The Luffing Lassies of the Sarasota Sailing Squadron By John Perkins
O
n nearly any given Thursday morning, Commodore Cleat, the perpetual honorary commodore-cat of the Sarasota Sailing Squadron, is napping in his favorite spot when his peace is disturbed by cars arriving with women of varying ages who make up the group known as the Luffing Lassies. These women from varied walks of life greet each other with grins and hellos, begin chatting the latest news and then set off toward the youth sailing area (of the YSP, the Sarasota Youth Sailing Program), where they keep their small boats in anticipation of racing one another on Sarasota Bay—facing the elements and one another in a test of strength, strategy, and skill. It is around 9 a.m. and the time for rigging the boats before the skipper’s meeting at 9:30 when course details, announcements and weather conditions are discussed. The Luffing Lassies began when five like-minded women, led by the late Lily Kaighin, created the Sarasota Sailing and Sinking Society in 1972. Since those early days, someone along the line suggested a less questionable-sounding name—and Luffing Lassies was born. The following year, the Florida Women’s Sailing Association was created to unify other member groups along the west coast of Florida with names like the Broad Reachers of the Pass-A-Grille Yacht Club, the Dinghy Dames of the Davis Island Yacht Club and the Mainsheet Mamas of the Tampa Yacht Club—among others in the area. There are a total of nine groups that host regattas and seminars for one another during the season from August training to the May spring series. The Luffing Lassies solo-sail very exciting flat-bowed
Prams and freeboard-less Sailfish out on the turgid waters of Sarasota Bay in what many of us would consider unfavorable weather conditions in even much larger boats. They sail in nearly any weather—hot or cold, calm winds or in a blow— enjoying every minute of it while employing the latest tactics as they trade barbs and advice across the water—all while occasionally getting very wet as they bounce around in the waves, tack with precision, and jibe while adroitly ducking as the aluminum boom flies across trying to decapitate them. Moving about in these little boats where weight distribution is critical requires the agility of a ballerina and the intuitive sea-sense of an experienced sailor, which they perform admirably. Scoring, timing, and position within the field are given reasonable due seriousness. But paramount above all is safety. A committee boat and a chase boat are always on hand to oversee the women’s safety. Proper apparel, life jacket, and a whistle are required, as well as training in the proper care and feeding of the boat. Afterwards, they return the boats to their respective “moorings” in the youth sailing area—after cleaning them up a bit—then have a brown bag lunch, or something a bit more catered-in for special occasions, such as regattas, where they can all trade observations and more laughs. The whole idea is sailing, friendship, and a lot of laughs. To keep the membership informed, they have a dedicated Web page on the Sarasota Sailing Squadron’s Web site, www.sarasotasailingsquad.com. They also carry a prominent spot in the Squadron’s monthly newsletter, “The Burgee,” also available online. Since many of the members are out of town on trips or at their seasonal homes up North, members of the group can keep up with the latest news through the Web site, providing them with a sense of “connection” to their sisters in sailing no matter where in the world they may be. An online interview with the Lassies’ co-captain, Jo Dzina, revealed some of the ins and outs of the group. Q. I was wondering if you could provide a short list of names of the support volunteers that man committee boats, etc. A. The race committee team consists of Luffing Lassies Susanne Koehnlein (PRO), Linda Kroll, and Charlene Graeber. They are joined by Dave Bridges, Ben Simonson, Frank Girardin, John Gough, and Jacques Brisson, a group of men who provide invaluable assistance in setting the marks, driving the boats, providing safety and encouraging the women to continually improve their skills by sharing their knowledge of racing with the group. Q. Why are there “Co-captains”? A. In the hopes that two heads are better than one! Our group is now 80 members strong, and we are very active in racing events, social events, and education. This requires a lot of planning and continual communication to keep everyone involved and informed of events. Gillian and I felt that both having equal responsibilities and authority would work best for us as we are both very busy with careers and families, too. We also have a Sunfish fleet captain, Pram fleet captain, and race captain who are responsible for the individual areas that their titles imply. Q. I remember the Luffing Lassies worked hard on the “dead boats” to clean up the racks and yard at the YSP a while back. What other volunteer projects have you been involved in that I can include? A. LLs offer their support at Sarasota Sailing Squadron proj-
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December 2007
SOUTHWINDS
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