Reflections from the President

By Tom Hubbell, President of US Sailing

On Father’s Day I got to race my Thistle at the home fleet with my daughter, Sophie. That was fun! For the three weekends before that I raced Thistle regattas in Ohio and New York, and one day of a C Scow regatta on Cuba Lake in New York. One woman said she heard the President was coming to the regatta and that she expected to see a guy in a blazer and regalia; guess she was pleasantly surprised that presidents of US Sailing wear dinghy sailing clothes and actually go sailing.

I keep a tally just for fun. I have gone sailing on 32 days, experienced seven kinds of boats, competed in 29 races, in 10 locations scattered coast-to-coast in six states. There is a recurring theme at all those venues: energetic, outdoor-minded people who are fun to be with and who are nuts about trimming the sails and making the boat go. Many are so full of the sport that they desperately want to share it, to bring in new people. You might be one of those spark plugs. We are lucky to have a bunch of them on the Board of Directors and on our staff at US Sailing. Check out our Board of Directors’ roster. It is quite remarkable the depth of sailing talent, insightful leadership, and commitment to the sport of sailing represented on this Board of Directors. Our staff is a parallel world of excellence as well.

We saw and heard a lot of you spark plugs at the Sailing Leadership Forum in San Diego in February. That was such great karma at the SLF that we are changing our fall get-together into a National Conference (formerly the Annual Meeting). You are invited to Milwaukee this October. Every member of US Sailing is welcome to join the discussion and the fun of this conference.

The three days will include sharing of ideas, a deeper dive into current programming, and informal social breaks and parties. We will hear about several very successful events and programs. We will visit the Harken factory and recognize our outstanding sailors at an awards banquet. There is time for committees to meet face to face along with any interested sailors in attendance. It is a time for us to welcome potential new leaders and volunteers to the national discussion. The very brief Annual General Meeting and Board meetings will get the official business done. The real business consists of getting all you spark plugs connected to each other to energize our wonderful sport. It won’t be as good if you are not there, really. If you can’t make it to Milwaukee, push hard for your other enthusiastic sailing buddies to make the trip, especially from your yacht club or sailing center. I promise that being there will change the future of your local sailing experience for the better.

We have a new US Sailing website and we are building a new US Sailing for the 21st Century. We need all sailors on board as members supporting this adventure.

See you on the water and in Milwaukee,

Tom Hubbell
President of US Sailing

Reflections from the President

Two Lives.  So, what are you doing with yours?

This year, two of my favorite sailors have “crossed over the bar,” as one had written.  Both lived and worked to make sailing more accessible, more fun, and more meaningful to people of all stripes.  We were travelers on the same path.  It made me wonder, what am I doing to advance the mission?

I met Greg Norwine in Colorado Springs at a US Sailing meeting about 12 years ago.  He was there encouraging the notion of improving the training of keelboat sailors and bringing them into focus through US Sailing’s binoculars.  A soft-spoken and personally engaging fellow, whatever he was selling you would buy and be happy.  We hit it off.  He got the Cruising Council launched and we started collaborating on related issues in US Sailing.  Over 3,000 people a year take keelboat courses, at schools like his, and they all join US Sailing to do it.  Greg’s contribution to the overall success of keelboat schools and the multiple levels of curriculum development via US Sailing remains undiscovered, because he took no credit.  Greg was a class act.

Two-hundred people attended Charlie Leighton’s memorial service on a gorgeous day in Newport, RI.   Appropriately, a brisk wind blew through the tent and ruffled the outfits and hair of all the sailors and friends present.  Charlie created the sailing program at Bowdoin College as a student in the 50’s, sailed all his life, excelled in business, led US Sailing as Executive Director in his “retirement,” and showered the people he cared for with an enduring encouragement that no one will forget.  His advice was clearly his own belief, “find something important, and make it better.”  I will not forget his conviction and encouragement to make something good happen.  He lifted our sailing organization by business wisdom, genuine personal inspiration, and the sheer force of his positive belief in the good people around him. 

I don’t have to tell you that sailing is something important.  It builds character and it’s fun, outdoors, green, frequently competitive, social, and much more.  Let’s keep working on making it better. 

I have a goal:  wherever we are having a meeting, there should be some sailing!  This week, the leadership convenes at Captiva Island, Florida for US Sailing’s Annual Meeting.  My team plans to win the Championship of Committees Regatta at the Colgate School next door.  Both the legacy of our sport and the promise of the future are on our minds.  From whatever backgrounds and sources of inspiration, people who are volunteer leaders and committee members love the sport and want to spread and enhance its enjoyment.  We each have been motivated by a Greg or a Charlie - people of unique stature.  Let’s get to work making our important pastime even better.

If you can’t be in Captiva this week but have been inspired to share and grow the sport, please join the sailing love-fest at Sailing Leadership Forum 2014.  Sailing is important and we need your engagement to make it even better. Join the party at the Leadership Forum in San Diego this February.  We need local spark plugs, regional organizers, creative people for national work groups and committees.  Learn, lead, and network with motivated sailors.  The first step is to just show up and see what is happening.  We need you!

Cheers,

Tom Hubbell
US Sailing President