Arrrrgh!

Welcome to the Kwajalein Yacht Club. I want to take this opportunity to introduce myself to those that may not know me. I have been living on Kwaj for the past 11 years and have been a member of the KYC for all of those years. I grew up as a "Kwaj Kid" and have spent nearly 19 years living on Kwaj. I served on the KYC Executive Board last year as Commodore and in the past years as Quartermaster and filled in as Vice-Commodore.

Last year we made several club improvements. We built a foot bridge, installed a decorative sun shade, built a deck overlooking the beach, replaced the air-conditioning, purchased a new sound system and did lots of rope work.   I encourage all members to come on out and enjoy your facility. I am planning on making this year, a year filled with many new improvements and activities for all. I would also encourage you to come to our monthly meeting, held on the last Saturday of the month, where we will discuss topics related to the development and upkeep of our facility and other related club issues.

Something that I personally would like to see happen this year is more use of our sunfish. I have formulated a “Sunfish Committee” headed by the Sunfish King, Monty Junker.  It is my hope that this group of volunteers will do what it takes to ensure the sunfish are equipped and outfitted with whatever they need so that they can safely participate in several sunfish regattas for KYC and community members. The sunfish would also provide an excellent platform for teaching more members of the community the basics of sailing. The positive effects of making sailing more accessible to the general Kwaj community cannot be understated. We are also hoping to hold several races after work.

I also plan on holding several family days where you can bring your family down and just hang out, enjoy the beach, swim, sail, sit and relax, nothing formal or stressful. We will be trying to plan at least one cruise a month to somewhere, whether it is Bigej, Roi-Namur, Nell, or even open-ocean to Namu or atolls elsewhere. Keep an eye out for those. Those events will be discussed at our regularly scheduled meetings, as well as posted to our website and through this news list. As in the past, the KYC will hold several social functions throughout the year. These have always been a good time for all. Our first major event this year will be the Commodore's Ball on March 4^th at the Yuk. More information on this is available on our website. The other major social event, the Swashbuckler's Ball will be held in October. As in the past, we plan on participating in other island-wide activities such as the Spring Break Music Festival, and hopefully this year, we can send a larger delegation than last year to Majuro for the Coconut Cup Regatta (March 24th).

I also encourage you to visit our web site, frequently for information related to the club. This site is updated regularly and has lots of information about upcoming events and news. There is a calendar with dates and activities that will be updated on a regular basis to provide you with the most current information. I look forward to the upcoming year as your Commodore. If there is anything you would like to see at the club or activities planned, please feel free to contact me or drop me a line and I will see what I can do.

Fair winds & favorable seas to all

Jim Stepchew

Commodore, Kwajalein Yacht Club