Pleon Fall Sailing is Awesome For Building Skills!

Every fall season Pleon's deep bench of talented coaches get 420 and Optimist sailors back on the water for race development clinics. The Pleon fall program is designed to improve and develop racing skills of Opti and 420 sailors when the breeze is up. Please be aware this program is not for those new to sailing. The prerequisite is that the sailor is comfortable in sailing in 10-15 knots of wind.

The curriculum covers boat handling techniques, sail trim, boat speed, tactics and strategy. Sailors get lots of attention and coaching feedback. Practices are offered for all levels of racing sailors in a clinic format that is more structured and rigorous than the summer program experience. Having fun will still be a key element of the program but emphasis is placed on the sharing of learning new skills and racing techniques with the goal of challenging each other to improve and develop racing acumen.

Registration Link

Core Coaches
Pleon will utilize a core group of coaches throughout the Fall all who are experienced with Pleon and the Fall program and also pull in other coaches.

Luciano Gambaro
Luciano is an international, World Sailing certified coach, born and raised in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He has extensive experience sailing and coaching Optis. This is his seventh summer coaching Opti racing. He has worked at Baltimore Sailing Center, in Ecuador at Puerto Lucia YC and this is his second summer at Pleon. As a sailor, he had the opportunity to race in many international championships including the Opti North Americans in Texas and the South American Championships, where he finished at the top of the rankings. After Optis, Luciano has sailed in different classes such as Cadet, Laser and J/24. In addition to Opti coaching, he works at his family's law firm. Luciano is very happy to return to Pleon this year to teach a sport he loves.

Meehan Irose
Meehan is a student at Umass Amherst studying economics and political science. Before attending Umass, he went to and sailed at the University of Vermont. He grew up sailing in Manchester and raced throughout high school. He was an instructor at Manchester Sailing Association for five years and at Sandy Bay for one. Meehan is now excited to continue his passion for coaching at Pleon and looks forward to a great summer!

Kyle Easton
Kyle recently graduated from Hobart and William Smith Colleges and is entering his first year at Roger Williams Law School in the Fall. He grew up racing in Salem sound and raced 420s at Pleon during high school. At Hobart he sailed for all four years and was named an all MAISA skipper and college sailings sportsman of the year his senior year. During those four years he also worked as a 420 race coach at Manchester Sailing Association and Sandy Bay Yacht Club. Kyle is excited to return to Pleon as a coach this year!

Peter Thibido
Peter Thibido is a recent graduate of Hobart & William Smith Colleges, where he was a four-year member of the Varsity Sailing Team. Peter currently lives and works in Boston and has coached the program at Pleon for a few years now. Peter grew up sailing at Annisquam Yacht Club and is a graduate of Tabor Academy. Peter is looking forward to another great Fall at Pleon Yacht Club.

Austen Freda
Austen Freda is a recent graduate of Tufts University, where he was a four year member of the Varsity Sailing Team. Austen has just accepted a job at Boston Scientific and will be continuing coaching with us after a great summer on the weekends. Austen grew up in Rye, New York learning to sail and race at American Yacht Club and is a graduate of The Christchurch School.

Jared Rodriguez
Jared is a longtime member of the Pleon should season team. Jared is a Social Studies teacher as well as the Head Sailing Coach at his alma mater, St John's Prep. Jared is also the Program Director at Annisquam Yacht Club in the summers and brings a wealth of experience to our Fall program. While not on the water Jared enjoys mountain biking with his dog Olive.

Pleon Program Director, Kieran O'Connell will handle all registrations, logistics, and communications remotely. Each day we will have a designated Lead Instructor that will be the point person at Pleon and be the acting Pleon Director for the day.

Class Availability
Registrants for Racing Classes must have some sailing experience, Intermediate and Beginner classes have more flexibility. Classes will be registered on a first come first serve basis. Class sizes will be limited to 6 boats per coach. As more sailors register for events we will add coaches and availability as needed/possible.

Weather Policy
Sailors are required to wear gear appropriate for fall sailing conditions with cold water and air temperatures. Sailors must bring a PFD, proper footwear, gloves, hat, water, and snacks. Drysuits or wetsuits are required for practice.

Safety is a priority and practices will be held on land if two of the following are accurate:

• The wind is sustained above 20 mph
• Air temperature is below 30 degrees
• Water temperature is below 40 degrees
• The coach deems sailing conditions unsafe.
• Coaches have the authority to keep any sailor on land that they do not deem ready or prepared for the conditions.

Pleon Yacht Club Membership
All Registrants must be members of Pleon, Pleon membership costs $50 annually. This fee will be paid on the first registration for each sailor each calendar year. If you were part of Pleon this summer, your membership is still valid.

Class Schedules
All Classes meet 11AM – 4PM
Regatta Schedules will be emailed out ahead of each event.

Program Fees
Weekend Classes are $75.00 per person per day. If you plan on using a charter boat the fee is an additional $25.00 per day of sailing. During registration, you must select which days you will require a charter boat. Boats will be reserved on a first come first serve basis.

When registering if you select that you have a private boat your price will automatically go down $25.00.

Regattas
Pleon will support the following events:
Rhode Island Opti State Championship, September 18 & 19th at Sail Newport
Halloween Howl (Opti, Laser, c420) October 23 & 24th at Sail

Regatta Logistics
Pleon will help with regatta logistics as best as possible but it is ultimately the parent's responsibility to transport sail boats and coach boats. For each event we will have a logistics Google Document to track everything that needs to get done. Parent involvement is a must!

There may be additional regatta fees depending on cost to attend events, all of this will be transparent and communicated well ahead of time.

Communication
When registering please use the best email address to receive communication. Once you enter the email address on Clubspot it is very difficult to go in and change. We will also utilize the clubspot text feature and WhatsApp. WhatsApp details will be sent out at the beginning of the Fall Season.

Coach Boat Launching
In order to best protect all of our equipment coach boats must be launched and put back on trailers every day. The fall weather can be very tough on our assets and we will be asking for parent volunteers to assist in this each week. There will be an excel document. We will need both vehicles with hitches and people willing to drive the tow vehicle to launch the boats.

COVID Policy:
Given the rapidly changing public health outlook and the COVID-related restrictions in Massachusetts, this fall will require minimal restrictions:

Pleon will adhere to all CDC guidelines and may change our policy at any time. Currently we will move into the fall with the same guidelines we had for the summer.

• Masks will NOT be required for any outdoor activities, both ashore and on the water.
• Masks will NOT be required in the clubhouse, provided the roll-up doors are fully open.
• The club will remain 'open-air' at all times unless inclement weather dictates that the clubhouse be closed for safety reasons. In these circumstances, everyone in the clubhouse will be required to wear a mask.
• If the weather forecast indicates inclement weather that will require sailors to be on-shore and inside, Pleon reserves the right to cancel classes for the day. We will alert all families at least one hour before.
• All Pleon coaches and instructors will be vaccinated.
• Daily health attestations will NOT be required.
• If a sailor is sick, please don't come to Pleon. If there is any chance they have COVID, please get tested and let the program director know immediately (Kieran@pleon.org) (Cell) 978-325-2551

Parent Expectation
Pleon fosters a strong sense of independence and parents are not allowed past the "Guardian Gate" -- the swinging gate at the entrance to Pleon. Sailors are to rig without parental help.

It is also important to know that Pleon leases land from the Eastern. We have the right to the docks and ramp only during designated programming time. This access to the EYC property does not extend to Pleon parents. Parents are not permitted to use the docks, ramp, crane or Eastern parking areas. Parents and sailors should respect the Privacy of the Eastern Yacht Club and Pleon's relationship with the Eastern.

Pricing
All Fall Program classes are $75.00 per day per person. Pleon also charges $25.00 per day for a charter fee. This $25.00 will automatically be deducted at checkout if you select a private boat.

Regatta Days will be billed out at a higher rate depending on final expenses. All Expenses will be budgeted ahead of time and be transparent.

Cancelation Policy
Due to high demand and COVID restrictions on class sizes once you are registered for any class/session you are committed to that day and time.

If you register for a certain day and can not make it/miss it that registration is not transferable to another day.

For any questions regarding our cancelation policy please contact Kieran O'Connell
kieran@pleon.org