Chautauqua Lake Yacht Club E Scow Championships

National E Scow Championships Begin Friday At CLYC   From left, Donna Schoor, Lindsey Puccio and Don Schoor from Wisconsin are preparing their boat for the upcoming NCESA National Championship event to be held at the Chautauqua Lake Yacht Club in Lakewood. The event is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year at C.L.Y.C. P-J photo by Simon Teska LAKEWOOD - The 50th annual National Class E Scow Association Championships will be held at the Chautauqua Lake Yacht Club Friday through Sunday. Fifteen committees of CLYC members have been planning the event for more than 15 months.   The first-ever event was held in 1959 at the CLYC and it returns about every five years. This year's event will involve top sailors from more than 21 clubs from nine states and Canada. In all, there will be about 270 competitors on 68 to 70 E Scows and12 are competing out of the CLYC.   Skippers will range in age from 19 to 83 and Sam Rogers from Minnetonka Yacht Club in Minnetonka, Minn., will be defending his title won last year at the Carolina Yacht Club in Charleston, S.C.   Participants started to arrive last weekend for the first leg of the New York State Championships held on Saturday and Sunday with 17 sailboats competing. George Welch of Keuka Yacht Club won the event while Rick Turner of CLYC was second and Marcus Turner of CLYC third.   Rick Turner is the commodore of the NCESA and is in the first of a two-year term. Local principal race officers for this week's event are Bruce Erickson and Chip Ulrich of Lakewood. Ulrich is a former commodore of the NCESA from1985-87. Assisting them as the race committee chairman is Geoff Turner of Ashville.   Beginning Friday, six races will be held over the course of the three days with no more than three races in any one day. The race course will consist of windward-leeward legs, typically 2 laps. Each lap is approximately 1 to 2 miles, depending on wind conditions. The length of each race is approximately 60-75 minutes.   The action will start every day, depending on weather conditions, with a 10 a.m. harbor gun and the first race of the day starts at 11a.m. The majority of the participants from outside the area will arrive today and there will be a competitors briefing at 7:30 p.m.   On Saturday evening will be the NCESA's annual banquet . Also on Saturday, there will be a fireworks display performed by Zambelli. The public is invited to view the fireworks from the Lakewood Beach or other locations around the lake. The fireworks display should start at 9:30 p.m. or shortly thereafter. Trophies will be presented upon conclusion of the regatta on Sunday afternoon to the skipper and crew of the top 10 boats. In addition, there will be trophies for the top three first time competitors, top rookie skipper, top women skipper and top masters skipper. Later this summer, Aug 8-11, the CLYC is will host the Club 420 North American Championships