The First Hundred Years: Clearwater Yacht Club, 1911-2011

when in use and folded into the wall when supper was over. Galley conditions were (also) cramped but the food that came out of that galley was flavored with camaraderie, the most appetizing spice of all...” (Ransom and Tracy, 1961: 10). In 1935, two of CYC’s most legendary and long standing traditions began—both involve food. In January of that year, the planning meeting for the first Snipe Midwinters Regatta was held in the home

Fine dining at CYC in 2009. Left to right: 2011 Rear Commodore Hoyt Nichols, PC Dick Boblenz, PC Vic Spoto, Mary Lou Spoto, Connie Boblenz, and Marcia Nichols. CYC Archives.

of Commodore Taver Bayly. According to Ransom and Tracy (1961), Mrs. (Eloise) Bayly served “Deviled Crab a la Eloise.” Here, courtesy of her family is the recipe for this historic dish: Take live blue crabs from the trap at the end of the dock (or purchase somewhere). Clean and pick the cooked crab. Reserve crab shells for later use. Take several slices of bread (preferable Arnolds or Pepperidge Farm thin sliced), place on baking sheet, and bake in low oven until crisp, but not brown. Crush bread with rolling pin, but do not crush to crumbs. Leave in very small pieces. Mix with picked crab meat until meat is coated. Mix one egg with one teaspoon water and add to crab mixture. Season with salt and pepper. Place crab mixture in reserved shells. Top with teaspoon of butter and bake in 350 degree oven until butter melts and mixture is lightly browned. In November of that same year, “…somebody proposed that CYC hold a buffet supper on the first Thursday of each month. Price - 50 cents. Out of this came (the) famed Candlelight Buffet but only after considerable discussion, temperate and otherwise…” (Ransom and Tracy, 1061:13). Dinner was followed by dancing and entertainment by the club’s own four piece orchestra. These buffets were a main source of entertainment (and controversy) at CYC for decades. The popularity of the buffet was unchallenged. Its price and changes thereto were, however, sources of some serious “food fights.” In 1938, “the price of the buffet soared to 85 cents” and then later that same year, increased again to the lofty price of $1.00. This increase occasioned “considerable grumbling” but nothing compared to the fury unleashed by the next price increase (Ransom & Tracy, 1961). On November 21, 1940, “…the Board of Directors voted to raise the buffet price to $1.25. A few days later, after all hell had broken loose among the membership, the price was hastily

Chapter 9: Entertainment through the Years 91