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Growing up at FWYC . . .
Board of Directors member Micki Gramm has been around the block, rather
around the world. But, according to Micki, who spent a good part of her youth at
FWYC, "Sailing made me who I am." Her FWYC sailing experiences and friends
made at FWYC have stayed with her throughout her life and eventually drew her
back to become an active member here.
Micki’s dad was in the Air Force, so the Gramm family moved
around a lot. They came to the Fort Walton Beach area for the
Micki in a Sunfish Regatta at
first time in 1982. Micki had learned how to sail in Virginia and
FWYC in 1985
at age 12, had her own El Toro, which is similar to a Optimist
Pram. The first summer that they were here, a friend from Virginia came to visit. Micki's friend
didn't know how to sail, so Micki's mom signed the girls up for sailing lessons at the yacht club.
George Goodall and Al Babineau were some of their instructors. The thing that caught Micki's
attention was all of the kids having a great time at the yacht club. Micki soon joined the club as
Micki receiving her
a Junior Member.
first Bowlegs
Micki began racing Sunfish against Robert Harrison, Darren Regatta trophy
around 1986
Cooke and Kevin Bowyer. It wasn't long before someone said,
"We need you on a Flying Scot." So off to the Junior Lipton Regatta
she went. She enjoyed the camaraderie of the GYA regattas, traveling all over the Gulf
Coast, sailing and making new friends. She especially enjoyed the all-female Knost
Regatta at the Pass Christian Yacht Club. Her most memorable Senior Lipton Regatta
was one she didn't sail in. Hurricane Elena canceled the Lipton Regatta in 1985. Micki
Micki skippering a Flying
had gone over with some other young members. All of their parents were frantic,
Scot with Darren Cooke,
because (before cell phones) they couldn't reach the youngsters, but all was well and,
George Goodall and Brian
the kids made it home safely.
Harrison in a GYA regatta
around 1985
The "yacht club kids" were always at the club. "We spent Wednesdays, Fridays and
the weekends racing, practicing and hanging out at the club," Micki said. "However,
all of the sailing and racing was put on hold when my dad was transferred to Naples, Italy. There wasn't much
opportunity to sail there, and definitely not much racing." After three years in Italy, Micki's family headed back to
the States. She had graduated from high school and enrolled in Mississippi State University. . . . Not much sailing
there, either. While at Mississippi State, Micki went to visit a friend in Pensacola. All of the fond memories of the
area came back and, she ended up transferring to the University of West Florida. Several of her Fort Walton Yacht
Club buddies were involved with the sailing program at UWF, so Micki joined them and was so happy to finally get
back on the water.
Micki's first job the summer after college was at the Rush Creek Yacht Club near Dallas, TX. She was a sailing
instructor and coach there for two summers. With a sense of adventure, Micki signed up for a six-month job on an
83’ Cheoy Lee Motor Yacht that was cruising south Florida and the Bahamas. She also wo &