Bilge Pump: February 2012

1. Commodore's Report

Bilge Pump Issue: 
February 2012

Commodore George Austin

It seems that just yesterday we were gearing up for the holidays and now suddenly we are into February. It’s been a great start to a new year.

I would like to thank Captain Vivian Johnson and her group of volunteers that not only put up the best holiday decorations ever but also took them down on the same day that P/C George and Nancy Austin and crew put up the New Year's decorations. It was a very smooth transition.

George & Nancy again chaired the club's New Year's event and then they were back early on New Year's Day to take down decorations with a little help from a few of your bridge members and first mates. What a terrific group. I am sure I express thanks from all the club members...the New Year's party was great. Thank you Nancy & George. Your event was a sell-out again. There are pictures of the event online in our gallery.

The Past Commodores were at Winslow for their winter cruise-in and from what I hear they had a great time. Willie prepared a delicious prime rib dinner.

The following weekend the officers of the Grand XIV were at our Winslow outstation for their annual Winter Cruise-In. All fourteen clubs participated and as usual, raved about our great facilities. On Saturday night we enjoyed a dinner of ribs and chicken and then the roasting began. The creativity was amazing and all the roasting was done in fun. All the commodores could FEEL THE LOVE!

Junior Officers V/C Bob & Lois Stettner and R/C Bob & Laurean Myers totally put together a terrific event. Thanks go to the Bobs & Mrs. Bobs.

Drinking and bowling? At the same time? Bowling at THE GARAGE is turning into an annual QCYC event in January. Lots of members showed up for this event. You can't help but laugh when you see the grimaces on some of the faces. Thank you, Fleet Captain Mike Cochran, for arranging this activity at THE GARAGE.

How do Captain Scott & Tracy McPhee do it? Their annual event, MARTINI MADNESS, is better and better each year. What a great way to add a little sparkle to the dreariest month of the year. Thanks guys!

The Seattle Boat Show will be over by the time you read this. Membership Chair Chris Benson is working diligently towards the goal of full membership. The club will hold an open house on February 25. Please put that date on your calendar and come and help show prospective new members around our club.

Bremerton Yacht Club will hold its 78th running of their Heavy Weather Predicted Log Race February 18. The theme this year is "THE OLYMPICS"! The skits, I am sure, will be as funny as usual. It is the largest saltwater log race in the world. Good luck to all of our racers.
Upcoming in February is the SWEETHEART DINNER. This year's chair is Captain Steve Weiss along with his lovely 1st mate Jackie. The evening will include SURF & TURF and music of the 40's and 50's. Steve would like reservations in by February 8 for the event taking place Saturday, February 11. This will sell out so sign up early so sign up now!

The Fleet Captain has planned an adventure for President's Day, February 17. Our fleet will be going to Poulsbo for a little relaxation and gambling so be sure to sign up. It sounds like a lot of fun.

New member, Captain Scott Peterson, is soon to be retiring as Director of Choral Activities at Yakima Valley College and Chorus Master of the Yakima Symphony. Lucky for us, we are gaining this talented man and he would like to start a choir at the club which he is planning on calling The Queen City Yacht Club Quire. He would like to have something in the works for Opening Day weekend so if you have any interest in singing somewhere other than the shower, contact Captain Peterson.

At the general meeting on February 22, Rear Commodore Charlie Long of Tacoma Yacht Club will be making a short presentation to entice all of you to come to their Daffodil Festival April 20-22. This is already planned as a Fleet Captain's event so plan on attending. Last year QCYC had the highest number of boats in attendance. Let's try and continue that trend.

Being that February is a short month that about takes care of it. Enjoy your club and all the activities.

Don Wilson
Commodore


2. Vice Commodore's Report

Bilge Pump Issue: 
February 2012

Ah ha, it’s leap year...Mothers, watch out for your sons. It is said that if a lady proposes to a man on Feb 29 that the man must accept the proposal.  I found this on the internet. It didn’t say what the consequences would be if the man turned down the proposal.   

By the time you read this, we will have put the finishing touches on QCYC’s presence at this year’s Boat Show. The Seattle Boat Show is always a big hit with Queen City members and especially Chairman Capt. Chris Benson.  In my opinion, Queen City always has the best looking booth at the Boat Show. We are very optimistic about this year’s turnout and look forward to many new potential new member leads for us to follow up on.
 
Before writing much more, I want to put a plug in for the upcoming Sweetheart Dance on Feb 11, which sounds like a good one to catch.  It will feature classic music from the forties and fifties: songs by Frank, Nat, Peggy and Dean. Do those name sound familiar? And, did I mention our fare will be Filet Mignon and Jumbo Prawns among the many other tasty delights.
 
UPDATES:
Capt. Richard Frisch, Moorage Chairman, reports that his hip replacement surgery was slowed a little when he dislocated his newly replaced hip on Christmas day and was moved to an aftercare facility for supervised care and pain management. Fortunately, Richard has been released from the aftercare facility, is doing his rehabilitation at home and spending more time on his computer. During Richard’s recovery, Captains Steve Weiss and Greg Scott have been taking care of business for Richard on the moorage assignment responsibilities. Our thanks and appreciation goes out to Steve and Greg for stepping up during Richard’s absences. 
Capt. Gayle Frisch, Richard’s spouse, had back surgery in December. The operation went well, and she has now been released from the hospital and is at home. Her recovery is progressing nicely but slowly - lots of physical therapy involved for both Gayle and Richard.
Capt. Jim Damery, House Chairman, continues to make good progress in his recovery from his second ankle operation. He noted recently that the new plate that was surgically inserted to hold his ankle straight is doing well, and he is now permitted to put approx. (45) lbs. of weight bearing on it. Jim and his doctor are very optimistic about his progress and the success of this second operation. Jim is hopeful that he will be back home by the time you read this update. Hang in there, Jim, we are all pulling for you.
 
DOCKS: 
I have noted before that during the next three months you will be seeing a lot of action going on at the Seattle Main-station docks.   Chairman Art Mauldin could use more volunteers to help out, so if you have an hour or two, please consider calling him to volunteer, or better yet, just show up on the designated Saturday. We don’t want to lose sight of the fact that our docks are now approaching the half century age of existence. This means Art and Co-Chair Capt. Ron Stevenson need a lot of volunteers rotating through the Docks Committee to maintain a sustained level maintenance and restoration of our docks.   Please take a minute and check out Ron’s “To Do” list which is posted in Cummins Hall. Many of the tasks listed are small one-person type jobs and can be done in an hour or less time e.g. many hands make light work.
 
Kudos and appreciation to Rosemary Collins who has agreed to take on the secretarial responsibilities for the Docks Committee. As you know, the Docks Committee has grown in its number of committee members over the past year, and is currently working on and monitoring over twenty active projects.
 
WORK DOCK FLOAT #1 - At the last dock meeting on Dec 27, it was decided by the committee to go forward with the selection of Waterfront Construction to construct a new replacement floating work dock #1 to replace the current work dock which has reached the end of its useful life.  We may have our new dock as soon as mid-February.  For those who don’t know where work dock #1 is located, it is the smallest of our three work docks located just outside of the covered moorage slips on dock #3.
 
DOCK LADDERS - The final decision on our ladder replacement project at the Seattle Main station is making progress. At the Dec. 27 meeting, the Docks Committee decided to look at additional ladder design options before making the final decision. Thus far the committee has reviewed three different designs, wood, stainless, and a PVC type design used by the Port of Seattle. At this point, the Committee needs more time to review and compare these designs, plus they want to look at other options before selecting the final ladder replacement for the Seattle Main station docks.
 
DOCK CLEAT REPLACEMENT - There still remains a number of unresolved issues on the dock cleat design selection that need to be worked out before the project of replacement goes forward. It was decided to revisit the whole project design to reevaluate some of the original design decisions, i.e.: physical size, backing plates, location and mounting to list a few items yet to be worked out.
 
MOORAGE: 
It’s nice to note that we continue keeping our electrical consumption within safe limits, and haven’t had to deal with a Dock # 3 power outage. We appreciate all the fine effort and ask that we continue to conserve our A/C consumption.
 
In January storage boat moorage termination became effective for three vessels at the Seattle Main-station. The loss of moorage privileges involving these boats was regrettable, and the final decision was very thoughtfully approached by all involved.
 
At the December Board of Trustees meeting, the Board approved adoption of a moorage rule change under the “QCYC Rules 2010” which will be published in the new 2012 QCYC Annual roster. The minor changes to the rules will now tighten requirements on boat registration, insurance and ownership requirements. Under the new change, boat owners will be required to provide current year copies of these documents to the Committee and/or mail copies of these documents to the QCYC office manager, “Attention Moorage Committee Chairman.”  Please keep in mind that failure to provide these documents on request from the Committee could result in loss of moorage privileges.
 
HOUSE: 
P/C Jeff Ewell has been covering for House Chairman Jim Damery during his absence and advises that there were no significant items to report.
 
Please join Lois and me at the February 8 general membership meeting. We look forward to seeing you there, and don’t forget we have raised the quarter pot to a dollar which really ups the incentive to show up.
 
Regards,
 
Bob Stettner

Vice Commodore    


3. Rear Commodore's Report

Bilge Pump Issue: 
February 2012

Happy Valentine’s Day to all the sweethearts out there......give somebody a smile or a hug...it's a free and immediate lifesaver.

We had a great time at the Officers Cruise In. Your Commodore was roasted to well- done by V/C Bob, Lois, R/C Bob and Laurean. 18 boats and 80 club officers from the Grand 14 came to our Winslow outstation for this snowy weekend event.

Membership is a top Queen City priority......we would like to encourage each of you to personally invite one family to consider joining our great boating community. Our current membership is 343 Active Members, 119 Life Members, and 3 Social Members. The Seattle Boat Show is a fantastic place to feature our club and you can participate by manning the QCYC Booth. Several shifts are available for the Century Link Exhibition Hall Jan 27-Feb 5. Give me or Captain Chris Benson a call to sign up.

Grounds crew Becky Garvie, Mary Louise Alving and I are evaluating Instation landscape needs that will focus QCYC as the premier club we are.....our goals include improving soil, plants, existing water systems; creating a long term landscape design to complement our annual Pride of Queen City planting; and encouraging greater member participation in grounds work.

Parking lot asphalt improvements are planned after the electrical line additions have been dug and completed. New parking space enhancements will be integrated as well.

Security systems are performing within normal operations and no issues are identified at this writing.

Bob Myers
Rear Commodore


Docks Committee

Bilge Pump Issue: 
February 2012

Your Docks Committee speaks thoughts captured at lunch time, January 12, 2012, the regular Second Saturday work party for January.
 
The docks group works rain / snow / fair weather or foul. They are a dedicated group of members working on the club’s most valuable asset. Not everyone shows up for each work party, but that is understandable, what with people’s busy lives. The work accomplished is fun. The camaraderie is great and the results are enjoyed by all club members.    – Jim McFadden –
 
When you volunteer, you see clearly the value we have here at QCYC. There is more to our club than just liquid cheer.   – Mitch Garton –
 
Good work by all today. Working together makes jobs easier and faster to accomplish. Always feels good to work with people that care about making the facilities better.   – Tim Dies –
 
Observed at the work party today: “Snow” is also a four letter word.   – Chuck Gould –
 
Working with 14 people today, freely giving their time to pitch in and work on all the dock projects, says a lot about the quality of the people in our club…. And then it starts to snow.   – Ron Stevenson  
 
We got 80% of the job done, even though the weather was cold. It was a good day.   – Dustin Bago –
 
I forgot my umbrella and coffee cup.   – Art Mauldin –
 
One down – six spouts to go on dock 2. The contributions of the members were outstanding, as usual. The weather…. Well, it’s a four letter day.   – Dick Dow –
 
Pretty cold Wx. but good company that keeps you warm.   – Al Jones –
 
Driving screws on frozen docks in the snow. This place deserves our labor. (it's a haiku)
And now, for something completely different: I think the locked half of Cummings Hall should be designated the Mauldin Room. Ok OK, three sentences. Sorry it ran long.   -  John Strong -
 
Could we interest members in a weekday session, perhaps 2 Tuesday half-days per month?
 
Next committee meetings scheduled: 6:00 PM Tuesdays: January 24, February 28, and March 27 (Fourth Tuesdays).  Next scheduled docks work parties: 8:30 AM Saturdays:  February 11, and March 10, and April 14. (Second Saturdays)  Lunch is on the house. Breakfast is our time to discuss the day’s tasks.
 
Signed,
Your Docks Committee

 

Fleet Captain News

Bilge Pump Issue: 
February 2012

Washington State Ferry Engine Room Tours will commence in March, 2012.

The cost is $5.00, collected by the Fleet Captain when you are assigned a tour schedule.

We are waiting for tour dates and the assigned boat based on their shipyard schedule.

Names (full name) will be required and subject to their security provisions. For this purpose a sign-up roster will be circulated by the Fleet Captain once we have the dates and times received from the Port Engineer. Tour participants will be first come, first served and can be registered starting at the first Wednesday club meeting in February, on the 8th.

There may be multiple tour dates as engine room tours are limited to 8 to 10 persons.

A straw poll taken at the January 11th meeting, 25 out of 45 indicated an interest.

Those who participated in the Rutabagas sing-along were automatically eliminated.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

PRESIDENTS DAY WEEKEND FLEET CAPTAIN’S CRUISE

Your fleet captain has placed a hold on 12 slips at the Poulsbo Marina on E-Dock over President’s Day Weekend. A raffle, wonderful hot treats upon your Friday arrival, fun for dogs if weather permits, a trip to Clearwater Casino for their grand buffet supper on Saturday, a delicious Latin American traditional entree for our progressive dinner on Sunday, and more……

A luggage and meal tax at $10 per boat will be collected for the enjoyment of the whole.

Read more about it in this issue of The Bilge Pump.


Fleet Captain's Cruise to Poulsbo

Bilge Pump Issue: 
February 2012

 
Presidents Day Weekend Cruise to Poulsbo

Fleet Captain Event
February 17 – 20, 2012

Space is available, call or email me by Jan 20th,
mmcochran@bfcmetals.com | (206) 755-4895
 
Arrive Friday February 17, to hosted Hor d’Oeuvres
(No host) Saturday Dinner at Clearwater Casino
Sunday: Fleet Captain Organized Dinner

More details to follow in Feb.“Bilge PUMP”

 


 


Membership Report

Bilge Pump Issue: 
February 2012

 I want to thank all of our members that helped with the Boat Show this year. We had close to 55 members and their spouses that signed up to help with this event.

Our next event is the Queen City Open House on Saturday, February 25st at the QCYC Main Station from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM. We encourage you to invite and host a prospective new member. We will provide a tour of our facility and docks. We also will have refreshments and food for our guests.

Our membership count is currently at 343 active members. Our goal is to attain 400 members for full membership status.

I encourage all members to take our brochures and invite your boating friends and acquaintances to our open house, Opening Day events coming soon, a general meeting, a weekend social event, breakfast on the weekend and lunch on Friday. We also can invite them to attend one of our cruises. Talk with our Fleet Captain Mike Cochran regarding upcoming events.

So keep recruiting!
Chris Benson
Membership Chairman


Outstation Report

Bilge Pump Issue: 
February 2012

The Bainbridge Island Outstation has been quiet. A few boats came over for some peace and quiet during the holidays. We were up cruising in the San Juans and amongst other stops visited the Deer Harbor Outstation - a great place to tie up in a storm. (I also finally got that old tight-wad to take me up to the Deer Harbor Inn for dinner one night - it was very nice!)

The docks and parking lot were full the weekend of January 6th-8th as the Past Commodores of the Grand 14 visited Bainbridge Island. Past Commodore George and Nancy Austin planned a fun weekend and good food. They did a great job of cleaning up the place and now it's ready for the Grand 14 current Bridge Officers to have their party.

I believe Bainbridge Island will be quiet again for a while, so it's a good time to come over and enjoy the island. We're starting to see early signs of spring (uh-oh, I probably jinxed things) and the days are getting longer, too. If you are a new member or an old member with short-term memory, we would happy to show you the facility and show you why we joined the club. We love living on this Island!

Barb Wood


Quire

Bilge Pump Issue: 
February 2012

225

Hey, Queen City Members!

Looking for a new way to participate at Queen City? Been watching “Glee” and wanting to leap up out of your chair in song?

Well, here’s your chance! Consider joining the new “Queen City Quire!”

We are in the process of starting a singing group which will participate in the festivities for opening day in May, singing some sea chanties or other songs of the sea. If the group is successful and interest continues, we will look at future performances. We will meet for rehearsals a couple of times prior to Opening Day, once on Saturday, April 21st at 4pm and Sunday, April 29th, also at 4pm. Times are subject to change.

The Queen City Quire is being formed and conducted by Scott Peterson, Director of Choral Activities at Yakima Valley College, and he conducts the Yakima Symphony Chorus.

The purpose is to have fun singing together. If you have an interest, please email Scott at choralc@gmail.com and let him know that you want to be part of this new and exciting venture. Even if you have spoken to him, please send an email again so he can keep an accurate count.

And then tune up your voice for some fun!

225


Reciprocal Moorage Report

Bilge Pump Issue: 
February 2012

Hi Everyone, Happy New Year From the Reciprocal Committee.
Well to start out the new year Fred Bereswill has been busy again signing up yacht clubs to add to our Reciprocal List:

Grosse Point Yacht Club 1929
788 Lake Shore Rd.
Grosse Point Shores, MI 48236
313 884-2500
www.gpyc.org
Fred reports that it is the "Most elegant yacht club he has ever been in
(and he has been in a few). It even has a bowling alley as well as lounge, docks etc.
Check out the web site.

Ford Yacht Club 1947
PO Box, 204
Grosse ILE, MI 48138
734 676-8422
www.fordyachtclub.com
This club was originally the Ford Mtr. Co. Yacht Club

ELBA-MAR Yacht Club 1953
PO Box 569
Grosse Point MI. 48138
734 671-9639
www.elbamaryachtclub.com

Monroe Boat Club 1945
7932 Bolles Harbor Rd.
Monroe, MI 48161
734 234-8935
www.monroeboatclub.com

If anyone is visiting in the GREAT LAKES AREA, feel free to stop by for a drink.

Ed Allison
Chair, Yachting Facilities Committee


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