August 2009

MThe Newsleaintter ofS Thamesheet Yacht Club From the Commodore Congratulations to Justin Codner who was elected to the If you have an unauthorized craft at the club I encourage Executive Committee at the General Membership meeting you to remove it ASAP so the House Committee does not on July 19th. have to take additional action. within this MainSheet is a copy of an email from Bevan Unauthorized craft may be declared abandoned property Crighton about his resignation as House Committee Chair. and disposed of accordingly. We are grateful for Bevan’s superior performance during Please join us for Members’ Day and the Oscar Ker- his tenure. The improved appearance of our facility is a man race on Saturday, August 15th. Additional infor- reflection of the pride and diligence that Bevan takes in mation is within the MainSheet. his work. Ron Reinhart has graciously volunteered to as- as the season begins to wind down for many of you sume the responsibility of House Committee Chair and we with children returning to school at the end of August look forward to working with him. please remove your lawn chairs, beach toys and personal members who have more than 10 years of continuous watercraft from the property. Senior membership who will become 65 years of age next Walt Pratt, Commodore year may petition the Executive Committee for Master Mariner status. The application must be submitted by Sep- tember 1st. A simple letter, or email, to the Commodore Lost Pirate Treasure Hunt or Secretary will suffice. FLAT Thanks go to Bruce Meyers for refinishing the Thames HAMMOCK rose DESERT Yacht Club Life Ring. We hope to get it reinstalled in the Bush GraVe ISLAND near future. TYc lost Pirate Black Thank also go to Stephen and Kate Potter for donating BarT’’s an 8’ picnic table for use on the beach. It is a welcome loTreasureG hunt addition and has already been put to good use. red 11:00 am Beard- This is a friendly reminder that canoes, , kayaks, PrIson caPTaIn cell sunday,kI da’s ug 2 optimists, sailboards, and dry sailed boats and other per- BurnT caFlatPTaIn hammock Island sonal water craft may only be stowed in assigned rented hook’s FInGer sites as approved by the Rack Coordinator Claire BringloG yer young pirates for Gammo. buried treasure. In accordance with Article V, Section 14 of our bylaws a Beach Members is not permitted to have a small boats or and yer food to grill - dinghy on club property; that includes temporarily bring- sunk ands grog for loyeG crew ing them to the club to be used at the facility. BeWare oF end oF earTh A casual inspection earlier this week revealed that there are several violations. Unauthorized boats are being YE BEWARE THIS stowed in racks, on the beach or in the dinghy storage area HERE MAP IS which interferes with access to assigned spaces and gives OWNED BY CAPTAIN HOOK Black the area a cluttered appearance. Beard’s lone Bush MainSheet The Newsletter of Thames Yacht Club August 2009

From the Vice Commodore Rear Commodore’s Corner Hello Everyone! July has been a very active racing month for the club. We Thank you all for the great participation for the General held the Bradbury Memorial race on July 4th, The Second Membership Meeting. It was a very light hearted yet Annual New London Sailfest Race on July 12th, complet- productive meeting. There was plenty of delicious food ed the TYC Wednesday Night Spring Series on July 8th. brought by the members and enjoyed by all. I hope those The Summer Series began on July 15th. The Bradbury of you that attended had a good time. Please help to Memorial Long Distance Race, held on July 4th, featured spread the word and encourage your other fellow mem- good wind, sun and fun. The Governor’s Regatta which bers to come down and get involved. was held on Sunday, July 26th, featured foggy conditions The Governor’s Regatta came off as a huge success and with a decent breeze and followed by a great shore party it was due to all the volunteers that helped make life easy. after the race. Thank You Again to those members who came down to Speaking of July, I must admit that it has been a very represent their club and host the racers. The beach venue active and busy month for me as well. Mid-month, I moved always works when the thunderstorms hold off and to my family from West Hartford to East Greenwich, RI. top it off with great food made by the support crew was a To follow is my new address and contact information: winning combination. An enormous appreciation goes out Greg Reese to the Decorating efforts that put some real class in the 8 Apple Tree Ct TYC Act for us all to be proud of. east Greenwich, RI 02818 Again, Cheers to the Party Crew!! (401) 398-8594 [email protected] The next major event will be the Commodores Regatta and it would be excellent to see new faces serving the Upcoming events one can look forward to in August food and tending the bar. Please come down, many hands will be the Oscar Kerman to be held on Saturday August make light work and a good time. 15th during Members Day. All members are welcome to Don’t miss out, join the fun with the party crew for this friendly racing event or just show up to party with another excellent event this year, please contact me at friends and family. This year’s running of the Commo- [email protected] or phone (860) 443-1451. dore’s Trophy Race will be Sunday, September 6th. Tom Welsh, You’re Vice Commodore Skippers Night event will be held later than usual this year. The new date will be Saturday, November 7th where awards will be given out for this spring, summer and fall racing events. Greg Reese, TYC Rear Commodore

Members Day Race - Oscar Kerman Notice of race and instructions are on the TYC web site. Please join us in this friendly race.

Mooring Gear If you have mooring equipment on the beach or under the clubhouse remove it from the area as soon as possible. Some of the gear has been lying around longer than necessary and may be disposed of as General membership meeting, Sunday, July 19. Photo by Michael Passero abandoned property. MainSheet The Newsletter of Thames Yacht Club August 2009

Blue Jay Class Fleet 50 House Committee Work List Along about 1956 it became apparent that a follow on The House Committee Work List is posted as “House trainer was needed for our Club juniors to transition to Work List” within the TYC Calendar in the box for after sailing and racing the Wee Nip. Discussions among the 1st day of the current month. Clicking on it will parents, with other clubs and builders determined the boat bring up a pdf file listing open items. Feel free to needed was to be stable and have the capability of flying pitch in on a job if you have time. Notify the House a jib and a spinnaker. In 1957 the decision was made to Committee Chairman of completed jobs or items that select the International as the follow-on boat. need to be added. McKean Boat Builders were selected to build the initial fleet of 8 Blue Jays, numbers 1338 to 1345. fifty years ago this month, Fleet 50 of Thames Yacht Club, held its first invitational regatta. The accompanying Directory photo shows the top 5 skippers and crews of that regatta. Several members have not picked up their Thames There would be many more invitationals over the years; Yacht Club 2009 Directory – it is available at the the Blue Jay would transition from plywood to fiberglass clubhouse. and Fleet 50 would exist as a racing class at the Club into the early 1990s.

The top 5 skippers and crews of Blue Jay Fleet 50’s first invitational regatta are: (Kneeling) Sue Timken, Ron Brouwer, Mrs. Bill Graulty, Ann MacDougall and Gene Cushman. (Standing) Chet Kitchings, Bobby Lonergan, Bill Graulty, Steve Farrell and Rube Olsen. Photo by Clayton “Bud” Farrar. Trivia Question: Behind the group is the original mantle over the fireplace. Name the 2 trophies as well as the boats and skippers above the trophies. A break - the skipper of the boat on the far right is unknown. MainSheet The Newsletter of Thames Yacht Club August 2009

Fleet Captain where else, after all many of us are sailors and the voyage There are four cruises planned for this summer. I have is the destination. worked around TYC events not to interfere with any. The 4- October 9-11, Friday through Sunday calendar is a terrific resource. August was the most open Columbus Weekend Cruise to Hamburg Cove. and the warmest time and maybe we will get a break in Detail will be posted on Calendar and Mainsheet. the weather. Ted Paulsen, Fleet Captain 1- Sunday, August 2 Arrr, Pirates Cruise to Flat Hammock Island. Not never to be missed. We had as many as 25 ships a-joinin-in. From Bevan Crighton: Make sure you be in Swashbucklin rags (optional) and Hi Everybody, bring any young scallywag you can shanghai for Yo-ho- In case you haven’t heard, a few days ago I stepped ho and games and a real Pieces o’ eight hunt. A cookin down as Chairman of the House Committee. My decision fire will be provided so bring some meat or fancy meat was made for personal reasons, but it also seemed like the substitute along with you, and it is a BYO Grog party. right time to do it, being in the middle of summer, and not Avast, I woulds like to thanks Richard and Lynn Webber much happening with work projects. for all there hard work and inspiration on this event. They I want to really thank all of you who showed up for are the real scurvy dog pirates! Shiver me timbers! the various work projects we have tackled over the past couple of years, I received a lot of encouragement from 2- Saturday and Sunday, August 8 – 9 your showing up, and the rest of the membership have to Watch Hill Overnight. I will play some music Saturday be thankful for your efforts. evening on the beach if the weather permits. Bring your even people, who couldn’t, for various reasons, attend Dancing Shoes, tambourines, instruments, and a picnic any of the work parties would call or E-mail their appre- basket dinner to relax together. A fire would be great but ciation of the valuable work that was taking place. it is not allowed. During my term as House Chair it was my goal to try 3- August 28-30, Friday through Sunday and return the club to a state of good repair and condi- Go Where the Wind Blows Cruise. It depends on the tion, a club where members would be happy to bring their wind and weather. Maybe Block Island. Maybe some- family and friends, a club where you may want to linger after a good day’s sail, and, importantly, a club that would help attract new members. By and large I think we have accomplished some of those goals. unfortunately however, it seems there are also some people using the club who don’t much care about how our club looks, as evidenced by a couple of my recent visits down there. Anyway, back to the good stuff, we now have a new fall guy, oops, I mean person, to fill the House Chair position, Ron Reinhart. I am sure many of you know Ron from past work par- ties. I know Ron will do a good job, and I hope you sup- port him as you did me. He is already working on ideas to help keep your valuable tools from rusting up. I am not walking away from being an active member of the club so I hope I will see you all in future work parties. Committee boat owned by the TYC Commodore, Walter Pratt returns from Governor’s regatta, Thanks again, Bevan Sunday, July 26. Please note: the drinks were flowing! Photo by Michael Passero MainSheet The Newsletter of Thames Yacht Club August 2009

Launch Schedule Galley is Now Open Please Support our Fine Dinning at the Club Summer Schedule For August Saturday 9:00 am -9:00 pm Hours of operation: Sunday 9:00 am -9:00 pm Saturday and Sunday hours will be 1:00 - 4:00 Monday 9:00 am -6:00 pm Summer Schedule adds 12:30-4:30 Tuesday thru Tuesday 12:00 pm -9:00 pm Friday - Closed Monday Wednesday 9:00 am -9:00 pm If it appears Mondays are going to be slow than I will Thursday 9:00 am -9:00 pm close, but will notify the membership. The Galley will Friday 9:00 am -9:00 pm be closed due to inclement weather, feel free to contact The launch schedule is posted to the calendar at: Susan at 287-4414 to see if we are open. Weds night http://my.calendars.net/thamesyacht_club dinners are being served to all members and a menu for Within the calendar on the first day of each month the month of June has been emailed. is a listing “Launch Schedule” if you click on it happy Summer, Smooth Sailing. will bring up a pdf file listing the schedule for the Looking forward to your continued support. month you are looking at. Susan Satti, Galley Operator

Pet Waste Dealing with pet waste is one of those topics that every pet owner must deal with but no one likes to talk about. We have a limited area where pets may go to the bathroom and that area is also used for other purposes such as folding sails. Nobody likes to walk through a yard that is hiding “doggie land mines.” Pet owners need to clean up after their pet every time they go to the bathroom; there are no exceptions. If your dog leaves waste on club prop- erty pick it up with a plastic bag or a scoop. Don’t make your responsibility somebody else’s problem.

Tom Welsh and Judy Gibbs hand out hard earned trophies for the foggy day Governor’s regatta, Sunday, July 26. Photo by Michael Passero

Note from Editor To include you articles or ads in future publications, please send to ted@ tedpaulsen.com Ted Paulsen, MainSheet Editor MainSheet The Newsletter of Thames Yacht Club August 2009

Please join your fellow TYC Members

Members Day 2009 August 15th Morning, Noon, and Night All-Day advanced-pay cost is only $15.00 per adult and $8 per child (price good until Wednesday, August 12th; price increases after 8/12)

This awesomely low price includes: Breakfast with the Commodore Hamburger and Hot Dog Lunch BBQ Chicken Dinner Beverages all day Beach games DJ Music with Dancing, Games, and Prizes

Bring your friends and relatives for a great day celebrating our fantastic TYC Membership!

If you’re feeling generous, please bring something fun to share for the Beach Snack Share Table. Tickets may be purchased at the Club. Please contact Melissa Madaus at 860-444-7206 or [email protected] with any questions. MainSheet The Newsletter of Thames Yacht Club August 2009

Letter sent to Thames Yacht Club

To: Thames Yacht Club From: Steve and Margaret Koller “Blown Away” Shelter Island, NY

They say its “any port in a storm.” But, we have to say, “there’s no Port in a Storm any better than the one we found on we, July 1, 2009 when sever thunder and lighting storms with heavy winds and torrential rain hit as we were sailing from Orient Point, heading to Stonington, on our way to Newport for the Fourth of July.

The storm, as it turned out, was only part of our problem - our engine was overheating - and since we were passing by #1 and 2 entrance channel for New London, decided to seek refuge. In unfamiliar water and not knowing what lay ahead, we checked our Cruising Guide which led us to your anchorage around noon - at the height of the storm. -

As we searched for an open mooring, Chuck Appeared in the launch and led us to his personal mooring, inviting us to call him for a pick up to the club house whenever we liked to use show ers, computer, beach, ice or whatever else we might need. How welcoming!

It took the rest of Wednesday and half of Thursday to diagnose, repair and reassemble the engine, so it was Friday a.m. when we finally were ready to continue our cruise to Newport - which fortunately all went well from then on.

But we just had to tell you that your Yacht Club and Staff could not have been more friendly and accommodating - I don’t know how many times I said, “I’m so glad to be here”!

So... Our most sincere thanks for putting us up with such a welcome in such a stressful situa- tion! You can be sure we’ll be telling all our cruising friends about the about the BEST “port in a storm” we found at the Thames Yacht Club!

Gratefully, Steve and Margaret Koller P.S. Hope to be back some day just to say “Hello and Thank You in person! MainSheet The Newsletter of Thames Yacht Club August 2009

2009 TYC Governor's # 1 Thames Yacht Club

Race Date: 26 Jul 2009 Wind Speed: 6-8

Div Finish Elapsed Corrected Rank Boat Name Sail No. Rating Owner / Skipper Time Time Time Class 1 Time on Time Start Time 12:25

1 Zig Zag Zoom 45 111 Prescott Littlefield 15:21:51 02:56:51 02:53:54 2 The Cat Came Back 51790 48 Winogradow Levine 15:05:28 02:40:28 02:54:25 3 Lindy 31346 91 Dave Dickerson 15:19:26 02:54:26 02:56:53 4 Kaizen 27 51 Dean Baker 15:11:16 02:46:16 02:59:49 5 She's The Boss 343 81 John Sutherland 15:21:03 02:56:03 03:01:21 6 pflash 58 81 Swim Castle 15:22:11 02:57:11 03:02:31 7 Matador 362 121 Carlos Mojica 15:40:43 03:15:43 03:09:35 8 Random Numbers 52930 36 Ron Brouwer 15:31:35 03:06:35 03:26:58 Class 2 Time on Time Start Time 12:20

1 Salud 33692 172 Reinhard Sarges 15:33:07 03:13:07 02:53:52 2 Se Therin 9472 273 Rich Manger 16:06:28 03:46:28 02:58:52 3 Bandit 2840 171 Jack Law 15:38:37 03:18:37 02:59:03 4 Jeanie 63 135 Bob Cullen 15:30:08 03:10:08 03:00:25 5 Pursuit 33672 132 Dennis Marron 15:30:40 03:10:40 03:01:43 6 Mast Transit II 50195 126 David Kelly 15:32:49 03:12:49 03:05:24 7 Plain Vanilla 1328 186 Scaduto Pritchard 16:02:24 03:42:24 03:16:25 DNF 9 Wharf Rat 15 152 Bobby Welsh Class 3 Time on Time Start Time 12:05

1 Flyer 33650 142 Steve Marenakos 15:16:06 03:11:06 02:59:30 2 Rusty Nail 30010 193 Jackie Fisher 15:36:08 03:31:08 03:04:42 3 427 201 Lou Leverone 15:52:09 03:47:09 03:16:36 4 Recompense 26 258 Pierre Gadbout 16:09:40 04:04:40 03:16:49 5 Sundance 1331 244 Ted Paulsen 16:06:27 04:01:27 03:17:40 6 Luff Song 597 254 Phil Michalowski 16:11:11 04:06:11 03:19:02 7 Irish Lady 13882 218 William St. John 16:02:01 03:57:01 03:20:36 8 Windhorse 213 232 Rich Weber 16:52:18 04:47:18 03:58:48 Class 4 Time on Time Start Time 12:00

1 Montrose 301 189 Bevan Crighton 15:49:51 03:49:51 03:22:10 2 Luff Affair 42929 231 James Avery 16:21:39 04:21:39 03:37:46 DNF 5 Gimlet II 14 171 Barbara Melanson DNS 5 Born To Run 42 171 Michael Passero Class 5 One Design

DNS 5 Rebel 79 Wick Reichart DNS 5 Sophie 114 Al Burnett DNS 5 Prudence 204 Howard Smith DNS 5 Skean Dhu 210 Robert Banas Class 6 One Design

1 Triton 1731 Gabe Stern DNS 5 Hibernia 724 Rich Foye DNS 5 Sam 981 Jim Anderson DNS 5 Hydra 1335 Melissa Madaus Questions? Contact: Contact Person Unknown

Printed On: 30-Jul-2009 7:54:06 Number of boats Scored 36

Scoring Program by Quick Score - Phone Dan at 585-703-2963 or Email [email protected] Do not call Quick Score about the results of this Race