Commodore's Message
Ahoy Mates! Barbara and I have been members of the South Whidbey Yacht Club for over 14 years. One of the many things that we treasure in this organization are the friendships that develop. This club provides many opportunities in many different venues to meet other boaters and develop new friendships. Our first year we volunteered to host the Crabfest and the friendships that developed immediately were among the most rewarding benefits of being a member. If you are a newer member and still looking to meet and develop friendships, please consider volunteering to work with Club social events or one of our many boating events. And please let Mark Conover or I know if you have any suggestions on how we can make new members feel more welcome.
PROGRAM PLANS
As I announced at the February membership meeting, we will participate in WHIDBEY EARTH & OCEAN MONTH 2024. There will be a kickoff “fair” on April 20th at the Commons in Coupeville. I expect we will have more information on this event next month. We hope to see all our members there, and we are hoping a number of you will volunteer to help at our table where we will provide information about all of our activities. This will be a great opportunity to show the community our many social and boating opportunities.
Calm seas, fair winds and sunny skies are just ahead…
Commodore Bruce
Kayaking by Fleet Captain Barb Grimlund
The kayaking group has been busy planning a variety of paddling events for 2024. There are several new events posted on the SWYC website calendar with more in the works. Those newly posted include the shakedown wildflower paddle from Cornet Bay to Skagit Island on April 6, plus paddling events to Baby Island, to Larrabee State Park and kayak camping on Sinclair Island. These paddles range from short day paddles around south Whidbey to kayak camping trips in the San Juans and Baker Lake. Keep watching the SWYC website calendar for new additions as they are scheduled. Kayaking events Click on this link and scroll down the page for the list and any updates.
Coming up in April, our own SWYC member, Patty Maxfield, will be presenting the USCG-approved Paddle Craft Course to our paddling group on Thursday evening, April 11. If you are thinking about trying out kayaking, or just want to learn more about keeping kayakers safe while you are boating around them, please join us that evening. Pizza and beverages start at 5:00 followed by the program from 5:30 – 8:00.
In the meantime, watch your GroupMe app for last minute spring pick-up paddles. There’s still plenty of fun to be had on the water on a clear spring day.
Contact Barb Grimlund to learn more about the SWYC Kayaking Group and to be added to the email distribution list.
Windward Women by Fleet Captain Katy Shaner
“March comes in like a lion…” For sure this year! And along with that, the activities for the Windward Women full speed ahead!
Starting in April, there will be activities monthly and sometimes more than one a month on various days of the week at a variety of times.
Tours will be offered. To mention a few – Nichols Brothers Boat Builders, the Schooner Suva, the newly restored Haller House and the maritime history of the island, Anacortes Maritime Heritage Center, Island Beach Access.
More walks and hikes are being scheduled throughout the island – Ebeys Landing, Fort Ebey State Park, Price Sculpture Forest, Trillium Community Forest, Waterman Shoreline Preserve Trail, the Trustland Trails and Dugualla State Property Trails to get us started. Walks/hikes will be bi-monthly.
At our social on February 10, the book Bijaboji: North to Alaska by Oar by Betty Lowman Carey was suggested. “Betty was 22 years old in June 1937 when she climbed into her beloved dugout canoe and set out on a journey from Guemes Island to singlehandedly row the Inside Passage to Ketchikan, arriving 66 days later.” We will have a book discussion on Bijaboji followed with a tour of the Anacortes Maritime Heritage Center where Bijaboji is on display.
Throughout the summer we will have socials with guest speakers or a social just to have a chance to get together, share our stories and get to know each other even better.
Check out the SWYC website for dates as they become finalized. Here’s to a fun-filled Windward (sometimes wayward) Women summer!
All women of the SWYC are invited to participate. Questions? Suggestions? Interests? Contact Katy Shaner.
Racing
Both the Laser Racing (Fleet Captains Zak Malbin and Carol Rose Dean) and Pelican Racing (Fleet Captain Bill Brown) 2024 Schedules are now on the SWYC Calendar. Be sure to add these to your own calendar for a summer of fun competition on the water.
NEW THIS YEAR: Casual Sail Fridays! Casual Sail Fridays will be a more informal “go have fun and sail however you want” opportunity to be out at the same time as others. Pelicans or Lasers, the Casual Sail Fridays will begin on June 7 at 4:00 on Holmes Harbor, launching from Freeland Park. On the last Friday of June, July and August following the sailing, we’ll be having a club cookout in Freeland Park. Whether you are a sailor or just want to come down and watch, join the group for some good picnic eats with friends. Reach out to Sean Cruz for more information.
Beginner Laser Clinic on Lone Lake: April 21 or 28, weather dependent. The focus is for people who know how to sail, but are new to Lasers. More information will be posted on the SWYC Website soon. Let Carol Rose Dean or Zak Malbin know of your interest.
May Racing Clinic on Holmes Harbor: Saturday, May 4. This clinic is for intermediate-advanced Laser sailors who want to learn some new skills and keep the learning going from last year.
Pelican Fleet Captain Needed. We are still in need of a Pelican Fleet Captain for 2024. Please reach out to Bill Brown or Bruce if you are a Pelican sailor and can step up into this role.
Cruising
SWYC Members Al and Nina Fitts starting the cruising season early with friends.
Flying the SWYC burgee at the Bellingham Yacht Club reciprocal slip.
It’s never too early to start the cruising season! SWYC Members Al and Nina Fitts took their own shakedown cruise with friends in early March up to the San Juan Islands and Bellingham. They flew the SWYC burgee at the Bellingham Yacht Club, taking advantage of the SWYC Reciprocity Program. A chilly adventure, but doesn’t it get you excited to get back out on the water? Thanks for sharing these fun photos!
Speaking about Shakedown Cruises, be sure to let Pete and Barb Grimlund, or Jim and Kathy Rogers, know if you are able to join us on the SWYC Shakedown Cruise.
Shakedown Cruise – May 17 – 21+ – Leaders: Pete & Barb Grimlund
Cruise Description: To follow Aquapalooza 5/17-5/19 at Langley Marina – Overnight 5/19 in Everett Marina and then head through the Ballard locks (small) to Fisherman’s Terminal in Salmon Bay. From there, we’ll pile on one boat and explore Lake Washington and Lake Union.– May 19th – Everett Marina (or stay at Langley Marina)– May 20th – Fisherman’s Terminal/Salmon Bay– May 21st – Head home or choose additional stops at Edmonds, Kingston or Port Townsend
Don’t own a boat? You can drive to many of our cruising destinations. Come join the cruisers for on-the-dock happy hours and dinners. Or, if lodging is available at our destinations, hop aboard one of the cruising boats and then stay in a comfortable bed at a hotel near the marina.
More 2024 cruises are being planned. These are the plans thus far. They will be finalized as we get closer to the dates. Keep an eye on the calendar:
Safety Matters #10: Life Jacket Maintenance by Clay Canfield
Do you check and maintain your PFD before every boating season? Most of us don’t, and I’m embarrassed to admit I’m not so good at it either! PFD’s are like most other items of a boater’s equipment in that they need regular inspection and maintenance. A case in point: a friend of mine who shall not be named (and is not a member of this club) was duck hunting and fell out of his boat. With all his hunting gear on he immediately sank, waiting for the PFD to inflate. About three feet down the bottle fired off and a huge bubble emerged from the PFD and floated to the surface. He said that was quite disconcerting, but right then he noticed he was on the bottom, so he stood up and found himself in about four feet of water and able to climb back into his boat.
Answering my question, he said he had never done so much as inspect his PFD for probably ten years. During that time one can only imagine what it was exposed to: UV, oil, duck entrails, etc., etc. Needless to say, the bladder had deteriorated to the point where it could not withstand the air pressure from the bottle.
The point here is that we all need to inspect and maintain our PFD’s at least once a year, preferably prior to boating season. Each has its own specific maintenance issues, so I recommend going to the website for your PFD’s manufacturer to determine exactly how to maintain yours. The Practical Sailor has a great general article of PFD’s which I recommend reading. Here is a link to it:
https://www.practical-sailor.com/blog/check-expiration-dates-on-auto-inflate-pfds
One final note: WEAR YOUR PFD!!! Any time you are on deck, in the cockpit, in a kayak, in a motor boat, or on a dock, you should be wearing it. If you are not wearing it in those situations, why do you own it?!
New Members: Nancy and Jay Dibble
Monthly Membership Meeting
6:30 pm on Wednesday, March 20
Greenbank Progressive Club (And Zoom)
Penn Cove Seafoods
Since the day they were established, the mission at Penn Cove Shellfish TMhas been to be the premier producer and provider of the finest sustainably farmed shellfish products in the market today. Penn Cove Shellfish remains the oldest and largest mussel farm in the U.S., and their mussels have won top honors at international taste test competitions for their sweet flavor and fabulous texture. Along with delicious Penn Cove mussels, they farm Mediterranean mussels, Manila clams, and Pacific oysters at their Samish Bay Farms.
Come hear Tim Jones, Operations Manager for Penn Cove Shellfish, talk about their farming, harvesting and distribution method. He will also discuss the geographical and hydrological dynamics of Penn Cove.
Details of the March meeting are on our website.
Be sure to put the April meeting on your calendar. At our April 17 meeting, internationally renowned kayaker Nigel Foster will tell us about his circumnavigation of Iceland in the times prior to drysuits, GPS and cell phones. If you want a sneak-preview, pick up his book Iceland by Kayak.
Opening Day
Opening Day
Sunday, May 5
3:00 – 6:00
Langley Pole Barn @ County Fairgrounds
Opening Day is less than a month away. Make sure to mark your calendar.
This year we will be at the Langley Fairground Pole Barn (same as last year). Please come and support this SWYC program and enjoy an afternoon of food & drinks, fun and friends. Visit the club information booths to find out what activities are planned for this year and taste some delicious chili. Vote for your favorite chili by placing a doubloon in the cup at the table. Watch the drama as Commodore Bruce attempts to remove the sword from the stone! Yes, you may dress as a pirate. Arggg!
The event will be a Cinco de Mayo themed pot luck. Please bring a dish to share and a beverage of your choice. We will supply some beer and wine and all the plates, cups, bowls and utensils. Remember “be there or be square”.
Any questions please call Bob Shepard
2024 Baker Lake SWYC Camping and Kayaking Trip - Make Reservations NOW
Second Annual SWYC Camping and Kayaking Trip
Swift Creek Campground on Baker Lake
Sunday, June 16 – Tuesday, June 18, 2024
Trip Leaders: Barb Grimlund, Michael Mroz
Two nights/three days camping, kayaking, boating, hiking, enjoying group dinners and camaraderie, group campfires and just sitting and relaxing with fellow SWYC members. All SWYC members are welcome!
Now that summer plans are being made, be sure to get this one on your calendar if you love land cruising and camping as well as cruising on the water. Our two reserved group campsites (10 camping sites total within the two group campsites) are already spoken for, but there is still time to reserve an individual nearby campsite for you and your family. Extend your trip at the front end or back end for additional days in this beautiful setting. Make your reservations by clicking here: Swift Creek Campground Reservations.
Be sure to let Barb Grimlund know if you are coming so you won’t miss out on the communications for this event. Hope you will come!
All Things Nautical Garage Sale - July 6
Who doesn’t like a good garage sale (especially the ones with fishing and boating items) and Whidbey Island is home to lots of good ones! One of the best is the Lagoon Point community’s July 4 weekend garage sale. This year the SWYC is planning to hold a marine/boating related garage sale at Phil Simon’s Lagoon Point property in conjunction with the community garage sale on Saturday July 6. It should be a great opportunity to lighten your load and make a little coin by getting that unused or little used boating and fishing “stuff” out of your garage or shed (or boat.) We do need help though. Before fully committing we would like to make sure there is enough interest in participating and as well as enough volunteers to staff the sale. We will be following up with a survey to gauge your interest. Please contact Dan Mooney if you have any questions or comments.
2024 Calendar of Events
Check out our Calendar for the dates of all of our Annual Events. And be sure to get them on YOUR calendar!
Looking for SWYC clothing, hats or gifts for the summer? Head to our Land’s End SWYC store for a wide selection of apparel and accessories. Two different SWYC logos plus Windward Women logos to choose from. Make your customized selection and order on line.
Click here: Land’s End Store
Or, you can choose a local on-island option.
Savage Screen Printing & Embroidery in Clinton now has our burgee logo on file (Only the burgee. Not our other logos). SWYC members can stop in to Savage and have the logo applied to their own personal item, or select a hat from Savage’s selection. Stop by next time you’re in Clinton to better understand this alternative to Land’s End.
Land’s End still offers the greater variety of merchandise, more logo configurations and the ease of shopping from your home, but it’s nice to have a local alternative as well.
Visors from Savage Screen Printing and Embroidery
These are examples of some of the products that Savage Screen Printing and Embroidery, in Clinton, is able to create for you locally.
Copyright © 2024 South Whidbey Yacht Club, All rights reserved.
You are receiving this email because you opted in via our website.
Our mailing address is:
South Whidbey Yacht Club
PO Box 316
Greenbank, WA 98253