Hello everyone! Summer is definitely winding down. Schools are back in session, vacations are coming to an end and the last “official” social of the summer season is at hand.
Labor Day Cookout is the first Monday of September - September 4th at 5:00pm. Our hosts for this event are Rich and Angie White and crew. Our Club supplies the main course, and as usual, we request a dish for everyone to share. Please come on out!
Right: New social activity for our Club: Drive-In Theater Seating
The social calendar for the rest of this year:
Hornback Chili Cook Off at 5:30pm on Saturday, October 7th.
The Final Bash at Celebrations on Saturday, November 4th, 6:00pm.
There will be more information on these events in upcoming newsletters.
There is a lot more sailing weather ahead and lots of fun to be had, so……….
See you on the water!
| Harbormaster |
Bill Harrington | Chauncey Olin |
The Harbormaster (that's me) hasn't done anything notable since returning from my summer trip.
Moved some trailers around, picked up stuff, gotten quotes for a few wished for projects and had lunch with the Commodore to plan a coup.
Editor's Note: After some prodding, Bill added the following:
Following a long term protocol initiated long before my term, empty trailers are not to be brought to the main Club site (especially inside or just outside the car corral) until after the Hornback Regatta on Sunday afternoon...Please!
There will soon be a map posted on the side of the sail loft showing where your trailer is parked now. If you don't have a current sticker and/or the sticker was unreadable, your trailer might be a little more difficult to find if you're not really sure what it looks like anyway...especially with the growth now up in the Trailer Park.
Above: Bill burying the Rail!
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| Ladies For Sail |
Janet Hickok |
Once again, our Club's better halfs attacked the Eagle Seas...this time on August 5th.
Our venues just seem to get better and better each time we meet. A very simple 3-pin course was set up with all our ladies just sailing around and around in great afternoon winds. The Lake Buccaneers threw out floatees which quickly started scooting across the water giving us targets to chase providing a deviation from our normal triangular course.
We finished up with yet another one of the major raftups of the season.
Thanks ECSC Ladies for making this season one of the best for our sailing enjoyment. CU next year!!
Above: Anne Cameron chasing a beach ball
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| Ship's Store |
Joyce & Malcolm Mallette |
The Ship's Store will be up and running for the Labor Day Pitch-In and on Saturday evening September 9th for the Governor's Cup Regatta.
Remember, We do not take credit cards, so cash or check only.
Come prepared to buy.
We love to sell clothing!
Right: Nan showing her bootie collected by Eileen Leonard and her crew during the Ladies Regatta!
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| Safety & Education |
Wayne Myers | Rick Graef |
Tips For Your Trailer
Tire inflation is the most basic maintenance issue. Tires should be inflated before your trip while cold. Buy a spare tire and rim combo.
I also carried spare bearings, grease, and a tube with the trailer.
The percentages for all trailer breakdowns were: Flats 47%, Bearings 26%, Axle 13%.
Junior Sailing News
RJ Graef finished 3rd overall in the I-LYA Junior Traveler Series. EJ Williams finished 4th. RJ's finishes were 1 ,1 ,4, 3, and 2. This was a summer-long regatta series held at various sailing clubs mostly on Lake Erie. There were seven regattas in all with scoring counting the top five. RJ made all seven regattas. EJ made five.
“ JOB WELL DONE RJ and EJ“
Right: RJ, EJ, and Erika Williams receiving their honors at the I-LYA awards
Something to Think About
Obstacles are what you see when you take your mind off the goal.
It is not because things are difficult that we do not dare...It is because we do not dare that they are difficult.
Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence:
Talent will not...Nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent.
Genius will not...Unrewarded genius is almost a proverb.
Education will not...The world is full of educated derelicts.
Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.
ECSC Junior & Master Team Calendar
2006 Laser Master N. A. Championships
September 8-10
Milwaukee, Wis.
Must be over 35 years old & member of the Laser Class.
Laser Radial & Full Rig
Cowan Lake Sailing Club
September 9 & 10th
Laser Radial & Full Rig
Wawasee, Indiana
September 17 & 18th
Laser Radial & Full Rig
Low Tide Regatta
Berlin YC
September 30th
Laser Radial & Full Rig
Lake Lemon Regatta
September 23 & 24
Laser & Finn
Above: Juniors EJ & Erika Williams and Austin Graef
...the entertainment for the Commodore's Shindig
Laserlips
Ohio, Saturday Oct. 14th
Laser Radial & Full Rig
Louisville
October 28 & 29th
Laser Radial & Full Rig
If you or your junior would like to travel to one of these regattas, please call or talk to us. The Club will supply the boats and some funding is available.
See you on the water....
Have a teenager that will be just staying home and playing the video games this summer? Let us help .... Junior program open to ages 13 - 18, m/f…
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| Racing |
Chris Cunningham | Mike Irwin |
Governor’s Cup Regatta
Don’t miss Eagle Creek’s BEST regatta of the year. It is our largest with more than 40 boats expected to participate. Notice of Race and Registration Forms were mailed in the August Telltales and are available on-line (and in the Race Bulletin Board). There’s a $5 discount for all who pre-register.
A welcome party for all participants, sponsored by the Highlander Fleet, will be Friday evening, September 8th, starting at 7pm. Saturday Registration closes at 10:30am. The Skippers’ meeting is at 11:00am and the first race starts at 12:30pm. Catered dinner begins at 6:30pm. All ECSC Members are welcome whether you race or not. Dinners are $12 each for non-racers.
The first start on Sunday morning is at 9:30am followed by the awards ceremony around 2:00pm.
See Ted Azbill or Chris Cunningham for dinner tickets or info.
September Race Assignments
Wednesday’s: Sept. 6th – J. Drake; 13th – K. Wolfe; 20th – Dolders; Sept. 27th – T Hubbard. Please arrive at the Club by 5:30pm and on the water by 6pm for the first flag at 6:50pm. Sunday’s: Sept. 17th – M. Irwin; 25th – C.Brehob. Sunday RC should be at the Club by 12:15pm and on the water by 12:45pm for the 1:30pm warning signal. If you cannot make your assigned date, please trade with someone and let Chris or Mike know. Note: No Sunday Series Races Scheduled for Sept 3rd and 10th.
Smooth Sailing......
Remember, all we wanna do is have some fun!!
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Please welcome our new members to the Club:
Joseph & Diana Lehr, of Indianapolis, sailing a Catalina 22.
Bob & Donna Menchhofer of Brownsburg, sailing a San Juan 21.
Grant Chapman, legacy of Kenny Chapman, sailing a Prindle Cat 19.
Membership Count: 262
Right: Ted Azbill racing
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I didn’t want to go sailing. I really didn’t! It was going to get in the way of playing hockey and as a 15 year old growing up in Minnesota, that’s all I cared about. But, my parents had a different idea of what fun should be and it didn’t include another trip to the emergency room because their son wasn’t smart enough to get his head out of the way of the puck.
A couple of Dad-to-Neighbor conversations later, and I had a Saturday of sailing planned for me.
The older neighbor “Jim” picks me up on Saturday and promptly informs me we are going to RACE his C-scow on White Bear Lake. I tried to hide my nervousness with typical 15 year old indifference. Not only had I never sailed before, but I wasn’t a strong swimmer and wasn’t sure how to tell the guy.
After rigging the scow and being introduced to a handful of other teenage guys (doing the same), off we went. At the time, I really didn’t “get it” as to why kids my age were hanging around sailboats.
We raced and sailed all that day and for much of the summer. I Learned how to “chicken gibe” after being knocked off the boat. I Learned that a flogging main sail with boom attached can hurt as much as a hockey puck. I started to understand why kids sailed. My “indifference” slowly faded away. My (still secret) swimming concerns disappeared as well. I was learning how to sail and I was having a blast.
I don’t remember how we finished that day...doesn’t really matter! I went sailing and loved it! I have very fond memories of that day.
Fast forward to this summer and the first day of the ECSC sailing school. I signed up both of my sons to spend a week learning how to become better sailors. I really wasn’t expecting too much. I just wanted them to gain some comfort and knowledge in sailing smaller boats.
It blew hard all week for school. I could see it in their faces. They were nervous (I was nervous for them). I couldn’t help but remember those same feelings my first day sailing years ago.
Both boys made it through the week with out too much fuss. They learned more about sailing in five days than I did in two years of sailing C-scows. The knowledge and confidence gained from just one week of sailing school was tremendous.
Fast forward again to this past July. My oldest son is taking one of the Club's Lasers out for his first solo sail. He’s displaying a sense of confidence that I had not seen before.
He rigs the boat without help. Sails off the beach and puts the rudder and centerboard down like a pro.
Off he goes!!
He’s sailing! He spends equal parts sailing and sitting on the overturned Laser waving at passing boats. He is more than a little proud of his ability to right the overturned boat without getting wet.
I hadn’t seen smiles that big in quite a while.
He had a fantastic day sailing. Based on the number of times he has shared the story of his first day soloing, I am quite confident he will have the same fond memories when he gets older that his Dad has now.
It was a good day to be a sailor and pass on the love of sailing....
Notes ; All four pictures in Jeff's article are of Jeff and his crew on Mustang Sally.
| Sailboats, Inc. |
Charlie Brehob | Eileen Leonard |
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Eileen Leonard and Charlie Brehob bought Sailboats, Inc. on June 30th. Tom Moore and his wife Pam ran Sailboats, Inc for the past 18 years. They joined with King Marine the year they moved from Westfield in 1997. Howdy King, who most small boat sailors know, no longer works for Sailboats, Inc. but continues to do sail repair and specialized wood projects on a contract basis. Tom and Pam are always available for consultation and together with Howdy, provide a great team of resources we need and welcome as we learn the “ropes” of the sailboat business.
You probably know both of us, Charlie and Eileen, from on the water. We each own and sail a J-24 at the club. Charlie owns “Runnin Free” (shown right) and Eileen Leonard has “Fun Police” (shown below). Eileen left the wall covering business after 30+ years for health reasons. Her work was getting in the way of jibing the pole so she decided to change careers to a less physical one. She was talking to Tom about buying the business when Charlie sold his bowling center. Having been friends for many years, she asked Charlie to be her business partner. After 32 years of running the 65 year old family bowling business, Charlie too was ready for a career change, trading a 365/eighteen hour-a-day business with 30 employees for one open five days with three people seemed like a good idea.
Sailboats, Inc. will be “small boat friendly” by stocking a large assortment of parts for boat repair including new high tech gear sought after by the avid racer. Our racing and extensive cruising experience of over 30 years is a great reason to make Sailboats, Inc the perfect place to shop. We’re not a mail order house, we’re a place that you can see and touch what you’re buying.
Our intent is for Sailboats, Inc. to become the largest stocking sailboat dealer in the Midwest. Sailboats ranging in size from an Optimist to 25 footers will be available to climb aboard. Catalina, Hunter, Precision, and Vanguard are our current lines. An open house is planned for late September to show off our stock of new boats...some of which are already here. Go to www.sailboatsindiana.com for information and to see what’s in stock.
In addition to new and used boats (brokerage sales is offered), we are a full service fiberglass repair shop and small motor repair center. Greg Branham, another ECSC member, is our service manager. He has worked for Sailboats, Inc for ten years. Greg learned the fine art of glass repair from the master, Howdy King, and others. Greg, a “motor” head, grew up in an auto racing family. He services most anything 10HP and under. Tohatsu is our new motor franchise. For those that don’t know, Tohatsu makes just about everything 30HP and under including Nissan and Mercury.
“Demo days” are planned for the Spring with Vanguard. Sailors will be able to try out all the new hot gear and boats available on the water. In addition, we plan to hold a boat “swap” next summer at the shop. Intended mainly for parents of junior sailors, we hope to provide a unique source Midwest junior sailors (and others) to trade up and or exchange boats and gear.
Although our customer base includes people from all over the Midwest, Eagle Creek is a small but important segment of our client base. Sailing is our passion and hobby. Hopefully, we will be able to help you with your boat or perhaps another sailboat in the future. Please stop and say “hi” or visit us on-line anytime.
See you on the waters of Eagle Creek!
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| ECSC Roving Report |
Cody McCoun |
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Your friendly ECSC roving Reporter here...on Staff Assignment for the Telltales.
My first mission was to get the skinny on our new owners of our only local sailboat dealership...Charlie and Eileen at Sailboats, Inc. Answers to my probing questions were from a combination of each owner.
I'll be looking forward to my next assignment wherever there's a story to be told!
1. What is your best selling boat?
Not in business long enough to know
2. What boat is the most fun to sail?
Escow
3. Which boat do you like the best?
J24
4. What’s the most often type of service you do to boats?
Fiberglass repair
5. Are your customers mostly from this area?
They are from all over the state
6. What is the normal age of your customers?
40 - 55
7. What are some of your highest selling parts?
Harken hardware
8. What is your cheapest new boat? Most expensive?
Sunfish is the cheapest. Hunter 26 is the most expensive
Above: Jim & Carol Dolder
9. Do you get many customers from far away?
From all over the state
10. How often do you get asked to sponsor events?
About six times a year.
11. Planning to carry any different manufacturers?
No
12. About how many boats do you have for sale at a normal point in time?
10-20 in the store
13. How is your location working out? Any plans to move?
The location is great…no plans to move.
14. About what percent of your business comes from ESCS or ISC members?
ECSC - 5%
ISC - less than 5%
15. What’s the seasonal aspect of your business?
Summer - Fix broken boats
Winter - Buying new boats and repairs
Spring - Launching boats
Fall - Pulling boats out
16. What made you decide to buy Tom’s dealership?
Change of careers
17. How do you like it?
Love it!
18. Is it what you thought it was going to be?
Pretty much.
19. Is it taking up a lot of your time?
Oh yes!
Above: Green Machine
20. What’s been the hardest part to get used to?
Longer hours and lots to learn.
21. What’s been the easiest part?
It’s fun and we all get along well!
22. Do you have any new plans for your store?
Lots!
23. What boat lines are you going to carry?
Same as before…Precision, Catalina, Hunter, Lasers, and Sunfish.
24. How do you decide what to sell?
Guess what people want and buy what they ask for!
25. Any plans to put a bowling alley behind your dealership?
No
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| Elliott and Evelynne's Bench |
This last Saturday, the extended family and descendents of Elliott And Evelynne Fuldauer met at our Club in their memory and to dedicate a bench to our Club.
Elliott was Membership Chairman for about five years in the late 80s and appeared headed for Commodoreship before his untimely death due to heart complications. His wife, Evelynne, remained a member of our Club for years afterwards sailing a San Juan 21 named Sea Robin.
This bench is in commemoration of Elliott and Evie for their love of our Club. It will be placed under the tree planted in the 90s in memory of their daughter, Robin, who also died before her time. Their extended family is shown at the ceremony dedicating the bench...which was made by a family member.
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Board Meetings |
January 10* |
February 7 |
April 11 |
May 9 |
July 11 |
September 12 |
| October 10 * |
November 4 |
| November 14 |
* Exe Com Only |
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| 2006 Racing/Social Calendar |
2006 Social Calendar, Click Here.
2006 Racing Calendar, Click Here.
2006 Overall Club Calendar, Click Here.
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Joe & Diane Lehr shown with Janet Hickok (in red)!
Bob Bodish and Bob Hickok (L-R) in their winning outfits