October 1996 - Volume 26 Number 10
Last updated: October 27, 1996 @ 12:20 CST
Don't Miss the November 19th Membership Meeting
for the
(See 1997 Elections for Details)
COMMODORE - Hairy Larry - Larry Featherston
VICE COMMODORE'S REPORT - Steve Hanes
26 FLEET REPORT - Dave Taylor
TWENTY-FIVE CORNER - John Vaughan
23/24 FLEET - Ray Pryor
RACING REPORT - Al Barboza
PROGRAMS - Jim Wallace
SOCIAL NEWS - Lora Featherston
1997 ELECTIONS
1996 OFFICERS and BOARD OF DIRECTORS
1996 CALENDAR OF EVENTS
DOOR PRIZE!
THE SALE MAKER (Classified Ads)
COMMODORE Hairy Larry
The days are beginning to grow shorter and the nights a little longer, which tells us that the summer of 1996 is just about over. Some of the trees are beginning to turn different colors, and some little critters are already putting away food for the cold months of winter. All of my neighbors never have to rake leaves 'cause they always end up in my cockpit. Some sailors are already battening down hatches to keep old man winter out of their bilges. Not me, no sir-ree. It's just getting good again as far as I'm concerned. Fresh air from the north brings wind, and that's the way I like it. Blow, darn ya, blow, and blow hard - but not too hard. Need a little puff every once in a while to keep the old Aminal going and up on it's feet.
The party is still in full swing. We have completed a second sailing class, with much thanks to Cathy Young and Lora Featherston for organizing everything. Calling people to remind them of the class and getting volunteers from the club to actually teach the on-the-water session is not an easy task. Thanks to Kathy and Lora for that part. Thanks also goes to the following for bringing their boats on Saturday and /or Sunday: J.B. Jordan; Jeff Tucker; Jim and Margie Hutchison; David, Jennie and Bryan Taylor; Carol and Marshall McKenzie; Sandy and Doug Cook; Al and Juanelle Barboza; Lee and Dale Howard; Les Liggett who loaned his boat to be skippered by Ray Pryor; Sam Blake; Steve Hanes; John Molstad; Mike Jones; and Kathy Peele. Without your help, it would not have been possible to teach people that sailing is a fun sport and not necessarily a rich man's sport. Hooray to all of you. I would also like to say thanks to John and Kay Vaughan for teaching the classroom part on Friday night.
O.K., so now let's get down to the business part. We have been sailing along pretty well so far, and it looks like we are going to end the year on a favorable wind. We now have 74 families with a potential of gaining two more before year-end. Met two couples that bought a 26 at an auction (STOLE at an auction) about a year ago and are taking the class so they can learn to sail by themselves.
The door prize pot is now up to $90.00, and too bad Lee or Ruth White were not at the last meeting to claim their new found wealth. Had to pull the number by phone, since Steve Hanes was ill. No, this is not Western Union.
A new slate of officers are being keel-hauled or reviewed for the new year of 1997, with plenty of room for advice. We still have money in the old sea chest that's buried somewhere in Lewisville.
Thanks to all this year who have kept the party going. Keep them cards and letters a-come'n in.
VICE COMMODORE'S REPORT
There's no growth news to report on the membership this month, as we continue to hold steady at 74 members. I was reminded at the recent board meeting that per our bylaws, new members who join each year after June 1st are to have their membership dues pro-rated on a monthly basis. Since all membership applications received have been accompanied by a full year's dues, the number of months extra will be credited to next year's dues at the time they renew. I will contact each of the four affected new members with the specifics.
This past month, I was fortunate to participate as one of the two entries from our club in this year's 5-race Gold Rush Regatta at Lake Grapevine. Marshall McKenzie and I entered my boat, Miss Kitty, with Ray and Charlotte Pryor as crew. Larry Featherston raced his boat as well. Overall, there were 63 boats in the regatta including everything from Lasers to 36' keelboats lifted in by a rented crane! The 10-boat fleet that we were entered in included some tough competition. I never heard the final results, but based on the results from the first 3 races on Saturday, and the approximate results from the two races on Sunday, both of our boats likely finished around sixth or seventh place. The regatta was very well run and loads of fun with all fleets racing the same course together. They had the usual staggered start with marks set in a smaller triangular course for the dinghies. One minute you would be rounding a mark with large keelboats, and the next minute you'd have catamarans and dinghies crossing your bow and stern. With that many boats, there was only one starting line mishap, and I understand that a dinghy and keelboat collided elsewhere on the course. You can imagine who got the better end of that deal! All in all, we had a great time and celebrated with champagne provided by Charlotte. Thank you Ray, Charlotte, and Marshall for doing a great job and for helping add to my racing experience!
With little else to report on this month, I thought you might enjoy the following story posted in response to a recent thread on the MacGregor eMail listserv on the Internet. It relates well to our recent experiences with the low water level at area lakes, and is a reminder to be careful with our boats at the local launch ramps. The following was contributed by Bruce Bott, skipper of a V23, Vigilante:
I worked a number of years for the Fish and Game Department in California and saw about every disaster you could imagine.
The best one I saw was where a guy backed a 20' powerboat off the end of the ramp and stuck the trailer in a mudflat. No amount of effort could dislodge the trailer... So, being resourceful, he reasoned that if he left the boat strapped to the trailer, it would float the trailer out of the muck as the tide came back in.
Alas, the trailer was so mired in the muck that he watched in horror as the water crept higher and higher on the transom until at last it began to spill over into the cockpit. At this point, the individual waded into the water and cut the port side strap with a knife.....
The flotation of the boat immediately flipped it over off the trailer to the other side (capsized) on the ramp, which was now completely blocked with a capsized boat and a stuck trailer. (They had to hire a small crane to extract the boat and trailer....)
Other stories (for another day...)
Hope you enjoyed the story. I can't wait to hear about the floating trailer and the others.
Until next month..... Smooth Sailing!
26 FLEET
The weather is changing again. Just when we get used to the 100+ heat, the sun and dry, windless days...it changes. And it's only October. But, it's better for daytime sailing and racing.
Cathy Young
scheduled near perfect weather for our sailing classes in September. The students seemed to agree. We hope this has been a positive introduction to saillng which, in turn, may provide prospective club members, owners, and of course, crew. Thanks to Cathy and her helpers for all their hard work putting this class together, and to the instructors. Also, we appreciate the support of so many of our fleet members who supplied their boats and their time for the classes. The students got the best sailing instruction and practice for their buck anywhere.Speaking of racing, the Fall Series is on a beat. I am pleased with the new format for Committee Boat duty. One does not have to give up the entire day to non-racing, just one race.
Seriously, you should get on a committee just to attend the board meetings. You probably think we are locked in stressful fulfillment of our appointed duties as your steadfast representative, but actually, we have fun. October was snake stories. You know how serious Jim Wallace and Larry can be.
NOMINATING COMMITTEE
This time of year is traditional for something other than a change in the weather. It also brings elections. No, I don't mean Bill, Bob and Ross. I mean important positions, like the Board of our Club. Bearing the heavy weight of this responsibility, the Nominating Committee, composed of the 4 Fleet Captains, prepared early for the onslaught of applicants vying for these prestigious jobs. Our backs to the wall, protected from written and spoken assault, we mapped, no charted, our strategy. Only the finest would triumph. The pleading calls, letters and campaign literature from hopeful candidates. Many called but only four could be selected. And what about the others? Those who tried in vain to capture a place on this powerful committee. The prospect of having to say "sorry" to those who did not get the nod caused some anxiety. But we made it, stood up to the wily political elements that might otherwise rob the club of fair and true leadership. The lobbyists........the bribes........the trickery.......Where were they? We couldn't get a free ham sandwich.
Stop! Reality check. The foregoing was just a dream. Actually, the selection process for the nominations is a highly guarded secret. The results, however, are published in this edition of the Venturing, in accordance with the by-laws.
TWENTY-FIVE CORNER
As a son of a son of a sailor, I went off on the sea for ad-VENTURE.
Ya see? Everywhere we go we keep seeing the VENTURE name pop up. And rightly so. Just wander through any marina and meander down the docks looking at the boats. Somewhere over there toward the back behind the shiny new Olsens, Hunters, or Catalinas, out of sight in the last slip will be a well used, battle scarred, moss bottomed, veteran old trusty Venture 17, 21, 22, 23, 24, or 25. It might be tied to the dock with ski rope, and the hull color could be washed out yellow or faded blue. The sails are probably original 1973 issue, and the sail cover (if it has one) is well-patched with lines wrapped around the boom to hold it on.
Also just as likely, you'll see a young family, kids, dog, mom and dad, relaxing in the cockpit, listening to a portable tape player, surrounded by soft drink cans, ice chests, one long "canoe style" boat paddle and Kentucky Fried chicken boxes sharing dreams about sailing adventures yet to come. You might even overhear them musing about their first real ocean cruise, or fixing up the boat or moving up to a bigger boat... later on .... sometime.. But right now, they have their very first sailboat...and now, they're sailors!
Well, they couldn't have picked a better boat. When set up and sailed correctly, that same old Venture with the worn-out sails they bought for very little money can safely carry that family out for many a sail, and will take the punishment new sailors can dish out and come back for more. With a little help, these new sailors can get a ton of enjoyment out of their new family sailing hobby.
Sometimes it's all too easy to get wrapped up in high tech, go-fast equipment, faster and faster boats, handicaps and the like. We all do it.
It's also very rewarding, though, to stop and say hello to that young family and their "sailing on the simple side." They may really need what we can teach them to get started, avoid mistakes, and get the most out of their boat. There's a world of sailing and Venture / MacGregor knowledge in our club, and no better way to put it to good use than to help re-cycle new VENTURE or MacGregor owners into sailing and our sailing family.
23/24 FLEET
The September meeting featured a speaker from Mariner Sails, Rick Curry, who talked about the history of sail making, from the earliest primitive sails to the modern racing sails. The newest mylar sails can make you go faster but cost more initially and don't last as long as the traditional dacron sails. This is the second time this year Mariner has supported the club with speakers, and they have also provided some of the videos we have seen. Make sure to thank them if you happen by their store.
The Fall Race Series are being run a bit differently than the Spring Series. There used to be four fleets and each fleet provided Committee Duty for one of the four race days (with two races per day). The math worked out for the Committee Duty assignments and the total race scoring as each boat sailed six races. Well, this fall there are only 3 fleets possible, due to some racers buying Mac 26's. What is a Race Committee to do? Three race days with two races per day, or three races per day, or what? Well, after pondering the situation, the Race Committee decided that the Committee Duty will be assigned to every boat for one of the races. That is, one race out of the eight, not one day out of four. There are still 4 race days and 2 races per day. For some races, there will be two boats responsible for running the Committee Boat; others will only have one. These changes mean that each boat will sail seven of the eight races instead of six races like in the Spring Series. This means more sailing for the buck. This also means that the crew doesn't get a lazy day on Race Committee Day. (What, you crewed but didn't get off on Race Committee Day, OOPS!) Al Barboza has made the suggestion for Committee Boat training as one of the programs for next year. That is a good idea for the racers, and it could be fun (even for the non-racers) to get some audience participation in acting out the various situations that can happen during the race.
Lake Grapevine is still low. I have to crank up the keel to exit one shallow spot in the marina. Too bad the 50K$ Catalina 30 berthed down from me has a fixed keel and can't come out and enjoy this lovely cruising weather.
Cathy Young
and I borrowed Les and Wilma Liggett's Mac 25 "Willy Deally" for the sailing class. I enjoyed sailing it and must say it definitely seemed fast. I suspect the Willy Deally might have some enhancements worth taking note of, whether you're interested in speed or convenience. Thanks to Les and Wilma for helping make the sailing class a success.Dick and Beth Hardin
had a nice vacation visiting friends and sight-seeing in northern California.You might be a reliability engineer ASP Productization Reliability Engineering Texas Instruments
RACING REPORT
When assigned to Committee Boat duty, all boats scheduled will raft up side to side or tie up bow to stern. The purpose of this is to allow the less experienced skippers a chance to learn how to handle Committee Boat duties by being assigned duty along with a more experienced skipper. Listed below is the Committee Boat Schedule for Fall 1996:
|
September 21 |
Race 1 |
Barboza |
|
Race 2 |
Motsenbocker |
|
|
Gray |
||
|
October 5 |
Race 3 |
McKenzie |
|
Jordan |
||
|
Race 4 |
Young |
|
|
October 19 |
Race 5 |
Blake |
|
Race 6 |
Hardin |
|
|
Taylor |
||
|
November 2 |
Race 7 |
Jones |
|
O'Grady |
||
|
Race 8 |
Featherston |
Elections of Officers for 1997
The November General Membership Meeting
of the Venture/MacGregor Yacht Club will be held
November 19, 1996 at 7:30 p.m.
at the First Christian Church in Carrollton, Texas,
for the purpose of electing officers for the calendar year 1997.
The Election of Officers and Fleet Captains
will be proceeded by a
Thanksgiving Potluck Dinner.
Please bring a dish to share.
The club will furnish turkey, plates, silver, and drinks.
If unable to attend, please use the enclosed ballot and vote by proxy
to assure a quorum is available to elect officers.
The following members have been nominated:
|
Commodore: |
Dave Taylor |
|
Vice Commodore: |
Ray Pryor |
|
Secretary: |
Cathy Young |
|
Treasurer: |
Dale Howard |
PROGRAMS
The October 15th program will be a Scuba Presentation by Larry Ribble. Larry will be showing a tape on basic scuba diving and will discuss what it takes to get into scuba diving.
The November 19th membership meeting will include the Annual Election of Officers for 1997 and Thanksgiving Pot Luck Dinner. Be sure to make this meeting to assure that we have a quorum present to vote. If you are unable to attend, be sure to return your proxy ballot before the November 19th meeting. Fleet Captains will also be elected at the November meeting.
SOCIAL NEWS
Thanks to Gina Grikis, Dale Howard, and Margie Hutchison for bringing refreshments to the September meeting.
Tickets will be on sale at the October meeting for the December 14th Banquet.
We will again venture to the Holiday Inn in Richardson for a wonderful evening of food and dance. Tickets will be $25.00 per person. When you purchase your ticket, you must tell us at that time whether you want Prime Rib or Chicken Cordon Bleu. Both dinners will come with a baked potato, mixed vegetables, roll, tea or coffee, and a surprise dessert.Don't forget, the November meeting will be a Pot Luck Dinner. The turkey will be provided. (No, not Larry, Sam, Jim, etc.)
See you there.
DOOR PRIZE!!!
$90.00
How would you like to have an extra
$10.00 or MORE???!!!
At each membership meeting,
all members' names will be placed in a hat,
and one will be selected to win the prize.
But, You must be present to win!!!
If the member drawn is not present, $10.00 will be added to
the pot and left to accumulate meeting after meeting
until we have a winner!!!
Lee White of Garland
was the lucky (?) name drawn at the September meeting
and was NOT present to collect his $80.00 prize!
Classified Ads are FREE to members. To place an ad, call the Venturing Editor. (972) 271-5073
FOR SALE:
MacGregor 25'FOR SALE:
1996 JohnsonFOR SALE:
1976 Venture 222FOR SALE:
1972 Venture 222
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© Copyright 1996 Steven J. Hanes, All Rights Reserved