Volume 30 BLAST 3 www.marinyachtclub.com March 2013 A View From the Bridge Possibly requiring a little more effort but certainly very The 2013 Homeport Cruise will be effective is to get placed on the agenda for a Board Meet- behind us when you get this. As- ing and address the Board directly. The meetings are an- suming things went according to nounced in a variety of ways but typically will be con- plans (don’t they always?) we vened on the fourth Monday at 5pm. If you have never should have some nice memories of attended a meeting, I would encourage it whether you a great weekend filled with fun, fellowship, good food, have any issues or not. It will give you tremendous in- and unseasonably great weather. Let’s see how prophetic I sight into the workings of the club and the things we are can be. dealing with. You will absolutely be welcome. On the subject of being prophetic though or being able to Now…please take some time to read the various contri- look into the minds of the membership…I have to admit butions in this edition of the Bugle. Many people have that in many cases it is not only a struggle for me but also taken the time to write articles in a number of areas that for our Board of Directors. There are only certain things you should have an interest in. Also, this is our official we can know or even make a good guess at. There may be communication with the membership. Who knows? other issues that are brewing that have the potential for Maybe you might even see your name and/or picture. blindsiding us. To that end, we are in the process of creat- More importantly, if you would like to contribute some- ing a couple of ways to gather your inputs. One of these is thing yourself that you think would capture the general a survey of the membership in an attempt to identify new interest of the membership, please get in touch with our issues as well as get a good handle on those that we really Editor-in Chief Holly Olsen, and she will get you all set don’t know if they are big deals for us or not. Be looking up. for that in the next month or two and please participate. Looking forward to a great summer and boating season… If you really have an issue with something though, I hope you know you don’t have to wait for a survey or some other questionnaire to express yourself. The quick and easy way to get our attention regarding an issue is talk to Mike Sale, Commodore me or anyone else on YOUR Board of Directors. The con- versation can be confidential and/or anonymous if you wish but it won’t be ignored. You don’t even have to have a real conversation (i.e. face to face or on the phone)…you can simply write a letter or email. Starting next month on Sunday March 10th we are start- ing a “Buddies Table” for the young crowd ages 4 and ON the HOUSE up from 5-6 pm featuring kid friendly family style food and coloring contest. Come on down and take advan- tage of the chance to socialize with other parents, grandparents and members while the kids have fun to- gether at their own table making new friends. We hope to have one every month. So if you can’t make it on the 10th watch the calendar for April’s date. All hands on deck! Work Weekend is coming up on While at the club, note the new exit signs & emergency April 13th & 14th and your help is needed. We have lighting. Paul Descalso is responsible for installing lots of projects to tackle this year. As always it’s time them; we can’t thank him enough for all the work he to spruce up the landscaping. does! Also working in the background is SC Don Les- ley who has prepared specs for replacing the upstairs But in addition, the following projects are on our list: deck and is getting bids with help from Jack Barr. Bill 1.) updating the upstairs bar including Minahen has been busy at work too in the galley. a new hand-washing sink The House Committee is in the process of specifying 2.) new countertops & shelving and new paint colors, lighting and window covering for the flooring dining room and hopes to have it finalized by next month. 3.) the Boyd patio windbreak needs repair 4.) closets need a spring cleaning Kathleen Barr, Vice Commodore 5.) the galley needs a bit of touch up It’s a large list, but we are hoping that a lot can get done that weekend. So please sign up! Let us know what you would like to work on. We have project March Highlights managers for each of the areas, and they will be happy to have you aboard. Make it a family day; we will Fri. Mar. 15: St. Patrick’s Day Party have lots of things that our younger members can help with. Wed. Mar. 20: Mariners Luncheon Lunch on Saturday of pizza and salad will be hosted Fri. Mar. 22: Cruise to Emery Cove by Papa Murphy’s Pizza. If you can’t participate that weekend but want to contribute time, let me know. Mon. Mar. 25: Board Meeting at 5 PM Many of the projects will be ongoing. Also starting in March, your dining bill will include a comment card. Please take the time to fill it out and let us know how we are doing - good and bad. Your in- put is important to us! 2 2.) Replace the batteries in your Cruise News smoke detectors. You can also buy combination smoke and carbon monox- ide detectors at most hardware or home & Safety Tips improvement stores; make sure these meet UL standard 217 and 2034. Check This past weekend, the 1st the manufacture date as they lose sensi- through 3rd, was our annual tivity over time. Batteries used for re- Homeport Cruise. We hope placement should be relatively new. all enjoyed Friday's and Saturday's festivities at our 3.) Vehicle Safety: Walk around your Club, culminated by the 27th annual Mariners' Service car, checking for leaks (liquids on the at St. Luke's Presbyterian Church. ground), tires appearance (full, flat, tread wear, etc.), anything broken (glass, etc.) Our 2013 cruising schedule has had a few hic- Check to see your lights work, including cups: Our February Cruise to the San Francisco Yacht head and tail lights, turn indicators, and Club was cancelled; Martinez, scheduled for Septem- low and high beams. Do you have an ber, has been postponed until 2014; and, the dates for emergency kit, including first aid kit, jack Pittsburg have been changed to October 18 - 20, so to and lug wrench, flashlight (that works), not conflict with the Quad (four Club) Cruise and our your vehicle registration and insurance Spaghetti Feed. Please make adjustments to your cal- certificates, and cell phone and emer- endars. gency numbers to call. Remember to join Bill and Holly Olsen March 22 - 24 4.) Water (a gallon per day per per- at the "Pupas and Puka Cruise” to the Emery Cove son); food (at least 3 days worth of non- Yacht Harbor. Please read about this cruise in perishable); battery powered radio (new WUOTD and see the flyer in this issue. And, sign batteries); flashlights (new batteries); first up. You'll have fun! aid kit; manual can opener, tools (wrenches, pliers, etc. to turn off utilities); And, the Hinkles have a great Cruise in the works for Towelettes, garbage bags, twist ties, etc. Benecia on April 19 - 21. See the Flyer and WUOTD. for personal sanitation; and a charged cell phone and maybe a solar charger or in- Now, another few things that come to mind: Safety is verter. something we don't think about until something bad happens. None of us leaves our homes thinking about 5.) And, create and familiarize your- the potential bad things that could happen. self and family with an emergency plan. Your local Red Cross has printed So, here's a check list that could help: materials on making your plan. 1.) Service or replace your fire extinguish- ers (hopefully you've done this at the Home- Hopefully, you'll never have the need and nothing port Cruise). Most home and boat owners bad will happen. But, we should all be aware and should have combination fire extinguishers - be prepared. those suitable for putting out wood, pa- per, flammable liquid, or electrical fires. Bruce Fairey, Rear Commodore 3 It is absolutely unacceptable to pump your holding Port Captain’s tank out into the bay. There is no excuse whatsoever for not using one of the multitude of pump out sta- Report tions strategically located at most marinas in our re- gion. We even have one in our own harbor. If you need help moving your boat to the pump out station, feel free to ask Dave or myself. I'd like to set a crystal clear expectation: If you inten- tionally pump your holding tank into our harbor, you There are only 33 days and a wake up until the start of will be asked by yours truly to remove your boat from the 2013 Salmon Season folks. Start sharpening your the harbor for a period of 30 days. No exceptions. hooks now! Now... on to far more pleasant topics.