Center Director's Report

One month ago for us

One week ago for our community sailing friends in Boston. We have it pretty good.

Hello Everyone.

Finally we have warm weather. Of course we'll have some cold days here and there, but nothing like our friends up North. 

Christy and I have many things to mention in this newsletter, so please read all the way through to the end. Lots of stuff to cover. Without further ado: 

SAFETY:  It's important to understand Spring can bring some strong winds...and the water is still a chilly 61 degrees, which will take your breath away if you end up in it. We've had a few Scots in the water all Winter long, and you're of course free to use them in 12 mph or less, according to our NCCS Guidelines . If winds are above 12 mph, just come inside and see me to make sure you're ok to go out). What I most commonly see is newer sailors heading out with southerly breezes (dock appears pretty calm), only to realize the full brunt of the gusts is waiting until you round the corner out near R4 and BAM!

GARAGE: The garage project is well underway as you can see. This building will absolutely revolutionize how we conduct maintenance, and I am very excited. The permitting process was time consuming, and it took several phases to get to the point where the slab was poured last week. And now the walls and trusses are going up. Board member Larry Harkness has spent countless hours overseeing this project as General Contractor, often spending time at NCCS on a daily basis.

Please avoid parking in the driveway for many reasons...to include this:

This guy eats minivans for breakfast...and just a little bump can take your bumper off without the driver even noticing.

VOLUNTEER WORK DAY: I have not been able to fit in a full fledged Spring work day, which takes up a ton of time and planning. Instead, we have had a series of small groups coming in here and there to do specific projects, large and small. I could use help:

• My most immediate need for help is to move the contents of the plastic storage shed so that the shed can be dismantled. I don't think it will survive the dismemberment and so it will be dismantled and hauled off to the dump. Electricians needs to access the panels on the side of the house. I'd love to have 3 or 4 people help me move the contents you see to the metal storage box which is now located on the hill/boatyard. If you have an old tupperware tub container of some sort, that would be great. If someone has a truck, we could load the truck to move the stuff. Email me by replying to this newsletter if you're interested in helping.

• Sorting Scot mains and jibs. When we moved the metal boxes 
• Moving logs (from the cut down trees) to border our pebble path and elsewhere.
• Removing deteriorated wooden kayak trailer to dump
• Flipping Sunfishes over on their dollies
• Sorting the life jackets into their proper boxes size wise
• Turning Tide bottles into bailers
• Inventorying Scots to see which ones need a paddle/boat hook, sponge, bailer, basket, anchor line/anchor, Type IV, etc.

SCOTS/DOCK/WHITE BALLS: Larry Vitez and I have spent a great deal of time preparing the boats for Spring and we are confident they are ready to go. That said, if you notice something wrong about a boat, please let me know.

You'll notice the stern lines are farther away from the dock. We re-anchored the chain on the lake bottom so the boats will be held more firmly in place. Please remember to use the white balls to act as fenders between the boats. Tether the white balls to the dock when sailing.

SOCIAL SAIL:  We will have a social sail this SUNDAY (not Saturday) from noon-3pm (I'm away on Saturday). The mornings are a bit chilly still, and so noon it is. Please this year try your best if you can to sign up in advance - even if that's 30 minutes in advance - so we know how many people are coming. The dock holds 8 Scots well. 6 are in the water now. If I need to launch more (I look at the RSVP sheet for this), that is a great problem to have and I'm pleased to accommodate.

NEW TRAILER FOR YOUTH SAILORS: I am working with Chris Diederich from the NASCAR industry to build a trailer for youth sailors. Chris is the man when it comes to metal fabrication, and he has generously donated his time and enormous skill to help me (yeah right) build a great trailer from the ground up that is about half way done. All NCCS needed to do was cover the raw materials...steel, wheels, coupler, leaf springs, axle, hubs, paint, etc.

The trailer will make it A TON EASIER for me to move boats - Opti, Sunfish, Laser - to youth regattas. No more creative loading of Opti's, side-of-the-road readjusting boats, etc. Wait til you see thing thing. If you are inclined to come with me to his shop to help with the building process (wire fed MIG welding, grinding, painting, sea story telling), let me know by emailing/replying to this newsletter.

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Report needed boat repairs to: [email protected]