of Long Beach Yacht Club hosting the premier match race in sailing. World-renowned skippers from all over the globe come to participate in the races. Bring your binoculars!
The Long Beach Sailing Foundation does a lot of great outreach. Do you have any favorite programs or events as part of this nonprofit?
We are honored to be partners with such an incredible organization. The Long Beach Sailing Foundation is a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization, formed to own, maintain, and manage a fleet of identical Catalina 37 sailboats donated by Frank Butler, the president of Catalina Yachts, for Long Beach Yacht Club’s use in the Congressional Cup. One of our favorite events that we do with Long Beach Sailing Foundation is the Patriot Regatta, which we just had on May 19. The Patriot Regatta started in 2012 as a regatta to honor active duty military members. The event consists of a series of four short races on a course off the Belmont Veterans Memorial Pier where each boat has an experienced sailing coach as well as a team of service people. The regatta is loads of fun and a great way to honor those who have served our country.
