May 2022
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Upcoming Events for May
May 9 @ 7 pm – Jr. Sailing Committee
May 14 @ noon – Launch begins (Check the NCYC Calendar for hours)
May15 @ 3:45 pm – 53rd Commission – be at the Club by 3:45
May 18 @ 9 am – Coffee at the Club with Vice Commodore Vinciguerra
May 21 – Private Wedding - please don’t use the dingy dock in the afternoon, use the south docks
May 27th – Friday Night Social
Commodore’s Remarks
This preseason has definitely been a challenge. We have been busy dealing with the aftermath of a winter microburst, among other things. The Board has authorized proceeding with the insurance claim and our insurance representative Chris Bazinet has spent hours working with our insurance company on the details and options. On the upside, at the last spring meeting the Club authorized spending the money on a new roof. That roof is now included in the insurance claim, and we will be replacing the flagpole and wind vane. The other part of the claim is the replacement of the deck railing. When replaced, the railing will need to be brought up to code. Since the railing will be replaced, we have gone out to several contractors to get quotes on replacing the entire deck, which has reached the end of its useful life. Stay tuned to see what happens.
stripping the old roof off
putting the new roof on
et voila!
The next challenge was a water line break several weeks ago. What we thought was a small leak that could be fixed with a few individuals (Lou, Chris, Rich) digging a hole turned into a large hole with heavy machinery. Thank goodness we with have so many talented members including Ed Rodier and Karl Frost who ran the backhoe equipment. Once the line was found and repaired, dirt filled back in, and grass re-seeded, there was still the challenge of flushing the lines. Thanks to all who were involved and once again we are lucky to have so many talented individuals. I am happy to report that the Club will have water this summer!
they’re having a great time, but have realized that a bigger rig is needed and that it’s now beer-thirty
the big rig
The club is almost ready to open! David Miller, Bob Murphy, and Al Ebstein have put the launch in the water. Next week Fred Williams will put the final touches on the paint on the inside of the house, Dan Ferrier is completing the light fixture replacement project, Bob and Cathy Murphy are sprucing up the flowers and grass, and David Chan will smooth out the driveway gravel. The list goes on, and I am so thankful that the Club looks so great.
The Club’s Committees are starting to meet. Please reach out to the Chairs and ask how you can help. They may not have time to call you, but they do need your help. Joe Carroll has held the first Race meeting, Melissa Mason has held the first Jr. Sailing meeting, Ann Chan has held the first Activities meeting, and David Chan had held several Cruising meetings.
the club’s new O’day
The Pavlos have donated an 18’ O’Day sailboat that we plan to put into operation as a daysailer to use around the Cove, and for sail training and classes. A big thank you to the Pavlos! Please take a look at the boat and contribute your skills as we clean it up and keep it operational.
At this time of year there are a lot of reminders that go out. Here is one more: the last Friday of each month is the Friday Night Social. Please sign up and be a host of at least one Friday Night Social.
And lastly, the telephone handset at the Club needs to be replaced. If anyone has an old landline telephone they no longer use, please drop it off in the Steward’s Office-thank you.
Caroline Miller, Commodore
NCYC Commissioning
The NCYC Commissioning is on Sunday May 15th. This event marks the opening of North Cove Yacht Club for its 53rd Season. Please arrive at the Club by 3:45 pm. A reminder that this is the one event that everyone tries to look their best. You will look around and see all your friends dressed in their formal yachting attire. Bring an appetizer to share. The Club will provide drinks. There is always a nice party after the ceremony.
During the Ceremony the following new members will be presented with their membership packages:
Melissa and Greg Clark
Lucy Driggs-Armstrong and Michael Armstrong
Michelle and Peter Corliss
Skip Haskins and Gillian Belnap
Thomas and Julie Tydeman
Kevin & Brittany Glynn
Abigail & Scott Skidmore
Bob Brough
Membership
This month the Club welcomes Bob Brough to Membership.
The Membership Committee is hosting two upcoming events. On June 1st at 5pm will be the Prospective Members Wine and Cheese. If you know anyone that may like to learn about North Cove Yacht Club and all it has to offer, please send their email to Commodore Miller and they will be invited to the event. On June 4th at 9:30 am there will be a New Member Orientation. This event is open to all Club Members. It provides an overview and refresher on all the secrets of the Club such as how to turn the water on or where the ice key is. The beauty of attending this event is you can stay and join the 10:30 Activities Committee Meeting.
The Skidmore Family is posted for Membership:
Abbie and Scott Skidmore
Old Saybrook, CT
Scott: Finance
Abbie: Stay at home mom
Children: Nancy (7/1/09), Charlotte (1/26/11), Ellie (10/17/13), Beatrice (12/6/16)
Proposed by: Caroline Miller
Support letters: Ann Chan, Linda Tuzzio, Laurie Pavlos
Boat: Seahunt 27.5
Boating: With respect to sailing they have had limited sailing since childhood. The have had various powerboat rentals over the years.
Skills/interests: As new homeowners on the North Cove, we are eager to integrate in the community and hone their boating skills. We have 4 daughters who are eager to learn to sail and will participate in the Club’s programs for years to come.
Block Island Mooring
The Block Island Harbor Commission has requested that we set up a way to track the boats that use the NCYC Mooring. Look for upcoming emails on how this will be set up.
Launch Operations
Greetings & Salutations Fellow NCYC Members,
We’re geared up and ready to go! Our boats are beginning to fill the mooring field and the North Cove Launch will be splashed-in later this week. Launch operations will begin on Saturday, May 14, 2022. We are excited to announce the return of our crew of familiar faces: Tanya, Stefan, Mike, and Jack. You may also be seeing other NCYC members fill in occasionally on an as-needed basis. Thank you to Dave Miller, Walter Guyeski, and Dave Chan for taking-on a few shifts.
If you have not looked at the North Cove website lately, I encourage you to do so. Melissa Mason has added our launch hours to the club website Calendar which will allow members to check hours of operation for the launch right from their cell phone, tablet, or computer. We always plan to fill the schedule to the end of the marine season, however, there are always a few open dates and unanticipated crew-member absences. If there are any club members or if you know someone outside the club who holds a current and valid US Coast Guard Captains license considering part-time work, please give me a call (203-410-6745.)
On behalf of all the Launch Captains, welcome back, we’re looking forward to seeing you at the club and on the water. I wish you all clear skies, fair winds, and following seas wherever you may travel this year. Know that when you depart and return to North Cove our launch crew will be at the ready on 78A to get you to and from your boat. Have a safe and enjoyable season!
Bill Porter / Board of Governors
Launch Operations
Jr. Sailing
It's all good news from the Junior Sailing front. All three sessions are full and we have a healthy waitlist. Our senior instructor and junior instructor (volunteer) positions are filled. The committee is working on prepping boats and supplies needed for another successful season. If you are interested in lending a hand to get the small boat fleet ready, please let me know or contact VC Lou Vinciguerra.
The last thing to fill is our Duty Officer slots. For each and every Junior Sailing program day, we have a club member watching over the sailors from the comfort of the club house. Duty Officers are the go-to resource for nervous sailors or those not quite ready to get back on the water. The position requires no medical training (our instructors all hold first aid certifications) just a willingness to offer a comforting smile and chat with a young sailor. Simply kick back, keep an ear open for an instructor or sailor needing assistance, and enjoy the tranquility of North Cove on a weekday.
With gratitude,
Melissa Mason, Jr. Sailing Chair
Thursday Night Racing
What other sport can you do for an entire lifetime? Is there another activity that connects the generations like Thursday Night Racing?
On Thursdays at 5:00 pm, I always have a great feeling of anticipation-a good evening of racing in Long Island Sound is ahead!
The NCYC launch is busily taking skippers and their crews to moored racing yachts. There’s chiseled-faced Bob Murphy standing in the bow of the launch reminiscent of “George Washington crossing the Delaware” as the launch heads to 43’ long Defiance to deliver Bob. Also in the launch is Elio Betty heading to Gumdrop. On Elio’s mind is beating Madaket. Afterall, Madaket only has a torn stretched-out mainsail and a fouled-up bottom, and Gumdrop has a 150% Kevlar genoa, oversized carbon fiber mainsail, a polished bottom, and has 8’ longer waterline than Madaket. “Madaket’s days of dominance are over” daydreams Elio.
thursday night racing
In the back of the launch is Atty. Sheehan fresh from winning and losing motions in court heading to Stella Blue, a 38-foot Catalina. Atty. Sheehan is happy, he’s going for a non-stress daysail. Meanwhile, Dan Ferrier is already on Osprey making final adjustments to his J-24. On his mind is beating all of us, beating us in a most non-merciful way. The launch passes little Secant as she is being cast off from her mooring. Perhaps the application of vector analysis and Bernoulli’s theory by Skipper Amy Vinciguerra coupled with the alignment of Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn will win the day. Who knows?
Within minutes, the crowded North Cove falls behind all of us as our racing fleet heads into the Connecticut River for the short sail to the starting line in Long Island Sound off the former residence of Katharine Hepburn. It is here we sail up to Seahorse and announce the name of our craft and our intention to race to the Race Committee headed up by Rob Hathaway. Meanwhile, Rob radios the racers on Channel 1A, telling them where the course is. Leading up to the start of the race, everyone practices starting and observes the tide-by looking at lobster pots or moorings-and the direction of the wind. Is it shifty? Is it building or slackening? When will the tide change? Is the tide at maximum or minimum velocity? “What is Madaket doing? Should we follow Madaket?” The sailors ask themselves.
Every reward one might hope to experience on a long voyage can take place in a simple Thursday night race. We must navigate our way around the course considering the wind and tides. Each crew develops as a team, seeking continuous improvement. All of us (as sailors) are nonjudgmental. Everyone makes mistakes, and some of us realize that somebody upstairs likes us. We all realize there is a higher power (nature at least) to work with so that we can “finish in the money”.
I have been racing Madaket regularly. It’s a simple concept, but it takes considerable planning to make a race special for everyone. Every Thursday night session has a different personality depending on the weather, crew list, and destination.
If you wait for the perfect racing conditions, it might be a long time before you go racing. Madaket takes the weather as it comes. A Thursday night might be ugly, with rainstorms and howling winds. Some may see these conditions as gloomy, but Madaket’s crew yearns to voyage in such conditions. What the hay? It’s not their boat. Most of the time the weather is just right, 10-15 knot winds, and a racecourse that allows Madaket to sail a broad reach.
The conversation on Madaket usually begins sailing down the river toward Long Island Sound. We talk about the wind, tide, sail shape, birds and maybe even the news of the day. Sailing in front of where the old Dock and Dine restaurant once was, we get to show off the boat to the adoring crowd of fishermen on shore who reminisce about river transportation in 18th century Old Saybrook. Later, the people on Knollwood Beach and the road above will curiously watch us racing. Who’s that guy with the catboat out in front of those racing sloops? They ask.
You can spend a lifetime plying these waters and always find something new. I’m happy to report that the water looks considerably cleaner today than it did in the 1960’s.
I like passing close to channel buoys to study the current and tune up my steering. I am always amazed by how boats separate on open water. Inevitably, we will sail near another boat. Instinct takes over, and I try to sail past. Even friends who are new to sailing quickly get into the routine and watch to see if we make progress in our quest to gain the lead. I am always studying the wind for shifts and puffs and trying to make maximum gain.
Crewmembers are happy when given a job on Madaket. My first move is to pass over the helm. I have yet to witness anyone decline the chance to steer. I have learned that less-experienced sailors are usually receptive to a little bit of coaching, but I must be careful not to overcoach or the fun will quickly fade.
Depending on the direction and strength of the wind, I set a course for a specific destination. Usually the committee boat, starting line, marks and finish line. Madaket features a freeboard that naturally connects you to the water. Even with the low freeboard, Madaket rides gracefully over choppy waves. She is a dry boat.
A large, comfortable cockpit is perfect for friends and crew. My sailing guests range from first-time sailors to longtime veterans.
Normally, pressure to win a Thursday night race is minimal. There is always another Thursday night–and always another year if the summer’s racing didn’t shape up as you anticipated. I find that you can have good discussions with people on the water.
People tell me it is a joy to take their grandchildren sailing. Through their eyes grandparents get to see everything for the first time. Through Thursday night racing, I have connected to the environment via birds, fish, and all kinds of sea life. In fact, it is because of Thursday night racing that NCYC racers like me have found a greater appreciation for our planet.
Come join us for Thursday night racing!
Joe Carroll
Sponsors needed for Outer Light Regatta
Advertisements are sold for inclusion in the pamphlet for the Regatta. Contact Joe Carroll (860-908-0378, 860-388-2602) or Amy Vinciguerra for more information about this important task
And please signup via Yachtscoring.com for the North Cove Yacht Club’s Outer Light Regatta on July 24th. NCYC needs to have your support for this very important regatta.
Activities
cleanup can be fun!
carrying stuff can be fun too!
There is only one way you can interpret the annual spring cleaning and meeting, and that is that it is the unofficial opening of the clubhouse. The official start of the season will be at our 53rd Commissioning on May 15 at 3:45. Although this is late notice, we could use some volunteers for this event-specifically two or three bartenders. Please let Ann or Cathy know if you can help and we will tell you what you need to do. We already have a few volunteers for cleaning up and getting the trumpet player, and other preparations--thank you to the Peters, Melissa Mason, the Millers, Cathy Murphy and the Pavlos.
The next scheduled event this month is the first Friday Night Social gathering of the season, on May 27 at 1800. At this gathering we would like seasoned members to invite new members to sit at their table, get to know them over dinner, and then do a brief introduction of the family or couple after dinner is over. If you can help with this Friday Night Social, please either email or talk to Ann (860-575-9180) or Cathy (860-227-7122). For subsequent volunteering for Friday Night Socials, there will be a sign up sheet on the Club kitchen bulletin board.
FRIDAY EVENING SOCIAL GATHERINGS: The on-going Friday Night Social evenings are held on the last Friday of the month throughout the season. We start at 1800 with cocktails and gathering. We try to eat by 6:45, but this can vary a bit depending on whether there is a theme or activity planned for the evening. A volunteer crew (please sign up on the board in the kitchen!) gets the tables and chairs set up and organizes and prepares for the evening, including a crew to clean up.
WHAT TO BRING: your own set ups, plates, utensils, glasses, cups or mugs, and a bag or container to bring your dirty dishes home with you and BYOB. Some people even bring placemats and tablecloths with their place settings. (And some have gone to their boats, to gather their plates if they forget them…) Also, and possibly most important, you will need to contribute an entree and/or dessert that will feed 6-8 (usually hungry) people.
Everyone is encouraged not to wash their dishes in the kitchen, but to wash their dishes at home, as the club kitchen can be a very busy, congested place. Some social gatherings will have prepared food brought in, and these require a sign-up in advance.
The next Activities meeting is immediately following the New Member Orientation on Saturday morning, June 4 at 10:30 at the clubhouse. All are encouraged to attend. We still have many events and activities to plan for the season. Is there a club member out there who would like to instruct a few sessions of yoga, or a paint and sip evening, or movie night? Anyone care to lead a kayak or a cove clean-up group? Do you have an idea for a monthly lecture, or the July club activity? If you volunteered on the survey sheet to host a social gathering or help with a club event, you will soon be receiving an email from us giving you the dates and proposed times for these events. Grab the prime spots and dates first before they are full! Don’t forget this is a volunteer club and many people volunteer for many tasks and we always have fun doing it.
ON THE RADAR : May 15 - 53rd Commissioning 3:45
May 27 - Friday Social Gathering 6:00
June 4 - Activities Meeting 10:30
June 11- Commodores Cookout- 3:00
Ann Chan, Cathy Murphy, Activities Co-chairs
Cruising News
Fleet Captain’s Report:
The annual club cruisers had a meeting on Friday May 6, 2022. The attached itinerary ver1.3 summarizes our latest 2022 Annual Cruise Itinerary (August 6 to 21) and the number of vessels planning to cruise Narragansett Bay, the Vineyard & beyond… Our Port Captains have put together a tremendous package of activities for our ports of call. Many thanks to all who have made incremental improvements. We will plan on a June Cruisers Meeting which is tentatively scheduled for Friday June 3 at 6pm at the club. All are welcome to learn more about the ‘ins & outs’ of cruising. Hope to see you there.
Sincerely, David Chan
Renting the Clubhouse, New Rules
Last summer, Caroline Miller, Enrique Rodriquez, Peter Stump, and Jean Golicz worked to revise the reservation process and to update the required forms for renting the Clubhouse. The Masons also provided technical support to streamline the process.
If you would like to rent the clubhouse please follow these steps and be sure to carefully read the revised forms. There are new insurance requirements along with embedded links to resources.
1. Go to the website and check the calendar. Find your desired date to see if there are any conflicts (whether Club or private events.)
2. Select the members’ area on the website and enter the password. It is case sensitive.
3. Review the guidelines regarding club rentals. Please remember these are private parties. You cannot rent the club for another organization. Download the reservation form. It contains specific information regarding caterers, liquor license, insurance etc. There is also a detailed checklist for how the club should be left after the event.
4. If you want a specific date, it’s a good idea to email Jean so she can tentatively hold the slot until receiving your reservation form.
5. You will also need to send a check to the club treasurer including the security deposit and the rental fee which is determined by the number of guests. These amounts are outlined on the reservation form.
6. If you are using a caterer and will be serving alcohol, it is very important that you send a copy of your caterer’s insurance coverage along with your reservation form. Please note you are also responsible for insurance if you are assuming the responsibility of providing alcohol to your guests. This is separate from the caterer’s insurance.
Thank you,
Jean Golicz
Women on the River
Women on the River is a group comprised of women from North Cove Yacht Club, Essex Yacht Club, Essex Corinthian Yacht Club and Pettipaug Yacht Club. They sail the Ideal 18s provided by the EYC and ECYC. There are a total of 12 Ideal 18 boats for the 2022 season.
The group is comprised of women with many different levels of sailing experience. There are enough “skippers” to command each boat so don’t worry if you have limited sailing expertise.
If you are interested in joining it’s a great way to meet other women from the local clubs and have a little fun. It would be preferred to commit to all 3 dates but if your schedule does not allow you can name the dates that work and we can work out an alternate for dates you cannot attend. There is a great interest from the 3 yacht clubs to socialize with each other and get to know fellow boating ladies. Please consider joining!
The group will meet:
· June 1, Orientation and pot luck dinner
June 22, Dinner at Essex Yacht club following sailing
July13, BBQ at Essex Yacht Club following sailing
The events are free. Dinner would be paid per person approx $15-20
You may rsvp to Cathy Murphy at 860-227-7122 or email (see link below.)
Please rsvp by May 26 to get a spot!
Chandlery News
Attn: NCYC Members
You can now go to L.L.Bean Business and choose any item to have our logo and burgee embroidered with one of the two design colors shown above, pay for it, and have it shipped to your home address!
Company Name: NORTH COVE YACHT CLUB INC , CSS# 677682
Blue letters Design# and Color-way(s): 205431 / cw 1 Logo Size: 2.12” w x 2.02”h
Gold letters Design# and Color-way(s): 205431 / cw 2 Logo Size: 2.12” w x 2.02”h
You can also reach them by phone at 800-832-1889
Best regards,
Greg Nickett
From the Newsletter Editor
If you have Club news to share, a maritime story to tell, a sailing read to recommend, a lively anecdote, or something boat-related to sell, please email me to have it included in the next newsletter.
Thanks!
Deb Paulson, Newsletter Editor