Groton Long Point Yacht Club
 Burgee | |
| Founded | 1934 |
|---|---|
| Clubhouse | Groton Long Point, Connecticut |
| Country |  United States |
| Website | http://www.glpyc.org |
Groton Long Point Yacht Club (GLPYC) was charted in 1934 in the beach community of Groton Long Point, Connecticut and remains active today. Functioning during the summer as something akin to a summer camp, the Yacht Club runs classes in sailing (Blue Jays, Optimists, Sea Shells, Lasers and A-Boats), swimming, tennis and sports. The Yacht Club also organizes a number of events in the evening for both children and adults including dances and movies for children, and parties and festivals for adults.
Sailing
The GLPYC is heavily involved in sailing and organizes a number of different classes and events:
- Seashells are small one or two person dinghys with a single mainsail taught in weekday morning classes to children between 6 and 13 years old. There are three levels of classes, from beginner to expert, A, B and C. Students in C and B classes sail with two children per boat, a captain and a crew. Students in class A sail the boats single-handed. Each class is one hour long, five times a week, and is run in the Inner Lagoon. Seashells cannot sail in the open ocean.
- Optimists (Optis) are very similar to Seashells in that they are small one or two person dinghys with a single mainsail. Optis are sailed single-handed. Children ages 9 to 15 can sail in Opti classes which run for several hours at a time on weekdays. Optis are more hearty boats and classes are taught in the ocean in front of Main Beach. Students can also take part in regattas around the country and the world.
- Blue Jays are larger boats than Optis and Seashells. They are approximately 15 feet long and generally are sailed with two people, a captain and a crew. The boats have a mainsail, a jib and a spinnaker. Classes take place in front of Main Beach on weekday afternoons for several hours. Classes are often split into beginners and more experienced sailers. Students can take part in regattas around the state and the region, as well as Blue Jay Nationals.
- JYs are similar to Blue Jays but they have a rounded hull and are becoming more popular around the area. Classes in JYs have not been very popular yet, but a movement is growing to include them more in the future.
- 420's are similar to JY's and are more popular for racing purposes than Blue Jays. The Yacht Club has an ever- growing 420 program.
- A-Boats or Class-A Boats are a fleet of wooden hull sailboats built in 1923 for the sailing community of Fishers Island, in the Long Island Sound. The correct name for the boat is a "Fishers Island One-Design". Some of the boats have been lost or destroyed over the years and there are only 14 boats remaining in the world today, all of them are located in Groton Long Point. These boats are raced on Saturdays throughout the summer, with races starting in front of Main Beach.
Sports
Sports classes take place at the Sports Field off Atlantic Avenue throughout the summer. Classes will also occasionally move throughout the town to take advantage of other equipment or locations as activities require. There are monthly sports competitions within the town.
Swimming
Swimming classes take place both on Main Beach and South Beach throughout the summer. Beginners tend to stay near the shallow water on both beaches while advanced classes take place at the Dock on South Beach or on Main Beach. There is also a swim team which competes against other teams throughout the region. There are also monthly swimming competitions within the town.
Tennis
Tennis classes for children take place on the Children's tennis courts on weekday mornings. There is also a tennis team which competes against other teams in the region. There are monthly tennis competitions within the town. There are also a number of tennis events and competitions for adults, generally taking place at the Adult tennis courts throughout the summer.
Evening events
There are a number of evening events put on throughout the summer. Some of these include: children's movies, teen movies, scavenger hunts, sand castle contests, kid's dances, teen dances, pottery classes, theater classes, white elephant sales, cocktail parties and other events.