march 2015 Happenings  March Board Meeting Wednesday, Mar 4  Boating Course—Friday Harbor Power Squadron March 12—Apr 23  March General Membership Meeting Wednesday, Mar 18 Commodore Doug Cram 468-4877 Vice Commodore Lane Langford 468-4581 Rear Commodore Paul Henriksen 468-4822 Secretary, Julie Duncan 468-2161 Treasurer, Sam Beller 468-2977 Trustees Duane Bordvick Jim Ghinazzi 468-3152 468-4292 Membership Chair Gayl Beller 468-2977 Web Wench Judy Welker 468-4007 Reciprocal Chair Dave Welker 468-4007 Sailing Chair Russ Johnson 468-2655 “Newsline” Editor Shanley Lett 468-3990 COMMODORE’ S CORNER Spring cleaning—it’s not just for your home! After a long, dark, windy and wet winter, your boat is probably in need of some attention. A bath would be nice on the outside. Blast the moss off, hose the salt down, wash and squeegee the windows. If you’re feeling really motivated, bust out the wax and pick a section of the boat to start on. We definitely like the Fleet wax that IMC sells. It goes on easy and comes off without too much elbow grease. Waxing is much nicer when the weather is in the 60s. Once it gets too warm and sunny, it’s a very sweaty job! Your fiberglass should be in pretty good shape before applying, so if there is oxidation going on, you’ll need to get busy with some cleaner wax or even some rubbing compound. If that’s the case, then you are in for a lot of work (depending on the size of your boat) and you may want to consider out-sourcing the job. Try to find someone with experience, especially if they intend to use a power buffer on the fiberglass. I’ve seen some badly botched buff jobs that look horrible and can actually degrade the gel coat on your boat. Once the job is done right, though, you will be surprised how good your boat can look. My suggestion is that once it is shiny, try to keep it that way. Throw a little wax on a couple of times a year and it will hold up surprisingly well. One trick I’ve found for our textured cockpit fiberglass is Soft Scrub. I would never use it on nontextured fiberglass, but it really works well to remove stains and light oxidation from your textured/grippy deck sections. Some of you with wood boats and teak trim with varnish might need to wait until it’s a little warmer to freshen up your bright work. But once again, once it’s in good shape, it is a lot easier to keep it looking that way by being proactive. Light sanding with 400 grit and 2 coats of varnish every year is a lot easier than stripping, sanding and starting over. Continued on page 3 WHAT’S : G N I N HAPPE MARCH GENERAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING Wednesday, March 18, 2015 Islander Resort Marina 6:00 No Host Social Hour 7:00 Catered Japanese Style Buffet Join your host Barbara Carver For Gary and Linda Zerbst’s presentation on “The Broughtons” See Dinner Reservation Form at the end of this newsletter BOATING COURSE Presented by the Friday Harbor Power Squadron FREE INSTRUCTION Six Thursday Evenings: March 12, 19, 26 and April 2, 16, 23 San Juan Island Library $45 for materials (Book and Coastal Navigator CD) You will qualify for the required Washington State Boating Education Card and may earn marine insurance discounts To register or for info: Call 360-378-3288 Www.fridayharborpower squadron.com COMMODORE’S CORNER, continued Inside your boat, give everything a good sweep, vacuum and wipe down. Clean the inside of your windows. Check for mold in the fridge, if you have one. Flush your water tank and put a capful of bleach in your tank. Run all your freshwater taps for a good long time. Check your water filters, if you have them. It’s also the time of year that you may need to haul your boat out of the water and check the bottom paint and zincs. Yes, it costs some money to have it hauled, but it is a really good idea to do it in the early spring and give everything below the waterline a good look. Check all your through-holes. We had a plastic through-hole on a 31’ Albin that cracked and went unnoticed. That summer, we nudged it with our dinghy and it fell out. Big problem! So check all your through-holes and try to wiggle them. Make sure your bottom paint is in good shape. And, finally, check all your zincs. If you have a large boat and don’t intend to haul it, at least have a diver check your zincs. The consequences of electrolysis makes the diver’s fees a cheap bit of insurance. So, give your boat some love as we emerge from winter. And, with a little luck, it will be looking good for Opening Day! A clean boat is a happy boat. If anyone has any maintenance secrets they have discovered over the years, feel free to share them with the club. Doug WASHINGTON STATE MARINE PARK FEES RAISED Washington State Parks has increased 2015 fees for boaters using any of the state’s marine parks, in an effort to generate additional income to continue to support marine park services. Fees will likely continue to increase as the parks move toward a more selfsupporting revenue model. Stationary float daily fees increased to 70 cents per foot. The nightly charge for buoy moorages increased to $15, and annual moorage permits increased to $5 per foot. Annual permits are available at fee marine parks, Parks headquarters in Olympia and the regional office in Burlington. For more information about state parks’ boat moorage, visit parks.wa.gov/648/ moorage. WELCOME NEW LIYC MEMBERS Dean Gurke and Dee Dee Lozier have met all requirements for LIYC membership. Peter Garlock and Susan Ellis have also applied. Peter and Susan live in downtown Seattle and also have a home on Humphrey Head. They own a 33’ Ocean Sport Hooked and look forward to making new friends and learning more about boating and our great Northwest cruising. Please welcome them at our next LIYC event. The FEBRUARY GENERAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING hosted by Mike and Barbara Morey featured spring popping out all over with beautiful spring flower centerpieces. Tim Slattery gave us an update on what’s new at IMC and tips on summerizing your boat. << Hosts Mike and Barbara Morey >> Sam and Gayl Beller and (far right, on the page, that is) Curt and Sharon Bonelli Rob Thesman, Lynn Hall and Marci Flannery Lisa DiGiorgio and Glenda Pugerude (below) and (right) Barbara Reiswig, Ginny and Martin Furmanski and Bob Hall. Big night for raffle winners! The cash drawing was won by Sharon Bonelli. Then there were two more surprises— lunch at the Bay Café won by Sam and Gayl Beller and a great bottle of wine donated by Brian Krantz of Inside Passage Yacht Sales. Unlike some of the past raffle winners, Barbara Reiswig declared she probably should NOT donate her prize (the wine) to the Youth Sailing Scholarship Fund. Dick and Barbara Reiswig, Jim Lett (background) Christa Campbell, Jerry and Diana Hancock MARCH GENERAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING DATE: PLACE: TIME: Wednesday, March 18, 2014 Islander 1800 Hours: No-Host Social 1900 Hours: Dinner and Program MENU: It’s a new Islander Japanese Buffet Dinner—$25.00 per person (Price includes tax and gratuity) Coffee and tea are included in the price. Other beverages can be purchased individually from the Islander Lounge. Gary and Linda Zerbst Presenting The Broughtons ___________________________ Complete this form, enclose your check and send Please complete and return this form before March 11th Name(s)_______________________________________________________ Phone _______________________ Number of Buffet Dinners: _____ x $ 25.00 each = _______________ Make checks payable to Lopez Island Yacht Club . Mail your checks and reservation form to: Lopez Island Yacht Club, P O Box 22, Lopez Island, WA 98261 SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS