COMMANDER S CORNER. Cdr Jeff McKinney, JN, VE. November Executive Officer Lt/C Alan Karpas, JN, VE

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$\ Watch Year 2008-2009 Executive Committee Commander Cdr Jeff McKinney, JN, VE 301.668.9148 jmckinney10@verizon.net Executive Officer Lt/C Alan Karpas, JN, VE 301.767.5905 alankarpas@verizon.$

1 \ Watch Year Executive Committee Commander Cdr Jeff McKinney, JN, VE Executive Officer Lt/C Alan Karpas, JN, VE Educational Officer Lt/C Chuck Wells, JN Administrative Officer Lt/C Denise Allen, JN Secretary Lt/C Kay Permison, AP Treasurer Lt/C Charles Yost, AP Immediate Past Commander P/C Joseph Gibson, AP, VE Members-at-Large Lt Julien Hofberg, JN, VE Lt Paul Mermelstein, AP Lt Steve Permison, AP RSPS Web Site: Editor: Lt Craig Floyd, S, 7204 Deer Lake Lane, Rockville, MD or Distribution: P/Lt/C John Grabowski, AP; P/Lt/C Larry Hixon, AP, Michael Loney, P. PUBLISHER S STATEMENT The SKIPJACK newsletter is published monthly except the July/August issue. Deadline for articles is the 20 th day of the month for the following month s issue. The SKIPJACK is written by and published for the members of the Rockville Sail and Power Squadron (RSPS), a unit of District 5 of the United States Power Squadrons. ROCKVILLE SAIL & POWER SQUADRON INDEX COMMANDER S CORNER 1 EXECUTIVE OFFICER S REPORT 2 EDUCATION OFFICER S REPORT 3 UPCOMING COURSES/CLASSES/SEMINARS 3 NOVEMBER GENERAL MEETING NOTICE 3 NAUTICAL TRIVIA 4 RSPS CALENDAR 5 TRAWLER FEST 5 COMMANDER S CORNER Cdr Jeff McKinney, JN, VE November 2008 November! Hurricane season is done, and despite the unseasonably mild weather of late, winter is nipping at our heels. The fall boat shows are now history, our beloved craft have been or are being prepped for storage, and for most of us there is nothing much left to do until spring, right? WRONG!!!! We have a lot of things happening in the near future: District 5 Fall Education Conference (7-9 November), First Aid & CPR training, classes, Thanksgiving, planning for the Holiday party, more classes, etc. See elsewhere in this edition for details. Some of our folks are getting ready for that big cruise or wintering down south, and we wish them safe travels. Have you considered taking a position as a squadron committee chair or member next year? We could always use more help in many areas, so if you have a particular talent or area of interest give it some thought and let me or any other squadron officer know your preference. Congratulations and a big THANK YOU to Jim Brown, JN for his outstanding presentation at the October meeting. Thirty members (our largest turnout in some time) were given a very informative mini-seminar on Digital Selective Calling (DSC) radios. The highlight was a live demonstration using the District 5 simulator of how this feature works. Do you have a topic for a speaker to present (or a particular speaker you want to hear) at one of our future meetings? Please let Lt/C Denise Allen, JN know. If you are willing to present it yourself we can help with projectors and almost any other equipment you might need.

2 If you have not had a chance, please take a look at the new website http://www.rspsonline.org. It has really turned out nicely, and there are lots of new things in place or on the way.

2 2 If you have not had a chance, please take a look at the new website It has really turned out nicely, and there are lots of new things in place or on the way. Stay warm, stay well, and I look forward to seeing you soon. EXECUTIVE OFFICER S REPORT Lt/C Alan Karpas, JN, VE AIS What is AIS? Glad you asked! AIS stands for Automated Identification System and it is the future for safe boating. Picture a chartplotter or computer display that includes a mark for every significant ship within radio range. Each ship mark would reflect its size and show its speed, heading, GPS position, name, MMSI number, closest point of approach (CPA) and time to closest point of approach (TCPA). All of this information will either be displayed on the chartplotter or computer screen or made available by just clicking on the mark. All of this information, and more, is now available to both commercial and recreational vessels that are equipped with AIS. With this information, you could call any ship by name over your VHS radio rather than by the old imprecise north bound freighter, this is the white hull sailboat off your starboard bow. Or, even better yet, you could call them directly by using your DSC equipped radio and their MMSI number. The primary use for AIS is for collision avoidance. Due to the limitations of radio characteristics, and because not all vessels are equipped with AIS, the system is meant to be used as a means of lookout and to determine the risk of collision rather than as an automated collision avoidance system. recreational boats and transmit at a slower time interval and at lower power than the Class A units. Class A transceivers sends data every 2 10 seconds (dependent on the vessel s speed) and every 3 minutes while the vessel is at anchor. Class B units transmit every 30 seconds while underway. Currently there are four Class B models approved and range in price from $799 to $$1, AIS receivers will not transmit your data but will receive and display the information from any transceiver. They range in price from under $200 to over $1,500. All AIS units use VHF channels 87 and 88 to transmit and/or receive information in digital format and will need a VHF antenna. Their range is similar to that of your VHF radio, dependent on the height of the antenna. In the future, AIS will be able to broadcast positions and names of things other than vessels. They will transmit navigation aid and marker positions as they will be located on shore, such as in a lighthouse, or on the water, on platforms or buoys. The US Coast Guard suggests that AIS might replace RACON, or radar beacons, currently used for electronic navigation aids identification. As more Class B units are approved by the FCC and they drop in price, I hope that more recreational boaters have them installed. I came very close to purchasing an AIS receiver at the Annapolis Boat Show this year but when I learned that the Class B transponders were beginning to be approved I opted to wait until spring to make my decision. I am planning on going off shore to sail to New England next summer and, given what I now know about AIS, I would not want to make the trip without one. 1 ACR Nauticast AIS-300 $799 Navico UK Simrad A500 - $1,285 SevenStar SeaTracer $1,295 SRT MTB OEM Class B - $1,295 AIS come in three flavors, Class A and Class B transceivers, and AIS receivers. Class A transceivers are required under SOLAS for all commercial vessels. They are in the $4,000 plus price range. Class B transceivers, while having been in use in Europe for several years, have just been approved by the FCC, for sale in the U.S. (September 2008). They are designed for

3 3 EDUCATIONAL OFFICER S REPORT Lt/C Chuck Wells, JN As we begin our piloting class this fall, it is good to review what Bowditch had to say about navigation: "Marine navigation blends both science and art. A good navigator constantly thinks strategically, operationally, and tactically. He plans each voyage carefully. As it proceeds, he gathers navigational information from a variety of sources, evaluates this information, and determines his ship's position. He then compares that position with his voyage plan, his operational commitments, and his predetermined dead reckoning position. A good navigator anticipates dangerous situations well before they arise, and always stays ahead of the vessel. He is ready for navigational emergencies at any time. He is increasingly a manager of a variety of resources--electronic, mechanical, and human. Navigation methods and techniques vary with the type of vessel, the conditions, and the navigator's experience. The navigator uses the methods and techniques best suited to the vessel, its equipment, and conditions at hand." Further, piloting: "... involves navigating in restricted waters with frequent or constant determination of position relative to nearby geographic and hydrographic features." For our members who cruise the Bay or Potomac River, this is the predominant type of navigation. For this reason, I believe piloting knowledge is essential to every boater in our squadron. We have plenty of space in this class and there is still time for anyone who wants to participate. I hope to be able to offer a few electives over the winter. USPS is finalizing new courses in Navigation, Weather, and Marine Electronics. As soon as the materials are available we will offer one or more of those courses. Happy Thanksgiving! Upcoming Courses/Classes/Seminars 22 September Junior Navigation Course Jon Van Winkle s house in Kensington, Time: , 27 October Piloting Course Dick s Sporting Goods, Gaithersburg, Time: , Started 27 October with NO Class on 3 November. Contact Lt/C Chuck Wells at cjwglb@verizon.net if you wish to attend 15 and 16 November First Aid and CPR Classes Location and time are TBD. Contact Lt/C Alan Karpas at alankarpas@verizon.net if you are interested in registering for these classes. January 2009 Advanced Piloting Course - The location, time and date are to be determined. Contact Lt/C Chuck Wells at cjwglb@verizon.net for more information TBD Marine Electronics Course, Navigation, and Weather - will be offered when the new books are published. Stay tuned. Contact Lt/C Chuck Wells at cjwglb@verizon.net for more information. NOVEMBER GENERAL MEETING NOTICE Lt/C Denise Allen, JN 12 November Tony Lin s Restaurant, Rockville Pike #G, Rockville, MD Social Time: 1830 Dinner: 1900 Speaker: 2000 I am excited to share that Captain Phil Gallman, PhD will be speaking at our November general meeting. This informative presentation by a retired engineer and sailor will show you what radar can, and cannot, do for you. Illustrated with photographs taken by Capt. Phil and radar display diagrams, this presentation shows you how radar

After graduating, he joined the Department of Electrical Engineering at the University of Maryland, College Park, where he taught for six years and continued his research on signal modeling.

4 4 can improve your situational awareness, navigation, and pilotage, as well as assisting in collision avoidance. Captain Phil received Bachelor s and Master s degrees in Electrical Engineering and a PhD in Engineering and Applied Science from Yale University. After graduating, he joined the Department of Electrical Engineering at the University of Maryland, College Park, where he taught for six years and continued his research on signal modeling. He left the academic world to work for a defense contractor on signals intelligence collection and analysis systems, specializing in radar and communications. A native of Washington, DC, Capt. Phil lives in northern Virginia with his photographer-wife Minnie. An avid cruising sailor, he has been sailing for over twenty years. He and his wife currently sail their 42-foot slooprigged Dolly G extensively on the Chesapeake Bay and charter in the Caribbean and Mediterranean. Captain Phil holds a USCG 50 ton Master s certificate with sail endorsement. Shortly after purchasing his first sailboat thirteen years ago, Captain Phil became concerned about how difficult it is to detect a small boat with radar and started looking for a radar reflector to improve his vessel s radar signature. From his lifetime analyzing radar systems he became convinced that the ads and existing literature describing radar reflectors was dangerously lacking and often simply wrong. He set out to analyze and understand how radar reflectors operate in the marine environment, eventually publishing a book on radar reflectors and marine radar, Radar Reflectors for Cruising Sailboats: Why they work, How to evaluate them, What the limitations are and establishing a web site ( devoted to radar reflectors and related technology. This will be the last presentation in our speaker series for the Bridge, be sure not to miss it. Send your RSVP to Denise Allen at [mailto:dallen@allfam.org] so we can tell the restaurant how many people to expect. Dinner will cost $20.00 per person. Directions to Tony Lin s Restaurant: Exit I-270 at Montrose (Exit 4A and proceed eastward). Continue east on Montrose and turn left onto Rockville Pike. Travel north for about 100 ft and turn right into the Flagship Center Shopping Center (Phone and website See you there! NAUTICAL TRIVIA Here are the answers to the trivia questions in the October SKIPJACK: What is the definition of Allison? The act of striking or collision of a moving vessel against a stationary object. What is an ensign? A nautical version of the national flag of the country usually flown at the stern Or- a rank of a junior naval officer. What is a kedge? A small auxiliary anchor. Or- To kedge is to move a vessel (e.g., a grounded boat) by setting out an anchor and pulling the boat toward it by taking up on the anchor rode Test your nautical knowledge for the answers to the following questions. What is a vigia? What is tramp service (careful!)? What is ribband? The answers will appear in the next SKIPJACK issue.

5 5 RSPS CALENDAR Date Time Event Contact Nov D5 Fall Education Conference Holiday Inn 155 Holiday Drive PO Box 1099 Solomons, MD RSPS General Meeting, Tony Lin s Restaurant Rockville, MD See Mark5 Website Holiday Inn: or Lt/C Denise Allen, dallen@allfam.org, , 16 TBD CPR and First Aid Seminar TBD Lt/C Alan Karpas, (H) , (M) , or alankarpas@verizon.net RSPS Bridge Meeting Cdr Jeff McKinney, , jmckinney10@verizon.net Dec 13 RSPS Christmas Party, TBD Kipp Yost, Kipp@kitchentechniq.com, (M), (H) 18 RSPS Bridge Meeting Cdr Jeff McKinney, , jmckinney10@verizon.net TRAWLER FEST P/C Don Carl, AP The Trawler Fest was started the last weekend of September 1997 at the Holiday Inn and Calvert Marina, Solomons, MD. The Trawler Fest grew to three a year, Solomons, MD; Florida, and Washington state. I have heard that there will be a fourth one soon. The Fest runs Thursday through Sunday with seminars in the morning through Saturday at the Holiday Inn and in the afternoon viewing new and pre-owned boats, vendor booths, and interactive demonstrations mostly at Calvert Marina. There are two sessions of seminars each of the three mornings lasting an hour and a half each. Each seminar period has four topics which you must choose one. D5 had their trailer there this year with Sea Vester. There were many D5 members working at the trailer plus a tent booth on Friday through Sunday including P/C Joe Gibson AP, Jean Carl S, and myself. It is planned to have the D5 Trailer at the Fest next year and probably future years. I heard that USPS will probably have something at the other Trawler Fests in the future. The first year in 1997 Jean and I were on a panel for the Great Loop seminar. Tickets are available to buy for the seminars and serve meals individually or for everything. If you are going to attend all sessions and meals it is less expensive to buy the total package. I don not remember who actually started the Trawler Fest in 1997 but West Marine sponsored it for awhile and the last several years Passagemaker has been the prime sponsor. This is a good program to attend if you are interested in Trawlers which are good for extended cruising. You can see different trawlers at one place, talk to trawler owners and become acquainted with the differences between sailing and trawlers.

6 Volume 36, No. 7

COMMANDER S CORNER Cdr Jeff McKinney, JN, VE

COMMANDER S CORNER Cdr Jeff McKinney, JN, VE ROCKVILLE SAIL & POWER SQUADRON May 2008 \ Watch Year 2008-2009 Executive Committee Commander Cdr Jeff McKinney, JN, VE 301.668.9148 Executive Officer Lt/C Alan Karpas, JN, VE 301.767.5905 alankarpas@verizon.net