Corinthian Cruise Report by Bill Lewis

Since Chris and I live at least 3 hours from Ericka, we decided to come up from Coalinga Friday night and spend the night on the boat. In anticipation of the dog-friendly location of the Corinthian YC and the dog facilities in Tiburon, we elected to bring Phaedra, Pulsar and Gigi with us. They had all been to Corinthian previously.

Saturday morning we lazily slept in until almost 0800. I loaded the rest of the provisions and pulled out the doggie life jackets. We departed around 1000 with a light breeze which freshened up and we performed a series of tacks off the Alameda NAS sea wall, waving to the pelicans. We also encountered the usual wind holes off the West side of Yerba Buena which demanded deployment of the outboard.

And, as usual, once we cleared the city front it was pretty choppy, spray flying and the dogs coming into the cockpit to get their bearings. Chris asked - "aren't we overpowered?" We partially furled the jib which gave us more weather helm and I eased the main to re-balance the boat. Chris went below to soothe the dogs.

The tide was ebbing which helped us steer into Racoon Strait and it was a relatively calm entrance into the Corinthian breakwater where we tied up alongside Bonnie Breeze. It was actually quite warm and the dogs, smelling land, were eager to go ashore for ... you know. Joanne Linn joined us for the walk and, as we strolled through town, we encountered the Blackburns driving into Tiburon.

Returned to the boat for a brew and soon encountered another Ericson heading in, which turned out to be Dave and Roberta Johnson on Charette. Then Music Maker with the Blackburns aboard came over to join the group. Charette had also encountered the heavy winds crossing the slot from South Beach.

We were still missing Gary and Lydia Osias on Voyager. There was a missed call on my cell phone and when I called back we had trouble communicating. Eventually, they entered the harbor and pulled up in our group. According to Gary, they had to motor all the way from Point Richmond. What a difference! It was great being tied up all together and made visiting really convenient.

The afternoon passed slowly and about 1730, the twelve of us gathered on the balcony for drinks and snacks. There is nothing to compare with the sunset view of the boats and the Strait from the Corinthian YC balcony. It's a magical setting.

After chatting, we went to the dining room for a superb dinner. BJ ate half of the kid's dessert and some of us adjourned to town to walk our dogs on the green before retiring.
Sunday morning - the sun was shining and it looked like another perfect day - except - there was a thick fog bank from the Golden Gate to the East Bay. Oh well, it will burn off in a bit. By 1030, it was still hanging in there. Chris and I had a long drive home, so we opted to sail through the fog using our GPS to avoid Alcatraz.

Once in the fog it was eerily quiet. I steered beyond what looked like Alcatraz on the GPS. I could make out something in the fog. Heck, we were aiming to the East side of Treasure Island! I quickly corrected course and we broke out of the fog just before the West Bay Bridge.

The rest of the trip was uneventful and there was actually wind in the South Bay (for a change). We were back at Ballena Bay by 1300.

In retrospect, it was a swell trip. Even though BJ and Amy are trading their Ericson in for a Condo in Hawaii, Amy vowed she would keep the Corinthian cruise on the Fleet schedule as long as we wanted.

Tides and Currents

As I mentioned in previous newsletters, our Fleet seems to be experiencing some lack of enthusiasm and/or indifference. We have some 20 members on the books, however, we only have between 3 and 5 boats at any event. We cancelled the September Angel Island cruise originally scheduled for Labor Day weekend and I sent the membership at large email asking for interest in/or suggestions for a rescheduled September cruise or an October cruise. So far, I have received no responses.

From this result, or lack thereof, I draw the following conclusion(s):
1) People are too busy to plan ahead,
2) The cruises are not appealing to the members,
3) scheduling conflicts. Are there more?

We definitely have some core members who try to attend as many cruises as possible. You have seen their names in the newsletters. I appreciate their involvement. The Blackburns have hosted 2 cruises a year for many years, however, they are going to take a hiatus from the boating set for a while.

This is my 25th year with the Fleet. I can remember raft-ups and pot-lucks at Angel Island with 8 or 9 boats. We went to Vallejo, Petaluma, McNear's beach, all over. With only 3 or 4 attendees per cruise-I still enjoy myself as do those attending. However, it's beginning to feel like a small group of friends who get together rather than a well-run organization with involved members and officers.

About 5 years ago, we eliminated the officers because everybody had been president and nobody wanted to do it again. We now function as a loosely-run group with limited commitments by members. That's OK if that's what members want. But, as I expressed about 2 months ago, I have difficulty taking money from new or existing members with the expectation on their part that they have joined a vibrant, well-run organization and not Bill Lewis' sailing club!

Mind you, I have not received one iota of criticism about the Fleet workings. On the contrary-

I receive many strokes from appreciative members and it is gratifying. And-I think those who attend the cruises are satisfied. I do enjoy publishing the newsletter for your enjoyment. I also believe we have a super website hosted by the Blackburns.

In a previous newsletter, I asked for suggestions and thoughts on this matter. Again, I have received no responses. At the last cruise, Amy Blackburn offered to continue hosting the Corinthian YC cruise-in. Hugh Linn also offered a new cruising venue if anyone was interested. I am.

Well, that's my story and I'm sticking to it. If you have any comments feel free to email me at mxbag@comcast.net and I will broadcast it to all the other members. I will be glad to be a focal point. Whether we have an active Fleet next year remains to be seen. Let me know: 1) how you feel about it and 2) what you are willing to do to help the Fleet carry on.

Thanks for listening.

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