The end of the year is approaching and the AGM is coming up on November 12th. This year it will be held at Port City Brewing Company, in their Lighthouse Lounge from 1:30 pm to 4:30 pm. There will be heavy appetizers served as well as the delicious beer of Port City. There will be plenty of non-alcoholic drinks for those that don’t partake. Tickets are going to be $35 each and this will cover the space, appetizers, and dessert. Kids 10 and under don’t need a ticket. Tickets also get 1 (maybe 2) Port City beers, these are being donated and not covered under the $35 ticket cost.
The link below is a google form to sign up so we have a good head count going into the meeting.
This past weekend 15 of 18 registered Albacores competed in the President’s Cup Regatta in Washington, D.C., with around 50 boats of various classes in total. We had a good turnout with a few people from other countries and from nearby states. The regatta took place over the course of two days on the sunny Potomac with the D.C. skyline always in view. It was beautiful to see many sailboats with colorful spinnakers sailing about with the sunlight glistening on the water.
Saturday had very light wind and the races were cancelled, though everyone seemed to be in good spirits regardless. Sailing teaches you that while you can’t control the conditions, you can control how you respond to them. I enjoyed simply being on the water and talking with my skipper. As a less experienced sailor, I find that I learn a lot about sailing (and life in general!) from crewing with more experienced sailors. After sailing, everyone gathered for Mexican food at the picnic tables and there was a visible sense of community. On Sunday, the wind picked up and conditions were ideal for racing. Because of the gathering storm clouds, we went back to the docks a little early for the awards ceremony before the rain set in.
Thank you to everyone who participated and to the Ware River volunteers!
David Metcalf ran the races with his team of Joshua as recorder and Jim Greenly and Joe as mark boat. He reports:
The wind was a steady 10 mph (per Windalert), 81 degrees, A beautiful day to be on the water.
Jim and Joe in Mark Boat set up a very good course, each race took 30 to 40 minutes. We were able to run 5 races for the Lightnings and Albacores, we ran 4 races for the combined lasers / buccaneers / I-20.
We used the VHF radio and about half the boats were able to get updates via radio.
It was a rainy morning, but the rain stopped in time for the sailors to rig and launch. Jim Graham ran three races down by the power plant because the water was high and made for a short trip back to the dock in case thunderstorms were threatening. Twelve sailors in four classes competed.
Join the Potomac River Sailing Association to race in the largest one-design regatta on the Potomac with the National Capitol and monuments as a backdrop, and to carry on the tradition of competitive one-design racing that started with the 1934 President’s Cup! All one-design classes 20 feet or under are invited.
Last winter several members completed a safety study for the club. The report is linked here. Please pay special attention to page 9 as it lists the new requirements and recommendations for safety.
Some of the recommendations are for individuals or skipper. I wanted to get these out to the members in time to get prepared for fall sailing, which starts on September 11th. Please read the points below and take appropriate action.
All competitors are strongly encouraged to carry both a safety whistle and a rescue knife in or tethered to their PFD.
PRSA sailors are strongly encouraged to have a VHF radio on board for use in case of emergency.
PRSA sailors are strongly encouraged to carry a cell phone (in a waterproof case) for emergency use.
All vessels should have the following on board:
an extra line suitable for towing
a bucket or other appropriate device for bailing.
PRSA sailors should assess the condition of their safety equipment (i.e., PFD’s) prior to the season and at regular intervals throughout the season, to ensure that they are in good condition and properly sized for the crews that will be sailing the boat.
Thank you again to the members who worked so hard on this study to put all this together.
We had 20 races over 8 Sundays. Not all classes competed in all 20 races. To qualify, the boat must have sailed in 50 percent or more of the races in which at least one boat from the class competed. Boats that did not qualify have an # by their number.
These are preliminary pending corrections and interpretation of the NOR.
