During a recent visit to the Adirondack Museum in Blue Mountain Lake, new York, I had the opportunity to closely examine the sailing canoe Vesper. She isn’t very large, at 15 1/2’ long, with a beam of 30”, weight of only 80 pounds, and 75 square feet of sail on two masts, but in many ways little Vesper was the revolutionary boat that changed the canoeing movement forever. The American Canoe Association had been founded in 1880 by twenty-three “Knights of the Paddle,” and the Buffalo Canoe Club followed two years later. At the 7th Reunion of the ACA, held in August of 1886 on Grindstone Island in the St. Lawrence, J. Henry Rushton’s new design, the Vesper, soundly defeated British challenger Warington Baden-Powell (brother of the founder of the Boy Scouts and Girl Guides) in his Nautilus and firmly established Rushton as America’s leading canoe designer and builder.

Many Vespers were soon built and became fixtures at the top of the fleet in canoe clubs across the northeastern US and Canada. George Kelly’s Sunbeam, Emory Dunston’s Sybaris, and George Bailey’s Lohengrin, all Rushton-built Vesper-types, soon dominated the ACA-class racing at the BCC. These boats had long and successful careers at the BCC, being shown in the fleet list from the 1880’s until the early 1900’s. Large contingents of BCC paddlers and sailors were regular fixtures at annual ACA meets, and the BCC hosted a divisional ACA meet at the Pan- American Exposition in 1901. Ultimately, more extreme racing types evolved within the ACA, while the BCC moved into sailing skiffs, knockabouts, and other more “regular” sailboat types.

To explore further: (a) the Adirondack Museum is 85 miles nE from Utica, a five hour drive from Buffalo, has an excellent website: www.AdirondackMuseum.org, and makes an excellent day trip. (b) Rushton and His Times in American Canoeing by Atwood Manley, Adirondack Museum / Syracuse University Press, 1968, ISBn 0-8156-0141-7 is available from the Adirondack Museum Store online for $19.95 and is a fascinating glimpse into the foundational elements of our sport and our Club, as well as a good read.

2008 Officers
Commodore: Anne S. Allen
Vice Commodore: E. Dennis McCarthy
Rear Commodore: John A. Turner
Fleet Captain: Michael Richter
Secretary: Peg Leous
Treasurer: John G. Mathias Jr.

Immediate Past Commodore: Daniel E. Massing

2008 Directors
Finance: Julie Waldron
Membership: Peter C. Godfrey
Burgee Advertising: David E. Leffler
Entertainment: Peter F. Leonard
Publications/Webmaster: James E. Eagan
House & Grounds: Joseph L. Palumbo Jr.
Sports: Doug Braun
Junior Activities: Larry MacDonald
Annual Burgee Editor: Laurie Wright

Tradition is a word that often comes to when we think of the Canoe Club. For over years traditions have played an important in preserving and passing on that indefinable essence, that “secret sauce” that makes our such a magical place to spend our time.

Traditions take many forms. They might be particular things, such as serenading our chief with the Commodore’s Song, or conducting formal flag ceremonies every major Club event. But many cases, tradition lies in the spirit or sense of something, even as the thing itself changes vastly over time.

Consider the Clambake: Since at least 1903, Canoe Clubbers have ventured out of Abino Bay, around the Point, and up to the shore or “the Wall” at Colborne to enjoy refreshments of various and each other’s company. In the beginning was a campfire cookout near the beached canoes. In its heyday, everything from Lightnings to largest cruising boats brought hundreds to Wall for a huge feast prepared by Club staff. year it was four boats rafting in Port Colborne harbor and sharing potluck.

But no matter how changed over time, the key elements of adventure and fellowship have been at the heart of and sustained the Clambake spirit these many years. This year’s Clambake was one of the best memory. A stiff southwest breeze (traditional), a great race up to Port Colborne, a relaxed friendly cookout on the Wall, and of course wonderful sail home, with our boathouse at coming into sight as we round the Point.

Lake Erie, being one of the top ten largest lakes in the world, is
home to a number of different and exciting events. One of the
most notable is the annual Lake Erie Interclub Cruise. Each year
dozens of different boats from two great countries, the United
States and Canada, gather for one of the most anticipated races of
the sailing season and embark on an adventure whose memories
will last a lifetime.

When the race began in the year 1907, it was not thought of to be
the amazing race that it has become. Originally the race was just
an idea of the Erie Yacht Club for a good time, as well as a voyage
across the lake to Canada in order to participate in the Dominion
Day celebration. Since this time, the club had an organized race
for each new sailing season. This was the spark of creation for the
Interclub Cruise.

Fifty years following the first race across the lake, multiple new
members became involved with the Erie Yacht Club’s race. Those
members were of the Buffalo Yacht Club and the Buffalo Canoe
Club. This 1957 race thanks to the good will and friendly competition
of a few of the Lake’s many clubs, was the origination of the
Lake Erie Interclub Cruise, as it is known today.

This year was considered the fiftieth anniversary of the creation of
the race, even though it also marks the one hundredth anniversary
of the idea. Each of the participating clubs took part in the six-day
race around the eastern portion of Lake Erie enjoying festivities,
great entertainment, and ceremonies at each of the ports along the
way. Not only that, but each sailor has gained an unlimited supply
of memories and stories to distribute of the incredible race that is
the Lake Erie Interclub Cruise.

Click to download: July 2007 Burgee

Click to download: August 2007 Burgee

Go to ‘Quick Find’  and click on 2008 Junior Activities 

PICTURES FROM 2007 

Click on the link to see a PDF with all kinds of pictures from the 2007 Year!

Pictures include July 4th Games, Daycamp 2007, Zoo Day, Olympic Day, Hawaiian Day Crafts, Optis, White and Bronze Sail, Lightning Sailing, and the Sturgeon Lake Regatta.

Junior Activities Pictures

As another level of security measures for the BCC, the Board has approved the installation of secure padlocks that can only be open by issued key. The staff will lock the gates at the end of the work days and the club grounds will remain closed to vehicle traffic (north lot is closed to all pedestrian and vehicle traffic) until the opening of business the next day (or after the weekend in the winter months). You can still access your boats by walking into the club and parking out on the road. The snackbar will reopen for the season the first weekend of Febuary on Saturdays. Carmen can arrange to give you a key to access the North lot.

If you have any concerns regarding this change please contact one of the Flag Officers or Ken in the office.

Winter hours are as follows:

Office Tuesday to Friday 9-4:30
Boatshop Monday to Friday 8-4:30 (subject to change)
Club closed on Saturday and Sundays in the winter except for special events.

Getting time to haul out! Please print the appropriate form out and get it to the Club.

2007 BCC Haul-Out Authorization Form (Members)

2007 BCC Haul-Out Authorization Form (Non-Members)