February Newsletter. Officer s. Treasurer, Jan Cole. February Events. Treasurer s Report

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1 February Newsletter Ocala Sailing Club 2/1/2015 February Events 2/5 Buccaneer Night at El Ranchito 2/7 Lake Harris Cruise 2/22 OSC Dinner Meeting at Jim and Lisa Eden s Officer s Commodore Art Twitchell Artmai2@gmail.com Vice Commodore Charlene Johnson - ospreyrose5@gmail.com Secretary Ross Martin mart.11@live.com Treasurer Jan Cole jc4551@cox.net Race Commodore Ken Renfro k-renfro@cox.net Treasurer s Report Beginning Balance 1/1/15 $ Check issued 1/14/15 for PO Box Rental (62.00) Check issued 1/19/15 for Rum Race donuts ( 5.56) Deposit 1/21/15 50/50 raffle membership dues Rum Race registrations Ending Balance 1/31/15 $ Treasurer, Jan Cole

2 Commodore s Report Commodores Comments Ahoy members, I want to begin by thanking Ed & Lynn Sims for once again graciously hosting our annual Bonfire event, one of our highlight meetings of the year. We had a great turn out and the wind and weather cooperated nicely for sailing practice in the afternoon and feeling comfortable for the evening dinner and meeting. Most of the sailboats took the opportunity to beach-over-night for the Rum Races the following day. Wind... isn't it great? Especially when you want to race. We had it at the Rum Race and it was good. We managed to get in 3 good races, sailing from Sunset Harbor through Lemon Point to Lake Weir and back. Our Racing Commodore will post the results for those races and the winner of the big bottle of rum and placing certificates in this Newsletter. Our next adventure is the Cruise on Lake Harris to the Hide-Away Restaurant on February 7th. We have been doing this for the last several years and it is a great way to get out on another lake with a destination. If you didn't have a chance to go on the Crescent Lake Cruise, be sure to join us on this one. Plan for having the boats launched at 9 AM at Venetian Cove Ramps. The OSC dinner / meeting this month will be hosted by Jim and Lisa Eden s at their home in Gainesville. Since it is a little out of the Ocala / Belleview area, it is scheduled for a weekend day. Also due to a conflict in their schedule, it is now planned for Sunday, February 22nd at 3:30 PM. It may make sense to car pool, so call a friend and please be sure to RSVP to the Evite for planning purposes. Don't forget our OBRS Buccaneer night is happening at El Ranchito in the Villages on February 5th at 6:30 PM... Hope see you there. Your Commodore, Art Twitchell

3 1/18 Rum Racing Results

4 Fall Series Race Winners 1 st Place: Ed Sims 2 nd Place: Paul Straub 3 rd Place: Jim Edens Winner of the Rum: Art Twitchell

5 A Sailing Story Written by Tom Barrett OLD DOG It was the dog's movements that caught my eye. Left.. right.. stop.. sit.. - all in response to a whistle signal. The owner obviously enjoyed this exercise as did the dog - an aging cocker spaniel. Tree lined pathways along the river bank presented a stiff challenge; you see the dog was blind. I was fascinated but quickly departed for the beckoning thrills that teenagers seek. A blind dog and his owner really couldn't affect my life. Thirty five years later I am still amazed at how much they did. Throughout my life we eat much "humble pie". Embarrassing, as it may be, this "dessert" can help us to succeed. I remember when the cocker, in his enthusiastic play, ignored a stop signal and ran into a tree: his "humble pie" was a temporary headache. A gentle massage and soft words restored his playfulness. It helps to have friends who whistle when you are blind to the obvious. If we ignore them, we pay the price. I did. Boston's Charles River, sitting at the foot of historical Beacon Hill, has a very popular community sailing program. I spent three happy teen years working as a dockmaster and sailing instructor. Leo, the manager and connoisseur of fine Italian food, guided his teenage employees through hard work, spaghetti dinners and sage advice. He whistled for us many times. To ignore him was a risk - then again all teenagers enjoy risk. Two weeks after my chance encounter, the dog, owner, daughter and grandchildren appeared at the riverside dock. Leo immediately greeted them, conferred and signaled for me to join them. "Tom, he said, would you take these folks for a ride in the launch. Show them our program, the MIT sailing pavilion and shells rowing on the river." Give them the "cooks" tour. Answer any questions they may have." How could have I refused? Launch trips were restricted to rescue work; rarely did we take sightseeing tours. Besides, I had an opportunity to demonstrate my vast knowledge of sailing. Our departure received little recognition from the dog's owner, so I carefully explained the difficulties of maneuvering a powered vessel away from the dock against the wind. His "head nodding" acknowledgement I interpreted as encouragement for more. Instead of waiting for questions, I provided the answers. Leo had "whistled" earlier and I was ignoring him. One hour and a few thousand words later we returned to the boat club. The gentlemen thanked me for an interesting ride. I invited them to join the club with the promise of personally conducting their sailing lessons. Off went the dog, signals given, left, right, stop - amazing to all sunbathing on the dock. Leo approached: "How did it go?". Great, I said. Perhaps we will gain a couple of new members. I think I could teach them." Leo blanched at my offer. Do you know who that was? he asked. No, I said, but he seems to like boats. My lesson for the next ten minutes was one never forgotten. Leo emphasized catering to your customer's needs and promoting "your" product". I was selling me not sailing on the Charles. I often wonder, if I had listened to Leo's simple advise. "answer any questions they may have.", would they have joined? The gentlemen and his dog continued as familiar sights along the river bank. There was always a smile between the signals to the dog. I remember reading of his passing a few years later. During a recent vacation, my family viewed his statue near the entrance to Arlington National Cemetery. To this day, I love cocker spaniels. So did he - Admiral Richard E. Byrd

6 OCS Events and Regattas Date Event Location February 5 th, 2015 Buccaneer Night El Ranchito in The Villages February 7 th or 14 th, 2015 Cruise on Lake Harris Leesburg February 21 st, 2015 OSC Dinner Meeting Jim and Lisa Eden s in Gainesville March 5 th, 2015 Buccaneer Night Mojo s in Belleview March 14 th, 2015 Rum Race #5 Sims Beach March 15 th, 2015 Lemon Point Sail Sunset Harbor March 19 th, 2015 OSC Dinner Meeting (Napkin Nominations) Skip and Lou Archibald s on Bird Island Date Event Location April 2 nd, 2015 Buccaneer Night Cody s in Ocala April 11 th, 2015 April 16 th, 2015 April 17 th -19 th, 2015 Racing Rules and Rum Race #6 OSC Dinner Meeting (Vote for Officers) Harpoon National and Lake Weir Invitational Sims Beach Charlene Johnson s on Sunset Harbor Kiwanis Club Beach May 7 th, 2015 Buccaneer Night Latino Mas in Ocala May 16 th, 2015 Fun on the Water and Officer Induction Ed and Lynn Sims in Sunset Harbor May 17 th, 2015 Lemon Point Sail Sunset Harbor