The Thirty-seven Year History
of Lake Arthur Yacht Club
by Al Rees
In 1967,
Ken Jones and I decided to form a yacht club and spent about a year looking
for a place to start one. We tried Cypremort
Point, Lake Dauterive, Spanish
Lake and Lake Arthur. We soon discovered that purchase costs of camp
sites for a yacht club in these areas were out of our reach. It was at this
time that M. E. Macdonell
came to our rescue and talked his family into leasing us a site on the
upper lake[Lake Arthur]. By the time the February 23, 1968 meeting was held, the club was actually in
existence. It had a club site, a set of by-laws, had been incorporated,
joined the North American Yacht Racing Union and borrowed $10,000 to build
a harbor and club house and had three members; Ken Jones, M. E. .Macdonell,
and Randolph Freret. The story of
the building of the harbor and club house is a fun story and task that
would have been impossible without Ed Conner and his father, Charlie
Conner, as well as Dick Byler and Bob Brillhart. (From Randolph Freret’s 24 February 1984 letter to Al Rees)
On February 23, 1968, a meeting attended by 20 interested families
was held in Lafayette. A formal club was organized with the following
officers: Commodore Randy Freret; Vice Commodore
M. E. Macdonell; Rear Commodore Charles
Hightower; Secretary-Treasurer Ken Jones; and Directors Burt Keenan, Gus Behling and Jay Wharton. (From “The First Year”
in LAYC 1971 Yearbook)
Notary Public Lawrence E. Donahoe
notarized Lake Arthur Yacht Club’s charter signed by the new club’s
officers on 15 March 1968. The act was recorded
that day by Clerk of Court, Lafayette Parish.
Through
the years LAYC commodores have been:
1968
Randolph Freret
1969 Ken Jones 1970 Allen Shaw
1971
Randy Newman 1972 Ed Conner 1973JackVanAmringe
1974
Richard Byler 1975 Clyde Prejean 1976
Jack Pirrozzolo
1977
J. Wilbur Comeaux 1978
Fabian Patin 1979 Fabian Patin
1980
Al Rees 1981 Jim O’Neal 1982 Carey Martien
1983
Ron Massey 1984 Bob Latiolais 1985 Gary Painton
1986
Denny Earles 1987 Carey Martien 1988
Fred Brunt
1989
Charles Manuel 1990 Dick
Moriarty 1991 Calvin Lege’
1992
Gerald McCombs 1993 David
Causey 1994 Charles
Manuel
1995
Charles Manuel 1996 Sammy
Trahan 1997 Hansford Hair
1998
Hansford Hair 1999 Bennett LaPoint 2000 Bennett LaPoint
2001Bennett
LaPoint 2002
Bennett LaPoint 2003Bennett
LaPoint
2004
Bennett LaPoint 2005
Bennett LaPoint 2006Bennett
Lapoint
Although it has powerboating members, sailboating
has been LAYC’s raison d’ etre. Many of its members
enjoy casual sailing and treasure fond memories of cruises to Grand Lake and beyond. Perhaps
more members enjoy sailboat racing.
LAYC has always had one-design fleets. In 1968
LAYC members founded the Lido 14 Class Association Fleet 60 and the Day Sailer Association Fleet 63 in 1969. Subsequently
interclub competition for the Governor’s Cup spawned a class of Sunfish. In
1982 Maurice Sullivan, Celeste Prejean, Butch Nolan,
Oscar Latiolais, Jim O’Neal, and Al Rees received
from the Flying Scot Sailing Association the charter for FSSA Fleet 153.
LAYC has also had one-design fleets of displacement hulls: Balboa 26s,
Catalina 22s, and most recently J/22s.
In addition to one-design racing, LAYC has had
handicap racing, especially in the Performance Handicap Racing Fleet.
Members’ yachts by Beneteau, Bristol, Buccaneer, Catalina, Cape Dory, C & C, Easterly, Ericson, Freedom, Hobie,
Hunter, J Boats, Kiwi, Macgregor, Melges, Newport, Pearson, O’Day, San Juan, and S2 have competed
on the lake and graced LAYC’s harbor.
Its first
permanent resident was the Pussy Cat,
a Cape
Cod
catboat owned by Burt Keenan. He provided the generous financing and
leadership needed to build the club’s harbor, which we have enjoyed since
1972. That year to LAYC’s lasting benefits Dick
Byler and Ed Conner barged the clubhouse from its first location on the
upper lake’s south shore through the Narrows and across the lake to Morgan Shores. There centuries-old
oaks provide shade and inspiration.
To reduce LAYC debt
Fabian Patin as Commodore, with enthusiastic
support of club’s members, subdivided club property northeast of the
cypress pond. Each of the 12 lots’ value was enhanced by the permanent
assignment of 1 share of LAYC stock and the granting of the
privilege to use the club’s boat launching ramp. After all lots were sold, LAYC’s
debt became manageable.
LAYC’s only national champion has been Fred Brunt who
in 1979 was the best in the Harpoon 5.2 class. Briefly in the early 1980’s
LAYC members included Fran and Ed Lormand, a
native of Crowley who in 1977 sailed the Atlantic single-handed.
About that time LAYC had a very active Junior
Sailing Program. Its summer coach
was Luther Carpenter, later in life US Sailing Team coach for the Olympics.
At summers’ end the juniors competed mostly in Sunfish in the open Lake
Arthur Junior Championship Regatta.
During that period LAYC began hosting the
Crawfish Regatta in April and the Gumbo Regatta in October. Those open
regattas frequently had two races on Saturday and one on Sunday. The crowds
enjoyed boiled crawfish (or gumbo) on Saturday night and Carroll Crouchet’s bar-b-q on Sunday. More than once
bird-watching sailors visited nearby Lacassine
National Wildlife National Refuge to spot spring (or fall) migrants. The
Crawfish Regatta and Gumbo Regatta continue to be popular events for PHRF
competitors and one-design sailors.
LAYC joined the United States Yacht Racing Union
in 1980 and in the following year the Gulf Yachting Association. Since then
LAYC members have enjoyed competing in GYA regattas, especially against
neighboring Lake Charles YC, Cypremort YC, and
Pelican YC.
In 1983 LAYC inaugurated the FSSA Cajun Country
Championship trophy purchased by regional sailors to promote one-design
sailing. Although this annual event can and has been at CYC, PelYC and LCYC most of these regattas have been at
LAYC.
The perpetual trophies owned by LAYC are the
Conner Cup for Day Sailer competition, the Jenny
Jones Trophy for outstanding junior, and with CYC, LCYC, and PelYC the Governor Edwin Edwards Trophy. LAYC’s burgee was designed in 1968 by Randolph Freret and continues to be enjoyed by many.
