We encourage you to download and review our parent handbook in its entirety before your child begins our program since it contains important and helpful information.  Our general guidelines and rules are listed below. 

Parent Handbook HYC Jr Sailing.pdf

- Attendance: Please notify the Program Director in advance if your sailor will not be attending for any reason.  Email:  hycjuniorsailing@gmail.com 

- Lunch: Lunch will be provided daily along with filtered water and fresh fruit, except on Fridays, which is pizza day. Lunches are prepared locally or by our Club chef. The lunch schedule is posted in advance on the home page of this website. The local ice cream truck visits the Club at the end of each day. Sailors can purchase ice cream at that time.

- Parking: Please follow HYC rules concerning parking. Non-Members and Members without HYC stickers are not to park in front of the Club House. The designated Flag Officers’ parking spaces should not be used for any reason.

- Hours: The program day is from 9 am - 4 pm. If you need to drop off your sailor late or pick them up early, this should be done between 12 and 1 pm. Sailors generally leave shore for the docks at 9:15 am for the morning session and 1:15 pm for the afternoon session. Thus, the instructors cannot accommodate a sailor's supervision who is dropped off or picked up other than during that time. The program is scheduled to end at 4 pm sharp, and at that time, instructors must turn to prepare for the next day. If you expect to be late picking up your sailor, please make alternate arrangements to have your sailor picked up on time. Since late pick-ups have been a problem in past years and to cover instructor time, parents may be charged for every 15 minutes after 4:15 pm. Please do not drop your sailor off before 8:45 am since no Instructor supervision was scheduled before that time.

- JSA Registration: You must sign your sailor(s) upon the JSA website. No sailor may participate until this is completed.  The Junior Sailing Association of Long Island Sound (JSA) has selected The ClubSpot, a web-based regatta administration platform, for the JSA Roster Registration and Regatta Managemen system. See https://jsalis.org/parents/roster-registration Do not pay the fee online (it is paid via your HYC registration).

- Sportsmanship: As adults, we set an example for our Junior Sailors. Therefore we ask parents and everyone else associated with the program to model good sportsmanship and fair play. We want to emphasize performance goals rather than outcome goals.

- Participation and Behavior: Sailors are expected to participate in on-the-water activities each day. Sailors are also expected to demonstrate acceptable behavior and respect for one another so that everyone has fun and stays safe. Anti-social behaviors such as bullying, rough-housing, ignoring safety rules, and/or destruction of equipment will result in discipline. Would you please direct any disciplinary concerns regarding your sailor (or another sailor) to the Program Director?

- Maintenance: Learning boat upkeep is part of learning to sail. Therefore, our sailors are responsible for maintaining their boats, both private and chartered. Sailors will be expected to keep their boats clean and identify missing, broken, or worn equipment. Keeping a boat shipshape is also important for safety reasons. HYC has some spare parts – replacement costs will be assessed to parents – and if HYC does not have the part, there are several local vendors that we can recommend that supply small sailboat equipment.

- Instructors: Please demonstrate respect for instructors, the Program Director, and other Club employees. Consistent with HYC rules regarding members’ interactions with Club staff, except in emergencies, if a problem or concern arises, please make an appointment (through email or phone) with the Program Director, or contact a member of the Board. You can send all emails to hycjuniorsailing@gmail.com. During the season, both the Director and Committee Chairs will receive these emails.

- Rainy Days: Sailing is a weather-dependent sport, and part of learning to sail is also learning how to deal with the elements, which can be hard to predict. While we try to go out on the water both in the morning and afternoon each day, there are occasions when there may be too much or too little wind or fog and rain. Safety is a top priority, and the Director and Instructors will make decisions based on then-current conditions and predictions and the sailors’ skills. The Program staff will have a rainy day plan to keep some of the sailors entertained if weather conditions don’t cooperate. We expect all of the sailors and parents to be flexible.

- Progress Reports: Your sailor’s Instructor and/or the Head Instructor are available to provide you with updates on their progress in person at pick-up time. Don't hesitate to get in touch with the Director ahead of time to arrange an informal meeting.

- HYC Charters: Please advise the Director or Head Instructor if you think any HYC charter boat is not in acceptable condition or if you have any concerns about the boat you have chartered. We rely on the sailors and their parents to notify us if there are any issues with a chartered boat during the season.

Regattas

- Encouragement: We are excited about our Junior Sailors participating in regattas. However, forcing them to participate in certain events they may not enjoy or feel ready for may turn them away from sailing completely. Please take their opinions and feelings into account, and remember that this is your sailor’s summer vacation.

- Spectators: Parents can be spectators during regattas but will need to provide their own on-the-water transport. The HYC Instructors cannot accommodate parents on chase boats. If you are a spectator, please remain in designated areas outside of the racecourse.

- Coaching: Any coaching DURING a race is prohibited by regatta rules and could lead to your sailor’s disqualification. Also, while we recognize that parents' help is valuable, most instructors appreciate being able to coach without parents’ input.

- Ethics: As always, model supportive and ethical behavior about participation in and during regattas.

- Transportation and Trailering: Transportation of sailors and their boats to and from regattas is solely the parent’s responsibility. Instructors do not take on this responsibility. Please maintain a parent community where transportation of the trailer (with all boats) and sailors is shared and rotated. In a few limited circumstances and WEATHER PERMITTING, Instructors may tow boats to nearby regattas (e.g., Larchmont Shore Club). In those cases, parents retain the responsibility to transport sailors to and from the regatta by car. Also, WEATHER PERMITTING Instructors may accompany sailors when they sail to or from regattas (e.g., Larchmont Race Week). Parents must remain ready to provide sailors and boat transportation if the weather does not cooperate or the Instructor is not available.

Equipment: Sailors are responsible for ensuring that their boats are prepared for regattas and that their boats are brought ashore, ready for trailering. Regatta organizers require boats to undergo safety checks and will not let sailors participate if the equipment is missing or broken. Parents are strongly encouraged to go over the boat equipment checklists with their sailors before leaving HYC for a regatta to ensure that all gear is collected and in good working order; this includes chartered boats.

Rules and Guidelines to Remember:

• All personal property should be clearly identified with the junior sailor’s name.
• Sailors must arrive at the Club on time. (On or shortly before 9:00 am.)
• Each day, sailors must bring a properly fitting USCG approved TYPE III PFD. PFDs must be worn at all times when on docks and in boats!
• Sailors must wear shoes.
• Sailors are responsible for protecting themselves from the sun. A hat, sunglasses, and sunscreen with SPF 15 or higher are recommended. (Spray-on sunscreen is not allowed, as some sailors have experienced allergic reactions.)
• Send sailors to the Club with a water bottle.
• Non-members' boats kept on Huguenot Yacht Club docks may only be used during program hours.
• Parents should communicate with the Program Director or a member of the Junior Sailing Committee regarding any concerns or problems.
• Privately owned boats may be used on the weekends away from the Club; arrangements to do so should be made in advance with the Program Director to remove and return the boats.
• Charter boats are for use during the program and are Club property not to be taken for use on the weekend without prior approval, i.e., regattas.
• Each sailor must have their own boat if sailing an Opti or Laser, no sharing of boats permitted. Occasionally (especially for younger, smaller, and newer sailors), the Instructors may start sailors in a boat together until they demonstrate an interest in sailing independently.
• Willful destruction of Club or Program property, or other sailors’ property, will be grounds for dismissal.

What to Bring

At a minimum, the following equipment is required by the HYC Junior Sailing Program:

✓ Life Jacket: Properly fitting USCG approved TYPE III PFD
✓ Whistle (attached to life jacket)
✓ Shoes: Closed-toe, rubber-soled shoes such as boat shoes or sneakers (not water sox)
✓ Sunglasses and/or Hat: with a brim suitable to shade the eyes and face from the sun
✓ Sunscreen (SPF 15 or higher)
✓ Water bottle
✓ Swimsuit
✓ Windbreaker/rain jacket or spray top
✓ Towel

Other items that sailors may find handy at times:

• Long-sleeve top/sun cover-up
• Lock
• Money for Ice Cream (at the end of the day)
• Change of clothes
• Backpack or gear bag to carry stuff
• Zip-lock bags to store both dry and wet things

Items that will be more of a distraction than of any use – don’t bring them:

• iPods, radios, or other electronic toys
• Skateboards, scooters, rollerblades, etc.
• Water pistols, water balloons, etc.
• Extra money, jewelry, or other valuables

**Cell Phones: Please instruct your sailor not to text or call during Summer Program hours unless it is an emergency. Sailors will not be permitted to bring cell phones on the water.

Special Events

Please save the date for our special family events – all sailors and their families are invited. Invitations will be sent in advance with pricing, and reservations are required for all sailors and family members.  Sailors attend for free. 

See the Calendar Page for more information.

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JSA of LIS

Optimist

RS Feva

Laser

LISOT

Laser Frostbite

ICSA

ISSA

US Sailing

YRALIS

Huguenot Yacht Club

Huguenot Yacht Club

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