` CHARLIE NOBLE Four Rivers Sail & Power Squadron Newsletter A Unit of the United States Power Squadrons ® Sail and Power Boating Education http://www.frsps.us/ Volume 52, Issue 05 Summer 2015 Remarks from the Bridge: WE ARE ON SUMMER HIATUS!! Four Rivers Sail & Power Squadron Bridge Education: New Member – Bob Manning, WELCOME to FRSPS 2 members are enrolled in Seamanship. Page 1 Contact Jim Young, JN, for information on these courses and availability of others. There is a request for the Cruise Planning course which I will get scheduled when I figure out the mechanics of this position. Submitted by P/C Jim Young, JN SEO Facebook Page There is a Four Rivers Sail & Power Squadron Facebook page. If you are a Facebook user please “Like” our page. I will post information there on upcoming events too. We need your likes. Thanks Jim. Submitted by P/C Jim Young, JN How line can be laid out on deck There was a question about how line can be laid out on deck so it will not kink or tangle when used. My response probably was not clear. Following is a definition from “Knights Modern Seamanship” Fake or fake down – To coil down a rope so that each fake of rope overlaps the next one underneath, and hence the rope is clear for running. The attachment is copied from the same book See the picture just below “Rope Faked Down” Note that at each end the line loops in the opposite direction. Also shown at http://www.slideshare.net/azvdo/lesson-2-deck-equipment-and-marlinspike-seamanship in the center of slide 33. I do not remember seeing this on small recreational vessels, where lines usually are not very long. Page 2 Submitted by: Dick McGaughy, JN Page 3 National Safe Boating Council I mentioned that the National Safe Boating Council has a couple of excellent free videos regarding NAVRULES. These are at http://www.boatoncourse.com/ One is Need a Refresher? Nav Rules The other is Nav Rules: The Sequel I will be interested to hear what you think, if you try them out. Submitted by: Dick McGaughy, JN Website: Looking for the FRSPS calendar and forgot that it is in the Charlie Nobel? Go to the FRSPS website. What’s happening at the District or National level? Go to the FRSPS website and click on the site. Feeling nostalgic? The FRSPS website to your rescue, click on photo gallery and remember all of the great times. Speaking of old pictures Scot placed a "50 Years of FRSPS" photo gallery up on the website. Check it out. Look for the new pictures from 2015 COW. Looking for the Charlie Noble? You got it; the FRSPS website is the place to go. Scot Harrison, P, does a great job keeping the site updated. So go to http://www.frsps.us/ and enjoy squadron information for National, District 30 and FRSPS. You will be glad you did and who knows you might discover something new. Thank you Scot for all of your effort. Page 4 Branding: Branding is a new way from National to identify the United States Power Squadrons. You may remember D30 Commander Bettie Danley, S, talking about branding at the Change of Watch in March. The goal is to differentiate us from other organizations. Please do some research on branding and be sure to use the correct logo on all correspondence. VOLUNTEER: FRSPS is a volunteer organization. More than ever the squadron needs its members to step up and get involved. Now it is time for EVERYONE to start planning for the position they want to fill on the 2016/2017 Bridge. Looking through the roster, I know many have served on the Bridge in the past but if we want the Squadron to continue we will all need to serve multiple times. Think about it, please. Volunteer service is any type of work that is done free of charge. The Bridge meets once a month and everyone is invited to attend. Help with the brainstorming on member retention, how to gain new members, activities that would be of interest to all, etc. It takes more than a bridge to make the squadron a success. So Get Involved NOW!! Need A Ride: Getting to a meeting can be difficult some days, so if you need a ride please let us know by calling 319- 848-8114. If no answer, leave a message and we will get back with you to make arrangements to and from the meeting. It is important to all of us that everyone has the opportunity to attend the monthly meetings and enjoy the camaraderie of the squadron. So please call. Page 5 Meeting Plans: September 19: Bobbers, details to follow. AN ANCHOR RODE REMINDER Don't lose your boat's anchor rode! Whether you have the bitter end of your anchor rode tied to the boat or knot ( that's a joke!), an indication that "the end of the rode" is near ( I'm just full of puns!) may prove helpful. Page 6 What I have always done aboard all my boats is tie a series of figure of eight knots at intervals from the end of the line. Place one knot at say, 15 feet from the end; place the next at five feet, and place the last knot at the very bitter end. The knots do provide extra grip, but more than that, they provide both a visual and tactile indicator that you are reaching the end of the rode. At night, or in other cases, this is an advantage over tapes and other colored markings. Burgees for Sale: FRSPS has three Burgees in the warehouse. Get one in time for spring commissioning. A real deal, priced at only $20.00 plus postage, if mailed. Members can email their order and specify pick-up or delivery to a meeting or delivery by mail. Please contact. Jim Young, JN, for more information. Just think how cool your boat will look flying the FRSPS burgee. Opportunity Is Knocking – Will You Answer: Contact Nancy Voss, S to assist in meeting planning. Contact any bridge member to volunteer. Who Knew!!! In ancient times, seagoing vessels were much more fuel efficient. They got thousands of miles to the galleon. Old sailors never die, they just get a little dinghy. When he switched from horses to sailing, his life took on a new tack. Page 7 When the pirate captain's ship ran aground he couldn't fathom why. When traveling in the Bermuda Triangle look danger square in the eye, avoid falling into the dreaded Trapezoid and that graveyard of the sea, the Wrecktangle. The stern pirate captain's policy of forcing the worst members of his crew to walk the plank went swimmingly. After a night out on the town the wine-drinking pirate captain had a port list. TRIVIA CORNER/OR NOT SO TRIVIAL Colored Glass: If you have old wine bottles, colored glass of any kind, (blue being preferred) get in touch with Paul Anderson, AP. He uses it to make the beautiful sun catchers and can always use the inventory. HELP: PLEASE send your articles for the CN. Stories on your boating trips would be great. Or perhaps you read an interesting article that would be of interest to the members. Please share them. Wisdom/Superstition!! Or just a little JOKE Page 8 Klabautermann A Klabautermann on a ship, fromBuch Zur See, 1885. Traditionally, a type of kobold, called a Klabautermann, lives aboard ships and helps sailors andfishermen on the Baltic and North Sea in their duties. He is a merry and diligent creature, with an expert understanding of most watercraft, and an unsupressable musical talent. He also rescues sailors washed overboard. The name comes from the Low German verb klabastern meaning "rumble" or "make a noise". An etymology deriving the name from the verb kalfatern ("to caulk") has also been suggested.[13] A carved klabautermann image, of a small sailor dressed in yellow with a tobacco pipeand woollen sailor's cap, often wearing a caulking hammer, is attached to the mast as a symbol of good luck. However, despite the positive attributes, there is one omen associated with his presence: no member of a ship blessed by his presence shall ever set eyes on him; he only ever becomes visible to the crew of a doomed ship.[14] The belief in Klabautermanns dates to at least the 1770s. Page 9 Cats Tiddles, a Black cat who gained fame as a Royal Navy Ship's cat. While in many cultures, a black cat is considered unlucky, British and Irish sailors considered adopting a black "ship's cat" because it would bring good luck.[11][12] Cats eat rodents, which can damage ropes and stores of grain on board, and they are intelligent animals, so a high level of care was directed toward them to keep them happy. A ship's cat would also create a sense of home and security to sailors who could be away from home for a long time. Some sailors believed that polydactyl cats were better at catching pests, possibly connected with the suggestion that extra digits give a polydactyl cat better balance, important when at sea. Cats were believed to have miraculous powers that could protect ships from dangerous weather. Sometimes, fishermen's wives would keep black cats at home too, in the hope that they would be able to use their influence to protect their husbands at sea. It was believed to be lucky if a cat approached a sailor on deck, but unlucky if it only came halfway, and then retreated.