Focus

“Riding out storm after storm, it has successfully weathered a succession of wars, plagues, panics, depressions and hurricanes.” ~ Louis J. Hennessey ~ written in 1949 on the commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Southern Yacht Club of New Orleans.

With the history of sailing on the Gulf Coast spanning 500 years, there isn’t a lack of facts or stories, but rather its simply a matter of identifying our focus and scope and then putting it into a cohesive and entertaining tale.

Already we have uncovered incredible facts such as all female crewed sailboats competing against men as early as 1890 – before they had the right to even vote. Or how the GYA has supplied a disproportionate number of Olympic medalists and competitors to the US Olympic Sailing Team than any other region.

Did you know that every yacht club on the coast was “commandeered” by the US Navy and Coast Guards during World War I & II and members were actively recruited to patrol our shores? Or that the oldest regatta in the Western Hemisphere starts in New Orleans and that four of the five oldest yacht club’s in the Americas are on the Gulf Coast?

All of this history is out there for us, and much of it is unknown and becoming forgotten.

Our current areas of focus and a list that is growing:

• Deep History of Sailing/Exploration
• Boatbuilding/Sailmaking/Craftsmanship
• Times of War
• Yacht Club’s as Forces for Economic/Maritime Growth
• Transition of Sail from Necessity to Recreation and Sport
• Women’s Competitive Sailing
• Olympic Glory
• The Culture
• The Gulf Yachting Association
• The Story of Racing
• Technology
• Family/Generational Legacies
• Junior Sailing