SYC 1960 - Note all the moored boats
Welcome to Shawnee Yacht Club

Since 1941, SYC has promoted sailing on Lake Shawnee for the recreational benefit of the local community. In addition to the opportunity to sail on beautiful Lake Shawnee, the club provides: free sailing lessons for those new to the sport, sailboats for members to use, a fenced boatyard with a boat ramp, several docks (provided by Parks and Rec), a storage shed for equipment, sailing activities, racing, and social gatherings.

Questions?  -  Come Join Us

Current News
Learn to Sail
02 Jun 2025

"Introduction to Sailing" sessions are held Wednesday evenings, June through August. Come join the fun. We provide the boats.

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Five-Year Master Plan
12 Apr 2025

SYC has presented Parks and Recreation with a Five-Year Master Plan for improving our sailing facilities. The plan aims to increase sailing activity on Lake Shawnee and get SYC back on a more sustainable footing. We are currently negotiating with P+R staff for their support in moving forward with individual items in the plan. SYC's costs for some of these improvements will be substantial. Please consider making a contribution to help us with these facility improvements.

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One of Our Own in The Top 100
02 Mar 2025

Former Commodore and current SYC Resident Agent Eric Kjorlie was featured in the 2nd quarter 2023 Top 100 Lawyers publication. 



Topeka, Forbes Field
74°F - Partly Cloudy
Wind
WNW 8 G 25 mph
Humidity
76%
At
11:53 AM
Coming Events

Racing & Group Sailing
Sundays, 2:00pm-5:30pm
Wednesdays, 5:30pm-Sunset

  • 7/2, No Lessons, 5:30 pm-Sunset, SYC
  • 7/4, 4th of July Activities, TBD, SYC
  • 7/6, Sun Racing & Group Sailing, 2:00pm-5:30pm, SYC
  • 8/3, Sun Racing & Group Sailing, 2:00pm-5:30pm, SYC
Mark's Racing Blog
Average Wind Velocity
I've figured out how Kansas gets its average wind of 12 MPH. It either blows 0 or it blows 24, average 12 MPH. According to the wuderground.com wind stats, the velocity at 3 PM was 18 gusting to 26. Before the start of the 1st race Brian Turnbull capsized. (Remember, he is the one who turtled last week.) His comment today was that the boats right much quicker if you can stand on the bottom board. About one minute before the start, Joe Santos capsized his 420 nearly on the starting line. Fortunately, he drifted clear. Unfortunately he flip-flopped it 3 times before his crew figured out to hang on the low side as it righted so it wouldn't flip the other way again. It was a time consuming lesson for Joe and he missed the first race. Tony and his crew Zach were off like a shot with Mark close behind. The extra weight really helped Tony. Mark happened to be on the right side when a shift came thru, letting him round first. Tony then stuck his boom in the water trying to jibe. Nice save, Tony! But the race was then out of his reach.

For the second race Brian and Andrew Meyer wisely headed to the dock. Tony and Mark both started well however the extra weight let Tony pull away easily. Mark needed an excuse to loose so he "let" his boat blow over. It was one of those slow speed deals where the boat just shudders to a stop in the puff, turns sideways and then just blows over, even with the sail completely out. Mark couldn't get his feet out of the straps and had a moment when he thought he was going head first into the sail, but it didn't happen. The race was over with Tony and Joe disappearing over the horizon.

Enough was enough and we were ready to call it a day.

Once again Don and Adeline Towle and assorted relatives were our race committee. Thanks guys
In cooperation with

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