In the wind: September 24, 2025
UBCREC Day of the Longboat – Race Weekend
This weekend @ Jericho Sailing Centre
This weekend the Jericho Sailing Centre fondly celebrates a 3,000 year affinity with the paddle in this Salish Sea neighbourhood, as Vancouver’s Ocean Community Centre, hosts the UBCREC “Day of the Longboat”, a 4,200+ participant canoe race. With 462 teams registered, this will be the largest Day of the Longboat ever and for the first time since 2021 can be viewed from the Jericho Pier.
We welcome everyone to come view this spectator friendly, ocean playground, distinctly Vancouver community event. You will witness an invigoratingly unique, very large, youthfully spirited, quite loud, Salish Sea celebration of the paddle; our soul connection to Vancouver’s most ancient community. Your ocean spirit, will be lifted.
The event takes place on September 27 and 28 from 0800-1600H. The 8-boat heats will start from the Jericho Sailing Centre shore between ramps #1 & #2 every 8 minutes or so and return to the shore between ramps #2 & #3 after completing their 2 km round trip to and from Jerry’s Cove east of the Jericho Sailing Centre. Ramp #2 will not be available during the event. It is important to pay close attention and keep a sharp lookout when launching or approaching the shore to ensure you don’t become an unfortunate part of the race. Members of the Jericho Rescue Team will be stationed on the shore and on the water to assist anyone launching a craft or returning to shore. Please heed their advice and be extra vigilant when transiting the area.
To get a taste of what Day of the Longboat is all about check out this video produced by UBCREC of last year’s Day of the Longboat race.
Many Thanks to the Jericho Rescue Team!
All year long the intrepid volunteers of the Jericho Rescue Team have provided safety support for the 80+ on water event days supported by the Jericho Sailing Centre. Our Rescue Team is extra busy during the 4 Days of the Longboat and without their valiant efforts this epic annual event would not be possible-so THANK YOU JERICHO RESCUE TEAM!
CURRENT JERICHO PAY PARKING PASSES EXPIRE SEPTEMBER 30
Current Seasonal Parking Passes expire on September 30. Seasonal passes for the next period October 1- March 31 are available from EasyPark via their email: mp@easypark.ca , with the subject ”Jericho Seasonal Pass Lot 69”; in the email body include: your full name, phone number, licence plate, make and model of the vehicle. All net parking revenues go to the Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation to allow them to fund park amenities, such as the Jericho Pier.
Aloha Jericho Sailing Centre
This coming weekend will be my last serving as the General Manager of the Jericho Sailing Centre. How does one begin to say goodbye to a community they’ve been at the heart of for more than half of their lifetime? I’ll begin by starting at the beginning…
In September 1988, I attended my first Jericho Sailing Centre volunteer appreciation dinner. Just a couple of weeks into what would become a decades-long sea odyssey as General Manager, I found myself surrounded by a welcoming flock of people who, like me, loved nothing more than splashing around on the ocean in rubber suits. I was enjoying meeting the people, answering questions about my background that led me to this place; windsurfing school owner, distributor’s rep in the windsurfing, dinghy sailing and ski industries, Instructor Evaluator for the Canadian Yachting Association, BC Ferries deckhand, real estate salesperson, and lifelong son of a beach; when a veteran member waved his weathered finger, somewhat menacingly, and warned me: “We like Jericho the way it is. Don’t try to change it.”
That comment didn’t feel threatening. Instead, it gave me my first real understanding of how deeply passionately people care about Jericho. It was clear that this place was more than a seaside facility; it was a community with a soul. And so, for the next 37 years, I tried never to change Jericho-on my own.
Of course, the only constant in life is change. An organization that resists change is like a shark that stops swimming. The key is to guide change together, at a pace that brings everyone along. Looking back, I can say with confidence that I didn’t change Jericho; we, as a community did, together.
Over the years, in constant consultation with many members, volunteers, clubs, partner schools and staff we evolved the Jericho Sailing Centre into what it is today.
We continued recycling and renovating the old Jericho Beach Air Station Marine and Stores Building; from 1940s cloth wiring and screw in fuse boxes; to meeting Vancouver’s seismic and fire code standards by 2006 without any taxpayer funding, ahead of many other city-owned, taxpayer supported facilities. We transformed the second floor from its original worn WWII interior into multi-purpose classrooms that have since introduced tens of thousands of people to safe ocean recreation. We expanded the Galley deck, installed a three-stop passenger elevator, and built a rooftop observation deck that sports the best view of Vancouver in Vancouver.
We were early adopters of environmental sustainability, launching a recycling program in 1989, when most organizations were still throwing paper in the garbage. We recycled old wetsuits into yoga mats and built a rainwater boat rinsing station. Step by step, we worked toward more sustainable ways of operating.
When other organizations turned their backs, we embraced Sam Sullivan’s world-changing adaptive sailing program. We welcomed kayaking, outrigger canoeing, stand-up paddleboarding, surf skis, coastal rowing, skimboarding, and, more recently, foiling and wing foiling. With every shift, we reconfigured our compound and storage systems to meet new evolving needs.
We launched programs and events that have become part of the Centre’s fabric: English Bay Safety Seminar, Penguin Cup Racing, Rookie Racing Seminars, Wavechaser, the Jericho Iron Race, PNWORCA, Foiling and Slalom Saturdays. We hosted championships at every level; regional, national, international; and supported popular public events from Day of the Longboat to the Celebration of Light; triathlons, field lacrosse, and ultimate frisbee tournaments. We were an ocean sport venue for two World Police & Fire Games and a visitor centre for RV tourists during the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympic Games.
We also did our part as community stewards, hosting public meetings for the Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation, supporting the Jericho Park Stewardship Group, and planting trees with Evergreen. We spoke out emphatically against the closure of the Kitsilano Coast Guard Station and advocated for the restoration of natural beach space when others wanted to preserve the costly, decaying wharf to the east of us. In 1997 we opposed the introduction of pay parking in Jericho Beach Park. Coinciding with the initial launch of our website, we launched a flotilla of more than 100 Jericho-style craft to sail across English Bay to deliver a 2,000+ signature petition against pay parking to the Park Board head office in Stanley Park.
When I arrived in 1988, the Jericho Rescue Team had just six volunteers. With inspiration from my time at CYA and BC Ferries, we developed a more formalized training curriculum and grew the team into a 60-member volunteer crew, with hundreds of alumni who now share their safety knowledge across marine communities far and wide.
One thing we didn’t change was our foundational mission to provide low cost, highly accessible programs, facilities and services for small, naturally powered watercraft, to the people of Vancouver, a city named after a prominent mariner, on their largest playground. This year we celebrated 50 years of fulfilling this commitment and were joined for a Celebration Day in July by members, former members, other marine organizations, BC’s Premier, Vancouver’s former Mayor, our Member of Parliament and Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation Commissioner Liaison. We were all welcomed by a Musqueam leader who spoke to the ancient tradition of accessing the ocean from this site, saying “all with good intentions are welcome”.
In 1991 I created the “in the wind” newsletter which was intended to be a reflection of the Jericho Sailing Centre community, gathering timely information and sharing with members, former members and other users to let them know about what is coming and what recently happened in a creative, fun loving, sometimes edgy voice (Stephen Harper still won’t talk to me). With over 6,000 email recipients we get plenty of feedback and I will miss that ongoing conversation with our community.
In 2020, in a world of uncertainty, our community came together like never before and navigated through the turbulent times of Covid. That summer, while every other community centre, swimming pool and leisure facility in Vancouver remained closed, Jericho Sailing Centre found a way to operate, thanks to creative solutions and an army of volunteer Gate Ambassadors which heightened our community resolve. Those tough times really brought out the best in us and strengthened the bond we all share.
Last spring, I received a phone call from our former member, our change resistant, finger waving friend, who had to pass on his regrets, unable to attend JSCA’s 50 year Celebration Day. We had a long chat about the evolution of the Jericho Sailing Centre and he expressed his appreciation for the changes that have occurred and wished JSCA luck as we embark on the next 50 years of our journey; and that, made my day.
Now, as I look back on my career’s wake; like a rower nearing the end of a long journey; I see clearly that Jericho was never changed by one person. It was shaped and sculpted by our community, much in the way shores are sculpted by wind and waves, and I am proud to have been your collaborator, accessory, enabler, sometimes instigator and loyal accomplice for nearly four decades.
I wish to thank, profoundly and from the bottom of my hull, ALL of the people who were my co-conspirators over the years. Too many to name, but you know who you are: the hundreds of people who gave a lot, and the thousands who pitched in, even if it was just a little, cumulatively it all made a difference. Together, we developed not only a unique ocean recreation facility, but a distinctively Vancouver landmark, and a community we can all be proud of. Thank you for letting me be a part of Jericho’s ongoing story.
Finally, I would like to say I am not planning to completely disappear into the sunset. My role is changing and while you won’t see me as regularly as in the past, I will continue to be a JSCA member and plan to contribute to our community as a volunteer into the future. So rather than say goodbye, I’ll just say, as the Hawaiians do, with love, peace, compassion, kindness, humility, and respect; Aloha, I look forward to seeing you all on the water and/or on the beach.
Mike Cotter, General Manager, Jericho Sailing Centre Association 1988-2025
Aloha Epilogue – What Happens Now?
Several times over the years I’ve Skippered a Jericho Rescue boat accompanying the Jericho Paddling Club’s OC6 teams practicing a crew change drill. The drill goes something like this: the Jericho Rescue boat, with a fresh paddler onboard, positions about 50 metres dead ahead of the six-person outrigger canoe, which is blasting toward it at full speed, paddlers in perfect synchronicity.
The fresh paddler jumps off the rescue boat into the sea, facing the oncoming canoe, as the rescue boat moves away. The canoe steers a course to bring the paddler between the hull and the Ama (outrigger float). Without anyone else breaking stroke, the retiring paddler slips overboard from the opposite side just before the fresh paddler grabs the gunnel, pulls themselves aboard, drops into the vacated seat, and immediately adopts the crew’s established rhythm. The canoe never loses its momentum. The rescue boat moves in to collect the paddler as they are left in the canoe’s wake.
I expect the leadership change at the helm of the Jericho Sailing Centre will happen in much the same way. We are a well synchronized structurally sound organization on a clear, predetermined course with a ten-year navigational plan. Our new GM, Dominique Labrosse, has worked in synchronicity with our organizational crew for the past seven years and, going back to his summer student days, has contributed thirteen years in total. He knows our board, long-time President, Chris Stairs, our volunteers, our club representatives, and our business partners, our awesome core staff and will be well supported as he finds his managerial sea legs in our organizational canoe. I don’t believe JSCA will miss a beat or lose any boatspeed; and, after slipping overboard I’ll be left bobbing happily in the wake.
SOS! JSCA Member Volunteers Wanted!
Vancouver Fraser Port Authority has invited the JSCA to participate in Port Day on Saturday, September 27 from Noon-1700H at Canada Place.
We are looking for 1-2 volunteers to set-up our static display booth and represent the JSCA to the public. The VFPA is providing us with one parking voucher and lunch vouchers for volunteers. Please get back to us as soon as you can if you are interested.
Mike Cotter Sails into Retirement Monday September 29
Flotilla Monday September 29 at 1800H – web form for well wishes, photos and stories
As our General Manager for the past 37 years, Mike Cotter has deftly navigated the Jericho Sailing Centre through seas both stormy and calm. His impact on our facility and association is immeasurable. Throughout his time at the helm, Mike has demonstrated unwavering dedication to enabling recreational ocean access. What better way to send him sailing off into retirement after his last day on site as General Manager than on the water with a flotilla? We are looking to surround Mike (on Albatross) with members of our community in Jericho style craft for a photo with our facility in the background. If you are reading this, you are invited to launch a Jericho style vessel and be ready around Albatross for a group photo on Monday September 29 at 1800H sharp. If you do not have access to a personal or club vessel, there will be limited rental opportunities: with MacSailing (info@macsailing.com), Windsure Adventure Watersports (info@windsure.com) and Jericho Beach Kayak has provided a link where you can choose a rental fee amount that will be donated to the JSCA rescue fund. Jericho Beach Kayak Flotilla Rental Link
We also encourage you to share any memorable photos or vignettes about Mike, or simply send him your well wishes using this form on our website. These stories will help paint a fuller picture of the many lives Mike has touched—and may be included in upcoming celebrations and keepsakes.
SAFETY NOTICE: Dwindling Daylight, Wind Shuts Off, Minimal Rescue Resources
As time drifts away toward the Autumn equinox, sunset is occurring earlier every day. The wind frequently shuts down abruptly within an hour of sunset. If you are on a wind powered craft this means you have just run out of gas. The general rule of thumb for sailors is: never sail further away from home port than you would care to paddle within that hour; and, always carry your legally required paddle. Anyone launching should be fully aware that each sailor, paddler/rower is responsible for their own safety and that of their crew. Jericho Rescue resources are minimal at this time of year. Canadian Coast Guard is standing by on *16 on your cell. (if you ran of wind and don’t have a paddle they won’t be too happy and could fine you
Vancouver’s Ocean Community Centre Celebrates 50 Years!
Your Ship Has Come In!
If you’ve been waiting for your special order limited edition Jericho Sailing Centre 50th Anniversary T-shirt come to the JSCA office.
Limited Edition Jericho Sailing Centre 50th Anniversary T-shirts are back in stock now at the JSCA office while supplies last.
Notice of Annual General Meeting
Jericho Sailing Centre Association
Notice of Annual General Meeting
Tuesday, October 28, 2025 at 1900H
The Jericho Sailing Centre Association’s 52nd Annual General Meeting will be held Tuesday, October 28, 2025 at 1900H. The 2024/2025 JSCA Board and Committees will report on their accomplishments this past year and the challenges for the future. Please plan to attend and participate in the future direction of your ocean access community centre.
Call for Nominations
Voting will take place to elect eight members for a two-year term to our 15 member Board of Directors. The JSCA Board meets regularly to set policy and determine Jericho’s direction. Interested members who have time and expertise to offer are invited to submit a letter indicating their experience and areas of interest to the JSCA Nominations Committee c/o the Jericho office no later than 1700H, Tuesday, October 14. The nomination letter must include your name, address and telephone number. For additional information contact Maya Tatuch, JSCA Administrative Manager 604-224-4177 or email admin@jsca.bc.ca.
Jericho Sailing Centre School Partners
Jericho Beach Kayak Open daily until September 28. Will remain available for private sessions and winter programs. For bookings and more information, slap that paddle over to JBK
MacSailing Open daily until September 28. For more information pull your tiller to Mac
Windsure Open daily until September 21. For more information wing over to SURF
Coming Events at Jericho Sailing Centre
UBCREC Day of the Longboat
- Clinic weekend September 20 & 21
- Event weekend September 27 & 28
Mike Cotter Retirement Flotilla
Monday September 29 @ 1800H
Penguin Cup Fall Racing Series
Sundays October 5, 12, 19 & 26 @ 1230H
Volunteer Appreciation & Racing Awards Dinner
Sunday October 26 @ 1700H
Galley Patio and Grill
Great food and the best view of Vancouver in Vancouver
Sept 24-26 11:30-7:30
Saturday – Sunday (longboat weekend) 11:00-7:30
Closed Sept 29 – Oct 3
Weekends in October 11:00-7:00
weather depending
Boaters’ Handbook: Your go-to guide for safe navigation within the Port of Vancouver
Navigating Vancouver’s busy harbour just got safer and easier thanks to the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority’s new Boaters’ Handbook. The handbook is the ultimate reference—and a one-stop shop—for essential safety information, from how to operate within confined and restrictive waterways, to the radio channels to monitor and speed limits to follow throughout the port authority’s jurisdiction. Whether you’re boating or paddling in Burrard Inlet or the Fraser River, the Boaters’ handbook is your go-to to stay safe, informed, and enjoy your time on the water this summer.
Access the Boaters’ Handbook today on the port authority’s website.
To receive the latest information on boating safety within the waters of the Port of Vancouver, including handbook updates, subscribe to the port authority’s newsletter, here.
FIRST NARROWS TRAFFIC CONTROL ZONE
Safety Notice to All Users of the Jericho Sailing Centre & any other non-motor power craft users in Vancouver
“Vessel-related restrictions
All pleasure craft and sailing vessels must be under mechanical power when transiting through the First Narrows traffic control zone. It is prohibited to enter or transit through the First Narrows traffic control zone on board a personal watercraft, including jet skis and non-motorized vessels, such as sailboats, kayaks, canoes, and paddle boards.”
Boater’s Handbook the essentials of informed navigation within the Port of Vancouver.
English Bay Safety Seminar
Never Take Water Safety For Granted, Be Boaty McBoatSafe…
Users of the Jericho Sailing Centre share Vancouver’s largest playground with Canada’s busiest port and are required to know and exercise the “rules of the road” while recreating in this area. Users should be aware of shipping lanes, ships transiting between the lanes and anchorages, and Traffic Control Zones. All non-commercial vessels shall stay well clear of commercial vessels including ships at anchor.
The English Bay Safety Seminar was developed for users of the Jericho Sailing Centre to help keep them safe while at play on the waters of English Bay. The seminar covers basic water safety fundamentals along with user specific information drawn from the logs of the Jericho Rescue Team who have intervened in thousands of “sea disasters” over the past 50 years.
Why make your own mistakes when you can learn from the mistakes of others? Don’t challenge Darwin’s theory, make sure your water safety knowledge is the fittest it can be. Your survival may well depend upon it. Find the missing links and fill in the gaps in your water safety knowledge.
Sail the Slideshow on our Website
For more Safe Boating information check out Transport Canada’s Safe Boating Guide
Jericho Sailing Centre Etiquette
Common sense and consideration of fellow members help make the Jericho Sailing Centre a true community centre with a friendly salt water community atmosphere. Here are a few etiquette reminders to keep things sailing along smoothly:
- Do not leave your craft unattended on the shoreline for extended periods – share the shore.
- RAMPS, and the areas adjacent to launching ramps, are for craft launch/retrieval only. Do not rig, repair or otherwise loiter in this area.
- Do not leave or rig your craft in the rinsing areas adjacent to hosing stations.
- The Jericho Sailing Centre is a SMOKE/VAPE FREE facility. There is No Smoking/Vaping permitted in any Vancouver Park or beach area.
- Give pathway users the right of way and bear in mind they may be distracted and not aware that you are crossing the pathway with your craft or launch rope.
- Launch dollies are for launching/retrieval only (not for storage) and must be returned to the fence immediately after use.
- If you launch from your own dolly or trailer return it to your storage spot after launching.
- Do not use the winches unless you are familiar with their safe operation. Winch instruction is available from staff or Jericho Rescue Team members. Only members or registered guests may use winches & dollies.
- Only leashed, well behaved, non-barking/whining dogs are allowed in the compound, no dogs are allowed in the building or on the deck. Do not tie dogs to the base of stairwells or in other traffic areas. Do not leave your dog onshore while you are on the water. The City prohibits dogs on beaches. In consideration of other Jericho users please consider leaving your dog at home while visiting the Jericho Sailing Centre.
- Please coil hoses immediately after use and conserve water.
- Do not block aisle ways.
- Rinse racks are for rinsing not drying.
- Swimming is prohibited in front of the Jericho Sailing Centre.
On the Water-Safety is Your Responsibility
On the ocean there are elements of risk that common sense and personal awareness can help reduce. Regardless of how you decide to use the ocean always show courtesy to others. Please adhere to the code listed below and share with others the responsibility for a safe ocean experience
It is every member’s responsibility to know and observe the rules of the road when on or near the water. Here are some key rules which every Jericho member must know and practice.
0.5 IT IS EVERYONE’S RESPONSIBILITY TO AVOID A COLLISION
1. Always wear your P.F.D. on the water. PFD’s MUST be properly fitted.
2. Sail powered craft have the right of way over power craft, paddle and rowing powered craft.
3. All non-commercial vessels shall keep well clear of commercial vessels.
4. It is illegal and extremely dangerous to pass between a tug and it’s tow.
5. A port tack sailing vessel shall keep clear of a starboard tack vessel.
6. A windward vessel shall keep clear of a leeward vessel.
7. A vessel clear astern shall keep clear of a vessel ahead.
8. Any vessel overtaking another shall keep clear.
9. A vessel tacking or gybing shall keep clear of a vessel on a tack.
10. The area south of the orange can buoys is for training or transiting only.
11. Swimming or wading on the beach in front of the Centre is prohibited and is particularly dangerous for small children.
12. It is unsafe to loiter or let children play near the bottom of launching ramps.
13. Stay well clear of the end of the Jericho Pier as fishers cast lines as far as possible
14. Be cautious of pathway traffic when launching/retrieving
15. Do not leave your craft on the shoreline for extended periods of time
16. Stay at least 300M clear of ships at anchor in Vancouver Harbour & construction at Royal Vancouver Yacht Club.
17. Be aware of the low water hazard (<4′) wharf remnants between ramps #3 & #4.
Common sense goes a long way toward maintaining a safe environment. Membership in the Jericho Sailing Centre Association is contingent on members knowing and observing the Safe Ocean Sailing rules.
For more water safety info., tread water over to: English Bay Safety