Crow s Nest. Official Online Publication of Lansing Sail and Power Squadron. A Unit of the United States Power Squadrons. Calendar of Upcoming Events

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1 Crow s Nest Official Online Publication of Lansing Sail and Power Squadron A Unit of the United States Power Squadrons FEBRUARY 2014 Calendar of Upcoming Events January Feb 1 USPS Annual Meeting/100 th Anniversary... Jacksonville, FL February USPS 100 th Anniversary Cruise... Eastern Carribean Detroit Boat Show... Cobo Hall 16 Field Trip to Michigan Historical Museum/General Meeting downtown Lansing 20 LSPS watch at Detroit Boat Show... Cobo Hall Grand Rapids Boat Show... Grand Rapids 24 Executive Board Meeting... Headquarters March Quiet Water Symposium... MSU 3 General Membership Meeting... Coral Gables Speaker: Carol Ray/Crewing on a Tall Ship 4 ABC class begins 4 week class... Haslett Middle School Spring Boating Expo... Novi Lansing Boat Show... Lansing Center 31 Executive Board Meeting... Headquarters April D9 Spring Conference... Holland, MI 7 Membership Meeting... Coral Gables Speaker: Jack Helder on Fly Fishing 28 Executive Board Meeting... headquarters

2 Commander s Corner Well, with the temperatures in the minus numbers and the snow swirling about, boating may seem like just a dream. But boating season will soon be upon us - you can almost feel the warm breezes if you wish hard enough. Brook and I just attended the Port Huron Sail and Power Squadron Change of Watch, along with Ralph Ziegler and Mary Ann Jensen. It was a super evening and Lansing was invited to summer Boating Parade of Lights. Hope you all can join us for a road trip. More to follow as the plans get made. We have a contingent of Lansing folks on the way to the National Conference in warm and sunny Jacksonville. I'm looking forward to their report about all the new initiatives of the USPS when they get back. Doug Twiss is signing up volunteers to man our booth at the upcoming Boat Shows. We need your help at the Detroit Boat Show 20 Feb; Quiet Water on 1 March; the Lansing Boat Show March. Call Doug and put in a couple of hours of your time to make boating safer for everyone! When you have those calendars out, reserve 28 June for the Detroit Rendezvous at Kensington Metro Park. It is really fun for the whole family and a great way to meet and make new Power Squadron friends. Ralph Ziegler and Mary Ann Jensen are coordinating for us, so let them know if you are planning to be there. And our public boating class are getting ready to kick off. The first ABC class is starting Tuesday 4 March in Haslett. We need YOUR help to present this class!!! We need proctors, instructors, and table coaches. Remember how overwhelmed you felt when you took your first class? Well, now's your chance to help a new boater get over that first hurdle successfully by being a friendly face. Call me to volunteer a couple of hours. And there are many more activities on the horizon. Find out more by coming to our next meeting. This one will be unique. We will be meeting at the Michigan Historical Museum on Sunday, 16 February - note the day and date change. Until then, dress warm and think boating. Cdr Dave Thompson, SN

3 E Education Corner By Lt/C John Quensen, SN SEO ` quensenj@msu.edu We are currently working on our winter and spring schedule of classes. We will be offering Piloting as well as Sail. ABC classes begin in March through Haslett Community Education. We will also offer an ABC class in conjunction with our Sea Scout Ship. Classes: ABCs of Boating Haslett Middle School 4 week class starts Tuesday, March 4 7:00pm Cost is $20 for class and $30 for book To register contact Haslett Community Education MERRY DANCERS - The shimmering of the aurora borealis, or northern lights. Do You Know Your Signal Flags? ` W (WHISKEY) - I REQUIRE MEDICAL ASSISTANCE

4 SIX KNOT CHALLENGE The Six Knot Challenge is to tie six elementary knots as fast as possible. The world record of 8.1 seconds was set by Clinton Bailey Sr. Give it a try and see how well you can do. Under 20 seconds is pretty good - under 15 seconds is great! Challenge your friends at the monthly Squadron meeting at the Marlinspike Corner. Tie the following six knots: Sheet Bend Reef (Square) Knot Round Turn and two Half Hitches Bowline Sheepshank Clove Hitch Reef Knot

5 Why is the Starboard Light Green? By Marketing/PR Committee USPS Hopefully, every boater knows that the port side running light is red and that the starboard side light is green. The standard of having the red light on the left and the green on the right comes in handy after dark when boaters can determine the movements of other vessels based on the visibility of these lights. In addition, the green light also indicates which boat has the right of way over the other. Anyone that has ever participated in a sailboat regatta is familiar with the resounding calls of Starboard as the skippers declare that they have the right of way due to being on a starboard tack. To understand how these terms evolved, one must delve deeply into the boating days of yore. Viking vessels were steered by a paddle or board inserted in the water called a styra. Most folks being right-handed, the steering board was always located on the right side of the ship and the term styra became associated with the right side. Norsemen later used the same term for a board steering larger vessels. The word styra evolved into today s English term starboard. Because the steering was located on the right side of the vessel, captains tied the left side to a dock to avoid damaging steering mechanisms. Thus, the left side became known, in English, as the port side, because beyond the dock was a port town. Now, about those lights The practice of assigning vessel priority in crossing situations grew from the fact that vessels often had items in the ship s center that blocked the helmsman s view. Because the boat s steering was controlled from the right side, he could see vessels on the right; therefore vessels on that side were given a green light - both figuratively and actually. Those vessels could safely pass in front of the steering person s vessel. Conversely, the left side was assigned a red light again, both figuratively and actually. This evolved from an understanding that helmsman s view of the left side from his right side station, were often blocked from his view by deck hands, cargo, and sails. So, these out of sight vessels gave way to the helmsman s vessel. Much of maritime traditions about the right of way are the same today, with the addition of colored lighting to assist in identification. It s always interesting to delve into maritime history to discover the traditional reasons behind our modern practices. These little tidbits of information can help us remember the red and green lighting conventions and which vessel is stand on and which is give way between approaching boats.

6 Executive Department Happenings By Lt/C Rodney Ray, AP It s Boat Show season and there are many opportunities to help out at one of our booths. If you are interested in volunteering to talk to people at one of our booths please contact Doug Twiss at Boat Show Schedule: February Detroit Boat Show Cobo Hall USPS District 9 will have a booth at the show. The Lansing Squadron will man the booth on February 20. March 1 Quiet Water Symposium MSU Hall This one day show features kayaks, canoes and sailboats. This has been a good show for the squadron in recent years. March Lansing Boat Show Lansing Center Much later than in previous years, this show features local marinas. Pontoon boats and fishing boats are the dominant boats at this show. We share space with the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary for this show. GRAND RAPIDS BOAT SHOW is during the same time frame as the Detroit Boat Show. Members of Grand Rapids, Muskegon and Kalamazoo Power Squadrons man a booth at this event. It is a good show to go to if you want to c heck out boats and can t make it to Detroit.

7 Join us for a special field trip to explore this new, temporary exhibit Sunday, February 16, 2014 at 1:30 pm Michigan Historical Museum 702 W Kalamazoo Street Lansing, MI Parking and Admission is Free on Sundays The new special exhibit, Lake Effects, highlights some of the significant weather events in Michigan's past and looks at the influence of weather on inventions, crops, work, recreation and everyday life in the Great Lakes State. You'll also learn about the science behind Michigan weather. The special exhibit extends into the museum's long-term exhibit galleries, with special labels pointing out the role of weather in Michigan history from pre-historic times to the 1970s. Coming this year: February Field Trip to Michigan Historical Museum in Lansing March Crewing on a Tall Ship April Beginning Fly Fishing May What s New for the Boating Season

8 Happy February Birthdays!! 2/6 Carol (CJ) Ray (26 ft sailboat, keeps in Whitehall) 2/7 Mary Lou Garrison (34 ft power LOON, keeps in Grand Haven) 2/16 Matt Easley (Sea Scout member) 2/17 Bill Demmer (33 ft power THE LIVELY LADY) 2/17 Tom Hoffmeyer (18 ft power, keeps at Higgins Lake) 2/18 Rod Ray (26 ft sailboat, keeps in Whitehall) to the following shipmates for their generous support of the Crow s Nest. Donations are for a one year period. A $40.00 donation covers postage for one month. MATE OF THE WATCH Jack and Dee Chamberlain (Jan 13) Dennis and Suzanne Dudley (Oct 13) Robert & Yvonne McLravy (Nov 13) Werner and Jeanette Meyer (Oct 13) Bob Miller (Nov 13) Joe and Deb Pysh (Apr 13) Dave and Brooke Thompson (Nov 13) Bruce Trudgen (Sept 13) Doug and Carol Twiss (Jan 13) Ralph Ziegler (Mar 13) Boat: Red Jacket Boat: Sacre Bleu In memory of Summer Wind Boat: Encore Supporter Boat: Adagio, Aurora & Ariel Supporter Supporter Boat: Twisster Boat: Sharon Ann

9 2014 Flag Officers COMMANDER... Cdr Dave Thompson, SN... EDUCATION OFFICER... P/C John F. Quensen III, SN... EXECUTIVE OFFICER... Lt/C Rodney Ray, JN... ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER... Open SECRETARY... Lt/C Tina Ziegler... TREASURER...Lt/C Phil White, N philwhite2049@gmail.com... ASST EDUCATION OFFICER... Open ASST SECRETARY... Open ASST TREASURER... Lt Robert Miller, AP... miller@pa.msu.edu 2013 Executive Committee Members at Large P/C Ralph Ziegler,JN ralphziegler@charter.net... P/D/C Mary Ann Jensen, SN jensene@msu.edu... Lt Kenyon Steiner kenyon.steiner@gmail.com... Lt Bronwyn Steiner steinerk7@juno.com... Lt Stephen Wilensky, AP stephenwilenskymd@gmail.com Chaplain Lt William Renfrew, P... About the Crow s Nest The Crow s Nest is a newsletter published monthly, September through May, by the Lansing Sail and Power Squadron, 2014 Forest Road, Lansing, Michigan Editor: Alanna Harvey alannawh@aol.com