September 22 - Lawn / Dock Party

October 12-15 - Tinsley Island Cruise Out / St Francis Yacht Club

October 14 - New Member Open House

Contents

Commodore's Report

Harbor View

From the House

Social Committee

Education

Member's Bulletin Board

COMMODORE’S REPORT

I trust that we all had enough to occupy ourselves during the balance of July and the “Quiet Month of August”. I should think so with the various events that occurred! Between the Petaluma Cruise Out, the Mokelumme River Float event, Blues & BBQ, the Delta Cruise, various vacations and with the Up-coming End of Summer Lawn/Dock Party on Sept 15^th followed by the Member Appreciation Ice Cream Social [Reservations required] we can usher in “Indian Summer” to enjoy as the bonus. AH YES, LIFE AS IT SHOULD BE!

September brings us back to the Business of OYC as well. On going activities not necessarily visible include the continuing saga of the OYC Reconfiguration Planning, the 2008 Year Budget effort and separate initiatives/plans including the Wallace Cup Race, an informal Cruise Out to the Saint Francis Y/C at Tinsley Island during October and The Commodore’s Cruise Out to the San Francisco Y/C in Belvedere in October as well.

There is lot’s of “Stuff” going on. Attending the House, Harbor or Board of Directors meetings during the closing months of this year may well provide you with a greater appreciation of what these Club Management groups are all about and trying to achieve. Contributing and participation is what moves the Club forward.

Regards to all…………..

Reconfiguration Project

The harbor’s design and the bank’s loan offer have been approved by the Board of Directors. At this month’s Board meeting the construction contract will be discussed and hopefully approved. Thanks to the forethought of previous Boards; as of the end of the month in August we had approximately $213,000.00 in our Reconfiguration Reserve. Two governmental permits are still pending; the Corps of Engineers permit is due in the next few weeks and the City of Alameda is working with the design drawings that were submitted by the construction company. Those members that have boats in slips on the upwind side of pier six and the downwind side of pier five have been asked to choose a new slip and move their boats by early September; I hope that we’ll have all of our contracts and permits shortly after that. The reconfigured harbor’s design is posted on the Club's bulletin board, if you have any questions about it please let me know. As I said in the July SeaScape, “We are getting closer to this really happening” ………… but I’ll believe it when I see it.

Around the Harbor

A bit of bad news, an outboard motor is missing from the boat it was attached to, PLEASE, if you have an outboard be certain that it is secured to prevent it from wandering off; they seem to have a difficult time finding their way home after they’ve been gone for a while.

A revised harbor policy for the “long term sub lease” of slips was approved by the Board during its July meeting, if you are in a situation where you may be considering this option please review the revised policy.

We have received a notice from the City’s environmental department that a member was observed “sand-blasting” in our harbor with the residue going into the bay, please be careful as you are working on your boat so that our Club is seen as an organization that is serious about protecting our environment.

One last important request, if anyone is interested in becoming the Chair Person for the Club's cruising program for 2008 PLEASE let me know as soon as possible. Roy Stark has already planned a great deal of the program for next year so a lot of the “nuts & bolts” of the position are already in place.

Thanks, Mike Jackson.

FROM THE HOUSE: Carolyn Hooper, Rear Commodore

August has been a leisurely summer month for all...with vacations, boating and warm weather. Hopefully you have all enjoyed. Instead of the normal article from the House, I thought it would be a perfect time for some history.

When you enter the back door going to the restrooms, facing you on the wall is one of our members, Jack O'Loughlin's, grandfather's boat. The boat is called Scimmetta and below is an article from Jack regarding the history of Scimmetta.

Adventures aboard Scimmetta

Our uncle Tani built El Toro number 204, a wood one which he built from a kit way back when. But before he built that, he built a good sized sailboat called Scimmetta. I’m not sure I have the spelling quite correct. Anyhow, he built this in his backyard in Alameda.

He started right around the end of WWII with a surplus lifeboat. The boat was around 26 or 28 foot in length. He turned the lifeboat into a full cruising boat with a large stand up cabin and inboard engine. It could sleep 4 in Pullman type berths in the main cabin, and sleep two in the forward cabin. It had a head, alcohol stove, sink, and icebox.

Boat hardware was essentially not available at the time, so he had to build a lot of the boat fittings from scratch. For example you couldn’t find brass portholes, so he cast the portholes from scratch and then galvanized them. Sail canvas was not available, so he found red canvas probably used for covering on deck cargo and had this sewn into sails. Therefore, Scimmetta was one of the first boats on the bay with colored sails.

When it came time to launch Scimmetta which was land locked in his backyard, he had to have a very large mobile crane come to the house and lift the boat clear over the house.

He kept the boat at Oakland YC when that club was still located in Oakland by Coast Guard Island.

Circumnavigating Alameda Island

My brother and I were about 14 on our first sail in Scimmetta. We went down the estuary towards the south end of Alameda. It was a very windy day with some good sized waves when we got out of the estuary into the bay. We were bouncing up and down pretty good. A lot of fun for my brother Jim and I who were just passengers standing side-by-side on the hatch steps, but my Uncle was not pleased with the boat bouncing like a cork. –And my father had a half-smoked and soaked cigar clenched between his teeth as the boat bounced up and down. Shortly after that trip, Tani added a lot of lead ballast in the bottom of the bilge. Once he added the extra ballast, the boat sailed very nicely.

The picture shows the boat under sail. It carried a mainsail and jib. It wasn’t the fastest boat around, but it was very stable in the bay.

Aground off San Quentin

A couple of year’s later Jim and I were lucky enough to spend a “Week on the Bay” on Scimmetta with Tani, our Aunt Mary, and father. On one those days, Tani decided to take a run into the small body of water on the south side of San Quentin. Unfortunately, we also went aground and so were stuck there for some time. In a short while the guards at San Quentin had us under close surveillance with binoculars they were ready for all eventualities, no doubt including prisoner escapes. Eventually, the tide turned and we were able to get the heck and gone out of there. Needless to say, my Uncle got a notice from the Coast Guard to explain our San Quentin escapade.

Jack O’Loughlin

Of Varnishing, Ham Radio, Old Ships and Other Things

I just finished putting another coat of varnish on Almond Joy’s handrails. The job reminded me again of why fiberglass boats are wise choices for some of us. True, wooden boats are beautiful when they are well cared for. It also is true that good-looking bright work on any boat is pleasant to behold. Nonetheless, I am glad that our sloop has minimal outside wood.

The coat I just put on was the fourth one. Marilyn is lobbying for three more. Even so, it probably will be best for me let it go at four. So far, no bugs have imprisoned themselves in the wet surfaces, I have not knocked over the can of varnish, and the dog has not jumped up and got his paws into the job. I did escape disaster earlier. I took the handrails off and brought them home to do . . . in the backyard. Instructions on the can advise not to apply the varnish in direct sunlight (Marilyn pointed out that the manufacturer must think everybody keeps their boats in big sheds). Of course, when I finished that last coat the sun was beating down in what could only be described as directly. “Why not just move the pieces over into the shade,” I said to myself. I had picked one up, barely balancing it with my fingertips in the wet underside, when it dawned on me what the consequences would be if I dropped it. My bride arrived in the nick of time and suggested leaving the pieces where they were and putting up a big umbrella we have. It was difficult to argue with her logic.

With that introduction, you probably are expecting me to pass along something educational about varnishing. I wish I could, but you can tell from what I’ve already admitted that I am not an expert. What I can say is that I have learned some things about varnishing from others. One has been Bob Paulsen, who knows a great deal about caring for bright work. If there is a point to this article, thus far, it is that you can learn a lot on the docks about boating chores and skills. And, of course, that street runs both directions.

Classes at the OYC also are ways to get smart. We have a couple of possible ones in the hopper. Several weeks ago, Paul Cahill said he wanted to take a ham radio course. The reason is that he is getting ready to go cruising. Paul talked with Marilee Schaffer to see if she would be willing to offer the course again. She would be if there were enough other people interested to justify doing so. Marilee and Steve took a bunch of people through the course last year. Ed Gould was the instigator of those sessions and his motivation, similar to Paul’s, was that he and Cornelia were preparing to take off and make that fabled left turn outside the Gate. They did that a couple of months ago and no doubt are using those ham skills right now. If Marilee and Steve give the course again it would run for five sessions of about three hours each . . . probably on weekends. As before, there would be a fee for materials of about $70. If any of you would be interested, please indicate that on the list outside the Office or let Craig Wong know.

There are several other possibilities for getting smart. One would be a special session for power boaters that would include such topics as leaving and returning to slips, maneuvering in tight fairways, and safety considerations. We had a program like that scheduled several months ago but had no takers . . . the times weren’t right, or we did not publicize it enough, or something . . . so we want to try again. As before, John Curry would teach the course and he is exceptionally well qualified to do so. In addition, there have been a couple of inquiries about a navigation course and that is yet another possibility. As those and/or other educational opportunities develop we will let you know by announcements in the Seascape and at Club and on the Gates.

By the way, in late June a few members of the Club expanded their knowledge of sailing history . . . some of which occurred right here in the Estuary. We caught the ferry to Pier 41 in San Francisco and made the short walk down to the NPS’s Maritime National Historic Park. Docent and OYC friend, Bruce Hood, gave us a good tour. This included time on board the old tall ship, Balclutha, that operated for a while out of the Alaska Packers docks just south of the OYC. The paparazzi were there, of course, and snapped some candid shots. I obtained a couple at considerable expense.

Social Report September 2007
– Anne Jacobson & Maria Murray

We had a fantastic time at this year’s Blues and BBQ, with a turnout of more than 120 folks. We heard lots of great comments about the new band, Blues Cadillac!! Especially popular was the sax player who led many dancers snaking around the parking lot. The food was all very good too, and we had plenty of it. We were joined by visitors from Treasure Island Yacht Club, here to celebrate the Schreiber Cup, in honor of Christa Schreiber’s late husband. A special thanks goes out to Wayne and Carol Martin, who contributed a cake in celebration of their 39^th wedding anniversary.

Weather-wise, September is often the best month of the year around the bay. So we’re taking advantage of the season and the great outdoors with a party on the lawn by the docks. Mark your calendars for September 22^nd. OK, so here are the details:

Lawn/dock party – BYOB and bring an appetizer to share – 4pm - 6pm,

Ice cream social follows from 6pm –7pm, courtesy of the membership committee. This event is free, but membership would like to know if you’re coming to the ice cream social, so we don’t run out – let the office know. Musical entertainment will be provided by a steel drummer to add to the festivities.

Put us on your calendar – there are still great things happening for the rest of the year.  Events in Bold below require reservations. 

PETALUMA and fond memories of the summer…

July 2^nd was a picture perfect day for cruising up the Petaluma River. Cruise Chair Bob Martin was waiting for us on the dock with a hearty welcome. Our first day was very casual and folks “did their own thing” but 5 o’clock found us on the dock for a pot luck cocktail and appetizer party.

By day 2 everyone had arrived either by boat or car---Larry and Muggs Zabel, Allan and Deborah Hadad, Art and Nancy White, Craig Seavey and Jenny Aylen, Ernie and Linda Tuttle, Bob and June Steffensen and Michael Hershey and Monica Duncan. Bob and Claudia Bass were in the area and stopped by to say hello.

We gathered for a good dinner at the Waterfront Restaurant, just across from the turning basin. When all was said and done, we agreed that more time to enjoy this historic town would have been great!

Be sure to check out the pictures.

End-of-Summer Dock Party  

Sept 22,4-6 pm

Bring your own beverage & an appetizer to share!!   Otherwise, it's free!