Time & tide: sailing enthusiasts preserve the heritage of the New York Yacth Club. (Cover Story).

   Sea Fever

   I must go down to the seas again,
   To the lonely sea and the sky
   And all I ask is a tall ship,
   And a star to steer her by;
   And the wheel's kick, and the wind's song,
   And the white sail's shaking,
   And a grey mist on the sea's face,
   And a grey dawn breaking.

by John Masefield

Nearly a century before Masefield expressed his love for the sea, nine New Yorkers put poetry in motion one afternoon to advance their passion for sailing. The sporting act took place in July of 1844, in the waters off Manhattan aboard the yacht Gimcrack. Upon the suggestion of Gimcrack's owner, John Cox Stevens, the men agreed to form a yacht club for racing, cruising, and generally mucking about in boats. The name they chose was simple: The New York Yacht Club.

It's unlikely that even Stevens himself, chosen as the club's first Commodore, would have had the foresight to imagine the enormous future in store for the new club. Yet, throughout 157 years of staggering achievement --touched by royalty and crowned with the America's Cup--the club has held steady to its unifying purpose: To advance the pursuit of yachting.

Getting off to a good start, Stevens and the club's founding members adjourned their first meeting after planning a cruise to Newport, RI, three days hence. Only seven years after that first race, Steven's radically-designed schooner America sailed to England and beat 14 English yachts in a race around the Isle of Wight.

After watching the race, Queen Victoria invited the crew to her summer home, and it is said that America's excellent showing aided political relations between England and the young America.

Six years after winning that auspicious race, the remaining members of America's crew donated their winning trophy to the club, renaming it the America's Cup. And there the cup remained for the next 132 years, until 1983. Club members will again take up the challenge in 2002-2003 in New Zealand in America's Cup XXXI.

Today the club is thriving as a new generation of sailors takes advantage of its expanding involvement in all aspects of yachting. Then, too, there is the allure of being part of a club that has two clubhouses--an eight-acre waterfront chateau in Newport, RI, and a landmark Manhattan clubhouse that is celebrating its centennial anniversary this year.

The 44th Street clubhouse, as it is fondly referred to by members, is one of Manhattan's legendary buildings. Located in midtown, just west of Fifth Avenue, it is uniquely ornate and reminiscent of an elaborately carved boat. Its boldness is due, to a big extent, to the larger-than-life American banker J. Pierpont Morgan, the club's 16th Commodore.

Having impetuously announced to members at a meeting in 1898 that he would donate land for the new clubhouse, Morgan demanded that the structure occupy the entire frontage of the plot. Then, too, architect Whitney Warren more than fulfilled the clubhouse committee's grandiose desire to create a structure that reflected the sea in every way possible. The 44th Street clubhouse was completed in 1901.

"It's the most idiosyncratic building in New York," said club Com-Levitt. "From the front, it looks like a ship sailing uptown."

The inside is equally extraordinary, with a model room known far and wide. Covered in carvings of seaweed, snails, shells, and stars, the model room is the building's most prominent feature, boasting a collection of approximately 1,500 half-models and 150 full-rigged models. Its library and chart room is also another valued part of the club.

"Other areas of this landmark building include a Grill Room that offers diners the feel of being 'tween the decks of a sailing ship, and a Palm Cafe that has been restored to its original grandeur. Members and guests make frequent use of the 18 overnight guest rooms that are housed above the third floor, as well as the Library that contains the largest private collection of nautical books and charts in the world," said Gary Lau, clubhouse manager of 44th Street. "It's a haven in the center of Manhattan."

Making the club a haven is the work of General Manager Andrew Curtis, CCM, who is part of a naval-esque chain of command. The membership is represented by the Board of Trustees, including five officers. Most interesting to those unfamiliar with yacht clubs are the three flag officers, who include the Rear Commodore, the Vice-Commodore, and the Commodore. Reporting directly to flag officers is the House Chair, to whom Curtis directly reports. Continuing down the chain of command, the Comptroller and three other directors report to Curtis, along with the two clubhouse managers.

managers.

"It's probably unique--having two clubhouses 200 miles apart," said Curtis. "My goal is to take a French Chateau on eight acres and a landmark seven-story building in Manhattan and make one club."

According to longtime club Membership Director Geri Zelenick, adding a second clubhouse on the water in Newport was an inspired move in 1987.

A core group of members spearheaded the effort and alerted the membership to the fact that a Renaissance Norman-style waterfront mansion, called Harbour Court, was for sale in Newport. The property was funded entirely by contributions from the 3,070-person membership. Having a Newport clubhouse was a natural for a club whose first official cruise was to Newport, three days after it was founded in 1844. In 1994, Harbour Court hosted the club's sesquicentennial--150 years of continuous operation--and has otherwise become wildly popular with members.

"It's been a blessing," said Zelenick, who has seen the club expand greatly in her 20-plus years with it. "Twenty years ago, we had fewer events. Now, the club actively pursues racing in every class and has its own fleet of Sonars. It's been a wonderful growth from a club with one clubhouse to what it is today. There's no area of yachting that we're not involved in. The Commodores are wonderful leaders, and the Board supports growth and development. Members are happy; they're thrilled to be here."

And while the membership includes high profile individuals, membership is varied. Approximately 10 percent are in the Navy, a holdover from the days of the Spanish American War when men stationed at the Brooklyn Navy Yard joined the club in record numbers. Approximately half the membership lives within a 50 mile radius of either New York City or Newport, five percent live outside the U.S., and the remainder live elsewhere in the country.

According to Zelenick, the club's dues structure has a range of categories that make it affordable for various subgroups within the membership, including Navy personnel, junior members (under 35), and longtime members.

"You might tend to think the membership is all blue bloods, but the real reason people belong is their love of the sea," said Curtis. "You don't have to be wealthy to belong to the club, just have a love of yachting."

Nor do all members own yachts--junior members commonly buy and race boats together--while others crew on members' boats. Unlike the club's first century of sailing, many motor boats now fly the NYYC burgee.

This summer, more than 60 yachts flying that burgee went to Cowes, England, on the Isle of Wight, to participate in the America's Cup Jubilee. The Royal Yacht Squadron served as their hosts, and initiated the event by asking the NYYC to cross flags with them. The event was four years in the planning, and boats from nearly 50 yacht clubs participated. The highlight of the event was a 51-mile race around the Isle of Wight--the same course of the 1851 race that resulted in the founding of the America's Cup.

While some club members sailed across the Atlantic "on their own bottoms," approximately 30 yachts made the Jubilee crossing on a 468-foot transport vessel. Newport Clubhouse Manager Patty Fleming was fascinated with the technology of the partially-submersible transporter. To board the yachts, the transporter vessel was filled with water which allowed the boats to be sailed into it. Once aboard, the boats were tethered to dry dock by divers. The vessel was then emptied of water, leaving the boats safely cradled for the crossing.

"It truly is probably the most prestigious club in the world," said Fleming, who has managed the Newport clubhouse for three years. "The members--from all walks of life--have played a significant part in the nautical world, from weather, to navigation, to exploration."

Under the direction of Curtis, Fleming and Lau work together to make the waterfront and the big city clubhouses "feel" the same to members. To this end, senior staff have an annual retreat to share ideas, problems, and solutions.

Fleming credits "a fabulous staff" with her ability to run Harbour Court in the very busy summer months when a single day may see several events on the grounds. The mansion, which was built in 1906, has 19 rooms and five apartments in its carriage house. In contrast to 44th Street, which serves lunch and dinners only on weekdays, Harbour Court serves three meals a day, seven days a week. Venues include a formal indoor dining room, informal terrace dining, and various event rooms, including the club's original clubhouse from Hoboken, N.J., which now sits on the site.

"It's an impressive gothic structure," said Fleming, who recounted a conversation she'd had with Commodore Charles A. Dana III just before the yachts departed for the America's Cup Jubilee this July.

"He said to me, `imagine how amazing that 150 years ago, three men sat around this exact same clubhouse planning to do the same transatlantic trip we're about to do--and it resulted in the America's Cup,'" said Fleming. "And, it is amazing."