May 12 TellTales · coast, and thanks to Russ Crouse, Drew Thorburn and Keith Simpson, we had...

Opening Day on May 6th included

this special ribbon-cutting ceremony by

Past Commodores Gary Morrison and

Jon Healey to officially “open”

our new docks. See more photos

starting on page 5.

TellTales Vo l u m e 3 1 • N u m b e r 5 • M a y 2 0 1 2

Commodore’s Report by Derek Castle

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What a wonderful Opening Day and Sail Past! The weather greeted us with a warm sunny day and calm seas, which was most welcome, given our cool and damp conditions over the previous few weeks. Many thanks to Skipper Jeffrey Kibble and the crew of Caribou, who displayed a perfect balance

of professionalism and enjoyment to add a new dimension for our Sail Past. At a displacement of 210 tonnes, Caribou made a most impressive flagship. I must learn to use a bosun’s whistle on Jaz.Man.

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S A L T S P R I N G I S L A N D S A I L I N G C L U B

Calendar

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June 2012 S M T W T F S 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30

1st 1700 IOM Regatta Pub Night 1st-‐3rd IOM Regatta – Western Cdn Championships 5th 1900 Board Meeting 6th 1700 Wed Eve Race Series B 10th 1700 Round Saltspring Volunteer Event 15th 1700 Marina Project Volunter Event (invitation)

May 2012 S M T W T F S 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

1st 1900 Board Meeting 6th 1100 Opening Day & Sailpast 6th 1330 No Flying Sails Race 13th 0800 Sailing School Open House 18th-‐20th Round Saltspring Race 18th-‐21st Round Saltspring Cruise 27th TBD McMillan Race re-‐run 29th 1900 General Meeting

EDITOR’S NOTE: This issue of TellTales is coming out later than usual, with apolo-gies to readers who look for it mid-month. This has been an extraordinarily busy time for the Club, including Communications, but I hope many of you have kept up to date on news of our many events on our website. The last TellTales before the summer hiatus will be published in the latter half of June, with a full picture report on the Round Saltspring Race. In the meantime, please visit www.saltspringsailing.com often for the latest news!

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SALTSPRING ISLAND SAILING CLUB TELLTALES May 2012

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Commodore’s Report continued from page 1 The sight of the long line of Club boats down Ganges Harbour was grand, and we can be proud of the excellent turnout. I also can tell you that this formation was most orderly, which reflects well on our respect for a day of traditional nautical formality. The letters of regret addressed to the Commodore from those members unable to attend our Opening Day also were most appreciated. Another great job by Tim Erdmer, our superb Piper, who led myself and our Flag Officers up the docks to the pier. Jon Healey and Gary Morrison then performed a ribbon-cutting ceremony to commemorate completion of our marina renovation project on behalf of the dozens of volunteers who contributed several thousand total hours towards our first-class foreshore facility. Thanks to Keith Simpson for organizing the Sail Past, and to Maggie Snee, Patrick Beattie and their crews for providing the great luncheon and beverages for the hungry and thirsty boaters. To end this special day, the weather gods again cooperated by providing a nice breeze for the traditional Opening Day No Flying Sails Race. Further to my comments last month, I hope that members now are visiting our new website, which contains a wealth of Club (and other) information. It’s the best way to know what’s happening! The Round Saltspring cutting-edge online registration system certainly delivered results that fully met expectations. As of May 8th, we had attained our maximum level of entrants at 120 boats, and then established a waiting list that allowed cancellations to be filled. This early cut-off date provided our volunteers with a reasonable time period for preparations in advance of the big event, unlike other years when entries still were being received on the final pre-race day. In addition, we processed an extraordinary number of online purchases for the Friday night salmon barbecue, Sunday afternoon lamb feast and cloth-ing items. The teamwork of Mark Strongman,

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Vincent Argiro and Silk Questo has put SISC at the front of the class and, to quote Gary Morrison, we continue to punch above our weight. Mary Grove, Jill Sydneysmith and Jenny Barrio spent many hours over the weeks preceding race weekend recruiting volunteers for the onshore activities, which require a well-organized crew. Job well-done! Again, we can justifiably claim that RSS 2012 lived up to its reputation as the best regatta on the west coast, and thanks to Russ Crouse, Drew Thorburn and Keith Simpson, we had tremendous support from a large group of sponsors, including a fabulous array of prizes. An interesting fact that was news to me (and most important to our sponsors) is that RSS is the largest “Canadian Content” regatta in the Strait of Georgia region, as we host significantly more boats from Canadian yacht clubs (and fewer American vessels). It was great to see so many of you at our Round Saltspring gala over the Victoria Day weekend, and I look forward to seeing our RSS volunteers at the appreciation event scheduled for June 10th.

Please mark your calendars for the General Meeting scheduled for this coming Tuesday, May 29th at 1900 hours at the clubhouse. The agenda for this membership meeting will be found on the following page, and I would ask all members to attend. Due to notification timing requirements, a Notice of this General Meeting together with the Agenda will have been forwarded to all members by email (and post by exception) before you receive this edition of TellTales. ■

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NOTICE Saltspring Island Sailing Club

General Meeting Tuesday • May 29, 2012 • 1900 hrs

Agenda:

Call to Order by Commodore Derek Castle at 1900 hours, and confirmation of a quorum

1. Adoption of the Agenda

2. Commodore’s Remarks

3. Minutes of Special General Meeting Feb 28, 2012

4. Treasurer’s Report: Eric van Soeren

5. Officers’ Reports: a. Vice Commodore – Don Dashwood b. Rear Commodore – Bob Jones c. Fleet Captain Racing – Keith Simpson d. Fleet Captain Dinghy – Patrick Beattie e. Fleet Captain Cruising – Tanya Van Ginkel f. Wharfinger – Hugh Preddy g. Staff Captain – Maggie Snee h. Secretary – Peter Howell i. Communications Director – Silk Questo

6. New Business a. Board Regulation 5.2 for Vessel

Seaworthiness Compliance b. Marina Renovation Project Closing c. Long-‐Term Planning Sessions Overview

7. Adjournment

NOTICE TO MEMBERS! Please remember to pick up your

2012 Yearbook and Membership Card at the clubhouse!

As of April 30, 2012, we were utilizing all but $41,000 of our $1,250,000 combined operating line of credit and term loan. It is now clear that we will end up within a few thousand dollars of budget for the marina. Earlier this month we received about $54,000

of our expected $125,000 in HST refunds so paid all but one of the bills received related to the Marina Upgrade. We will continue to be in a cash crunch until we receive the rest of the $71,000 in HST refunds coming, and the $20,000 bond for habitat compensation related to the dredging. Initiation fees are now up to $22,400 so far, and we have budgeted $20,000, so we are already in a surplus budget on that item. There are a few potential new members in the pipeline, so it looks good for exceeding that target revenue number by a good margin. After adjusting for recently sent out invoices, our main revenue item, the moorage and dinghy storage fees, should be within a few thousand dollars of budget, and at this writing there are still about half a dozen unallocated spaces. The new Chase Paymentech merchant account is operating for secure online payments, and we received over $10,000 for the Round Saltspring Island Race registration. Bob Jones and I met with the risk control consultant with our insurance company at the end of April. He was very satisfied with our marina and said it was the best he had seen for risk control and general condition with the possible exception of the marina in Coal Harbour. We will have to continue to be frugal and may have to delay one payment for a week or two, but it still looks like we are on track to complete our marina upgrade and continue to provide the rest of the services the Club members enjoy within our overall budget for the year. ■

Treasurer’s Report by Eric van Soeren

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The Sail Past and season opening celebrations, coupled with the opening of the “new” marina, were a resounding success from the Staff Captain’s point of view. I had thought I had overdone the ordering and set-up of food, but once again everyone proved me wrong with the food tables

cleared in very short order once the Commodore had started the ball rolling. Our guests from the Royal Canadian Navy were extremely generous in providing contributions of food for the feast, with soup, sandwiches and fruit. There was also a good dent put into that fare and it was much appreciated.

Many thanks to Jennifer Healey who helped with the lion’s share of set-up and clean-up, and also to Arlene Dashwood for her time and assistance. Yours truly led us to the finish line and the Club was left in such great shape you would never have known there had been any event there at all. While there are a number of committee-run social functions coming up on the Club calendar, including two Volunteer Appreciation Events, and a Pub Night during the IOM Western Championship Regatta, it looks like the Staff

Captain will get a few months of reprieve to be able to get out into the sailing boonies now. So see you in September for the Salmon Barbecue and in the meantime I wish you fair winds and kind seas. ■

Staff Captain’s Report by Maggie Snee

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TTIE OPENING DAY PARADE — (from top): View from the deck as members proceed up the pier, with Caribou moored on F dock; The procession comes ashore; Up to the clubhouse where lunch awaits. (left): Our handsome Piper, Tim Erdmer.

Marina Project Volunteer Appreciation Party

Our valued Marina Renovation volunteers have been formally invited to an event in their honour on

Friday, June 15, 2012 1700 hours

RSVP Patrick Beattie – [email protected]

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❶ The Sail Past fleet from Mystic ❷ Sailing past Caribou to salute the

Commodore ❸ Piper Tim Erdmer leads Commodore and Mrs. Castle up the dock

❹ The crowd awaits the ribbon cutting ceremony ❺ Gary Morrison and Jon

Healey thank the Marina Renovation volunteers before cutting the ribbon ❻ Flag

Officers Don Dashwood and Bob Jones await the Commodore ❼ Roger Kibble sails

neatly to the dock ❽ An Opening Day toast aboard Oasis ❾ The Oriole was there in spirit, as her crew under the command of Jeffrey Kibble flew their banner from Caribou ❿ Bob Jones congratulates Heinz Vitovec on his stint as Assistant

Wharfinger ⓫ Betsy Johnston is dressed for the occasion!

Opening Day & Sail Past 2012

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The Marina Renovation Project is officially complete! The mandate given by the May 31, 2011 General Meeting, to complete the approved

plan for the marina as quickly as practicable and within the approved budget of $1,352,960 has been fulfilled. Other than a few minor tasks, we have achieved our goal to finish the work by Opening Day with a few dollars to spare. The project has met all of the planning objectives, plus some: ü Installed a “training wall” of piles to divert

siltation from Ackermann Creek ü Maintenance dredging to remove the buildup

of silt (about 12000 cu. m.) ü Reconfigured the docks for improved access to

slips ü Increased the moorage capacity by

approximately 20 vessels ü Increased the electrical system to a 600 amp

service ü 30 amp shore power outlets at every slip (15

amps for small boat moorage) ü Upgraded the electrical system on the docks to

“best practices” for marinas ü Upgraded the water system to significantly

increase capacity ü Upgraded safety fixtures, including improved

ladders and fire hoses ü Installed 1285 sq. m. of cobble to provide clam

habitat on the foreshore ü Replaced planting in the riparian zone with

430 sq. m. of native species ü Increased the capacity of the Junior Program

area of the marina ü Improved the floats for tenders and increased

tender storage capacity ü Improved the ratio of billable moorage to

foreshore lease costs

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There are two significant legacies of this project: a best-in-class marina that will attract and serve Club members for many years, and an enduring sense of accomplishment among 80 members who had a hand in the project, from conception to completion. The total time contribution of members is over 6,000 hours! A recognition event for all the project volunteers is planned for June 15th. We would like to give special recognition to the project leaders and managers (below): Norm Dinsmore, Nick Hodson, Ron Sturm, Hugh Preddy, Derek Barrio, Hugh Greenwood, Bob Jones, Don Dashwood, and Eric van Soeren. This group carried significant responsibilities for planning; hundreds of decisions, large and small; dealing with consultants and authorizing agencies; managing contracts and organizing volunteers; and major personal contributions of hands-on work. Special thanks also goes to Commodore Derek Castle for his support of the project management team through-out the last five months of disruptions and operational challenges due to construction. It is a great relief to be back to normal, with a much im-proved marina facility! ■

Marina Renovation Update #12 by Gary Morrison and Jon Healey, Past Commodores and Project co-Directors

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If you are not using power please remove and store your cable. There is still much to be done. Divers will renew the anodes on the steel pilings this week and we are still considering a solution the the sagging section of F Dock. When dry weather is assured for a few days, a sealer will be applied to the new concrete docks. We are actively considering how best to improve the worst of the older fingers. Repair or replace – if the latter, then with what and how to finance. We are monitoring the cable runs at the junctions of A & B Docks, C&F Docks, and F & BW Docks. If any member sees anything that they are uncomfortable with, again, please contact me. As ever my thanks to the fine team assisting me in the dock and foreshore management. We all wish you a great boating summer. ■

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This month has been hectic so the report will be brief. The “project” was completed for Opening Day and Sail Past. This was a notable achievement by many players. So far as I can determine all the parts fitted and

are working as planned. Yes there are bits outstanding but they are under control and do not detract from what is rapidly becoming a fantastic home for our vessels. The missing hoses will be installed in the early part of June and the necessary refurbishing of some of the existing hose will be done at the same time. I have been reminded that the current rules for the use of the tide grid as given in Regulation 5.11 accurately reflects the rules for no cleaning or painting vessels undersides as promulgated by the Dept. of Fisheries and Oceans, therefore the water point adjacent to the grid that I proposed in the April TellTales will not be installed. Sorry for the misinformation. The Regulation 6.11.6 regarding the safety standards for the use of 30 amp power have been noted and adhered to by the vast majority of members and I thank you for that. There are a few pigtails dropping 30 amps into 15 amp female plugs and thence into 14 gauge wire. I ask that those owners consider the risk to both themselves and their neighbours and install a power cord consistent with Section (a) of the Regulation. Clearly this advice does not apply to those members who are using 15 amp power or no power at all! First the carrot, then the stick. In June, those members not in compliance will have their plug switched out and the breaker removed. If you are not sure of compliance please phone or email me.

Rear Commodore’s Report by Bob Jones

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business of eating and drinking. Lunch provided by Maggie Snee and her Club volunteers was excellent and was generously supplemented by the Royal Canadian Navy. Thanks to both crews for contributing to a great Opening Day. The breeze filled in nicely in the afternoon and the race started just as Caribou left the dock with the second contingent of crew from our Club. I tried hard to push Oasis over early but without a line judge it’s hard to call. Electra, Oasis and Soul Thyme got an early lead and I’m not sure but Caribou may have blocked the wind for boats starting closer to the dock. New competitors Derek Hill and Betsy Johnston on their big Beneteau Merriweather pulled into third spot at the first mark behind Oasis and Electra with Aquila Mia and Naru not far behind. Downwind was a lot quieter and warmer, every-one peeled down to shirt sleeves. Electra crept back to first and Soul Thyme snuck back to third spot. The boats all finished in two clumps, each group just minutes apart. Tony and Alex on Minke, our only husband/wife team, seemed to be really screaming along, maybe they just had the hull polished! Electra, Minke and Oasis won the day and we were back in plenty of time to enjoy a few drinks on the boats in the bright warm sunshine. Registration was complete on May 8th for Round Saltspring using our brand new system. This is the earliest that we have been fully subscribed ever and we ended up with several waitlisted boats, all of which were accommodated. We gave our new facilities a good stress test on May 18-20th with the Round Saltspring race. Thanks to all the volun-teers who make this the most popular and largest Regatta of Canadian boats on the west coast. We’ll have further reports in the June issue of TellTales, and I encourage you to check the race web page at www.saltspringsailing.ca/rss12 ■ ABOVE LEFT: First try at this year’s McMillan race.

Racing Forum by Keith Simpson, Fleet Captain Racing

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Of the two events scheduled in April, Round Prevost was completed and the McMillan Race still awaits a re-run. Imp, Kay D and Oasis took the honours among the 10-boat fleet in Round Prevost. This race

proved to be a turning point for the Club in gamesmanship, something I have always aspired to master. It’s not just about sailing your boat, it’s about tactics and strategy and trying to get your competition knocked off the tracks. I learned a good lesson that day. The new club boat Albatro was secretly sailed across the border and on to Vancouver for final fitting. Unfortunately she was not in the Round Saltspring race. Rumour has it that her average speed was 7.5 knots sailing from Saltspring to Vancouver. Roger is currently working on a suitable (punishing) rating for her.

Great turnout for the Opening Day and Sail Past and 10 stayed on for the after lunch race. I hope people enjoyed their tours of duty on HMCS Caribou. I heard that skipper Jeffrey Kibble lured his dad Roger within range then gave him a quick clean-up with a fire hose. The Flag Officers were again led to clubhouse by piper Tim Erdmer, after a brief delay looking for the Fleet Captain. The ribbon cutting to officially open our new docks went off without a hitch. Past Commodores Gary Morrison and Jon Healey, who saw the project to completion on time and on budget, said a few words before we got to the serious Club

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Round Saltspring 2012 Update

This year’s race was a huge success! One hundred and twenty-‐one boats competed – another sold out year. It was another great Club event and the food, music, camaraderie and new clothing for this year enhanced the race itself and made the weekend a memorable one for all. We would like to sincerely thank all the Club members who gave up valuable time on this May long weekend (and for weeks in advance) to support our Racing Group as volunteers. Don’t forget our Round Saltspring Volunteer Appreciation Event coming up on June 10th at 1700 hours. For race results, please go to our race website. We’ll have more photos to show you in the June TellTales. Chris Gadsby, Chair Round Saltspring 2012

Presented by Saltspring Island Sailing Club and Maple Bay Yacht Club

On July 6, 7 and 8 enter the incomparable vendeeSALTSPRING for two days of glorious single and double-‐handed racing, gastronomic delights, moorage, prizes and glory. Your entry fee includes everything. Full details at saltspringsailing.ca

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International One Metre Report by Martin Herbert, IOM 199

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finished in 49 minutes to shatter the record by more than 25 minutes. We retired to the bar, joining a great bunch of friendly people, and the Pub filled our trophies with beer for free. The last laser finished three hours behind us, a gruelling race as the wind faded.

The second big event was the Hornby Island Regatta, which this year was a points race to qualify for the World Championship. This brought up two spectacular boats from the USA – Jerry Brower’s Widget, winner of the World Championship a few years ago, and Gary Boell’s Brit Pop, a design that placed first, second and third at the last Worlds. These boats are frighteningly fast and he proved it by winning the first three races. My strategy was to sail conservatively and try to stay in the top five. From the Ocean Race, I learned to look ahead for weeds. From brother, I learned that regattas are not won on your best scores but on having better scores in your worst races. It was all about to pay off for me. When the results were in I had only one finish out of the top five. Even though I did not win a race until race 10, and only won four races out of 27, I still ended up first, one point ahead of Jerry and two points ahead of Gary. It was very close racing and lots of fun. Above is a shot of the fleet close tacking up the dock. Number 99 in blue is the Dee K in the thick of things. Our next big race was in Seattle May 4–6, so the IOM’s missed Opening Day, but we flew the Club colours and I’ll report on the outcomes next time. Our Club again hosts the Western Canadian Championships June 1–3 and we are expecting some fast American boats to attend. ■

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Two major April events to report this month as the racing season heats up. The first was the Great Ocean Race around Protection Island in Nanaimo that was raced on April 14th. Last year’s win and new course record set by Ole Anderson in his IOM threw down the gauntlet and caused building activity up and down the Salish Sea. The Hornby fleet built a cat called Fang based on much watching of the America’s Cup shenanigans, a three channel wing masted rocket that weighed in less than Ole’s lead bulb. Tony and I worked away on Scout and got in a few practice sails before we set off, the only Saltspring boat to show. We met with the locals at the floating pub that hosts the race, and on the advice of one we went with full sail. The local black carbon marblehead was our closest competitor size wise and he was also a multiple winner of the event. The marblehead won the start but was immediately challenged and passed by the cat. We were well behind and not closing at all which surprised me as we were to leeward in more wind. We closed with Scout and saw we had weeds, so went in to de-weed. This was the first of nine times we had to de-weed during the race, and I learned a valuable lesson that would serve me well in the next regatta. We caught and passed the marblehead at the end of Protection Island just as we started the first upwind leg but lost him immediately to our third clump of weeds. We were to pass him three more times beating up the far side of the race course but never were able to establish any kind of lead. Going into the narrows just before the finish he outsmarted me, plain and simple, and led us to the finish 30 seconds ahead. We had taken ten minutes off Ole’s record, but the cat

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After many years of coastal sailing, along with Shauna and their daughter, Kevin returned to French Polynesia in 2003 and single-handed home in 2004. Kevin and Shauna have recently purchased an Amazon 44’ cutter. Kevin is currently planning his next voyage, while completing his book

about the last Pacific crossing. Kevin practices Internal Medicine in the Arctic and Nanaimo. Shauna cares for their three children, Molly (12), Selamu (7) and Sisaye (5), and serves on the Board of their son’s school. ■

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Kevin Patterson and Shauna Klem Kevin bought his first sailboat, Sea Mouse, in 1994, and three weeks later set sail for the South Pacific. He sailed through the Hawaiian Islands, Palmyra, the Cook Islands and French Polynesia before single-handing home the following year. This journey is chronicled in his sailing memoir The Water in Between. Upon returning to Canada, he docked in Salt Spring Island and he met his wife, Shauna, while living on his boat in Ganges Harbour.

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home by directing them and inviting them to get involved and be a part of our projects and events. As many of you are aware, there have been contro-versial plans in the works for some time to commercially develop Squirrel Cove, which is a popular cruising destination on Cortes Island. Many boaters have been voicing their opposition to this project. A website for this purpose can be accessed at http://www.savesquirrelcove.ca Finally, please pick up your 2012 Yearbooks and at the clubhouse if you have not already done so. ■

Secretary’s Report by Peter Howell

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Interest in our Club and boating continues to be heathy and we are happy to welcome the following new members who were approved at our May Board meeting:

Allan Bogutz and Yvonne Rolston Ranger Tug 28 (power) – Stout Kevin Patterson and Shauna Klem Amazon 44 (sail) – Ilari Iain Leckie and Alyson Markert Brent Swain 39 (sail) – Loon III Jackie Truscott – Associate Member Like our membership in general, these people come from a wide variety of interesting backgrounds and two of them have bluewater international sailing expereience. They have expressed a willingness to become active members. We are all well aware of sometimes how intimidating it can be to join and be a “new person” in an organization, and it should be our duty to make these people feel welcome and at

N E W F A C E S A T S I S C

WOW Survey Request! Ahoy women boaters! Your opinion is valuable. The Blue Water Cruising Association is planning a women’s boating seminar, Women on Water (WOW), for spring 2013. They want your thoughts on it. Please fill in a short online survey by June 30, 2012 – you might even win a $50 West Marine gift certificate. Just click on (or paste) this link … https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/KZB3SCY

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A total of seven boats braved the early season and participated in the April Club cruise to Bedwell Harbour. Sandpiper, Shaunsea, Ruby drue and Sunniya all arrived on Friday night, to be followed by Kialoa, Almucantar and Deryn Mor on Saturday. The first event was the scavenger hunt, which was a

digital hunt with a long list of items to find and photograph. It included two lovely destinations as well, Greenburn Lake, which is up the hill from Poet’s Cove, and Bidgood Beach, a little further down the road. After a diligent two-and-a-half hours of searching and hiking both teams met at the Poet’s Cove pub for a well deserved beer and counting of points. In spite of the fact that the gold team had an extra

point for highest placement of the flag at Bidgood Beach, they could not overcome the lack of photos of a deer, seagull or frog, and the blue team was declared victorious. As luck would have it the prizes included two bottles of wine, so each team got one to share over dinner. The potluck supper was at the Poet’s Cove breakwater dock, where there is

a fairly large space and at least one picnic table that is still strong! It was the chicken potluck, as five of the remaining six boats (Sunniya had to leave earlier in the day) brought a chicken dish. Luckily we all liked chicken! The wind piped up and it got a bit chilly after dinner so eleven of us piled into Kialoa, a very cosy fit, where we finished

off the wine and told stories till bedtime. Sunday morning was very quiet and the crews of Almucantar and Sandpiper, went on a hike, enjoying some more of Pender’s lovely trails. Kialoa was the last to leave and had a beautiful sunny

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Cruising News by Tanya Van Ginkel, Fleet Captain Cruising

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SPRING FLING—(Left, from top): Sandpiper’s crew enjoys some shore time; Kialoa was a snug venue for hosting the post-potluck crowd. (Right, from top): Rob Denny and Hugh Greenwood document their scavenger hunt find; Lots of good hiking on Pender kept the crews busy ashore; A refreshment break at Poet’s Cove pub; Potluck dinner on the breakwater dock; The crews of Sunniva, Shaunsea and Ruby drue.

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Cruising News continued from page 12 afternoon to come home, no wind, but Orcas around us twice made it magical. Thanks to all who participated and made it a fun weekend! The Round Saltspring Cruise led by Kevin and Wendy Vine and Lyall and Perry Ruehlen, attracted a nice contingent of boats. We have great pictures from Colleen Shantz, and will give you a report in the June TellTales. Don’t forget the July 14th weekend is the cruise to Tod Inlet, led by Keith Simpson. This will be another very fun event where you will have the opportunity to enjoy the Butchart Gardens and watch their fireworks display from the cockpit of your boat. Happy Sailing! ■

Is everyone looking forward to summer – and getting away from it all – as much as I am? It’s been a busy spring at the Club and I hope our new website has helped everyone keep up with all the goings-on. Thanks to Vincent Argiro for stepping up to the

plate as a website contributor from the racing group. I hope to recruit more contributors from other Club programs over the coming months. A big thanks to our 2012 Yearbook team of designers Suzan and Ron Chamney and adver-tising coordinator Michael Clark for a first-rate publication that was paid through sponsorships. Speaking of sponsorships, Drew Thorburn and Keith Simpson from the Round Saltspring Committee revitalized our marine industry race sponsorship marketing this year, resulting in an unprecedented bounty of donated prizes. Both of these successful sponsorship campaigns give us food for thought about how to get the most from our future sponsorship efforts, not only for Round Saltspring, but also other Club programs. Another initiative this spring was coordinating our website with the registration system brilliantly created by Mark Strongman. This registration and secure online payment system is now being applied to our Sailing School and the Vendee Saltspring race. We also now have a retail shopping cart for our Club website, initially developed for Round Saltspring, where you will soon be able to order Club clothing. Although these advances were a lot of work to set up, they’ll continue to save precious volunteer time and effort in future. Finally, a word about bulletin boards. Jill Sydneysmith and I are working on a major renovation of the “real estate” on our bulletin boards to keep them more current, useful and Club-oriented. Look for more news in June. ■

Channels by Silk Questo, Communications Director

Members’ comments always welcome. Letters may be edited for length. Email to: [email protected]

L E T T E R S Northern Gateway Concerns

Doc and I have been to Haida Gwaii three times and we feel passionately that this part of the BC coast needs to be protected from the Northern Gateway Project. After spending four years offshore and seeing many coastlines, I can tell you there is nowhere else on this planet you can see the variety of wildlife and the sheer pristine beauty than here. An oil spill would be catastrophic. We cannot accept the risks of such traffic on the BC coast. I would urge you all to write letters, get involved, join the many others who are fighting back against the Northern Gateway Project.

— submitted by Susan Paynter

Parting Shots A unique port of call close to home, this historic hotel was once the private estate of an industrialist who did very nicely quarrying limestone. The Fourth of July is a big holiday in this harbour, with the usual colours ceremony and cannon salute supplemented by fireworks. Just so I don’t make this too easy, name the harbour and the hotel for a great prize from

our Club gear stash. Send your guess to: [email protected]


April’s contest winner …

TellTales is a publication of the Saltspring Island Sailing Club

152 Douglas Rd, Saltspring Is, BC V8K 2J2 www.saltspringsailing.ca

© 2012, Saltspring Island Sailing Club all rights reserved.

TellTales June Deadline: Friday, June 15th, 2012

Three of our experienced northern cruisers recognized this haven near the east end of Johnston Strait. The winner by a toss of the dice was Lorne Shantz, who identified Blind Channel Resort on West Thurlow Island, with its colourful flags and windswept sky. Congratulations, Lorne! You can pick up your prize in the clubhouse lobby next week!

Editor’s Log I often get interesting tidbits or events across the Editor’s desk from club members, but often the timing of our publishing schedule is out of synch with dated information. A monthly publication doesn’t always work so well when it comes to time-sensitive news. But now that we have an easily updated website, I’m looking forward to being able to publish these items more quickly using the “Bulletin Board” column on the home page. I can’t promise “instant” publication, but I will try to keep the online Bulletin Board updated regularly, including over the summer. Please visit the club website often to stay current! A couple of items that fell through the gap in our schedule came in this month from Dan Dickmeyer. Unfortunately, we missed publicizing an early May book launch at The Salty Shop. Kelly Klesick’s new cookbook, Meals Ahoy! Gourmet Meals on Your Boat, sounds like a great addition to your galley shelf. Another tip from Dan: Black Sheep Books will become the island’s official seller of nautical charts, filling the void that will be left by Volume II. We’ll

let members know on the website when this is all up and running. Thanks, Dan! In case you missed it, The Shantz’s sent in the May 3rd Driftwood item on the change in marine sewage discharge regulations now in effect. Check the link on our Club Cruising web page. Silk Questo Editor | [email protected]

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S: SILK QUESTO

May 12 TellTales · coast, and thanks to Russ Crouse, Drew Thorburn and Keith Simpson, we had...

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