Plattsburgh Sunrise Rotary Mayor’s Cup

Posted by Joanne Dahlen

[Editor's note: This is a very detailed report of the event with many reference links. Please click "Read more..." for the full story.]

The 47th annual Mayor's Cup Regatta & Festival, organized by Sunrise Rotary, took place on July 6, 2024, in Plattsburgh, NY, attracting over 1,000 attendees. The event featured a variety of activities including a regatta with 45 registered boats, a 5K race, children's fun run, and sandcastle contests. New additions this year included a Parrots & Pirates Poker Run/Walk and a Paddle Power Palooza boat parade. The festival raised approximately $18,000 for community projects, and showcased local talent with a logo design contest in partnership with CV-TEC. The day concluded with the presentation of the "Spirit of Ianelli" Award to Mike Collin, recognizing his community contributions. This annual event celebrates Lake Champlain and summer in the North Country while supporting various local initiatives.

Over 1,000 people attended the 47th annual Mayor’s Cup Regatta & Festival, on Saturday, July 6, 2024, in Plattsburgh, NY. Mayor’s Cup is Sunrise Rotary’s signature annual community event and fundraiser and has become synonymous with a celebration of Lake Champlain and summer in the North Country.

The one-day Festival drew hundreds of people to Plattsburgh’s City Beach where a myriad of activities took place throughout the day including a 5K race, children’s fun run, and sandcastle contests. This year 45 boats registered to compete in the Regatta which attracts the region’s most accomplished sailors to compete for bragging rights of being the fastest sailboats on Lake Champlain and includes competitive races in three divisions – Jib & Main, Racing, and Multihull with prizes for all divisions. Proceeds from the sales of the Mayor’s Cup t-shirts and donations from sponsors are critical to Sunrise Rotary’s continued efforts to build and support projects like the Pavilion at Wilcox Dock, the Gazebo at the Samuel D. Champlain Park, the Max Moore Tree House at the SRT Trailhead and providing wheelchair accessibility to areas such as the Plattsburgh City Beach, Camp Tapawingo and the LaPierre Lane Park. Sunrise Rotary raised approximately $18,000 as part of this year’s Mayor’s Cup fundraising efforts.

Sunrise Rotary once again partnered with CV-TEC to create a contest for designing this year’s Mayor’s Cup logo. Approximately 35 entries were submitted by CV-TEC’s Digital Production & Multimedia Communications class, and members of the Sunrise Rotary Club selected Emily Whalen’s design for this year’s t-shirt. Sunrise Rotary Past President Jeffrey Prescott presented Plattsburgh’s Mayor Rosenquest with his 2024 Mayor’s Cup t-shirt at a conference hosted at CV-TEC on Monday, May 13, 2024.

The Digital Production & Multimedia Communications Program at CV-TEC offers students the opportunity to learn design concepts, color theory, typography, photography, videography, advertising, animation and website design. “This is our third year working with CV-TEC on the logo contest and we were once again in awe of the designs that were submitted,” said Sue LeBlanc-Durocher, Sunrise Rotary Mayor’s Cup Festival Chair. “The students are clearly talented, and they took the contest very seriously, submitting very creative and professional designs. Congratulations and thank you to all the students for a job well done.”

This year, Sunrise Rotary created two new afternoon events, a poker run/walk and a boat parade, to attract the community to Plattsburgh’s waterfront around the marina area. In addition, the Club has arranged for the local band, Damaged Goods, to perform a free outdoor concert at the Plattsburgh City Marina. “The Mayor’s Cup Regatta is no longer just for sailors,” said long time Sunrise Rotarian and Regatta Chair Kjell Dahlen. “Thanks to Sunrise Rotary and our sponsors, the marina came alive on Saturday afternoon with many activities for the community to enjoy. There was live music, an afternoon parade of paddle boats, a poker run/walk and more. Sailors and landlubbers alike enjoyed an afternoon along the waterfront before cheering on all the sailors at the Regatta Awards Ceremony that began at 6:00pm.”

Sunrise Rotary was very excited to introduce the first annual Parrots & Pirates Poker Run/Walk to the lineup of Mayor’s Cup festivities. This theme, with a ‘Margaritaville’ vibe and a tribute to Jimmy Buffet, was well received and will most likely be the theme for next year’s poker run/walk. While the course began and ended at the marina area, the featured stops were strategically placed at various downtown establishments, including an option to stroll along the section of the Saranac River Trail. “We think the poker run/walk is a super fun way for our community to enjoy both Plattsburgh’s historic downtown and the City’s breathtaking waterfront,” said Sunrise Rotary President and Co-Chair of the Parrots & Pirates Poker Run/Walk James Snook. “Sunrise Rotary has been looking for ways to integrate the local downtown businesses into the Mayor’s Cup festivities and the poker run/walk has really seemed to resonate with them,” added Sunrise Rotary Past President and Parrots & Pirates Poker Run/Walk Co-chair Jeffrey Prescott. “We are thrilled with the response we got from many local stores and businesses who want to join in the one-day celebration of summer in the North Country, and we hope that next year we can get more downtown establishments to offer all sorts of exciting discounts and special food and beverages in honor of Mayor’s Cup – for everyone to enjoy, not just participants in the poker run/walk.”

The first annual Mayor’s Cup Paddle Power Palooza, a parade of non-motorized boats (i.e. kayaks, canoes, SUPs), took place on Saturday afternoon near the Plattsburgh City Marina. Participants were encouraged to call on their aquatic ingenuity and decorate their boats to distinguish themselves on the water. Skippers of all boats were automatically included in drawings for prizes, and there was a special drawing for prizes for the top creatively adorned vessels. Paddlers and spectators alike joined in the fun. “The idea for the Paddle Power Palooza came from a local group of dedicated kayakers who hoped that Sunrise Rotary would host a boat parade this year,” said Jake DeSnyder, Past President of Sunrise Rotary and Chair of this event. Jake has been instrumental in the planning and coordination of the Mayor’s Cup Regatta and managed a boat parade of lights for quite a few years when Mayor’s Cup activities were held over several days and nights. Jake added, “Registration was free in the hopes of encouraging folks to come out with their boats and paddles to just have fun, enjoy the lake, and show off their paddle power prowess. The wonderful photos really say it all!”

The Sunrise Rotary Mayor's Cup Regatta & Festival Committee ended the day by presenting Mike Collin with the 2024 “Spirit of Ianelli” Award. The "Spirit of Ianelli" Award was established in 2010 in honor of the late Mayor John Ianelli, former Mayor of the City of Plattsburgh and co-founder of the Mayor’s Cup Regatta in 1978. This honor is bestowed upon one individual or individuals – sailor or landlubber – who exemplifies the same “community does matter” spirit that inspired Mayor Ianelli over 45 years ago, empowering our lake community to thrive, not only on race day, but every day.

Mike is Vice President of the Board of Directors of the Beartown Ski Area and a long-time volunteer. Mike’s father Malcolm was one of the co-founders of the local family-friendly ski area, located in West Chazy, NY, which opened on February 9, 1958. For those familiar with Beartown, it is truly part of the fabric of the community with second and third generations of families learning to ski there and building lasting memories of being on the slopes together. Kirsten Pope had this to say about Mike in her nomination letter of support, “Mike's selfless gifts of time, heart, brain and brawn have also made this one of the few ski opportunities that is accessible for families, young and old, that could not afford to participate otherwise. Mike is loved and respected by so many, and he inspires so many of us to follow his lead. His giving is viral. For example, he creates community clean up days in the off season inviting us (including the children) to invest a little sweat equity in Beartown, making us feel this is all of ours to share.”

Links of Interest

www.mayorscup.com

Mayor's Cup on Facebook

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Press Republican -July 9, 2024

City holds Mayor's Cup

Press Republican -July 9, 2024

Polar Express wins 2024 Mayor's Cup

Sun Community News -July 8, 2024

Mayor's Cup Regatta & Festival rocks Lake City for 47th year

NBC5 -July 6, 2024

Full schedule of fun for 2024