Greetings Fellow Fleet Members:

The snow is gone, the plants are greening up and 2008 racing season is soon to begin! It’s time to clean-up the boat and dust off the old sailing manuals that we’ve come to rely upon.

Once again the Executive Committee has been busy over the winter. There is a lot of fun to be had again this season. Please take the time to review all of the information that is included with this mailing. Be sure to fill out your Membership / Dues Statement in its entirety and don’t forget to designate which fleet you will be sailing in. Most importantly, remember to pay your dues before the first race! Your races won’t count until your dues are paid.

We are encouraging the race chairs to set longer courses this year whenever the wind allows. We are also suggesting moving the starting time for the parties back to help accommodate this. Cocktails would start at 6:30 along with the Rules & Education Presentations hosted by Jack Stiefel and committee.

We are introducing a new award this year. This will be an award that is given to the skipper that improved the most from one week to the next and will be awarded each week at the party.

Tom Kearns has agreed to direct the Novice Fleet again this year, provided that we have at least three boats interested in racing. The Novice Fleet will start one minute behind the regular fleet, just as it did the second half of last season. If a Novice Fleet skipper sailed fewer than seven races last season they are eligible for the Novice Fleet again this year. All others should move up to the regular fleet. Membership dues are waived for first time Novice Fleet Members. Please encourage anyone you know that might be interested in joining the Club to talk to Tom about this program. We love new members, young and old alike.

Remember, rule books are available to purchase and there are free copies to borrow from our library. Our library also has very helpful “how to” books. See Dan Andrews for details.

Some dates worth noting:

We will kick off the season with the launching of the raft on Sunday, May 25 at 9:00 a.m. If you are storing any of the equipment for the raft be sure to bring it with you.

The shake down race is the following Saturday, May 31 and then it’s “let the competition begin” with the first race on June 7.

The Lake George Conservancy is having their annual fund raiser the evening of June 28 so there is no ICCSA party that weekend. We encourage you all to support the conservancy in its efforts to protect Lake George.

The following weekend is the 4^th of July weekend so there is no party on July 5^th. That means that we will not have a party for two weeks in a row which may make communicating important messages difficult, but we will do our best.

Regatta is July 26 and 27.

There are many other fun events planned so be sure to check the schedule included in this mailing.

I would like to conclude by thanking Don Schmidt for his leadership and dedication as last year’s Commodore.

May all your winds be favorable.

Jim Larimore, Commodore

News from the ICCSA Raft Maintenance Committee - 2008

GOOD NEWS: no anchors or lines were lost last season for the third season in a row!! Thanks for being careful to double hook the anchors and lines. Thanks go also to the race chairs for consistently leaving the raft “ship shape.”

When you serve on the Race Committee this season, please keep the following in mind:
 

BUOYS

Remove the buoys from and place them into the water using the WHITE ROPE on the side of each buoy.

USE THE RING!! In order for the buoys to stand up properly in the water, the righting anchor and the bottom anchor line must both be attached to the RING that gathers the orange straps at the bottom of the buoy. Do not attach anything to the buoy at any location other than this ring.

When the raft is moored, cover the buoys with the tarp to avoid damage to them from prolonged exposure to ultraviolet rays and to protect them from potential wind damage.

INFORMATION BOARDS

Most of the boards describing the type of race contain information on BOTH front and back. The four boards are labeled:
      
      Front                           Back

• Olympic                 (blank)

• Modified 2 Lap     Modified 3 Lap

• 2 Lap                     3 Lap

• 1 Lap                     1 Lap & 1 Leg (Both these races are usable only in the Regatta.)

Party Board: The board for designating the location of the party (headed “PARTY AT:”) slides into a slot at the back of the raft.

Blank Board: A blank sign board is available for rarely used messages such as “short delay; start at 2:45” or “regatta registrations due today”. This board can be hung from the railing at the back of the raft. Space in the main storage box is at a premium, so please store this blank sign board under the bench seat at the table.

GENERAL

The combination to the storage box lock can be obtained from Larry Loy. After setting this number, push in and then pull out on the lock to open it.

After races are completed, please leave the lines for the starting sequence flags in the “up” position so the shock cord doesn’t get stretched.

Store supplies and equipment on the raft in their designated locations so the next Race Committee can easily find them.

A plastic pocket folder labeled “Race and Raft Resources” is located in the storage box. It contains a wealth of information for the Race and Raft Committees. Included is Appendix B of the By-Laws which details raft set-up and shut-down procedures.

If anything on the raft is broken, inoperative, missing, or in short supply, promptly inform the raft maintenance chair so the raft can be made ready for the next Race Committee. Contact raft maintenance chair Larry Loy at 260-705-4566 or by e-mail at lloy@cbpu.com.