Spring Letter
Lauderdale Lakes Sailing Club
MC Scow Fleet 55

May 2011

Happy Spring to everyone!!!
 
Spring started really late this year and the water is colder than usual. It’s also been very windy so I haven’t seen a lot of sailors out yet. In fact the first sail I saw was not even a Scow, it was a Day Sailor down by Rob’s.
 
Ice Boat Season:  There were a few great days of iceboating according to Curt and Jack. Des, Doug and I went south early and missed out.
 
Equipment needed or for sale – lifts, MCs, Let me know if you have a friend or neighbor who is looking for a used boat to get started sailing with us.  

http://www.mcscow.org/ is the place to go for used boats, sails etc. There are 8 WI & MI boats listed as of May 8th from $1200 up.  There are probably some local boats going on the market soon, perhaps some for less. There is at least one boat in our fleet for sale, contact me for details.

Now to business:
 
1. Organization
 

Officers and volunteers remain the same as last year.   Many compliments to all the people who make the Club run so smoothly and make the Commodore’s job so easy. The gals that plan and execute the social events;  Bill’s crucial work behind the scenes;  The guys each weekend pulling Race committee duty;  John’s work on the web that keeps us all informed and gets better every year; and Mary Lou keeping the books comfortably in the black. This is all very much appreciated and essential to making this Club the most fun for such good friends.  
 
Officers will serve year to year until someone suggests that we do something different.  Anyone can suggest a change at any time and we'll have an election. 

Everyone, please ask around to see if you have a guy or gal in your neighborhood who might want to come out and help. Maybe this will get them interested in sailing or just another excuse to take the speed boat out. Give it some thought; we really should have someone on those windy days. We’

Our first event of the year is the Spring Brunch at 10:00 AM, Sunday, May 29 at the Lauderdale Community Center at N7511 Sterlingworth Dr.  I have attached Nancy’s very nice notice and it provides instructions. 
 
Please mark your calendar now and email Nancy and let her know that you are coming. Knowing the number of participants is critical to having a great Brunch.  Please let her know soonest.  Email to: jack3910@comcast.net .   
 

You should have received the Yacht Club invoice in the mail already.  If not, give me a call/email.  Please pay the dues with two checks:  Lauderdale Lakes Sailing Club ($40.00) and (separately) Lauderdale Lakes Yacht Club ($40.00).  Please mail both of them to: Audrey Keller W5252 Lakewood Circle, Elkhorn, WI. 53121 Please do not send Brunch money to LLYC

Most of our new members come from contact with our current members. We want that to continue. If you know anyone that might be interested in joining in a sailing or non-sailing capacity invite them to the Brunch and pass along this email and give them my name, I'll take it from there. Peter 742 2567

We don’t have a venue all set for the Mid-Summer picnic (July 10) this year.  Contact Peter if you want  it at your place.  This is a potluck picnic, where everyone brings a dish to pass, your own drinks, and chairs. The Club provides sandwiches or some main dish and baked beans and we each bring our favorite side dish.  Please email what you plan to bring (to ask for suggestions) to Michelle Hamilton who is coordinating this event. Her email is gimd@charter.net.

The Fall Awards Picnic is on September 4.  Again this venue is open so Contact Peter before the Brunch.  Details will be announced at the Brunch.

We have a clinic scheduled and we will have the same guest host as last year, Al Haeger.   We will have more information at the Brunch but keep your calendar marked for June 20th.    Sign up will be at the Spring Brunch.  The venue is to be determined  -  we’ll let you know. Bring your lunch and something to drink.

We need each of our Sailors to take a weekend.   We will have the sign-up sheet at the Brunch.  You can beat the crowd by contacting Bill (wingle3@attglobal.net or847.724.8560) before the brunch. 
 
Don’t forget, the three LLYC regatta races are reserved for a non-sailor to serve on the Committee Boat so everyone can race in the regatta.
 
Here is the plan for each Weekend:

a.    Jack and I will set the buoys at 9:00
b.    RC sailor of the day and his helper pick up the stuff (horns, tally sheet, megaphone, stop watches, wind gage etc) from Peter on Saturday. That way if you have questions we can discuss. Call first 742 2567 to be sure I’m home.
c.    RC to be out on the course by 9:15 and get lined up with the starting mark. Anchor so the line made by you and the starting buoy are perpendicular to the line between the starting buoy and the first mark. If you are not sure ask one of the guys around you for a second opinion.
d.    The instruction sheet will give you the details of starting. Generally they are: 5 min horn, 4 min horn, 1 min horn, start. For the handicap system, a horn 2 min later and 5 min later.
e. After the race, pick up one buoy and return to Peter’s when you return the Stuff and hand off the results sheet to him. Jack will take other buoy.
f.      For serving as RC you are given Last place for that race. Not really, seeing if you are paying attention. You receive a 3rd.

We have several very nice Thursday nights sailing last year followed by Pizza at the Landing. The winds determined how the sailing went but the Pizza and Beer were consistently good. We plan to continue this program, watch your email for announcements.
 
The first scheduled event is Thursday June 16th. We will meet out on Mill Lake at 5:50 pm; race around a bit ‘til 6:30, and then meet at the Landings at 7:00.
    
 Suggestions are welcome at the Brunch. 

It's time to sign up for MCSA if you haven't done so yet.  You can signup on thewww.mcscow.org class website.  The site is also a good resource for information about MC Scow sailing, used boats, tuning guide, and links to other related sites. It is this organization that is responsible for getting Melges to update the MC to the new “swamp-free” design. Thanks to those who support it each year.

The Yacht Club mailing included a "2011 Events" card to hang on the wall. It includes the dates of all of our events (repeated below) as well as those of the Yacht Club. 
 
Races are in Green Lake unless noted.  We have two regular races plus the Harry S Truman race that are not in Green Lake.  This gives residents of Mill and Middle lakes an opportunity to watch some racing which they enjoy and it provides our sport some visibility.  
 
All races start at 10:00 AM.  If you expect to do well, come early enough to sail the course at least once, if you want to do twice as well, sail it twice.

Our Sailing Club (LLSC) provides lots of opportunities to win some gold. Our summer series includes all races except the Harry S Truman.
 
The top 4 places at the end of the series are presented with a trophy to keep.
Next is the Yacht Club Regatta Series. The LLSC is part of the LLYC and they sponsor a three race series each season. The winners of the series, 1st through 4th place winners are presented trophies provided by the Yacht Club.
 
The Beiswanger cup, Bradley Cup, Bud Wiser Cup, the Rojo Cup, the LLYC-Walsh Trophy, the Cartland Cup, the Harry S Truman Trophy are single race trophies presented to the winners of each of these races.  These are traveling trophies; the winners hold them for one year.
 
In addition to all of the above, if you win a race, but do not finish in the  top four spots of either series, and do not win a traveling trophy, you will receive a 1st place trophy for your win.

First Race of the Season:
The first horn will be a 5 minute warning gun.
The second horn is the 4 minute warning in case you were not ready at the 5 minute horn
The third horn is the 1 minute before start horn
The fourth horn is the Start horn

All subsequent Races:
After the Start Horn, there will be another horn 2 minutes later. This for the sailors who have finished in the top three places of a previous race. These sailors will start 2 minutes after the Start horn for the balance of the season unless they again finish in the top 3 places. When this happens, they then start at a horn that goes off 5 minutes after the Start horn.  
 
We will not be using Flags so keep your ears open.
If you go over the line early, the race committee will notify you and you will have to restart.

Date to be Sept 10 & 11 and we are hosting.  As we learn more about this event it will be placed on the web page.  As before, it’s a lot of fun and volunteers make all the difference in the logistics of boat rigging and launching and trailer parking. 

John Hamilton is doing a terrific job with the LLSC web site. Help him by sending in photos and news items for posting on the site.  John will tell us about his ideas for 2011 at the Brunch. Thanks John.