Tom's River Yacht Club

Upon arriving to the Tom's River Yacht Club, the entrance itself said everything one would expect of a place called Tom's River. In a flower bed surrounding the "Tom's River Yacht Club" sign, a woman was cutting away at roses with a beautiful view of the water.

As one might be suspect of other things that some "Tom" has labeled such as,

Tom's Shoes:

And Tom's Soap:

And Tom & Tom's Nantucket Nectars:

Tom's River is the perfect breath of fresh air one would expect sailing on Tom's River.

Sailing on Tom's River is the type of environment that actually matches the picturesque postcard that would have a caption reading, "summer sailing". Just like Raritan Yacht Club, one would never know until venturing around the corner to a deli called "Jersey Shore Subs" that served whole pickles on sandwiches that we were even close to the stereotype of the Jersey shoreline.

If there was one way to think about how Tom's River YC fits into a whole, it would have to be the collaboration of all the clubs along Tom's River. Tom's River Yacht Club by itself is a great place, but what it has that many similar clubs might lack is its involvement in a network with similar clubs, all within sight or sailing distance from each other.

What the Tom's River region has done is created the BBYRA, Barnegat Bay Yacht Racing Association. As a member of US Sailing, the BBYRA has coordinated all of these clubs to take turns hosting and racing each other in an organized way, creating a community and environment where everyone improves. Whether it is invitational regattas (adult and junior) or inviting a coach from another club to bring his students over for some team racing like yesterday- the Tom's River area has figured out a great way to collaborate. The other aspect of Tom's River Yacht Club is it's active involvement in it's area. One example is Tom's River Yacht Club being home to Ocean Community College Sailing Team. In the words of Commodore Joe Matteo, what makes OCC Sailing special to Tom's River is that you know you're helping kids from your own neighborhoods sail, and sail better.

I would say community and collaboration are the factors that have made Tom's River such a hotbed for competitive sailing. As the junior program director mentioned, "what really makes it special for the juniors is knowing each kid and each sail number on the bay". I can attest to the fact that when everyone on the bay knows everyone else by sail number and lifejacket color- it's a great component that builds sailing friends for life. On the whole, I'd have to say the Jersey Yacht Clubs are a haven for amazing summer sailing. Whoever Tom is, he's onto a lot of great things including Tom's River.

Brooke