Inverness Yacht Club (California)

The Inverness Yacht Club or IYC is a small pleasure boating club located in Inverness, California, on the western shore of Tomales Bay, in Marin County, California.

The IYC was first formed in 1912, and the current boathouse was completed in 1914. The club was not financially stable and the club was forclosed on in 1940. In World War II, it was used as a schoolhouse.

The club was reformed in 1949 and has been in continuous operation since then.

IYC activities include:
* Summer Yacht racing season and local and west coast championships
* Summer youth sailing training classes
* Year-round social events for members and guests

Club facilities include:
* A two story boathouse, with boat storage and maintenance on the ground floor and a large open meeting room upstairs with bar and small kitchen.
* A pier extending out into Tomales Bay.
* A parking lot / boatyard area to the south of the boathouse.

Tomales Bay is notable for its many Shoals and its sometimes wildly variable winds, coming down out of the various valleys to the west of the bay on the Point Reyes Peninsula. Many sailors not used to such variable conditions have been surprised by them. It forms an excellent training ground for sailors, who have to learn to read the wind and waves to judge conditions around them.

Notable members

The late Tom Blackhaller (1937-1989), who went on to several world championships in various boat class yacht racing and was the skipper of several Americas Cup yacht race contenders, learned to sail in Inverness, mostly out of the IYC.

External links

* [http://www.invernessyachtclub.org/ Inverness Yacht Club website]