The West End Racing Club, located at 87 Commercial St., is one of Provincetown's well kept secrets.It is a non-profit sailing club for children ages 8-16 providing lessons and equipment for a seasonal registration fee of $25. The Club is open to town children and visitors alike, a beach counselor is on duty at all times. Regular hours are 9-noon, 1-4pm weekdays in July and Augustvarying with the weather and tides. To help support the Club, the children sell raffle tickets for a variety of donated items toward the end of the season.

Begun in 1950 as a loosely organized gang of kids congregating at 'Flyer's beach', it soon became apparent to a number of parents that more boats and a proper Club House were needed. Francis Santos, Larry Richmond, Richard Santos, Frank Rogers, Joe Andrews, Fillmore Miller and Will Hurlburt joined together to solidify a common goal. To give kids in Provincetown an opportunity to learn how to sail and enrich their lives with nautical knowledge and experience. During the winters several of these handy fathers built small boats called 'Weasels' from kits and the fleet began to grow. Calling on the generosity of local artists, paintings, drawings and sculptures were donated and raffles were held raising enough money to buy the waterfront property where the Club is today. As the kids grew, so did the fleet with the addition of five Blue Jays built by Larry Richmond, Dick Santos and Lloyd Atwood.

Regularly scheduled hours were instituted, Richard Santos became the beach counselor and races were held almost daily wind and tide permitting. Kids learned everything from swimming to knot tying with time left over for some major fooling around. Neighborhood regulars included Wendy Everett who would lounge idly on the beach enjoying conversation and sunshine with other locals. Wendy's keen powers of observation and skill at drawing were inspired by all the sailing activity going on daily. She designed and crafted an annual calendar that was sent to all members in the winter reminding everyone of the year's noteworthy events. The accompanying illustrations are photos of a breadbox Wendy handpainted depicting various characters and memories of the early days at the West End Racing Club.

The Club has endured and been nurtured. Through the continued efforts of 'Flyer' Santos, his family and many others, enrollment has never been higher. Thanks to Ann Maguire, teeshirt sales were a huge success in the summer of '99. With a legacy that includes multiple generations of families, the West End Racing Club is proud of its heritage and its contribution to this small coastal town. In an effort to reunite many of us who have fond memories of our years growing up at the Club, a celebration was held commemorating the 50th REUNION on Sunday August 13, 2000, designated West End Racing Club Day in a proclamation by the town's Board of Selectmen. Read all about it in the Provincetown Banner or check out a photo collage of the 50th Reunion.

• David Sants
• John Dean Oxtaby
• Danny Hulings
• Arthur Joe Santos
• Tommy Dahill
• T. C. Leaf
• Drena Hulings
• Eddie Reis
• Scotty Miller
• Mike Dahill
• Glory Reis
• Steve Sacks
• Dendie Downey
• Tommy Downey
• Teddy Dahill
• Michael Moorman
• Neal germain
• David Germain
• Andy Germain
• Jimmi Gilbert
• Grassy
• Chris Snow
• Emily Paine
• Helene Margolis
• Renee
• Tim Everett
• Mike Everett
• Toby Everett
• Richard Terry
• Edwina
• Barbara Gilbert
• Diane Gilbert
• Bill Hendrickson
• Robert King
• Susan Gilman
• Valda Winslow
• Timmy Downey
• Debby Robinson
• Peter VanArsdale
• Eugene Burger
• Gil Kemp
• Bobby Costa