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| Commodore |
Ten reasons to go sailing in the spring: 10. It gives me a good reason to visit my local boat shop and buy new stuff for my boat...you know, the big stuff that I really need that I didn’t get for Christmas! 9. It gives me a good reason to leave work after lunch and take half a personal day, on one of the first real nice days of spring, to go the Club and do something important with my boat. 8. Spring winds from the South are generally warm and exceed 5 mph.
7. I will probably talk to some of Club friends that I have not seen for 4.08 dog years. 6. I may stumble onto a Club work party and may earn some of those valuable work credits for helping rake the beach or fix up the junior fleet. 5. To celebrate my new-found wealth from work credits, I will join in the post work-party...PARTY at the Boathouse. 4. I can do some early-season sail testing to see if the winter season repairs that I made to my sails are going to hold up under pressure (There’s still time to get it professionally fixed).
Right: Low Water Level 3. I can observe first-hand nature coming back to life as I sail out the channel for the first time of the season. That trip never grows old. 2. I will be able to experience the true energy and excitement of going out on a boat for the first time this season. It’s a giddy feeling...almost like a prom date. The Number ONE Reason to Go Sailing in the Spring: 1. It gives me the opportunity to inventory the beverage stores on the boat and test the cooling system for proper operation and capacity. See you on the water....
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| Social |
 We have seen our first signs of robins Right. Now we are looking for our first daffodil bud and of course our first journey around the marks for an impromptu sail match. Spring is definitely around the corner. We are down to three remaining social events to host. The other five events have been committed. We need your team for Memorial Day (Mon. May 25th, 5pm), Labor Day (Mon. Sep 7, 5pm), and the Hornback (Sat. Oct 10th, 5:30pm). All the hosts and their crew earn Work Credits...ECSC stimulus plan up to 7 credits each for the husband and 7 credits for the wife. Contact me ASAP at 317-502-8080 or chaunceyolin@yahoo.com.
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| Safety & Education |
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Telltale Signs You Have a Trailering Problem:
Preparation The most important thing is to keep on having fun...no matter how you finish.
In the long term, it’s very important to feel fit. You can be lucky, and it can be light winds all the time...or there can be a day with no sailing. You are better off being prepared for the difficult conditions. This will also make you mentally at ease. Left: Ron & Tippy in Florida Most of us have enough power to sail pretty well for one or two days. but, when you are going to sail more often, you need to be stronger. First, to be able to keep sailing...but, even more importantly, to stay free of injuries. If you increase your power, you also have to increase your flexibility...so stretch! You need a plan every time you go out to practice. If you just go sailing without having anything particular in mind, you will spend a lot of time without improving very fast. Also, try to find someone you like to train with and work together. There’s nobody who can get to the top alone...we all need partners to train with. When you’re training with a partner, it’s up to the fast one to help the slow one to be as fast as him. I know that sounds like giving your secrets away, but if you wanna get help when you’re in trouble, you had better help the guy when he’s in trouble – that’s teamwork. Don’t waste your time on jealousy! Sometimes you’re ahead. Sometimes you’re behind. The race is long. In the end, the race is only with yourself.
Something To Think About Independence, self-responsibility, confidence and self experiencing of life. What parent doesn't want their kids to grow with self assurance and all the other "selfs" needed in later life? "I have seen the change in kids that we have brought through our sailing programs." Your child will only sail if you make the commitment and make it fun. On-The-Road News
124 Lasers On The Line RJ Graef and Tyler Andrews made the long trip to Jacksonville, Florida for a sail training camp on Thistles this past month. Rumor has it that RJ now has a thistle and is looking for good crew to race. “Keep the pointy side up guy...”
Above: More Low Water Level Tyler Andrews has been working at the airport weather station. Rumor has it, there is “no money in it.” But he loves it anyway and will be around the club this summer racing his boat. One more year of school. “See ya on the water guy...” Myself...I will be traveling to Fairhope, Alabama for the Finn Master North American Championship. This is a 4-day event sailing in Mobile Bay in early March.
Junior Race Team News Rick Wood has signed on to be coach at the 2009 Junior Bay Week. Rick has many years of racing under his belt and a very welcome addition to our ECSC Junior Sailing Team. Ki Hickok will be our Assistant Junior coach for Bay Week and coach for the Spring Regatta at ISC this year. Ki has also signed on to run the Saturday ECSC Sailing School this year.
As of this date ECSC Junior Team Members are: Below: Even More Low Water Level 
Support Staff:
2009 Sailing Calendar “Thank you” to over 38 percent of the Club members who made donations to the ECSC Junior Sailing Team!
The ECSC Junior Sailing Program Mission Statement
Note to ECSC Members: Work credits will be offered this year for assistance with this program!!
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| Racing |
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As I look out the window while writing this article, I see snow flurries on a crisp north wind. As I look at the calendar and see the new season quickly approaching, I realize all the things that must be done to get ready for the new season! The schedule for 2009 is set and should be available for viewing on the racing website any day now. The list for volunteers is filling up, but there are still openings for chances to compile your work credits. For example, Regatta Chairs and their assistants receive maximum work credits. Racing Assistants, those who take an ongoing area of responsibility such as fuel for the club boats, receive maximum work credits. We have several projects looming which will require your help. One will be to move/outfit Wayne’s new shed, and then move/outfit Wayne’s old shed to become the next RC Headquarters. Another will be to outfit the newly purchased blue pontoon as a work/RC boat. And, we are most likely going to be hosts to this year’s ILYA Junior Traveler Series Regatta, a one day event that could bring as many as 100 young sailors to our waters. Whew! The racing work party will be April 4th at 9:00. We will place the permanent marks, set up the RC boats, and get the race gear ready for an exciting season. All are welcome to attend the next race meeting to be held March 18th, 6:50, at PJ O’Keefe’s Ale House. We will discuss some the racing rule changes for 2009-2012, review the schedule, discuss series changes, and swap sailing stories. Your input = your Club! Just can’t wait…
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| Bailer's Tips & More |
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Spring is on the horizon we are back from the Med. The Mrs. is home and I have launched the Queen Anne’s Revenge and so far, not too many repairs have had to be made. As I have mentioned in past articles, Mrs. Bailer is a landlubber during our stay in Indy and I am forced to be a live-aboard which helps keep our union in marriage strong. Yes, Mrs. Bailer does not reveal to me where our home is and sometimes when she calls, I let voice mail answer. So, we both have our little game of cat and mouse. But, by golly, our love is stronger than the first night I told her I was a State Senator...definitely stronger when she discovered the truth.
Bailers Tips: 1: Lies are bad juju. Also, lies are hard to keep track of so tell the truth as often as you can unless you need to explain why you came in dead last at the last regatta. 2: If you are forced to lie in a racing event, I suggest a few I have used and they kind of worked.
Right: And, More Low Water Level 3: We had to pick up a swimmer who was to fatigued to make it back to shore...this one works once, then after that, well.... 4: Our spinnaker pole broke in half! 5: Our transom fell off but we were able to refasten it while sailing without any visible scaring. 6: The cage goes in the water, the sharks in the water, our shark.... Farewell and adieu to you, my fair Spanish ladies. Farewell and adieu to you, you ladies of Spain! Wait, this is from a movie, but you get the idea. These are called white lies and necessary when trying to save face in a friendly competition. However, if you work this strategy too often, your racing friends may begin to make up their own excuses. What happens next is: you know, they know, you are lying. But, you also know, they will not call you out on the lie because they know, that you know, they may have to use the same strategy. Sail on Sail on.... The Bailer
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| Sailboats, Inc. |
 We are all ready to quit wearing the longjohns and wool hats. We are ready to go sailing NOW!! But, I guess our Eagle Ocean is a little hard and a little low right now. We can tell spring is getting closer by the people coming in to look at boats. We have sold three brokerage boats this week. If you are considering selling your boat this spring, now would be a great time to bring it in. We are also receiving many phone and E-Mail inquiries about our boats.
We are participating in “Geist Goes Green” at Geist Marina the next two week-ends. This is a free show. Please check our website for dates and times. The Geist Marina is by Bella Vita - the old "Rick's" by the bridge.
Above: Catalina 250 in stock at Sailboats, Inc Also, Kahn’s Wine is hosting a free wine-tasting on Friday, February 27th at the Geist Lake Marina. We will have boat specials that will be only for that show. This is the first year for this hopefully annual event. After attending the ECSC race meeting last Wednesday, we are both excited for the race season to start. It was great to see our racing friends and hear about the upcoming events. This is our third spring here at Sailboats Inc, and we HOPE that we are more ready to meet our customers' needs than ever before. And, of course, although we have customers from all over Indiana and surrounding states, we are always so happy when our ECSC friends come in or call. We do appreciate your business so much. See you soon...either here at the shop or on our boats on the water.
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| Membership |
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The 2008 Membership Kits have been mailed as dues are received and most of you should have received yours by now. The Membership Kit includes keys (if you ordered an extra main gate key or a new Sail School Loft key), round decals for boat and trailer, and a new label for the back of your membership card. Please check to make sure you received the keys, decals (you’ll note that your membership number is already stamped on your decal), and labels that you expected. If something is missing or incorrect, please send me a message at ecsc_membership@yahoo or leave a message at 317-575-9837 advising what you need. If your dues and fees are not received by Saturday, March 7th, you will receive an email inquiring if you plan to renew your membership. Members not renewing by the end of March will be removed from the 2009 Membership roster and wet slip wait list. A member removed from the roster and the wet slip wait list may be placed back on the roster and wet slip wait list upon receipt of annual dues payment and any outstanding debts.
REMEMBER – All 2008 keys will be good through 2009 with the exception of the Sail School Loft key. Please keep your old Sail School Loft Key until we announce that the lock has been changed. Your new key (SC09) will not work until the locks are changed. This will completed in late March or early April.
Right: And Lastly, More Low Water Level The ECSC Membership Directory will be published in April and distributed by mid May. A big thank you to Barb, Bill, and Tyler Andrews for volunteering to help distribute the Directory again this year. The bulk of my work as Membership Chair is now complete. Rich Fox has given me valuable assistance and he will handle any inquiries from prospective new members during 2009. He has prepared a complete package of information for prospective members which is available on the ECSC web site (www.ecsail.org). Please click on Membership Info, then on Membership Application to locate this. Please direct any interested person to this site. Rich will also be offering several orientation sessions for new members during 2009. The first will be on Saturday, April 11th, 10am – 11am at the Upper Shelter House at ECSC. This is open to any member who would like to become more familiar with the Club. We would especially encourage those who became new members in 2008 to attend. We also plan to have a special “New Member” table at all social functions. We’ll have name tags indicating new members name and type of boat. This will give those of you who have been around longer a chance to welcome those who are new and possibly offer advice and help, especially if they have similar boats. If you change your mailing address or email in 2009, be sure to let me know at ecsc_membership@yahoo.com. Otherwise, you may not receive your 2010 Annual Dues and Fees Statement, or other important mailings. If you have lost your blue/yellow ECSC Membership ID Card and need a new one, please drop me note by e-mail or by phone, identifying if you need one or two replacement cards. I will enclose them with the Annual Directory if we receive your request by March 30th. If you need any additional keys, please contact me. Remember that our Harbormaster, Ralph Merriman, assigns the wet slips and maintains the wet slip wait list. Ralph will not know how many wet slips are available until he is able to sit down with the final list of membership renewals along with the list of those who have dropped out as well as the list of those members willing to “pass” on a slip this year. You will be hearing from him as soon as this large task is completed in March/April.
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| Notes |
| Captain Tom and Lady Diana's sailing trip in FLorida: |
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2009 Social Calendar, Click Here.
2009 Racing Calendar, Click Here.
2009 Overall Club Calendar, Click Here.
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| Click to view Sailboats, Inc's website. | |
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| Eagle Creek Sail Club ECSC Home Page |
