Cat Tales November 2004

View from the Bridge

Rich Miller, Commodore

Well, November is upon us, and the sailing season is drawing to a close. Many of you will be busy making preparations for hauling your boats out of the water and winterizing its systems. Some of you will be stretching the season out as long as possible in hopes of getting in that last good sail. In either case, this time of year can be a wistful one for those of us who sail on the bay. Fear not, however, because your club has a number of upcoming activities to help keep the water under your keel.

November brings with it our last member meeting of 2004. This is a very important meeting as we begin the process of bringing in new officers and preparing for 2005. December brings with it the always cheerful Holiday Party where we share good food, songs of the season, and a gift exchange that would rival any Red Sox comeback for excitement and competitiveness. You may want to check inside this newsletter for more information on these activities and keep an eye on your club's web page for any last minute details. You will also find some very important information inside. We have included the dues form for 2005. If you plan on renewing your CCYC membership for next year - and I know you plan to do that - you may want to take the chance to get that dues check taken care of early. In addition, you will find the current slate of nominees for the 2005 club officers. Please take the time to review it and join us at the member meeting for the official voting.

We ended the on-water portion of our year enveloped in fall color with a wonderful raft up in the Magothy River at Purdy Point. Thanks to Walt and Sue Dennison for hosting this event again this year and for providing the liberal allowances of rum for the hot cider (or the liberal allowances of hot cider for the rum). Thanks also to Gerry and Jeanne Helldorfer for dropping the anchor - looks like it was a successful test of the new hook. Check inside for a recap, and see the web site for the pictorial review.

Back in April, I mentioned in this column that Claire and I like to set some goals for the year and hope to progress and learn as sailors. Now that the year is winding down, I thought I would humbly share some of the key things I think I learned during the course of this season. I'm sure most of these things are already obvious to you, but bear with me - I'm a newbie:

1. Always respect your spouse's opinion when it comes to decisions about the operation of the boat - they have a maddening tendency to be right (on occasion)….
2. Always show appreciation for your crew, since they often have to put up with more instructions than they would be willing to tolerate from anyone else….
3. On a cold autumn evening at a raft up, leave the seat down in the head and don't use the last of the paper without replenishing….
4. On a cold autumn evening at a raft up, crawl into the back berth first to warm the sheets for your spouse, especially after breaking rules 1 & 2….
5. Cell phones don't float, and after sinking they often fail to work….
6. Two bags of match light charcoal are more than sufficient to start a useful fire at a cookout….
7. When you're the raft captain, you shouldn't be too chicken to actually enter the anchorage….
8. When attending a raft up, plan to bring an appetizer whose preparation time actually allows you to make it to happy hour….
9. When sailing downwind in a light breeze, actually use the spinnaker that was graciously lent to you months earlier….
10. Enjoy yourself, be safe, and respect your fellow boaters.

What can I say? I'm a slow learner. That's all for now. Smooth sailing!

Member Meeting
November 13th

Al Lohman, Vice Commodore

I've reserved the "Red Room" at Ram's Head Tavern, 33 West Street in Annapolis (410.268.4545). We have it from 1:30 to 4:30 PM. We need everyone to get there on time since the 4:30 end time will be strictly enforced. Rams Head has a concert featuring "Little Feat" that starts at 6:30 and they need our room two hours before the concert.

We will socialize and eat until about 2:45, then conduct club business until 3:30. We will wrap up the meeting with a couple of speakers from West Marine. Dave and one of his electronics folks will be giving us ideas for just the right toy to put under the Christmas tree.

The lunch and dessert menus follow:
Luncheon Menu
($14.95 per person, choice of coffee, tea or soda included, tax and gratuity not included)

• Fordham's Finest Crabcake Sandwich
• Cajun Seafood Alfredo
• C126 Steak Sub
• Classic Caesar Salad
• Seared Ahi Tuna
• Funky Town Fish And Chips

Dessert Menu

• Paula's Homemade Peanut Butter Pie ($5.95)
• Key Lime Pie Cheesecake ($4.95)
• Triple Double Chocolate ($5.95)
• Turtle Cheesecake ($4.95)
• Mississippi Mud Pie ($5.95)

Directions:

• Head for Annapolis on Rte 50.
• Take Rowe Blvd. (exit 24) towards downtown/Naval Academy Stadium.
• From the right hand lane bear right at the fork in the road and take a right at the light onto Calvert Street.
• Parking is offered at Gotts Court Garage on the left OR continue to the light and take a left onto West Street.
• The Rams Head is 1/2 a block down on the right.

See you there!

Officer Elections

The following are the current nominations for our 2005 CCYC Officers:

Commodore: Al Lohman
Vice Commodore: Pete Bruzik
Treasurer: Diane Benyus
Secretary: Mike Davis

If you wish to nominate someone, contact Commodore Rich Miller. Nominations must be received before the November 13th Member Meeting.

Halloween Raft-up
Purdy Point
October 23-24

Walt and Sue Dennison, Foxfire

The autumn leaves were in full color along the shoreline. This was a perfectly beautiful anchorage for our last raft up of the year.

Foxfire arrived at Purdy Point only minutes before Ragtime. Thank you Gerry and Jeanne Helldorfer (Ragtime) for setting your shiny, brand new, huge anchor for our seven boat raft. Next, Don and Mary Ann McBride (Coelumar) joined Foxfire and Ragtime. Mary Ann and Jeanne, both avid readers, got so very excited talking about favorite books they had read, I came home and ordered "One for the Money" from Amazon.com. CCYC's sage, Mike Davis (Ayewash) sailed up single-handed from Herrington Harbor (Bev had to work, and she was greatly missed).

Thank you Mike for the Halloween Raft up Cards you sent to all of us. Everyone getting one of these colorful cards recognizes your work, Mike. We do appreciate your hard work in keeping us fully informed as to coming events.

Bob and Lucia (Lucia) joined the raft next, ready with food and tall tales. After joining the raft, Rich and Claire (Exploring the Blue) did the impossible, making potato pancakes with apple sauce for everyone. Brian Smith, son Grant, and daughter Julia (Chili Breeze) came in after dark. We hear Grant is a very good sailor and an untiring helmsman.

Our vote for best tall tales goes to Brian and Bob. The apple cider was good and hot, and the rum helped, I'm sure. Everyone came through with wonderful food, and with Ragtime's fine Florida Room, we were a warm and happy group. Sure makes us want to sail until the snow flies.

Holiday Party
December 11th, 4:00 PM
Waite's Landing

Rod and Pat Waite, Wye Waite

The annual CCYC Holiday Party will be at Rod and Pat Waite's house in Severna Park this year on December 11th from 4:00 pm to ??? Dress is informal and colorful.

The menu calls for heavy hors d'oeuvres - please call Pat and tell her your selection so we can have a variety. The soda, wine and beer will be provided by the club.

In addition, each person should bring a wrapped gift. The gift should be sailing-related but be no more than $10 in value. There is a gift exchange game we will play that we think is great fun for everyone. (Rules will be posted this year!)

Waite's Landing is located at 697 Faircastle Ave. in Severna Park, MD.

Directions:

• Head for I-97, northwest of Annapolis
• Take exit 10A/B onto Benfield Blvd and head east
• Go through the first light (Veterans' Highway) and the next light (Shipley's Choice)
• Once past Shipley's Choice, take the next left onto Faircastle Ave at the Chartwood Development sign at entrance.
• Waite's Landing is the 8th house on the right side - #697.

A map is available on the web site.

Electronic Updates

Mike Davis, Webmaster

Because of spam concerns, almost all ISPs have instituted procedures that label incoming email to several members from one source as spam and put in automatic blocks against all future email from the same URL. This has happened to the email address I use to send out notices to everyone (Webmaster@SailCCYC.org). Many of you may have noticed you haven't received a note from me in weeks. I know I got several notices of failed deliveries, particularly from members using AOL. While the ISPs have good intentions, it does mean you don't receive many notes you might want.

I will be sending test notes to all members in the next few weeks. If you don't receive any, please let your ISP know you don't want to block email from the URL @SailCCYC and to not list it as a source of spam. If you have been receiving the email but don't want it, please let me know and I can remove you from the email list.

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