November 2025
From the Helm
We hope you’ve been enjoying this beautiful fall on the water and along the shoreline. This year, we sailed from summer through fall aboard the classics, and now we’re looking ahead to a winter of restoration work, welcoming new vessels, and, of course, another great season of sailing next summer.
Seasons of Sailing
This summer and fall, we enjoyed nearly twenty classics races on Thursday and Friday evenings. Once the southerly fills in, the classics take to Oyster Bay for racing that feels like stepping back in time.
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On weekends, the Moonbeams, Thistles, and the Kidd battled on the Great South Bay. And as the season shifted, the Shields fleet carried the momentum into fall, closing out another spirited stretch of racing on the water.
For its third season, the CI Bird Sanctuary led citizen science birding trips aboard our vessels. Over the summer, students and community members boarded Chicane and Tartan to learn to identify and survey migratory birds in Oyster Bay and Cold Spring Harbor. CIBS partnered with Friends of the Bay and Brooklyn Boatworks for on-the-water tours, collaborated with the Point O’ Woods Nature Center for summer camp programs, and launched an Eco Explorers program to teach homeschoolers on the East End about the remarkable adaptations of birds. In the fall, trips aboard Easy Street explored the arrival of winter ducks along the East End’s shores. We also continued our partnership with SailAhead this fall, with the 6th Annual LCpl Michael Edward Blanco Memorial Sail and fall shields sailing to get veterans out on the water.
Partnerships
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This year, we welcomed two new vessels to the classics fleet: a New York 30 named Rowdy and a Herreshoff S Boat. These additions will strengthen our presence in Greenport and aim to inspire broader community engagement.
Our team also grew, with Megan Fetterley joining to help maintain and sail the classics, and Gabby Berritto joining as our program developer and curriculum lead.
New Arrivals
The community restoration of the Herreshoff Fishers Island 31, Spindrift is underway, led by shipwright Steve Lubitz. Launched in 1940 as Chance, Spindrift was raced for decades by four generations of the Rich family and became known as the queen of the Off Soundings Fleet.
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After a major restoration in 1989 and nearly 85 years with the family, she was donated to the Stirling Harbor Foundation in 2025. Her new restoration will include cosmetic work, bottom refastening, deck repairs, system upgrades, and updates to her sail plan.
Join us for an open house on Saturday, December 6th in Spindrift’s tent at Safe Harbor Greenport. Visit our website or email us at admin@shfsailing.org for more details and ways to get involved.​​​
The Spindrift Project
With winter upon us, SHF is launching a Chautauqua Series featuring weekly talks in Greenport from local experts on sailing, history, restoration, maritime science, and more. Each talk will also be available via Zoom. Stay tuned for details.