Bilge Pump: April 2008

Work In Progress In order to be competitive, an organization needs to be a work in progress.  It cannot remain static as the world around it changes.  This fact is true of yacht clubs.  Some members of QCYC benefit from the contributions of others and put little if anything back.  While some of these members have made contributions, one cannot rest on past laurels. I suspect that everyone has worked with someone who would rather tell war stories than actually work in the present.  There is no challenge to drifting at slack water and it is easier to ride the incoming tide using up the energy that was created yesterday without creating something for tomorrow.  But tides change and what is comfortable today can be swept away and the incautious mariner can lose all.  When too many members of an organization chose the easy comfortable path, the result is not positive.  There are myriad examples of organizations that have drifted away because they failed to maintain vigor.  It takes the efforts of every member to make this club thrive.  Ask yourself:  Am I doing what I can to contribute not just to the now but to the future; or am I living
in the past?  Help us be dynamic.  Assure the future of our club.

On The Other Hand Understanding the past and paying homage to it is a very different and a very good thing.  It reminds us of those who came before and created this wonderful club.  At the March 12 meeting, we had the rare honor of having Member #1 Ehrling “Bub” Olsen and Member #2 Ray Meyers in attendance.  Both men joined in 1949.  Everyone in attendance, including two newly inducted Captains, were invited to reflect upon what 59 years of membership means.  In a nice presentation on some of the relevant history of QCYC, P/C Jeff Ewell (Club Historian) pointed out that Captains Olsen and Meyers have been members for 56% of our Club’s entire existence.  Thank you Captains Olsen and Meyers for blazing the
trail.

Thank You To Fleet Captain Paul Grimm for organizing and executing the St. Patrick’s Day Cruise to “St. Andrews Bay”.  Thanks also to Barb and Eric and all of the hard working members who ventured to Winslow to spiff-up the outstation.  P/C David Krows continues to amaze us all with his tireless work organizing our Opening Day celebration.  

Upcoming Events:

April brings us the Tacoma Yacht Club Daffodil Festival April 18-20,which is on the calendar as a Fleet Captains Cruise.  This should be a great event and everyone who can attend should go, if only to root QCYC to victory in the Saturday trivia contest.  

Don’t forget the Pride of Queen City work party at the instation April 26.  There is always a lot to do to get our instation ready for Opening Day.  Lunch and dinner are included.  If you can’t attend, a donation to the food fund is always welcome.  

Opening Day--actually Opening Week is more like it.  The Fleet arrives on Wednesday April 30 and the fun begins.  The Memorial Day Cruise is being organized by Chairs Peter and Kathleen Anderson.  I got a sneak peek at the schedule of events and it looks like a really fun time for adults and kids alike.  Further and more accurate information on these two events is available elsewhere in this edition.

I am looking forward to seeing you at our summer cruise events.  Make plans now and come have a whole bunch of fun.

Bill McGillin
Commodore

With Opening Day of boating season just around the corner, and before we all get wrapped up with doing what we all love to do, (boating),  I’d like to report on some projects that were completed during  the winter.

Docks: Waterfront Construction replaced several pile caps on Dock 3.  These pile caps were deteriorated to the point that temporary repairs were made by the Docks Committee after they reviewed digital pictures that showed degradation over just a few weeks time.   The temporary repairs worked, and Waterfront replaced the problem pile cap.  Waterfront’s work also required the dismantling of the main dock section to get at some of the longer pile caps, and to allow continuous access to boats moored further out on Dock 3, our Dock Committee set up a by-pass dock.  Before they put this dock in place, they had to replace nearly all its deck planks, move several affected boats to temporary slips and also set up temporary lighting so nighttime access was safe.  This project was headed up by Art Mauldin, Randy Garvie and Dave Svendsen, with assistance from Bob Myers, John Strong, Randy Jamerson, Nadeane Rutledge and Tim Rutledge.  Be sure and thank them for their efforts, and if you are interested in being part of this team, contact me at vicecommodore@queencity.org, and I will get your name to the Docks Committee.

Outstation: The much anticipated new ranges and freezer have been installed and after a minor electrical alteration is completed, the new appliances will be up and running and awaiting the next club event.  Also, mark your calendars for the upcoming Outstation work party on April 5th and 6th.  This is our major annual effort to spruce up the Outstation clubhouse, grounds and docks, and your help is really appreciated.  It really is a fun time, and all you have to do is show up (with gloves) and we’ll show you what needs to be done.  Food will be provided Moorage: If your slip is vacant during Opening Day, please contact Dick Geving.  We would like to use you slip to place visiting boats from the Grand 14 for the festivities.  Remember to provide the office with a current Certificate of Insurance as you renew your policy.  When you renew your Department of Licensing registration in May or June, please send a legible copy to the office.  The inactive boat rule (3.08.05), which address what most of us call “storage boats,” is being looked at again, so if your boat falls into this category, you may be contacted by me.  We’ll sit down and develop a plan to get you involved with club activities and cruising again.

House: Your help at the “Pride of Queen City” on April 26th will be appreciated.  This is the work party at the main station that involves house, grounds and docks.  Please make plans to attend.  We have lots of projects for all skill levels.  Meals will be provided.

Junior Officer’s Ball:  Mark your calendars for May 31st when Queen City Yacht Club hosts the bi-annual ball that is attended by the Junior Officers of the Grand 14.  Details will be in the next Bilge Pump, but remember that all Queen City Members are encouraged to attend.  We hope to see you there!
    
Dale Roberts
Vice Commodore

Spring is in the air and our project schedule is ramping up with the approaching warmer weather.  We have a major work party, Pride of Queen City, scheduled for April 26th from 0830-1430.  This is a great opportunity to contribute to your Club as we get things ship-shape on the Docks, Grounds and Clubhouse for Opening Day which begins the next week.  There’s always plenty of projects and the more hands we have available the more we can accomplish.  It’s also a great opportunity to meet your fellow Club members and renew friendships.  We’ll provide the lunch and a dinner beginning at 1730.  If you‘re not going to be in town on April 26th, please consider sending a monetary contribution to the Club to help offset the costs of the lunch and dinner.  Regarding work parties, I inadvertently left Tim McCarthy off the list of workers at the February 9th grounds clean-up.  My apologies to Tim.
By the time this report reaches you, the dumpster enclosures will be complete and will present a more attractive appearance for our Club.  We’ll be on time and under budget.

Opening Day.  Speaking of Opening Day – and who isn’t – the committee is busily planning for an enjoyable, fun-filled celebration.  We expect many visitors and guests at the Club during the five-day festivities.  An event of this magnitude requires a great deal of coordination and the cooperation of every member. With that in mind, I’d like to ask for your help with the following:

• Please let Dick Geving know if you’re going to be away from your slip so we can assign visiting boats to your slip.  We always have more requests than we can handle so every available slip really helps.
• Because of the heavy demand, the reciprocal list is suspended during Opening Day Week.  We will only be able to accommodate boats from the Grand 14 and Kingston Cove Yacht Club.  Each year we have greater demands on our available moorage and it’s a difficult task but we try our best to safely accommodate as many boats as possible.

Opening Day and Summer Parking  --  Due to numerous complaints from members about violations to our parking rules, we’ll be issuing new summer-use parking passes.  These hang from your rear-view mirror and will be in force during Opening Day week and as further stipulated in Rule 7.01 of the Queen City Yacht Club Rules (p.111).  Only 1 (one) pass will be given to each member. During Opening Day week the gate will be monitored and only those with the summer use parking pass will be allowed access to the lot.  We have only printed enough for each member so please be careful with them as there are no replacements: we don’t  want to have to turn people away. Club Rule 7.01 states “Only one vehicle per member shall be parked on the Clubhouse property from June 15 through September 15 and at times of scheduled Club activities.”  Also, given the recent spate of boat fires (Winslow, Tacoma, Pt. Roberts), please obey the fire lanes and park only in the striped spaces in order to provide access for emergency vehicles should they be needed. Please be fair to your fellow Club members and follow the Rules.  Your cooperation and understanding is greatly appreciated. 

Fair Winds

Ed Jennerich
Rear Commodore