Sailing Through the Years
On a campus situated between two lakes, it’s only natural that students take advantage of the water. Just two years after the Hoofer Sailing Club formed in 1939, it already boasted more than 450 registered members. Today, UW–Madison students and community members still enjoy hopping into one of the club’s many boats to pick up a new skill. (For more, read “Learning to Sail.”) View scenes of the sailing club over the years since its inception.
Students gather on the dock for an official Hoofers sailing lesson. Because of the reasonable price and long list of different activities to try, it’s one of the most cost-effective sailing programs in the country. UWArchives.dn06021405.bib
Hoofer sailors Fred Mareu, Judy Smith, and Tom Hall add some fresh paint to an old club boat in the mid-1950s. UW Archives 2017s01354
Three pairs of students sail parallel to one another across Lake Mendota in this photo taken in the mid-20th century. UW Archives S16168
In 1988, a student relaxes on a laser boat, a quick and agile addition to the Hoofers fleet. Beginners can start on tech boats or sloops and work their way up to the racing scows, or try out keelboats, 420s, or wind surfing. UW Archives S15798
Members of the Hoofer Sailing Club splash each other from two sailboats. In addition to providing a sporting outlet, the club emphasizes the social aspect of sailing by hosting contests and other opportunities for fun antics. UW Archives S05118
Guest and special students Jim Hamre ’66 (seated at left wearing glasses) and Jane Schmieding (seated at right wearing yellow jacket), who usually use wheelchairs, take control of the rudder and sail ropes of 34-foot Soma, the Hoofer Sailing Club’s largest boat, while sailing on Lake Mendota in September 2007. Hamre and Schmieding are flanked by students from a kinesiology class titled Adapted Fitness and Personal Training.
UW students and Hoofers instructors Katlyn Putney ’14 (left) and Ella Stutz ’13 demonstrate sailing maneuvers in 2012 to children who signed up for a youth sailing program. This “ground school” element of learning to sail is critical to success, so students understand the mechanics before they’re out on the water. Jeff Miller
At sunrise, a member of the Hoofer Sailing Club rigs up a sail on a tech boat in July 2016. The yellow boats lining the lakeside will look familiar to anyone who has walked along Lakeshore Path. Jeff Miller
Members of the UW Hoofer Sailing Club head out from the University of Wisconsin–Madison shoreline to enjoy a sunset sail on Lake Mendota during a mild, late-summer evening in September 2013. Jeff Miller
Published in the Summer 2018 issue
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