How Stillwater Yacht Club Streamlined Operations With Clubspot

By Fritz Baldauf

Clubspot helped Stillwater Yacht Club streamline and modernize operations.

Perched in Stillwater Cove in Pebble Beach, Stillwater Yacht Club occupies one of the most unique sailing environments on the California coast. Founded in 1948, the club has long been a center for ocean sailing, youth development, and competitive racing on Monterey Bay. With direct access to open Pacific conditions and a strong instructional focus, it plays an important role in shaping sailors across the region. 

The Problem

Stillwater Yacht Club operates unlike most private clubs. Its structure means the club depends on members not just to participate, but to help run the organization itself. Before Clubspot, the systems in place made that difficult. Club Director and Webmaster LeBon Abercrombie says: 

“We had a hodge-podge of manual and web-based systems that were too complex for most of our members to manage.”

The club relied on a mix of tools including WordPress, Wild Apricot, and Mailchimp, with no unified system for managing core operations like camps or regattas. As programs grew, particularly its successful summer sailing camps, the limitations became more pronounced. Abercrombie elaborates:

“We used WordPress for the website, and Wild Apricot for social event registrations. Mailchimp for communications. We had no software for camps or regattas (we tried Regatta Network but didn't particularly like it). The success of our summer sailing camps made it obvious we needed a system to support that.”

Beyond complexity, the reliance on manual processes created friction in day-to-day operations. Tasks often required direct coordination, phone calls, and manual tracking, which made it harder for volunteers to step in and contribute.

The Solution

Stillwater Yacht Club selected Clubspot to replace its fragmented systems with a single platform designed to handle the full scope of club operations. 

“I did the usual web search and made calls around to other clubs. I needed a system that was affordable for us, and provided support for our key areas of need: membership, social events, camps and regattas,” Abercrombie says.

For a volunteer-driven organization, the ability to centralize responsibilities and make the system easy to use across multiple administrators was critical. Clubspot unified membership management, events, camps, and regattas in one place, while also supporting financial workflows.

The Results

With Clubspot, Stillwater Yacht Club moved from fragmented tools and manual coordination to a fully online system that supports how the club actually operates.

“We have moved from a phone call-and-check-remittance system to an almost completely cloud-based online system,” Abercrombie says of Clubspot’s customer support.

That shift made it easier for volunteers to participate in running the club. Administrative work can now be handled remotely, and leadership has visibility into operations without needing to track information down across systems.

“As a volunteer organization, it's not so much about efficiency, but about getting people to actually do the work. The online changes have made it easier for them to do a lot of their work remotely, which they like. Our 422 member families like being able to see the status of their accounts and reservations on the website.”

Clubspot didn’t just replace and upgrade software. It removed friction from a volunteer-driven system and made it easier for the club to function the way it was meant to. More people can participate. Less work falls on a few. And the focus shifts back to what matters most: getting out on the water.