ColumbiaRiverCatalina.org		December 2007

Commodore
By Alden Andre', C38, Fly Bye

Happy Holidays. I want to welcome all of our new board members this year and thank them for stepping up to the plate and volunteering their time and experience to our club. I am very excited for what 2008 has in store for CRACA. I hope I can live up to the members' expectations while leading this club through next year. I would like input from all members as to what they would like to see. I would also like to thank all of our past board members for all your support and years of commitment with CRACA. 

Racing: The seasons over, just trying to get the boat ready for next year. I sent my list to Santa Claus, but I don't know if I am on his good list or his naughty list.  We will see. I see that WhyEast has posted a challenge to anybody on Sundays this winter to race around the buoys between the I5 and 205 Bridges. I think its time for a Catalina to take up the challenge and send him home crying. Anybody want to come and join me in some cold fun? Call me or email me and let's put a crew together.

Christmas boats: Check the schedule. They will be coming into Hayden bay 2 times a week starting on the 10th of Dec.

Winterizing: I don't winterize my boat because I use it all year. I do though remove the water from the tanks and leave heaters on. I also put a couple more spring lines on because of the wind and big waves that roll into Hayden bay. The other things I check are the boats across from me to see if they have good lines. I have found boats with inadequate lines that are too small and some that are deteriated so bad they are on the verge of breaking.

Boat projects for winter: I am going to change out my windows, I am looking at a bowsprit form Seldon for my spinnaker, and I am also replacing my stanchions since I noticed several had cracks at the bases.

Have a great Holiday season and I hope to see you all soon.

Alden Andre

Vice Commodore
By Jim Turner, C30, Fat Cat

Last month Rhonda and I had fun checking out several used Catalina 380's and 400's in San Diego before coming to our senses.  We just couldn't justify the expense, though we tried!  I also had some degree of difficulty parting with our Catalina 30, "Fat Cat", after all we've put into her.  This means I am re-focusing on completing several more projects on "Fat Cat", with our new canvas as my first priority.

When Alden talked me into volunteering to be his Vice Commodore, I certainly didn't fully appreciate just how clueless I was about the workings of our association.  I hope I haven't volunteered to be the new "Peter Principle" poster child, where in a year I'll be moving to an even greater level of incompetence as your Commodore.  I am fortunate though that there are a lot of really great people in CRACA to help me.   Our lives can be very busy and rushed, even after retirement I am told.  This, in part, explains why we love spending time sailing our boats.   We also like to spend time with like-minded people, who understand that it's about the feel of the wind in your face and really being in the moment on the water.  However, it's not all about sharing a sunset and cocktails with friends on a cruise. Often it involves engaging with the workings of your club, stepping up to volunteer (even when it's scary), and yes, making a commitment of time.

Most of us appreciate that there is a significant effort involved in just getting ourselves and our boats to a weekend cruise.  When we arrive, we are warmly greeted by friends who take a line and help us safely to the dock.  We feel a justifiable sense of accomplishment, especially if we avoid grounding or dock reasonably well!  What I didn't appreciate was how much effort went into putting a cruise together in the first place.

• CRACA submits an annual cruise schedule for the coming year to the Columbia River Yacht Association, which then must be coordinated with all the other member yacht clubs!

• The Cruise schedule is then communicated and promoted to members through this monthly newsletter on our website and at meetings.

• Many phone calls are made to prompt the forgetful, and encourage the weary and the leery!

• Membership promotion is undertaken to attract the friends who warmly greet us at the dock!

I especially want to thank all those who have given their time and served, and in many cases continue to serve, as our club's officers.  It is through their efforts that we have attracted so many interesting and wonderful people making CRACA a truly special association!

So what would you like to see for the coming year?  Looking back over past issues of the CRACA newsletter, I see this is a question asked annually as new officers come onboard.  But I have to wonder, how many of us take the time to respond?  To be honest, I never did.  Think about it … do you really want me coming up with our speaker topics without your input?  Wouldn't everyone be highly interested in a presentation on bottom paint choices with a strong emphasize on environmental toxin issues and why this is becoming more relevant?

I really do encourage your input, which is why I'm hoping that each of you take a few minutes out of your busy day to email or call me with your suggestions.  Wouldn't it be great if we could come up with interesting, well attended events where we can catch up with more of our old friends and new friends, and learn something as well?

Below are some topics I'm just throwing out to get the process going, but please suggest your own!

Are you interested in hearing presentations related to?
Crossing the Columbia bar and transiting between the Columbia and the Puget Sound
Gunkholing along the Pacific Coast
Tips on transiting areas of the Columbia River (local knowledge, locks, etc)
Sailboat maintenance/upgrade issues (what specifically?)
Sails (selection, trim, controls, what specifically?)
Weather
Electronics (general or specific)
Provisioning & Cooking on board
Historical subjects (Columbia River/sailing)
Safety subjects (first aid, etc)
Fishing & crabbing for the clueless (like me)
Chartering (Caribbean, etc.)

Or would you like to have more of a round table dinner event where club members can share their experience and expertise?

How about social events, what would you like to see?
Weekend trip to Astoria (hoteling it) & Maritime Museum?

Any Ideas for next year's Rendezvous?

Anyone interested in hosting a social event or have a forum/location you think we should consider?

My contact information… jimturner@comcast.net; 360-260-8716

I look forward to hearing from you all!

Secretary/Treasurer
By John Kerrigan, C30, Magewind

Jeez!  Nobody said anything about writing a column when I signed on to the secretary/treasurer gig, did they?!  Eric?  Alden?

But, OK, if I have to, I have to, I guess…

Not much to report as of yet (since I have only the vaguest idea of what's involved).  Kathleen is trying to coordinate handing over the official CRACA stuff to me, but as of now all I know is that there's too much of it to mail.  Hopefully, I'll be better informed in the next newsletter...  I would also like to apologize in advance for my typical method of learning: do it wrong the first three tries, but eventually I figure things out.

Emily and I are the proud owners of the formerly named "MAGEWIND", a 1983 Catalina 30 (a name change to something less cryptic is in the discussion stage, but the Admiral is thus far overwhelmed by my nominations, so hang tight...).

Alden actually deserves the credit for our moving up from our previous vessel, a Macgregor 26.  There we were, hanging out on the dock at St. Helen's and feeling quite pleased with ourselves for having lived through the first half of our very first cruise from Tomahawk Bay; "Ain't we cool?!!  We even got that big 'ol bridge to open AND went through it without hitting anything!" When Anakale hove into view, I remember thinking, "Now there's a nice looking sailboat!" and went over to critique the crew's docking technique (they passed).  Alden was his usual affable self and showed us the boat.  He went on to offer tips on how to acquire such a vessel for ourselves (I seem to recall it involved setting up several shell corporations in the Cayman Islands, situating the boat as a B & B on the Sandy River and bribing certain Bolivian maritime officials...) We went ahead with the plan and ended up with the PO agreeing to sell us the boat on Valentine's Day of 2006.

We've enjoyed both the boat and the good company on the cruises. We're looking forward to getting to know more folks in CRACA!

Communications Officer
By Justin Albano, New Catalinas Every Year!

Hello CRACA members,

For those of you who do not yet know me, I am the business development consultant for River City Sailing (RCS), your Oregon Catalina Yachts dealer. I do not own my own Catalina yet, but I get to sail on new Catalina Yachts every year, so I think I have the best situation possible. I love to race sailboats as well, and I am currently trying to rack up enough time on the water to get my Captains License.

As I read through the submissions from your new CRACA board members, it is easy to pick up a general theme. We all want to make CRACA a better club for everyone, and while this is a noble theme to be sure, it is not a new theme. Every year board members brainstorm on how to improve this club. Brainstorming however, is just the beginning. My main focus this year is to improve participation within the club, which means, as CRACA members I want to get you involved, interested, and active in your organization. The first step of that will be on Jan 23rd when we have our “first of the year” CRACA members meeting at Old Town Pizza. This will be a fun social event where you can learn about Portland’s dark past, meet other CRACA members, and most importantly it will be your opportunity to discuss the direction and future of your club.

What do you want that future to be?

-Justin

P.S.- I apologize for any and all mistakes I make in these newsletters. Please feel free to email me at jhalbano@yahoo.com with corrections. I am the opposite of a website guru, and am learning all of this as I go. I’m just happy I got this one out. Hopefully my skills will improve as time goes on…

Safety Focal
By Larry Brandt, C36, High Flight

CRACA 11/20/08  Newsletter #1
Winter Onboard Heater Safety
Unlike boaters throughout most of the continent, we coastal sailors have the good luck to leave our boats in the water year-round.  This simplifies life in many respects, but it does mean that we have to give winter onboard heating some careful attention this time of year.  To control mildew -an ugly problem- and to prevent freezing water lines, you probably keep, as do we, one or more shore-powered heaters onboard for the cold months of the year. 

The most basic risk with any 110 Volt AC-powered equipment on board a boat is the risk of electrocution, due to placing your body in the electrical current path between the equipment and "ground".  Ground?  We're not talking about dirt and mud here, but rather an electrical ground …the return path for any 110 VAC electrical current used on the boat.  Your best bet in this regard is to choose heaters designed for marine use, use them only if they are in good repair, and to avoid placing them in any location where they could fall into a wet bilge area, or where someone working in a wet compartment (lazarette, for example) could contact them.

 
Fire is another risk.  So the careful placement of the heaters in areas away from flammables, especially away from cloth bedding, seat cushions, etc, is an important goal. 

On our boat, High Flight, we have two 90 watt "can" style heaters, each having a small heating element and a low volume fan, that run constantly, one in each cabin.  These circulate and slightly warm the air to decrease the likelihood of mildew.  High Flight's V-berth heater is placed away from cloth and other flammables, and an identical heater is similarly located in the aft cabin.
  

Our primary heat source is a heavier wattage West Marine heater, set to a quite low temperature with its built-in thermostat.  We place this on the stainless steel stovetop.  We prefer a metal base for this high wattage item, so that a heater malfunction will be somewhat isolated from the flammable parts of the boat. 
 
Setting the temperature on this unit is a bit fussy.  I have to visit the boat a couple times on colder days to make sure it's operating at the level desired.  Too low a temp, and it's too cold; too high a temp and the electric bill is sky high.  It's this heater that keeps the boat's hoses and water heater from freezing; well, that and the surrounding water beneath the hull that keeps the bilge above 0 degrees C.

Maybe this off-season strategy will be helpful to you.  It's worked fine for us in the past controlling mildew and preventing freeze damage.  Let's just be thankful that we live in the Pacific Northwest, and not the Midwest or Northeast where boats must be hauled - and often shrink wrapped - every year.

Additional Training Available in the Local Area
Some of you may know that I teach both the Oregon and Washington boater courses, and other marine courses for various community education programs throughout the area (eg, West Linn, Gladstone and Canby).  If you are interested in these courses, please email me or directly contact the agencies shown below.  

Historian
By Alex Andre', C38, Fly Bye

<No Submission>

Rear Commodore
By Eric Rouzee, C36, Legacy

Winter is upon us, and for many, it’s time to mothball our boats for the cold months and start looking forward to spring. Ironically, there are some great winds out there during these cold days, and the various destinations we love sailing to in the summer aren’t crowded. We’ve decided to do a little winter cruising this year. Believe me, that hot chocolate tastes even better when there’s a chill in the air!

On another note, the old and new board members got together recently to transfer club responsibilities, and I have to say, I’m really enthusiastic about our new board members and the energy they bring to our club. There were some great ideas discussed during the meeting regarding cruising, the upcoming boat show, and most importantly, club meetings and socials. I think you’ll see an increase in programs and speakers at our club meetings in 2008, and the cruises this coming spring and summer also look to be more enjoyable than ever.

Finally, I’d like to wish all of you a Merry Christmas and a safe and happy holiday season. I’ll see you on the water!

Eric Rouzee
Rear Commodore

Not much happened during November, except that we have a new Board and a new Cruise Schedule for 2008.  I don't think that's such a bad start!  Some of our members have retired, and some have stayed on board. We will miss all the great leadership and help the retired members gave us, for without them there might not have been a CRACA club!! It's up to the new Board to carry on and make CRACA an even bigger club! I know we can't make it better, because thanks to their help over the years it already is the best.
            
At the CRYA meeting Tuesday night there were a few announcements:
-They are dredging at the mouth of the Cowlittz River so be aware of the dredge and the pipe running to land.
-All large cargo ships that have come into our port have been bringing with them mussels, animals and bad plants the can spread diseases into our waterways and even on to land.
-About the issue of a federal requirement for recreational boaters to carry a permit for the discharge of all substances from a boat including from bilges antifouling paint, gray water, exhaust water etc.  Contact your members of Congress via letters and e-mail expressing support of bill HR2550 and Senate bill 2067 which would reinstate the exemption. HR 2550 is set to come out of committee.  More information can be found at BoatUS.com under News/Gov't Affairs. Government Affairs, Federal News and Alerts, Federal Alerts. Samples of letters can be found at BoarUS.com in the Grassroots tool kit section the name of your representative or senator can be found at www.house.gov or www.senate.gov    

The Willamette river businesses have formed a committee and they have weeklong river front center called "River Fest" that is held in September some time. There will be more information on this later.  I hope that everybody had a great Thanksgiving.  We in the Northwest have a lot to be thankful for, not only for the wonderful family and friends that we have, but also for the beautiful area we live in.  Enjoy the Holidays!

You Cruise Leader James M. Elieff

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Catalina Newsletters of the Northwest

Checkout these links to Northwest Catalina newsletters and local racing:

Catalina 22 Fleet 20 of Portland www.c22pdx.org Sail Portland www.sailpdx.com Oregon Women's Sailing Assoc. www.owsa.net

Catalina Assoc.  of Tacoma and South Sound home.earthlink.net/~catss/CATSS Web Page.htm Catalina Association of Puget Sound capsfleet1.com/News Letters.htm Small Yacht Sailing club of Oregon (SYSCO) www.sailpdx.com/sysco.htm

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