49th AYC Birthday Regatta and Leukemia Cup

Arizona's biggest sailing event of the year will happen at Lake Pleasant, January 16-18, 2009, the weekend of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., holiday.

Friday: The Eventagram Centerboard Challenge is a stand-alone event for centerboard boats under 20' LOA. Boats that don't fit into that category are encouraged to sail practice starts and practice races. This event happens Friday with awards given Friday night.

Saturday and Sunday: The Birthday Regatta takes place both Saturday and Sunday during the day with awards presented Sunday after lunch.

The scores from Saturday's racing will be crunched (by Ace Scorekeeper Dave Christensen) and Saturday night we'll award the Leukemia Cup trophies based on that day's racing. You'll need to enter the Leukemia Cup to be eligible for this and the entire $45 entry is a charitable contribution to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

Party: You bet. The big party of the weekend happens Saturday night, kicking off with dinner, ASF raffle, the silent auction, and the regular auction to benefit the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Over the last few years we've raised more than $200,000 to help support the LLS research and family assistance programs.

Schedule Highlights:
Friday 12:30p: Eventagram Centerboard Challenge
Friday 5:30p: Dinner followed by awards
Saturday 8a: Lake Pleasant Sailing Club breakfast
Saturday 9:30a: Skippers' Meeting
Saturday 11:30a: Racing begins
Saturday 5:30p: Dinner followed by LLS auctions, ASF raffle, and party
Sunday 9:00a: Racing begins
Sunday 1:00p: Lunch followed by awards (time approximate after racing)
Complete schedule here

Fundraising. There are many things you can do to raise money for LLS. To get a fundraising packet, a list of local and national prizes, donate an item for the Saturday evening auction, or learn more about Society programs, please contact Cameron Childs at The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society in Phoenix at 602.788.8622. Cameron will arrange to set up a fundraising page like this one for you. Send her your name and contact phone numbers and she'll do the rest. More national Leukemia & Lymphoma Society information is available here and information on the local chapter's efforts here.

Bid now to spend one week on the Allegro in February 2009 with the proceeds benefitting the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Here's a flyer describing it. Call Tony Chapman at 602.956.5101 for further information.

More information: Arno Marcuse 480.899.0452

Here's a Birthday Regatta page that you can print.

Here are some hotels near the lake.