Click on photo for more information
Some areas of Pentwater Lake have been dredged, but ....
depths in the channel and at the entrance to Lake Michigan are still problematic for some boats. Channel depths are measured every few weeks and the latest readings are posted here. This is a direct link to the latest mapping.
Weather Information
PYC weather station (under repair)
Latest Today's summary
Mears weather station
Latest Today's summary Graphic
National Data Buoy Center
All South Ludington Big Sable Point
Upper Great Lakes Observing System
Courtesy of Professor Guy Meadows, University of Michigan and Michigan Tech University
What Lake Michigan ship is that?
Lake Michigan Water Levels
Great Lakes Water Level Dashboard
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Ensign race start, July 25, 2009 Photo by Don VanZile
Harken provided support and gifts for the Little Point Sable Race. Thanks, Harken! September 16, 2013 Joan VanZile sent the September Newsletter a couple of weeks ago. Sorry for the posting delay. August 11, 2013 Mike Hall of Manitou Boats found some obsolete links on the Links page. These have been corrected. Thanks, Mike. August 11, 2013 The July Board minutes, and an addendum, have been posted. August 6, 2013 
Roseman Click on the image for a larger version. Why didn't the sun seem to be in the center of the channel? More details about the sunset are here, with an answer to the date issue here. August 4, 2013 Lisa Baker has sent some very nice pictures of the Texas BBQ Thursday Night Dinner. August 3, 2013 A bunch of new pictures have just been sent:
July 28, 2013 Joan VanZile has sent the August Newsletter. July 20, 2013 Mike LaHaye sent some Back From the Mac photos. July 19, 2013 Chris Conroy sent a nice picture of Fr Sam Morrison blessing the fleet, and another of July 4. July 4, 2013 Kevin Dolle took a very nice picture of the finishing leg of last night's Ensign race. Thanks, Kevin and Michele. July 3, 2013 Alec Peterhans has sent the 2013 Wooden Boat Show registration form. As always, it is beautiful. I urge you to look at it, even if you don't have a wooden boat. July 3, 2013Joan VanZile has sent the July Newsletter. June 20, 2013 Nancy Ceton has sent the May Board minutes. June 2, 2013 The June newsletter is posted, and information is posted about the 2013 Venetian Night. May 12, 2013 Nancy Ceton has sent the April Board minutes. May 7, 2013 Nancy Ceton has sent the April 13 Board meeting minutes. May 4, 2013 Nancy Ceton has sent the March 9 Board meeting minutes. May 4, 2013 The VanZile's have sent the May Newsletter. May 4, 2013 Here is Commodore Chip Gwillim's welcoming letter. April 29, 2013 Meet our new manager, Trudi Dillingham. Many of you already know her, but here is her picture and background. April 28, 2013 Here is an update on the south seawall construction project, which is proceeding very nicely. March 15, 2013 Chip Gwillim has sent the 2013 calendar. A link to this, and all calendars since 1999, is kept in the Table of Contents in the left pane of this page. October 17, 2012 The September Board minutes have been received from Nancy Ceton, and are posted. October 1, 2012 Dick Toner brought me a CD with Don VanZile's photos of Andy and Joan Nobles' Chili Cookoff. September 18, 2012 The July Board minutes are now posted. September 12, 2012The August Board minutes have been posted. August 31, 2012 The September Newsletter has been posted. August 29, 2012 Dick Toner has sent photos for: August 29, 2012 Back From the Mac and Kentucky Derby Party photos from Bill Bluhm have been posted. Also, here is a pre-race photo of three Ensigns from Gay Birchard. August 29, 2012 Revised Bloomer Cup Announcement and Race Instruction are here. Thanks, Darren Bowling. August 27, 2012 The Wooden Boat Show winners are:
August 10, 2012 Mike LaHaye has sent excellent photos from the Back From The Mac event. August 9, 2012 We had a great night for the sunset in the center of the channel. Here are some pictures, and an attempt to answer the FAQ, namely Why doesn't it look like the sun is setting in the center of the channel?. August 4, 2012 Frode Maaseidvaag's excellent seminar on Spinnakers has been posted. August 4, 2012 Frode Maaseidvaag has collated the Standing Rules. Thanks for an otherwise thankless job. Dick Toner has submitted some great photos of the Back From the Mac party. August 3, 2012 The August Newletter is now available. July 30, 2012 The latest channel depth chart is here. Please pass this information along to any concerned about boating to Pentwater. July 22, 2012 Dick Toner has sent the following photos June 28, 2012 The July Newletter from Joan VanZile has been published. June 27, 2012 Alec Peterhans has sent the 2012 Wooden Boat Show registration form. You should look at this, even if you don't have a wooden boat. Alec's work is, as always, impeccable. June 18, 2012 Nancy Cetyon's May Board meeting minutes have been posted. June 3, 2012 The June Newsletter from Joan VanZile has been posted. May 23, 2012 The Powerpont slides from three sailing seminars have been posted. Please see the Table of Contents in the left column. Also, Dick Toner's pictures from the Spring cleanup and Kentucky Derby party are posted. Finally, the March and April Board minutes are posted. April 27, 2012 Last night, Jack Patterson gave a wonderful seminar about Starts and Finishes. Jack has started and finished more that 4000 races, and shared his knowledge generously. A repeat of the presentation will be scheduled later this year. April 27, 2012 The very informative May Newsletter is here. April 18, 2012 Sailing seminars have been scheduled for this season. They should be of interest to anyone who enjoys sailing, or is at all curious about sailing and racing. The schedule is here. April 18, 2012 Commodore Kathy Ribbens has completed the initial version of the 2012 Calendar. April 12, 2012 Sarah Russ, in Mrs Fowler's Fourth Grade class at Pentwater School suggested this article on boating safety. Thanks, Sarah and Mrs Fowler. October 16, 2011 Dick Toner has sent pictures of the MI-MSU party. They must have been taken before the end of the game, because I don't see any tears. October 13, 2011 Gay Birchard has sent the updated Annual Meeting minutes. September 25, 2011 Thanks to the hard work of the Flag Officers, volunteers and staff, this was a stellar year for the PYC. Dick Toner provided a CD with photos of many events. Here is a listing of all 2011 photos:
September 5, 2011 Will Wright has sent a great picture of the sunset down the channel, and Bill Bluhm has a large array of pictures from the Wooden Boat Show. August 4, 2011 The August Newsletter is now posted. July 13, 2011 Alec Peterhans has sent the Wooden Boat Show Registration Form. As usual, it is beautiful enough that you should view it, even if you don't have a wooden boat. June 29, 2011 The July Newsletter is now available. June 27, 2011 Secretary Gay Birchard has sent the May 14 Board meeting minutes. June 16, 2011 The 2011 Calendar of Events has been posted. This is always available by following the Calendar of Events link in the Table of Contents on the left side fo this page. June 3, 2011 The 2011 menu is now posted. May 29, 2011 The March Board meeting minutes, the draft of the April minutes, and the June Newsletter have been posted. May 5, 2011 Gay Birchard has sent the draft copy of the March 12 Board meeting. May 1, 2011 About 50 women met at the PYC to celebrate the Royal Wedding. The event was organized by Marsha LaHaye, Sarah Johnson and Dolores Sturr, and used the new video projector that was recently installed by Frod Maaseidvaag and Mike LaHaye. Pictures were taken by Dick Toner and Mike LaHaye. November 8, 2010 Marilyn Maaseidvaag has sent a draft of the October Board meeting minutes. November 7, 2010 The Flower Committee worked to end its great season. Photos are here. September 6, 2010 Happy Labor Day. Joe Hughes sent some dramatic photos of waves at the Pierhead at sunset. September 4, 2010 Here are Dick Toner's photos of the Wooden Boat Show. September 3, 2010 Bill Bluhm's photos of the Wooden Boat Show are here. September 1, 2010 Exhibitor Ron Morzfeld has sent some excellent photos from the Wooden Boat Show. September 1, 2010 Joan VanZile has sent the September Newsletter. August 30. 2010 Marilyn Masseidvaag sent the draft of the August board meeting minutes. August 29, 2010 A sharp-looking Zodiac has been added to the classifieds. August 23, 2010 Dick Toner's pictures of the Chili Cookoff are here and Bill Bluhm's Back From The Mac photos are here. August 22, 2010 Your webmaster goofed, and didn't include all of the Commodore's Ball photos. They are now posted. August 16, 2010 Dick Toner's excellent pictures of the Commodore's Ball and Homecoming have been posted. August 2. 2010 The August Newletter has been posted. July 12, 2010 The July 10 Flag officers / New Member Cocktail Party was very well attended, and very successful. Dick Toner's pictures are here. July 1, 2010 For wooden boat fans, here is an interesting story with links to the PYC. July 1, 2010 Jim Burch in Thunderbolt won first in Division 6 of the 2010 Queen's Cup!! Barry Miller's Miller Time was 11th in Division 9, Art Haan's Sojurn was 9th in Division 11, and Rick Williams' Bailout was 10th in Division 11. Congratulations to all. Thunderbolt's crew
July 1, 2010 The Menu Specials and the Newsletter have been posted. June 22, 2010 The weekly menu specials are posted. See the Menu link in the Table of Contents. June 19, 2010 The Wooden Boat Show registration form has been posted. June 14, 2010 This week's menu specials have been posted. June 5, 2010 Next week's menu specials are posted. Links to specials will be listed in the Table of Contents on the left side of this page. June 1, 2010 Joan VanZile has sent the June Newsletter. May 31, 2010 The House Committee, and Manager Debbie Kilinski, have sent a list of Menu Specials for this week. The plan is for this to be updated weekly. There is a link in the Table of Contents on the left side of this page. May 23, 2010 The current Menu has been posted. May 23, 2010 A list of the 2010 Staff members has been posted. May 11, 2010 Don VanZile has sent details of the upcoming Boater Safety Class. May 9, 2010 The PYC and Mears weather stations are back online for this beautiful Mother's Day (and, hopefully, longer). May 8, 2010 The Draft of the April Board meeting minutes has been posted. April 25, 2010 The May Newsletter has been posted. Thanks Joan VanZile, Marilyn Steiner et al. April 25, 2010 Commodore Bill and Dianne Bullard have sent the 2010 Calendar. It looks like a full and great year for our 75th. April 17, 2010 Marilyn Maaseidvaag, our new Secretary, has sent the minutes of the March Board meeting. Welcome, Marilyn. January 16, 2010 A Norwegian company named Scandia has proposed a very large windfarm just off our lakeshore. An opposition group, POWER, has formed. Their website is very informative, and allows individual to register and donate. There is also another website that is intended to provide questions and answers, and reference information. December 21, 2009 Kathy Ribbens sent the October and November Board minutes a couple of weeks ago, and they are finally posted. November 11, 2009 The Bylaws Committee has recommended changes in the Standing Rules for 2010. These include:
October 7, 2009 Kathy Ribbens has sent the August and September Board meeting minutes. September 11, 2009 More than 50 people, aboard about 16 boats of all flavors, enjoyed teh Labor Day rafting party. Mike LaHaye's pictures are here. September 5, 2009 The September Newsletter has been posted. September 4, 2009 The PYC weather station information is now available online. The links are available using the "Weather links" listing in the Table of Contents. Links have also been added to the top of this home page. September 4, 2009 The Wooden Boat Show was a great success, in spite of the less-than-perfect weather. Sue Squire has a full writeup here. September 4, 2009 Will Wright has sent a photo of the sunset down the channel on September 10 (see the links to his other photos below). As he says, "not bad if you'd never seen Wedneday." August 27, 2009 Mike LaHaye has sent some photos of the Flag Officer's Dinner Dance. August 25, 2009 Those of you whom have been following this website for awhile will recall that Will Wright was a professional photographer whose career included using celestial events in photos. His picture of the sun setting behind the Empire State Building is here. Will's pictures of the August 2009 sunset down the channel are here and here.. They were taken with a Leica R5 with a 280mm lens. The film (!!!) was Fuji superia extra 400 exposed about 1/250th at f8 and scanned with a Nikon Coolscan to a 55mb file. Quoting Will, the second photo has "...some deft photoshop work by my son." Thanks, Will. August 18, 2009 Kathy Ribbens has sent the July Board meeting minutes and Annual Meeting minutes . August 10, 2009 David Bluhm has placed his SeaRay on the market. Check out the classified ads. August 10, 2009 Last Friday's Annual Meeting was excellent. Your new Flag Officers and Directors are:
August 10, 2009 The accepted version of the 2008 Annual Meeting minutes have been posted August 7, 2009 Bill Bluhm sent a couple of Sunset in the channel pictures, taken August 5. August 5, 2009 Mike LaHaye's pictures of last Sunday's Rafting Party are now available. August 3, 2009 The August Newsletter has been posted. July 28, 2009 John Sturr sent more than 50 outstanding photos of the Ensigns and Pentwater Lake. You will also enjoy his website. Thanks, John. July 28, 2009 Don VanZile sent an excellent photo of the start of last Saturday's Ensign race. Here are his slightly abridged comments:
July 26, 2009 Friday's Back From The Mac party was a great success, thanks to the efforts of Bill Bluhm, event chair, and all of the volunteers. Bill's photos are here. July 24, 2009 The June Board minutes have been posted. July 23, 2009 Thunderbolt finishes third Nearly all of the Mac racers came up the West Michigan coast, and last weekend we were treated to a steady (if slow) parade of boats just offshore. Jim Burch and Thunderbolt represented the PYC very well, finishing third of 18 boats in section 6. The crew included:
Congratulations!! Completer Section 6 results are here. July 21, 2009 The women's Sunfish Fleet had a very enjoyable sail today, joined by a couple of future world-class sailors. Pictures are here. July 14, 2009 Peter Blacklock's seminar was, as usual, very enjoyable and informative. Pictures of the event are here. July 14, 2009 Today, the Women's Sunfish Fleet is hosting a seminar by Peter and Mhairi Blacklock of Muskegon. This entertaining and informative event will start at 11:30 AM, and will be followed by lunch at the PYC. The Sunfishers will sail after lunch. All PYC members and guests are welcome. A handout from Peter is here. He refers to the Sunfish rigging site, which is here. July 7, 2009 You now have a great opportunity to buy a chair. The form is here. July 7, 2009 Kathy Ribbens has sent the draft copy of the June Board meeting minutes. July 2, 2009 The very informative July Newsletter is now available. July 1, 2009 Here is a summary of the PYC finishes for the 2009 Queen's Cup. THE THREE PENTWATER BOATS THAT FINISHED ALL TOOK FLAGS!! Thunderbolt, skippered by Jim Burch, finished 2nd in Division 5, Condor, skippered by Bill Bluhm, was 2nd in Division 6, and Bailout, skippered by Rick Williams, has been awarded 3rd place in Division 11. More than 200 boats competed in the 14 divisions of this overnight race from Milwaukee to Muskegon. Only the Muskegon, South Shore, and Milwaukee Yacht Clubs brought home more trophies than the PYC. For a small-town club like the PYC to bring home three flags is an amazing accomplishment. The PYC was also represented by Sojourn, skippered by Art Haan. The light airs of this year's race prevented Sojourn from finishing. Crew members included: Thunderbolt Jim Burch, David Nobles, Tom Blackburn, Ken Davis, Micky Stejskal, and Mark Rowe Condor Bill Bluhm, David Bluhm, Steve Bluhm, Patrick Bluhm, Courtney Bluhm, Lex Urick, Frank Leinbach, Jason Leinbach Bailout Rick Williams, Rob Williams, Steve McMahon and Ryan Cardneau Sojurn Art Haan, Russ Murphy and Bill Walker Bill Bluhm adds: "This is the 5th flag we have won in the last 7 years. (including one year we did not race) (two firsts, one second, one third, and one fourth) I am very proud of my crew and it"s a tribute to Condor, a very fast old boat." Jill Williams points out that this is the first time that Rick has placed in the Queen's Cup. Also, this is the first year that they have owned this boat. Regarding Thunderbolt, Jim Burch says "We've been pretty fortunate in the Queen's Cup. This is our 14th flag." Jim also has four flags in the Chicago-Mackinac race. Pictures from Art Haan are here. CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL. July 1, 2009 Kathy Ribbens has sent the May Board meeting minutes. June 29, 2009 Mike LaHaye sent pictures of yesterday's Flag Officers' Fleet Review. June 28, 2009 Two PYC boats finished high in the 2009 Queen's Cup Race. Thunderbolt, skippered by Jim Burch, finished 2nd in Division 5, and Condor, skippered by Bill Bluhm, was 2nd in Division 6. More than 200 boats competed in the 14 divisions of this overnight race from Milwaukee to Muskegon. Only the Muskegon, South Shore, and Milwaukee Yacht Clubs brought home more trophies than the PYC--pretty amazing. June 28, 2009 The Spring Series for the Ensign Fleet is finished. The winners are
The complete results are here. Congratulations to all. June 12, 2009 The Bylaws Committee has made additional proposals for approval at the Annual Meeting. Please read them and the document describing the rationale for the changes. Suggestions and comments are welcomed. June 6, 2009 Kathy Ribbens has sent the draft copy of the May Board meeting minutes. June 2, 2009 Last Tuesday, Peter Blacklock gave his customarily excellent seminar. The following are documents from that: Thanks, Peter and Mhairi June 2, 2009 The 2009 menus are now posted. Follow the Menu link in the left column. To paraphrase the Chicago election slogan, Eat early and eat often. May 28, 2009 The June Newsletter has been posted. May 14, 2009 The Don't Miss the Boat party is Saturday, May 23. May 13, 2009 Preliminary menu information is here. May 10, 2009 From House Committee chairman Don VanZile: Those of you who have been to dinner at the PYC on the opening Friday or Saturday are aware that we have a regular menu with entre' items ranging from an expensive steak dinner to a bowl of Salmon Chowder for those who prefer something lighter. The regular menu is not simplified or a partial menu. Be sure to check every page of the regular menu, there are a couple of lighter fare items on the last page. The regular menu is posted on this internet site. [Real Soon Now] In addition to that regular menu we have specials which you should discuss with your server. This gives you a chance to interact with staff and provides a personal touch that is not always present when the specials are posted on a bulletin board. For appetizers last week we had Deep Fried Asparagus as an unlisted special. There will usually also be one unlisted entre' available as a special. Last week it was a Bow Tie Pasta dish. On Friday and Saturday, May15 and 16 there will be a special Grilled Chicken Breast/Vegetable Medley that will be very appealing to eye, taste and wallet. If you are on a special diet please discuss with your waiter what your needs are and Chef Helenhouse will make proposals and then come up with a special dish for you. That individual attention will set us apart from many of the restaurants in the area. For those not on diets, the desserts have been memorable with a selection to choose from, and every one of the choices was excellent. We look forward to seeing you at the club. May 10, 2009 Bill Bluhm has passed along his photos of the 2008 Queen's Cup and Wooden Boat Show. Thanks, Bill. May 8, 2009 A draft of the April Board meeting minutes was sent by Kathy Ribbens. May 8, 2009 Marilyn Steiner has written an interesting history of the PYC from 1976 to the present. Some other history information may be accessed here. May 7, 2009 Here is the full Sailing Seminar schedule From Bill Bluhm: Our first Sailing Seminar will held at the Yacht Club on Tuesday, May 12, 6:00 pm The Topic will be: Race Starts, and protecting your lead on the race course. Jack Patterson will present the seminar and will be discussing various pre-start tactics to cross the line on time and in the lead. Methods to keep your lead over other boats by course selection, covering, observing wind shifts, and positioning yourself on the course will be covered. We have all watched Jack's transom ahead of us, come to the seminar to learn his "tricks of the trade" to get ahead of him. Plans are to gather at the Brown Bear after the seminar. . May 4, 2009
April 13, 2009 The Apparel Committee has stablished a relationship with a web-based company that allows online purchase of a variety of items with the PYC logo. Follow the Apparel online" link in the lefthand column. April 2, 2009 Current weather conditions for Mears, and the PYC (Real Soon Now) are available. Click the Weather link in the left hand column. April 2, 2009 Kathy Ribbens has sent the draft of the March Board minutes. February 5, 2009 Milt Pugsley recently visited Puerto Rico, and sent nice photos of the Club Nautico de San Juan, and his burgee exchange. February 5, 2009 Barry Miller has agreed to put the interesting sialing links that he finds on a page. Thanks, Barry. January 3, 2009 Barry Miller sent a link to an excellent PowerPoint presentation regarding the 2009 Racing Rules changes. This was cited on the C&C website, and is highly recommended. The changes in Section C are especially important. Why would anyone want to live in Oceana County?
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