Cruising
Last updated: April 22, 2001 @ 08:40 CDT
The V/MYC organizes cruises throughout the year for
members and guests. There are three major family cruises scheduled each year in
addition to a winter Bachelor Cruise, Women’s Cruise, Full Moon Cruises and
miscellaneous Local Lake Adventures.
2001
Cruising Schedule
Bachelor Cruise -
March 17-18
Women’s Cruise - May
5-6
Memorial Day Cruise - May 26-28
July 4th Cruise - TBD
Labor Day Cruise - September 1-3
Fall Full Moon Finale - October 6-7
As the name implies, this annual event is open to men only. Its for those members who can't wait for the Spring to test out the work they've done on their boats over the winter, with time left to do some tuning before the "real" sailing season begins. Once again this cruise will be held at Grandpappy Point Marina on Lake Texoma. Details are still being developed. The following information includes details from 2000 and past years until the current details are available.
Please note we will have a NEW RENDEZVOUS POINT this year. We will meet at the Driver's Restaurant Truck Stop on Hwy 75 North. To reach the rendezvous point take Exit 48 (Mile marker 228, NE corner of Hwy75-Hwy455). There is ample parking for our boat trailers just north of the truck stop.
Our agenda will be to meet at 8am at the Driver's Restaurant Truck Stop Saturday morning, have breakfast and caravan to Lake Texoma. We plan to sail from the guest slips at Grandpappy Point on Lake Texoma. The slips are a short walking distance from The Point Restaurant and are at the entrance to the cove of Grandpappy Point Marina. Normally we would launch from the ramp just to the South of The Point Restaurant, but the current lake level is very low and this ramp may be too shallow. At this time our alternate ramp will be at Little Mineral Marina, directly across from Grandpappy Point on the west side of the Little Mineral Arm of Lake Texoma. We will launch about 10:30am at Little Mineral Marina and sail over to the guest slips at Grandpappy Point. For the noon meal either pack a lunch or grab a hamburger at The Point Restaurant. We will announce an afternoon race at the guest slips at 1pm.
At the conclusion of the afternoon race, we will return to the slips, relax a little, then meet at the Rig One Restaurant in Denison for the evening meal. Sunday we'll begin with breakfast at The Point Restaurant, followed by a sail to Soldiers Creek Marina for lunch, returning to Little Mineral Marina and departing for home by mid-afternoon. If anyone has any questions, call David Grote at 972-866-0370.
The 1997 event, typical of the annual adventure, included 9 boats with 22 participants who "braved" the two days of relatively mild weather for this time of the year. Temperatures ranged from the mid 30s to 70 degrees with winds from 0 - 15 knots. Most everyone arrived by 11:00 on Saturday in a heavy fog that was with us all the way from Dallas. It added a challenge to stay close to the shoreline as we motored from the ramp, around Grandpappy Point to the courtesy slips without getting lost in the fog. After downing our lunch and "sampling" Jeff Tucker's 20 gallons of home-brewed dark ale and lager from the "walk-up bar" that was setup on the party dock, we were ready to race, once the fog lifted about 2:00 PM.
We had a LeMans style start with 5 minutes from the gun at the skipper's meeting for skippers and crew to climb aboard and get a running start as long as your motor was off and out of the water by the time you hit the startline at the 5-minute mark. It was slow going in a light variable breeze as we rounded the point and headed for Eisenhower Marina somewhere off in the unseen distance. Sam Blake and crew on his new 26 found the right wind and proceeded to separate himself from the rest of the pack. Thanks to the generosity of Marshall McKenzie for loaning yours truly his asymmetrical spinnaker and pole, we were soon finding some wind of our own on Miss Kitty after my crew, Dave Taylor and Don O'Grady, had rigged the pole as a bowsprit and launched the spinnaker. This was a new experience for us as none of us had ever handled such a spinnaker before. But then, that's what the Bachelor Cruise is for, to try out new toys for the season. We had closed to within 10 minutes of Yosemite Sam by the time we reached Eisenhower, but could do no better than to finish 6 - 1/2 minutes behind him as he took the final flag after nearly 3 hours of racing. My crew should be congratulated for a fine job sailing a new rig and enduring my constant banter of our speed, direction, distance to the mark, and even altitude, read from my recently acquired Garmin 48XL GPS. Fun toy, but then that's another story.
After a "happy hour" (or two) of more home brew and recanting the days events with some visitors from Grand Lake near Tulsa, we proceeded to Grandpappy's Point Restaurant for a superb dinner. Many proceeded to turn in early for what proved to be a long night. The winds picked up as our heads hit the pillows, and with it came wave after wave to rock and roll our berths. Many skippers and crew were up and down throughout the night, checking dock lines and reassuring themselves that the constant "banging" of their boats was merely the action of being "snapped" back at the end of a line rather than slapping against the docks.
We were a motley crew the next morning as we gradually wandered into the restaurant for solid footing and a sumptuous breakfast after a rather long night. The planned race to Soldier Creek was limited to a few hardy crews as many chose to stay closer to Grandpappy's and cruised the Southern shores under threatening skies which turned to rain in the late morning that sent everyone to the launch ramp for early retrieval and derigging. The long journey home in an ever-increasing downpour was broken up for a few who stopped in Sherman for a late lunch at El Chico.
All in all, it proved to be another fun and eventful Bachelor Cruise. Men, make sure to put this "shakedown" cruise on your schedule for the next edition of this annual event.
This is truly an event you will NOT want to miss! We will be meeting for a pre-sail dinner at the restaurant at Collin Park Marina and then have a lovely cruise out to our anchorage. Swimming, cards, stories, snacks, and more fun than the men will have had on their bachelor cruise. Watch the sun set. Breakfast in the AM and a lovely sail back to the marina. You do not have to be an experienced sailor to participate, as you will have two qualified women skippers leading this adventure. If you don’t want to sail or spend the night – just come for dinner! Hurry, participation is limited. Call either Kathy Peele 972-423-4603 or Alison Robertson 972-480-8165 to reserve your spot.
Memorial Day
Cruise - May 26-28
This family cruise is the first big cruise event each year. After last year’s attempt to join in on the Across Matagorda Bay Rendezvous (AMBR) hosted by the Palacios Yacht Club, we will once again return to Lake Texoma. Details will be posted at a later date. Plan now to attend this event. Following is an example of the excitement from a past cruise:
1996 Cruise
Eighteen families brought their boats to Lake Texoma to enjoy the 1996 cruise. The first 6 boats arrived Friday with the last to drop anchor at about 11:30 PM. Yours truly was the last to arrive and am thankful for the swing center board and retractable rudder which allowed us to get "unstuck" from a sandbar that we managed to "discover" in the dark as we searched the shore for our encampment. By Saturday evening 17 boats had arrived and we had one late arrival on Sunday morning. Brisk winds on Saturday made for some great sailing for those who chose to leave the comfort of the sandy island. We were sailing among "hundreds and hundreds" of other sailboats, many who were participating in the 100-mile race underway as well as two other regattas that were held Saturday at Cedar Mills. One was the Hobbie Fleet which had about 75-100 boats participating. What a sight!
After Saturday evening's potluck dinner, our Cruise Directors, Sam and Donna Blake hosted the evening campfire which included a game of sailing trivia. Prizes were awarded to Al Grikis, Steve Hanes, and Al Barboza who had accumulated the most "cold cash" for having the most right answers. On Sunday, games were held for all the youngsters who all went away "winners" with bags full of prizes and treats. The Sunday afternoon Singlehand Race was cancelled due to the high winds that kept all but two "brave" skippers from wanting to participate. It was suggested the two go ahead and race each other... there were plenty of jet skiers around to rescue them!
Several boats "chickened" out and departed Saturday afternoon under threatening weather reports of severe storm warnings. Approximately a dozen boats stayed to weather the storm. (I don't know the exact number, or how they survived since I was not one of the hardy soles to remain!) Once again, this event proved to be exciting, fun, and eventful with the often unpredictable weather that accompanies the season. See you on the next cruise!
This dates and location of this year's event are still being determined due to July 4th falling on a Wednesday. Last year’s event was a new experience for those who attended at Possum Kingdom lake. The 4-day weekend included the viewing of the spectacular fireworks show at Hell's Gate.
Following is an example of this fun event from a past cruise:
1996 Cruise
We had 21 boats on the 1996 cruise including visitors from Tulsa in their new 26X. Our cruise directors, Sam and Donna Blake, had many exciting activities planned including a "Balloon Race" and a "Sail What You Brung" race. Dave and Jennie Taylor and crew on Puffin' where the victors in the Balloon Race by collecting 76 balloons off the water! All the balloons for the event were neatly planned by having a balloon blowing contest the night before around the campfire. Good planning Sam and Donna! The problem of where to store 300-400 balloons overnight was solved with a box of trash bags and a large tarp. One of the highlights was the Sail What You Brung race on Saturday. While there were many creative "sailing vessels" in the race, the most imaginative was Marshall and Carol McKenzie's entry with their adopted dog "Foster" alone on a floating mattress attached to a flying kite! Foster left all other contestants well behind, but was DSQ'd after wandering off course into a raftup of nearby motor yachts where he had to be "assisted" back on course. Although Foster missed out on first place, he did receive an award for Most Original.
The 1996 event included a tour of the Valiant Yacht factory, courtesy of Rich Worstell, President of Valiant Yachts at Cedar Mills Marina. The tour on Friday was attended by 24 members, most of whom had a leisurely sail that morning from North Island to Cedar Mills in time for lunch at the marina. The food was delicious and many were left "drooling" as they viewed the construction of several of these exquisite yachts. For those that don't know, Valiant is the Rolls-Royce of yachts. I met Rich Worstell after the seminar he taught on Off-Shore Preparations at the Dallas Boat Show. We had quite a conversation when he heard I was with the V/MYC. He has quite a lot of respect for Roger MacGregor for helping "thousands of people" get started in sailing that would have not otherwise done so. He has sold Valiants to skippers that started out in MacGregor boats and suggested that a Valiant may one day be in my future (I should be so lucky!). Anyway, he offered the tour to our members and I took him up on it.
The rain gods were much kinder for the 1996 cruise. The water level was normal for a change, we had no rain during the five days, and the winds couldn't have been much better. It was quite hot though, and when not sailing, most participants spent their free time in the lake. This was made even more comfortable by stretching a large tarp over the water between two anchored boats. The shaded area became as popular as a large hot tub where members floated on their "noodles" while drinking their favorite beverage and visiting with others. The following pics are from the 1995 cruise.
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The event was capped off with two nights of spectacular fireworks shows at various marinas. If you would like to see one of the most spectacular shows in Texas, and at the same time enjoy the camaraderie of sailing and partying with a fun group, make sure to put this year's event on your calendar!
Labor Day Cruise -
September 1-3
The summer season winds down in grand style at this annual event at North Island on Lake Texoma. The 1995 event was one of the "grandest" ever with 85 participants in 24 boats! Read the details of the 1995 cruise and you'll have to agree that this is one event that you for sure will not want to miss!
A Full Moon cruise is planned this year tentative for October 6-7. For further details, contact Ron and Jeanne Briggs, (972) 690-3442. Stay tuned in to the 2001 Calendar for current updates.
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