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Lightning Class Association
HomeBoat Grant-Coplan-2008

Boat Grant Program

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2008 Lightning Boat Grant Skipper – Justin Coplan
Crew - Ellen Turk, Fiona Gordon

Justin Coplan

Justin Coplan, age twenty, is a fourth year student at Rochester Institute of Technology and part of the five year Computer Science BS program.  His hometown sailing waters is the Hudson River. Out of Nyack Boat Club he has crewed on Gary Hurban's Lightning and actively his raced Laser. 

When he arrived at RIT he helped in the formation of the RIT sailing team.  By the spring of 2006 RIT sailing had joined the Mid Atlantic Intercollegiate Sailing Association (MAISA), was actively practicing on Lake Ontario, and competing in collegiate regattas.  As of the Fall 2007 season Justin was the captain of the RIT sailing team.






Ellen Turk

Ellen Turk, age seventeen, is a senior at Nyack High School. She lives a block away from Nyack Boat Club, where she has spent her summers sailing her Laser2, 420 and Laser on the Hudson River since age 8.   She began competitive youth racing at age 12 and since then has attended many regattas. She crewed on Joan Hurban's Lightning for one season and attended the 2007 Atlantic Coat Championship Lightning Regatta with her friend Avram Dorfman.  She is an active member of the Laser2 fleet in Newport, Rhode Island, where she is constantly introduced to many different high-intensity racing boats.  She has applied to colleges and plans to major in the fine arts.  A sailing team will be a key factor in her college choice.

Fiona Gordon

Fiona Gordon: Age 17, got her first taste of Lightning sailing at 14, crewing for the Hurbans and anyone else who needed a crew at her home club, Nyack Boat Club. She grew up sailing all over the east coast in everything from Optis, to Lasers, to Thistles and Lightnings. 

She is a senior in High School who looks forward to studying International Relations with a concentration in African Studies and sailing for her college team.

2008 Racing Schedule

May

4                  Nyack Sunday Series
11                Nyack Sunday Series
17–18         Early Bird – Cedar Point Yacht Club
24–25         Nyack Memorial Day Regatta

June

1                Nyack Magnus Pederson (date unnown as of now)
                  Niantic Sunday Series
8                Niantic Sunday Series
14–15       CT/RI District Championships, Cedar Point Yacht Club (if Districts are open)
28–29       Metropolitan District Championships – Monmouth Boat Club

July

5–6           70th Anniversary Regatta
13             Niantic Sunday Series
20             Niantic Sunday Series
26–27      Atlantic Coast Championships, Rock Hall Yacht Club, Maryland

August

3               Niantic Sunday Series
8–13         North American Championships, New York Yacht Club, Rhode Island
17             Niantic Sunday Series
27             Niantic Sunday Series




Sponsor Number URL address
Sponsor 1 https://www.marksetbot.com/
Sponsor 2 http://www.onedesign.com/Default.aspx
Sponsor 3 https://www.thesailinginc.com/lightning
Sponsor 4 http://nickelsboats.com/
Sponsor 5 http://awardandsports.securesites.net/
Sponsor 6 http://www.capitallogoinc.com/shop/pc/home.asp
Sponsor 7 http://www.rookesails.com/
Sponsor 8 http://www.sailorstailor.com
Sponsor 9 https://www.harken.com/
Sponsor 10 http://www.sailorstailor.com

Lightning Class Supporters