Commodore’s Log Marilyn Allen
The Salty Dog meetings are going virtual !
Yes, we’ll all miss the hugs and handshakes and the great camaraderie of face to face meetings but let’s use technology to keep in touch and support each other while hearing great sailing stories and learning new skills. Best of all, it’s really easy for everyone to attend.
In place of our monthly meeting at Piccolo’s, we’ll be meeting online through an app called Zoom. It’s easy to use, we can actually see and hear each other and it’s fun ! I just started using it for my real estate business and plan to keep using it, even when “normal” returns. We’ll also be able to Zoom in some of our members who live too far away to attend once face to face time returns.
You’ll get a web blast in early April, explaining how to set up Zoom on your computer, tablet or phone. Honestly folks, it’s pretty easy, even for folks who aren’t really techy! Once you’re set up, you simply click a link that we’ll send out, and you’ll be connected right to the meeting. We may even arrange a practice session so things go smoothly on meeting night. Hope to see you there!
Our winter home, Piccolo’s, could definitely use our help while they’re a carry out and delivery restaurant, so if you’re in their area, give them a call. Their menu is on-line and I know they’d love the business. Maybe order carry out on meeting night ?
We’ve had quite a few renewals come in and new members so other folks besides me must believe we’re going to be on the water soon. Please, if you haven’t renewed / joined, do so. The club needs your dues to pay for camp sites and park reservations and also, our insurance.
Let’s hope for a May in person meeting and if we start to heal as a City, State and Country sooner than expected, we could even be sailing by then.
PLEASE do whatever you can to support our First Responders and the businesses that are being hit so hard by this shut down. Visualize health and wellness.
Stay safe and healthy,
Marilyn Allen, Commodore
Vice Commodore’s Log Bobby Olsen
Adventures in the Atlantic – Awesome Seamanship in Action
The March meeting featured Peter Baumgartner sharing his adventure of sailing his Cat from the Chesapeake to Eleuthera in the Bahamas. The typical mechanical and meteorological challenges. The human experiences of a potentially mutinous crew and helpful local landlubbers. It was a wonderful story and an enjoyable evening for the seven of us that attended. Hopefully, Peter will elaborate on his experience when more members can enjoy his experiences.
Bareboat Chartering – Insights and Advice for a Safe and Successful Sail
Beaches and sand. Wind and water. Exotic and unusual. There is a wonderful world to explore and bareboat chartering is a great mechanism to explore it all. It’s a great sailing experience with the proper planning and preparation.
At the April meeting, via ZOOM, John Venema is going to review it all. The topics will include
- What are Requirements for chartering
- What to look for in charter company
- Crew, equipment and financial planning
- Checklist before leaving the dock
- Checklist along the way
- Checklist after the sail
Membership Report Ronni Willcox
As of the beginning of this year, 17 new people have joined the Salty Dog Meetup Group. And the club has 1 new member!
I have responded to many requests from the Meetup Group asking for information about the club.
Keep those questions coming! Send your questions to membership@saltydog.org.
There are 37 members signed up for the upcoming sailing season.
If you haven’t already joined or renewed, please do so soon at our On-Line Payment link: https://www.saltydog.org/membership/
Or send us a check.
Sailing Schedule 2020 Gary Kieft
We’ll soon be circulating information on the
Lake Pueblo and Lake McConaughy Sails
Information will be on our Website, via Email, and in upcoming Newsletters
Click to see our 2020 Tentative Sailing Schedule
Call for Sail Coordinators!
We need Volunteers for each Sail planned for 2020 –
Step up, Offer the Club Your Ideas, Your Time, Your Goodwill
Well planned Sails make for a Successful Sails… Thanks !
If you’ve got questions, would like to Volunteer
Please contact Gary at onthewater@saltydog.org
Sailing schedule is a work in progress —-
Because of the Coronavirus all May Sails are Tentative!
A Perfect Little Sailing Trip Gari Westkott
February 22, five ladies, Pat Pardekooper, Gari Westkott, Kathy Hug, Betsy Marzonie and Pat’s daughter, Roxanne, took off for St Vincent and the Grenadines. Pat and I had sailed these waters before and knew them well.
Captain Pat, who had also organized the trip, did not want to go through customs (they usually take up to ½ a day coming and ½ a day going). Just staying in the Grenadines was just enough sailing for both of us. Kathy had never been here, so it was all new to her, Roxanne didn’t care where we were going, and Betsy had no fond memories of her last trip in the Caribbean because she broke her back when she had sailed with us and remained down below and immobile for three days, so seeing the seas topside and being in no pain was a joy to her.
[ I digress a little here to explain how one breaks their back on a sailboat. You know the old rule – one hand for yourself and one for the boat, and NEVER go down the companionway forward like you would stairs at home. Betsy had stuff in her hands (both). She slipped on the first step and bumped her way to the bottom, breaking her back in a number of places – all of this while we were at anchor or on a buoy (don’t remember which). ]
St Vincent is a lovely island. We started our trip at Blue Lagoon Marina wherein they pilot you both in and out of the marina because the reef around the bay is so tricky. We sailed our first day to Bequia, went ashore for a lovely dinner on the beachhead and came home again running into nothing in the dark and successfully finding our boat. Kathy, our #1 dinghy driver, knew how to start and run the motor and became the Captain of the Dinghy besides being Master of the Waste Valves (We had holding tanks; no macerator on this boat). Kathy said, “We had a motor home so I know what the valve looks like.” Thanks for volunteering, Kathy. My old knees would not have liked to do this. She also had to cable up the dinghy. Dinghies are sometimes stolen off the boats at night.
The next day we sailed onto Canouan. Here we anchored and didn’t drag. Whoopee! Pat had said, “Don’t worry about the anchor. It’s all about getting the anchor set and getting a really good slope”. Next day we went on to Tobago Keys. This is a very popular spot wherein one can swim with the sea turtles. Kathy and Roxanne made it to the turtle’s beach, but Betsy returned to the boat. She had forgotten how scared she had become when she got her face wet, but she surely had dressed for the part. I have never seen so much skin-tight latex pants, a latex top with hood, matching face mask, flippers – straight out of 007. We two old “have been there before and done that” persons rested and waited on the boat for our feast. Pat had ordered lobster dinner for five on board the boat. Six lobster halves smothered in butter and spices arrived by motor boat along with rice, potatoes, plantains and honey. What a meal! We spent the night at anchor again with no problems.
Next day we went on to Union Island. Pat has learned to make good use of the boat boys who pick us a spot and help us tie up. I had remembered a cute wonderful little ice cream store, so once we were all secure, we went in to town for ice cream. We took the dinghy into a little dinghy cove at Bouganvilla’s. A native man came out to help us. He helped Pat out of the dinghy first and I was next. The man had one of my hands and Pat offered me her hand for my other hand. A big pile of pink descended on the stone wharf as Pat and I (both wearing pink blouses) ended up in a heap with me on top of Pat. The native man didn’t know what to do, and Pat and I just lay there and laughed and laughed. By the way, the good ice cream shop is not there anymore, so we had to console ourselves with rum punches at Lambi’s. So sad. [ We all had a nice rum punch and then Lambi’s gave Gari another large and very strong one. Getting Gari back into the dinghy was as much fun as getting her out.] Pat’s addition –
Next day we returned to Canouan, sailing north and tacking to the east and west, and spent a good night anchoring in about 12’ of water. Then onto Bequia. Kathy provided us with some merriment. She had gone below to go to the head, I believe. As she turned into the narrow corridor that leads to the door of the head, she caught the emergency pull cord of her life jacket on the handle of something. BANG, POOF! her life vest exploded. I did reassure her that even though the toilet lead straight to the sea, I felt assured that she would not fall into it and have need of such equipment.
On return to the Blue Lagoon , the wind picked up and we had to reef, otherwise the winds had been fair to us all the way. Once connected to the dock, we went swimming in the marina’s pool, then three of us ate at the restaurant. I ate leftovers on the boat. We had bought so much foodstuff I couldn’t believe. For certain we would not starve to death. I figured we could have outlasted the corona virus for a month if we had had to. Speaking of that, apparently we just missed it because after we left, St Vincent had their first case of Covid-19.
Thanks to Roxanne and Kathy who did all the heavy work hauling up the sail, setting and pulling up the anchor, tying us up to the mooring balls and especially for Roxanne, climbing the mast to free up the lazy-jacks.
For Pat and myself, we are saying Sayonara to big boat sailing. At least this is the last hurrah for me. I shall forever miss the rocking of the boat, the gentle movement of the winds on my face, the slap of the waves and the sight of a big sail powering us through the seas.
As Winnie the Pooh said,” There is nothing, absolutely nothing, more fun than messing about with boats”.
Gari W.
Dry Land Activities Andrea Lewis
April 2020
April 9 – SDSC First Ever On – Line Meeting ( Are we High Tech or what … !! )
If you’ve never done this before … Don’t Worry … We’ll get you there ! Instructions will be coming shortly.
Due to Coronavirus there will be no Dry Land Activities.
Please stay inside, hug your loved ones, and keep well and safe !!
Looking forward to seeing you all on the water soon.
Andrea – Dry Land coordinator
A GOODBYE PARTY FOR COVID-19 FOURTH OF JULY PARTY, 2020
Ahoy there, Saltydoggers –
Let’s celebrate the end of this pandemic and the beginning of our great country. Yes, we will try for the July 4th date to have a party at my house; Saturday, July 4 at 5:00 pm.
Save the date and plan to come if all is secure with the virus (otherwise, I will try for a date further in time). It will be a potluck, so no prepay is needed. I do not have a BBQ any more so you will need to bring your own portable one if you want to have a grill. (Sorry, I thought I was going to move, so gave it away) Also may need you to bring a lawn chair and I may need a few other things, but I will call you. We will see the fireworks , either from my roof or up the street from me, AND play games, actually in reverse order.
SO, for now Save the Date.
Viruses don’t like warm weather or sun and we will be outdoors so we should be safer than most places. We may even be able to shake hands or hug then.
The games? Well, here are a few –
1.Not it 2.Today’s orders 3. Aye,aye,captain 4. Step to it 5.Changing watches 6. Secure that line
7.Identify that boat, and more (still working on this) There will be PRIZES
Oh, and the cost of this event, other than your potluck dish– also BYOB – will be that each of you will need to bring a boat (not for keeps) [Could be as big as Shane’s rubber raft or it could be the floaty that accompanies you in the bathtub] (Try the thrift store)
More later
Miss you all. Be safe
Gari W.
