Commodore s Message - Durkee Richards

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1 May, 2016 Judy Shanks, Editor Commodore s Message - Durkee Richards Our May General Meeting was a most enjoyable evening. It started with an informative presentation about the Jamestown S Klallam/Point Whitney Shellfish operation, along with a chance to taste some of their oysters. Then we were pleased to induct two couples into the club: Don & Sue Sorensen as returning members, and Ray & Glenda Mitchell as new members who have recently moved from California to Sequim. This brings the total number of new members this year to eight, and Ann Elliott will be presenting several more applications to the Board at their next meeting. This is excellent news. This infusion of talent and willing hands is essential to the continuing success of SBYC. Our recent Open House/Public Open House was also a part of the strategy to grow the club. The morning events were designed to help make the community more aware of all that we have to offer recreational boats. It also featured some of the many ways that a young family can enjoy boating on a modest budget. We were all pleased with the turnout. Now we will look to see the results of this effort. 1

2 Vice Commodore s Message Quad Rowing and the Chase Boat While our beginning Master rowers are learning the techniques of this new skill they are followed / monitored by a person in the chase boat. Its purpose is to monitor the area and to be immediately available for assistance in the event of an upset or other mishap. Later in the program the chase boat may be occupied by one of the instructors while he is observing and coaching four rowers. We require that each chase boat operator be checked out by either Commodore Richards or Ted Shanks. This is to ensure that all drivers know the characteristics of the boat and it s handling qualities. This also satisfies any requirements that our insurance might have. Our chase boat qualification program uses a shortened form of a course developed by the U.S. Power Squadron. A check out session with two students takes about 2 hours and includes some shore-side discussions about small power boat handling, followed by maneuvering at slow and high speeds; running a slalom course forward and in reverse; Man Overboard drills and finally the pivot turn that allows a boat to be turned 180 degrees in a confined area or alley. To date 14 club members have been qualified. More can become qualified as sometimes a scheduled chase boater might not become available at the last minute. If there is no chase boat around the rowers cannot go out. If you wish to get qualified to drive the chase boat, contact Commodore Richards or Dennis Miller. Ted Vice Commodore SBYC 2

3 Whazzit? Wednesday morning, during a chase boat qualification exercise, an unusual object was found floating in the water. It turned out to be a NOAA weather instrument (a radiosonde ) that appears to have been launched in Forks earlier in the day. 2 nd Annual SBYC Rendezvous in Port Townsend A big thanks go to Jean Heessels-Petit for planning a great second annual Rendezvous in Port Townsend. Six couples came by boat -- four sail and two power. And two couples came by land; plus Jean who drove so she could bring along a car full of appetizers, decorations and other supplies for the event. It was a smooth passage from Sequim to Point Hudson for all. The sailors who left at the optimum time had a nice sailing breeze in addition to favorable times at Point Wilson. We were pleased that three of the couples this year were new members! The folks who arrived early were able to enjoy the Rockin Rhody parade which included a float from Sequim. This parade is the culmination of Port Townsend s annual Rhody Festival. Following the parade, we set up in the meeting room of the Point Hudson Marina that Jean had reserved for our use. Relaxed visiting led into the 5 pm Happy Hour and then on into our 6 pm potluck dinner. Now, we look forward to next year s third annual rendezvous in Port Townsend. 3

4 Do You Have Yours Yet? The Vessel Safety Check process is one of prevention through education, outreach and volunteer compliance helping recreational boaters to gain a respect for 4

5 the boating environment. The VSC Program also helps to achieve voluntary compliance with federal and state recreational boating safety laws, particularly with regard to the carriage of safety equipment while raising boater awareness about safety and environmental issues through voluntary contact by a Vessel Examiner (VE). VE discussions with recreational boaters are designed to motivate maintenance and operation of their boats in a safe manner, taking boating safety courses to increase their knowledge and skills in boating, and promoting safe boating. The above is the fancy description about the Vessel Safety Check program. (The picture above this article shows last year s sticker.) This is the same safety check that the Coast Guard and other governmental agencies conduct. The point of it all is to help you, the boater, know that your boat has the minimum equipment to go boating safely. This is the time of year that we are getting ready for the boating season. The examiner is not concerned with housekeeping or neatness. He wants to look at fire extinguishers and PFDs, etc. If you are interested in looking at all the items on a safety checklist look over the form printed which we can provide to you. The safety checks are renewed every calendar year. If you are ready for a check contact SBYC members Doug Schwartz, Torben Blichfeld, or Ted Shanks to have us take a look at your boat. Ted Vice Commodore Rear Commodore s Message The June 8th Speaker for our general meeting will be a world renowned artistic carver, Dale Faulstich, who lives here in Sequim. We know him for the many local totem poles he has carved including the one in front of City Hall, but Dale has many works on display worldwide. Dale is a prolific artist and has designed and carved more than 60 totems for the Jamestown S'Klallam Tribe during a 22 year span as well as many carved wooden masks and other pieces such as the "killer" whale at the Jamestown Tribal campus. The totems tell a story - a history of a tribe and the result of thousands of hours of research by Dale. Dale has also written a book of his 60 totems titled "Totem Poles of the Jamestown S'Klallam Tribe which has been acknowledged by W. Ron Allen, Jamestown Tribal Chairman. Our guest speaker hails from Missouri by way of four years active duty with the U. S. Coast Guard and two more years in the Coast Guard Reserves and hence moving here to the Olympic Peninsula. We are very lucky to have talent like Dale in our midst. Jim Fitzpatrick SBYC Rear Commodore 5

6 SBYC Lunch Bunch Old Mill Café 721 Carlsborg Rd. Carlsbo Thursday June 2 11:30 AM RSVP to Roger Clark rlclark@olypen.com It would be great to see some new member s faces around the table. 6

7 Opening Day and Public Open House May Our Opening Day and Open House were remarkably successful this year in spite of the Halibut fishing opener making parking all but impossible. The weather was spectacular and we had a great turnout. The better than expected turnout was due to a successful publicity campaign stories in the press and radio by Jim Jones, flyers all over town from the efforts of several members, and our new Facebook page promoting the event thanks to Janet Dunning and Mace Gratz. In the morning, 78 guests got out for rides on the five Flying Scot sailing dinghies that Dale had organized. GoXpeditions had about 45 guests try paddling a kayak or standup paddle board. Randy and Debbi had their handsome, new pocket cruiser Puff open for public tours. Our traditional Opening Day ceremonies by the flagpole were well attended. Past Commodore Bud Harris broke out the Burgee and Fritz Gruetzmacher provided the sound signals. The Rev Robert Rhoads blessed the fleet. Past Commodore Jim Jones read the last watch for our six departed members. A dozen boats participated in the boat parade, piped out into the bay by Thomas McCurdy. Ted and Judy Shanks offered the use of Malaika as flagship with Bob McClinton as Parade Captain. 7

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9 Thanks to member Roger Clark for the photos of our Opening Day activities. From the Membership Desk - Ann Elliot Thank you to everyone who volunteered to make our Open House a successful event. Your contribution is greatly appreciated! You are doing a great job promoting our limited-time membership offer that runs through the end of June which replaces the $300 initiation fee with a $50 application fee, and then the usual prorated dues from the applicant s induction date through the end of I am in receipt of several more applications which I will present to the Board at the next board meeting, May 25th. Keep up the great work promoting SBYC! At the May 11th general meeting, two more couples were inducted; 9

10 Don and Susan Sorensen, previous members for 10 years, have returned after a hiatus. Many of you may remember them as very active members in our racing events. They no longer have their boat and have returned as social members. Ray and Glenda Mitchell come to from California where they were members of the Benicia Yacht Club. They have put their sails away and moved to a power boat. As with all new members, their name tags bear a star to remind us all to put forth an extra effort to make them feel welcome. Sending wishes for a very Happy Birthday to the following members: Helga McGhee-Greer 6/03 Carrol Hull 6/12 Anita Blichfeld 6/13 Glenda Mitchell 6/29 Respectfully, Ann Elliot, Membership

11 CLUB BUSINESS General Meetings are held on the second Wednesday of every month. Executive Board Meetings are held on the Monday of the week preceding the monthly General Meeting, at 2:00 PM in the SBYC clubroom. The current Board of Directors is listed at: Board of Directors. Executive Board Meeting: Minutes of the monthly board meeting are found at: Secretary s Board Meeting Minutes. General Meeting: Minutes of the General Meeting are found at: Secretary s General Meeting Minutes. Treasurer s Report: The current treasurer s report is found at: Treasurer s Report. The combined club calendars are available at: 11