BIAC June Newsletter
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It's officially summer! Here at BIAC we're enjoying the bay in solo boats. Above, Lili Retelny poses on flat water in beautiful sunshine. Thank you to Renata Perry for the photo! Email your photos to feature in a future newsletter.
Please Volunteer: We want to host a variety of fun social events this summer (once gatherings are allowed) and can use your help, please email Alice to sign up. Ideas include Sculling Derby Days, Olympic celebration, mimosas with the new novices, and more.
We also have jobs around the boathouse in need of your skills! Coming up, volunteer at the sculling boat maintenance day on Sat., June 13 from 8:30-10:30am. Sign up here to help us keep these boats in good condition through our solo-boat-summer.
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Seen here are husband/wife rowers Barbara and Jerry launching in a 2x. They can share a boat because they shelter-in-place together.
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The last two weeks have seen a lot of joyous people as they returned to the water, face covered and 6ft apart. We need to be vigilant about following the county rules, which are evolving frequently. Gobair.org/COVID is updated with the rule changes as they impact us. Currently no gatherings are allowed and everyone must keep their nose and mouth covered on land/dock at BIAC. Thank you for helping to keep BIAC a safe place to enjoy outdoor exercising.
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Please invite your friends to visit our website to sign up for learn-to-scull, learn-to-SUP and learn-to-kayak classes. YOU are our PR team – please help spread the word by sharing this social image and consider taking a class yourself. For members, check out the following options for summer:
- June 10+: Learn more about coastal and open water rowing and how to have fun rowing in rough water! Sign up for open water rowing and participate in a fun open-water race. All members are welcome to participate.
- On June 13-14: If you feel more like a sweep rower than a sculler consider the DeRust weekend, also great for people who rowed long ago and want to get out there again.
- June 18+: This year we are offering sunset SUPs, a perfect date night experience and family kayak outings, for those who want to shelter as a family in the great outdoors.
- June, July & August – For our members who want extra coaching, we have LOTS of options now posted on the website. In the spirit of solo boats, Coach J has revised R2 to Sculling Spectacular. We also offer classes and private lessons via SimplyBook.
- On August 14, BIAC is hosting an Intensive Sculling Camp with Sarah Nevin which will make everyone better at moving a little boat.
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![](https://gobair.org/resources/Newsletter/2006-paddling-land.jpg)
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On a recent sunny/windy afternoon two members and their surfskis were dropped off at Oyster Point and they rode the wave and paddled home. Here is a video of another similar outing. Join the Downwind google group if you want to know when the next outing is planned.
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![](https://gobair.org/resources/Newsletter/2006-Aisha-magazine-spread.jpg)
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Are you curious how COVID-19 and the postponement of the Tokyo Olympics is affecting Olympic-hopeful athletes? Read how it's affecting BIAC-member Aisha Chow. The in-depth article outlines her training experience up to now and how she's preparing for the future.
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![](https://gobair.org/resources/Newsletter/2006-kayak-orientation.jpg)
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As part of the summer of solo boats, every member has access to the club’s kayaks and SUPs once they are certified. Last weekend, ten members were trained and can now use the equipment. BIAC just added six new kayaks to our fleet for those who prefer to sit in the boat.
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![](https://gobair.org/resources/Newsletter/2006-coaches-sculling.gif)
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All of the BIAC coaches have personal sculling experience and many own their own boat. In this summer of sculling, they're practicing what they preach. Check out the above photo montage of Coaches Alice Henderson, Janet Bellantoni, Chris Flynn, Jesús Serrano Cendejas, Kathleen Faust and Jen Aguirre from "back in the day." If you can't see all photos, click on the image to view in your browser.
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BIAC is celebrating 20 years of operation in 2020. The first year was our toughest. We started out with around 50 boats and 100 members officially in January of 2000.
Shortly after BIAC opened its oars, we fielded a competitive eight in the 10th Fall Regatta. Yes, the founders of BIAC started the Fall Regatta - back in 1991. It’s on a hiatus now since 2017, but for over 20 years our Fall Regatta was US Rowing’s final West Coast racing event prior to most clubs heading indoors to erg for the winter. This was the first of many ways that BIAC is well known on the national (and now Olympic) level. Maybe having water than never freezes helps too. Our first Advanced Mens crew is shown above. The one face you can’t see is Sarah, who went on to cox 4 years at Princeton.
From year one BIAC had a paddling program also under the name of Hui Wa’a, led tireless by Mike Martinez. The Surf Ski Championships held up in San Francisco are internationally recognized. Our OC-6 members even traveled to Hawaii for competitions.
Youth programs took a few years to develop, as did our second Candock. Ally Bocchieri was our first junior program coach under the name of Silicon Valley Crew. Next Mike Still took the reins and rebranded the program as Norcal Crew. Highlights include trips to Junior Nationals in Tennessee and Ohio. Our older sister club (Los Gatos Rowing Club) provided worthy competition locally, nationally, and even on Rt 80 while traveling to Nationals.
In 2005 BIAC held its first Corkscrew Regatta, a 15km Holiday race around Middle Bair Island. The Corkscrew Regatta has been held every year since then (except 2012 where the levee breaches and Flow Restrictors were under construction) and in sum total has donated around $20K to Second Harvest Food Bank.
For 6 years BIAC survived with a sole Candock and an aging fleet of live aboard tenants that steadily shrank as BIAC’s membership became financially buoyant. Our residents supplied more than revenue though. They provided much amusing diversity, 24 hour security by presence, and a lot of maintenance expertise.
BIAC Circa 2006 at right. Note the ‘K’ shape of our Candocks, the smaller ramp, and the still open Haul Out pit that is now our Observation Deck. And the South Lot was also occupied by Frey’s Trucking in our first decade.
Finally BIAC was able to begin purchasing new boats and a second Candock. Funds were raised through the Fall Regatta and a Winter Dinner auction that helped fuel our continued growing passion for having 365 water access. Our volunteer culture was strong, membership remained at $400/year, and our rowing and paddling programs continued to grow. BIAC had every problem a boathouse would like to have, and the best was yet to come.
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![](https://gobair.org/resources/Newsletter/2006-new-Hudson-1x.jpg)
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New Hudson 1x
BIAC has added a beautiful, new-to-us Hudson 1x, best for rowers who weight 145lbs to 175lbs. Click here to see your 1x boat options and click here to see where they are located in the yard. |
![](https://gobair.org/resources/Newsletter/2006-Mike-Sullivan-wherries.jpg)
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Thank you, Mike Sullivan!
As we were busy prepping the fleet of 1xs for BIAC adults and Norcal juniors, we realized we needed more boats. Mike Sullivan was called for help and soon delivered four wherries! Thank you, Mike, for your long term support of BIAC! |
![](https://gobair.org/resources/Newsletter/2006-south-lot-signout.jpg)
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South Dock Sign-In
All boats who go out without a coach are required to sign out and in. Now that we have two docks, for your convenience we have two sign-in locations. To facilitate compliance, both are located near the dock. Take a look and fill out the log! |
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- Operations Calendar – Check the operations calendar before driving to BIAC. Starting in June, we are adding more adult and junior programming and every effort will be made to keep the calendar up-to-date. Click on the calendar link on the homepage or add it to your own google calendars. Please remember that programs have priority over equipment (i.e. please don’t take a SUP out just before a Learn-to-SUP class) and if possible avoid the busiest hours at BIAC to maintain social distance. There will be many new participants and potential members in summer months, please be kind to novices :)
- Guest Policy – A reminder that the use of the dock and facility is for members. If a member wants to launch a personal craft, such as a kayak that they store at home, that is allowed. If a member wants to bring others to use the dock the guest rules apply: a signed waiver is required and a $10 use fee. The policy is here.
- Do you own oars? Please label your oars with your full name, it makes it easier for when they are accidentally left out. Also, soon a volunteer will check the back of the oar boxes for abandoned oars and move them to the north lot to free up space in the main private oar lockers.
- Put Slings Away or they blow away! Slings on the wherry dock are put away after each use. One set of slings should be left up in the main yard and one set should be left up in the south dock washing area.
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Show off your boat handling and trick skills in Derby Days on Sunday, June 28.
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- Open Water Racing Event #1 – June 19, 5:30-7pm. Meet at 5:30pm to discuss the course and sort out boats followed by a friendly race around buoys. Entry is free and open to all members in solo crafts designed for open water adventures. Please register here. Email Alice if you would like to help with the event.
- Derby Days – Sunday, June 28 from 10am to Noon. Come test your new skills in a 1x. There will be backwards racing, boat tricks, impressive stunts and epic (intentional) fails. Join us to see where your limits are. Please sign up here so we can better plan.
- Casualties of COVID – The 4th of July Redwood City celebration and fireworks have been canceled and BIAC will not be hosting an event this year. Also, Masters Nationals Rowing Championships 2020 are canceled. They will be hosted in Oakland in 2021.
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Thank you Mike Martinez for 20 years of service to BIAC 18 of them as a board member. Your passion and knowledge for paddling is unsurpassed. Thank you Cindy Lee for your generosity and calmness and years of coaching young people. We wish you well as you continue to teach the future of paddling.
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Many rowers of a 1x find a mirror helpful, but it is difficult to learn. Start in your home hallway, walking backwards using the mirror to see and your hands on a wall for balance. Once you are confident, alternating looking backward with the mirror and forward, then use the mirror to walk backwards around other familiar spaces in your home. Once you are very confident on land, then move to the water but transition slowly to using solely the mirror. Like in a car, there are blind spots and you need to find those before relying too much on the use of a mirror. |
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