Regatta Winner To Get Name On Trophy

By PATRICK L. FANELLI

6/21/2006 - LAKEWOOD — There will be an awful lot riding on this year’s Chautauqua Lake Championship Regatta for those brave enough to challenge their fellow sailors.This year, the winner will walk home with a whole lot of pride and a little piece of immortality.Al Nottage, who founded and oversees the annual regatta, has established the official Chautauqua Lake Championship Trophy that will forever be on display in front of the Chautauqua Lake Yacht Club on Lake Street in Lakewood and was dedicated on Memorial Day.It’s not just any trophy, either. It’s a cast iron dove that once belonged to oil tycoon and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller.‘‘The bird goes back to the 1800s,’’ Nottage said. ‘‘It was part of the Rockefeller estate in Cleveland. It’s 32 pounds of bird.’’Nottage explained his great uncle managed the Rockefeller family’s Cleveland estate, and was given the dove by the family in 1926 — the year Nottage was born.‘‘He gave it to him. It passed to my uncle, then to me,’’ Nottage said.According to Nottage, the item has spent too much time in his closet, and he laughed about how he donated the heirloom to the yacht club rather than his own daughters.The dove was copper-coated by Jamestown Electro-Plating Inc. on Water Street and was mounted on a thick, secure pole by Jamestown Boiler and Manufacturing Company on Jones and Gifford Avenue.‘‘No one’s ever going to get this sucker off,’’ Nottage said, noting the pole extends underground into 400 pounds of concrete.The winning skipper of the regatta will have his or her name engraved on the pole for all to see as they enter the Yacht Club. The winner will also receive a new 2006 Suunto watch — the premier sailing watch, according to Nottage. It does everything any other digital watch can do, but is best known for the option that allows sailors to program in their competitors’ times.‘‘It’s a neat toy,’’ Nottage said, showing off his own.The third annual Chautauqua Lake Championship Regatta — organized by the Chautauqua Lake Yacht Club — will be held July 15 and 16. Registration closes July 1, and a $20 entrance fee and a minimum $100 sponsorship is required.Local individuals and businesses have been strongly encouraged to consider sponsoring a boat by a donation of $100; sponsoring the regatta with a donation between $500 (Boatswain level) and $5,000 (Admiral level); or donating services or merchandise for the event’s give-aways and Chinese Auction.For more information, contact Nottage at 763-7230 or acn@stratos.netAll proceeds will benefit the American Cancer Society and will stay within the county.Send comments to pfanelli@post-journal.com

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