Bellingham Yacht Club

The dates are set and have just been announced by our Fleet Captain Troy Curran. The Buccaneers Cruise will be August 14, 15 & 16 and the Commodores Picnic will be August 29th.

Buccaneers Cruise

Fleet Captain Troy Curran and Cori Hanson have planned another great weekend for the 2nd Annual Buccaneers Cruise over at Inati Bay. For the hundred or so who showed up last year, you already know that it was a great day of family fun. Troy and Cori are planning even more fun this year. There will be costumes, swashbuckling, and sword fights (ok, they are only blowup swords, but still fun.) There will be Lads and Lassies. Pieces of Eight, Booty and Doubloons may be found. Scallywags and Seadogs will be plentiful. This will indeed be a great day of family fun, so plan now on attending this weekend of some of the old traditions of the early days of buccaneers.

By the way, how many of you know the origin of the word Buccaneer? According to Wikipedia, the term buccaneer derives from the Arawak (Native Indians of the Caribbean) word buccan, a wooden frame for smoking meat, hence the French word boucane and the name boucanier for French hunters who used such frames to smoke meat from feral cattle and pigs on Hispaniola (now Haiti and the Dominican Republic.) English colonists anglicised the word boucanier to buccaneer. Now what other trivia can you bring to the Buccaneers Cruise?

For more information please contact Troy Curran or Cori Hansen.

Commodores Picnic

Inati Bay has been the site of the Commodore’s Picnic since 1983 when the BYC leased Inati Bay on the east shore of Lummi Island for the use of members. Every year there are two events that stand out for the Commodore, the Installation of Officers and the Commodore’s Picnic. Installation because everyone wishes you well, pledges support and offers suggestions for you at the start of your year. The Commodore’s Picnic is at the end of your year and it is the time when the Commodore is honored by the membership for his or her year of service, as well as when the Commodore thanks the membership for all they have done for the club.

As always, this years picnic will be a fun day, and another family day. In years past we have had sailing races from the club to the bay, one year the local kayak club even raced the sail boaters (kayaks won). Another year we had dinghy races. Of course everyone arrives there to find Bob Kehoe doing his famous salmon barbecue. Add to this the food, fun and games that go on every year and you have all the makings of another great Commodores Picnic.

So mark your calendars and come help celebrate Commodore Terry Robertson’s great year of service to our club as he is honored into Past Commodore status with the ceremonial smoking of the cigar with other Past Commodore’s.

For more information please contact Fleet Captain Troy Curran.

Women on the Water (CLICK HERE FOR NOTICE OF RACE AND REGISTRATION FORM) is an annual regatta supporting women in sailing. This year the Race will be August 1st in Bellingham Bay. All boats must be driven by women, with a predominantly female crew. Some years men are allowed to participate in the regatta, although they are generally required to dress as the opposite sex. Seriously, there are a few rules – the Skipper must be female and no more than 1/3 of the crew can be male. For clarification, if you have a 9 person crew (or more), there can only be 3 males. If your crew size is 6-8 no more than 2 males, and boats with 3-5 then you can only have one male.

The Women on the Water 2009 Regatta will be governed by the International Yacht Racing rules and sailing instructions will be handed out at the Skippers meeting 9:00 am at the BYC. 2625 Harbor Loop, Bellingham, WA 98225. The start time for the race is 1000, and Last Minute On-Site Registration will start at 0800 at the Bellingham Yacht Club.

2009 Sponsors include: Dawn Durand, Windermere Real Estate, and The Tide Catcher. There will be prizes at the end of the regatta as well as a drawing! The after race events include the Mr. Wow pageant and shouldn’t be missed as male regatta participants show off their elegant attire for the day!

For further information, please contact Dawn Durand 360-739-3380

Famous Smugglers Of The San Juan and Gulf Islands

You all ready know about the cruise to Poets Cove for the 18th, 19th and 20th of September. If you have not yet made your reservations, you need to now. Here are some details:

Friday the 18th

Time - Depart from Bellingham with a Predicted Log Race.
1700 – Welcome No Host Dock Party, bring your favorite dock dish.
1800 – Announcement of First and Last place winners of Predicted Log Race (Winner gets FREE MOORAGE, last place gets a gift certificate for one night of moorage, both provided by Poets Cove Resort & Spa)

The Bellingham Sail & Power Squadron has accepted the challenge laid out to them to join us in Poets Cove and our try and beat the BYC in the Predicted Log Race, so…let’s give them a race!

Saturday the 19th

0900 – Dock Side Potluck Breakfast.
1100 – Rain or shine, the Saturna Island Wine and Harvest Festival.
1800 – Pirates of Poets Cove Dinner Theater (In Aurora Room) This is where you will solve a the tale of international intrigue and mystery. Speaking of the Pirates of Poets Cove, you can read the June Chapter – Piracy, Guemes Island, & Tide Catcher Dreams at the official site – and you will want to make sure and read each month up until the last Chapter, September 19th – the Chapter we will act out.

Sunday the 20th

Time – Poets Cove Resort & Spa has a great breakfast buffet where we will go on our own schedule before leaving for home.

Other Details

Poets Cove is offering us free electricity for the weekend for boaters, a special room rate for the rooms and cabins, helping with prizes, and making a great price for us for the Dinner Theater.

So in preparation for September, here are three things you need to do:

1. Mark your calendar for September 18, 19 and 20, 2009 for Poets Cove.
2. Make your reservation (We have 25 12 left? slips and 12 1 left? rooms in the Lodge) – you can make your reservation with Tara or Caroline in the Marina for the boat moorage, but make sure you tell them it is for the BYC Cruise. For the rooms in the Lodge (or Cottage) you must call the front desk and tell her you are booking for the Bellingham Yacht Club. If you do not, you are not going to get the rate. If all the rooms are full, then ask to be on a wait list.
3. Read the Pirates of Poets Cove. (Click Here) Chapters will continue to be posted except the last one – September 19th, because you are the chapter.

Questions? Call John or Patricia Gargett (360) 656-5700 or via email john@gargett.com