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The Sloopers Sounding
10/14/07
Excellent winds of 6-12 kts swept across the Trotwood pond on Sunday with Sunday skies and pleasant temperatures. With an almost perfect day to sail, we had two skippers out there with new boats. Tom Ransom purchased Carlos's Voyager and smiled broadly during his first One Meter racing. Hos picked up his new Vic from Charles and will spend the next week or so finishing it off (expect a unique paintjob) and will sail the club boat until he's done.
Kudos to Dave Whitaker who helped Hos and myself with post breakdown repairs and finished in a first place tie in the Vic class. This type of Corinthian activity is so typical of the Sunday Slooper fleet.
Next week we will be back at the front pond at Eastwood and plan to tryout the Winter Park pond the week after. We'll re-post the MapQuest link to the pond on the messageboard an a day or two.
9/30/07
Sunday's event was the last race of our Summer Series and congratulations to the class winners and all who braved a very hot and rainy summer here in Central Florida.
Next week we start the Fall Series and we will have the Fall NOR out a bit late due to some time constraints. We expect that with the weather cooling and the breeze coming up and vactions over we will have a better participation level. We also have four or five boats potentially joining the fleet during the series and maybe more.
We continue to evaluate the idea of the fleet holding a regional event for the Seawind class. The sentiment towrd the event is quite high and it's possible that we my be ready by January if we can land the right venue.
We expect that eventually the Trotwood pond will become unusable due to the City of Winter Springs questionable decision of planting emergent grases around the whole perimeter of the lake. The grasses will eventually block off the pond to not only RC sailing but to those who might want to fish the pond. The move seems very counterproductive and makes waste of a valuable recreational resource.
We continue to look for a Trotwood replacement and will hold events at several ponds in the area to evaluate their usefullness. We will continue at Eastwood for for as long as the ponds are maintained.
9/16/07
This Sunday yielded some fine racing and a good turnout of Victorias. THe wind was decent and we were able to get a dozen races in around the triangle course.
The BIG but unfortunate, news is the water plants that were planted around the whole shore of the Trotwood venue. It seems the Town of Winter Springs doesn't realize we use the pond and provide many residents with the sights of our racing and the use of our boats. We will try to get them to change but since they have already invested in the project the odds are slim we can get them to throw money at getting rid of the plants. If we're unsucessful in fixing the problem we will regretfully have to leave our original venue.
We will be giving the original Eastwood pond a try agin this Sunday. Since the weather is getting a bit cooler the pond deserves a re-try.
To all reading this update, please give us suggestions for new venues to try. Obviously we need clear water in pond that is not too big, close by parking and facilities.
8/10/07
For a mid-summer event we had a nice crowd of sailors at Trotwood this week. Adding to the interest was two father and son combinations with the Jone's sailing their Vics and Mike Krasoski coming in fro San Diego to sail hid Dad's Victoria while Dad sailed his Seawind.
With excellent but very shiftly winds a total of 19 races were sailed in about three hours, a new record for the club.
See you next week at the trial for the possible new venue at the Eat Lake Fish Camp. See the message board for directions.
8/5/07
Variable winds kept the racing interesting today but they we're consistent enough to get 13 races in during our three hour session. Next week we're back at Eastwood, come join us.
7/22/07
Once again the precipitate albatross struck after four races and we were forced to cut the day short at Trotwood. Back at Eastwood it was sunny and dry. Tom Ransome has come on strong and is challenging Dave for the lead in the Vic class, which looks to have the start of some real competitive racing.
We're scheduled for a bye week next week so the next racing will be at Trotwood in two weeks.
Well the past four weeks it seems that Mother Nature had more control over the Sloopers than anyone else. A couple weeks ago the speedy entrance of a rainstorm caused us to retreat for cover. Weeks after, it was the Captain who could read the slight puffs of wind that was periodically offered. As for all sailors any wind is a happy sight. But the past weeks have not been uneventful.
First and foremost, we are happy to announce that we have officially FOUR new Captains as members to add to our happy fleet! The Sloopers wish to welcome aboard:
Captain Adrian Sullivan from Orlando & his boat Rumrunner #147 Seawind Class/1 Meter
Captain Angel Rodriguez from Lakeland, with a fleet of Fairwinds and a Newport 12 Meter.
Captain-to-be Tom Ransom from Kissimmee (we’re looking forward for another Victoria to join the fleet)
And last, but not least,
Captain Andrew Jones from Winter Springs AKA Jones2 and his Victoria Class The Flying-Dutchman #197
Because our score-keeping records use last name, first initial, Andrew is affectionately nick-named Jones2. Andrew’s father Allan Jones’ initials are also A. Jones. That somewhat leaves a dilemma for the score-keepers, thus affectionately dubbing him Jones2. As a young Captain, Andrew is a special addition to The Sloopers. Reason being: 1. The Sloopers’ goal is to bring family members together. 2. Andrew’s quick personality leads him to pay attention to the smallest details Such as; He is quick to point out when you are losing a race, even if you’re the Commodore. Looks like he will fit in just fine!
The races have been close and everyone has had a placement at least one time. But the fields at times were slim. I do wish to encourage everyone to show up if possible so that we can keep it interesting. In order to keep the club flexible and open to all classes, we must try to have more than one or two boats for that class. It is not sure not much fun if you’re the only boat that shown up that day.
Another Fine Day at Eastwood !
Sure I would come up with a title like that after the day I had. Just look at the days standing and you will understand. After the past few outtings and numerous frustrating attempts at getting my Vic #59 The Neptuna Chariot dialed in, she was set for the high wind conditions from the concluding stages of Tropical Storm Barry who visited us on Saturday. I have to admit that most of my troubles were self inflicted. Had I taken the time to perform some much needed maintenance, I would have not experienced the problems that I did.
Now it’s back to dry dock to install her new set of sails from fellow club member Carlos Suarez's who has proven himself to be a fine sail maker.
We are also looking out for a new Vic to hit the water very soon.
Mr. Allen Jones let the cat out the bag that he and his son are working on a new Vic, and has no bones about gunning for the #1 Vic Captain David Whitaker and # 988 The Zig Zag Wanderer. Cover Your Six Dave!
Darrel has a new toy. He just picked up a Spektrum controller. It seemed to do its magic by the looks of his standings for the day.
Hope to see everyone lakeside next Sunday! ~~~~~~~~~_/)
Great Picnic and Great Racing
We had our delayed first anniversary picnic and had a nice turnout of skippers and families at Trotwood Park. At the picnic Mark Muzzone received his Commodore flag and Charles Samaha his Vice Commodore flag as well as Dave Whitaker's award as Most Improved Sailor for the 2006 Season.
After the party there was some great sailing in 5-8 kts of wind. Much of the racing was very close with almost everyone getting a first place during the racing. THe One Meter class was was won by Darrell Krasoski in a Seawind in a tie breaker over Carlos Suarez skippering his Seawind rigged Voyager as they were tied to two decimal places. Charles Samaha's US One Meter unfortunate third race finish kept from winning overall.
The Voyager class is still forming nationally and we hope that they see what Carlos is doing with his boat as a model for their class rules. Sailing skills, tactics and good wind reading are paramount in winning in our One Meter class as boat parity is surprisingly even given the different boats. We are hoping that any Soling 1M skippers that are around will join us as our ability to hold fun events grows.
Allan Jones gave Dave Whitaker some good competition in the Victoria class that is getting more competitive. Again we invite any Victoria skipper to join us if you live in Florida or just here as a snowbird or even on a vacation.
Good sailing and welcome aboard to out site to our visitors!
We will be back on schedule next week at Trotwood and Eastwood the next week after some scheduling issues. If anyone wants details on where to join us, join our message board and ask for information.
Continued Growth!
We have a new Seawind owner, Adrian, and we also gained a great photographer at the same time. Growth is the theme for the fleet here in Central Florida. Our website is getting more popular with now over 1400 unique visits and many of these hits are from all over the US and Europe. Part of that success has helped us host visitors from at least 5 different states and the UK in the last couple of weeks here in the vacation capital.
We also have technical growth abounding. The fleet has acquired a precision scale for weighing our boats to assure they meet class requirements. Carlos Suarez has started MGGK Sails, to produce paneled sails for Victorias and Voyagers. Several sailors are advancing development of allowable Victoria and Seawind modifications to make sail trim easier and boats more waterproof. I believe yours truly will have a technical article in the next Seawind quarterly magazine.
Perhaps the most growth is where it belongs; on the water. The fleet, in general is exhibiting more skilled sailing, and understanding and observation of the rules is improving. We have also begun to add marks on the course to enable us to sail all of the Olympic Course variations.
We continue to welcome anyone who is in Central Florida on vacation, snowbirds or permanent resides to join us so sail, learn or just watch the most satisfying hobby you can imagine. To support that philosophy, we are upgrading a spare Victoria to state of the art specs so visitors can sail a competitive boat with the fleet.
Mark's Back
After several weeks of computer issues, Commodore Mark is getting back on line to start adding his pithy comment to this page. He is also a year older and a pround owner of a brand new Seawind, bringing our fleet up to four boats. Mark will fill us in on the new menbers that have recently joined and the addition of a Fairwind class that will start with at least three boats.
Mark did very well sailing his boat for the first time this week and missed finishing third in the One Meter class by .02 points.
We continue to draw a nice crowd of people to watch our sailing, and they ask if we do this all the time and comeback to relax and enjoy both the spirited racing and the joy of perhaps the most asthetically pleasing sport you can inmagine.
Website Change!
I hope you all noticed the change on our Home Page. Charles with the help of Mark created a great club pennant design and logo. It looks great and we owe Charles and Mark a hand for their work. Also, remember this Sunday is our first anniversary picnic at Trotwood.
Easter
No sailing today but we also have passed 950 unique visitors to our site thus far this year and based on averages per month, we should pass 1000 by next weekend. Today we received a message from a fellow from England wanting to sail with us whilst on vaction in Orlando next week we should make him an honorary member making us an international club.
Continued Growth!
Last Sunday found two more skippers joining our group, both are experienced sailers with multiple boats including a J class. More info in our next posting.
This week ended our Winter Series of races, which were meant to be unoffical so new members could get the hand of racing and the rules. The Spring Series starts April 15th and will count in the 2007 scoring.
Due to the arrival of Spring, we will move our sailing at Eastwood to the pond near the West entrance off Alafaya, because it offers more shade.
A New Venue!
This Sunday March 25th we will be trying a new pond at the corner of Curry Ford and Alafaya Trail that is on a busy intersection to show passer by the fun of RC sailing.
Our biggest crowd yet!
Last Sunday we had the biggest crowd at one of our events. We had a dozen boats sailing and some of the best racing ever. A new Seawind "America" was in the water for the first time and managed to win a few races in the 1M class and a six boat fleet of Vics had several winners led by Dave Whitaker. The word is getting around abot the fleet and we expect even more new sailors joining soon.
Another New Boat
Eastwood 3/11/07
Charles Samaha introducted his new carbon fiber Seawind today in Eastwood. The boat is beautiful to look at and sails very well. Next week we hope to match his boat aginst a couple of ABS Seawinds to see how they compare. Also on the One Meter from Carlos Suarez brought his Voyager with a new Seawind mast and came home a winner in several races. Carlos and Charles had several races overlapped at the finish.
Several passersby sailed our boats and we had a Soling 1M sailor stop by who is intersted in joining us and buying a Vic for a second boat.
Add Another Vic Captain To The Fleet
Trotwood, 2/4/07
Welcome Aboard to Allan Jones of Winter Springs to the Sunday Sloopers. Allan is a proud skipper of a Victoria class The Surprise # 1502 and is well on her way to becoming a top finishing vessel. Allan has refitted the Surprise with a new set of sails after 3 years in dry dock and is looking to fitting her out with other upgrades. The Vic Starting line is getting a little crowded.
Old Man Winter came to visit this week at Trotwood with overcast skies, a good steady breeze, and temps down around low 50,s with the wind chill. It was enough to call it an early day between the weather and preparations for the Super Bowl set to begin later that evening.
Mark had suggested having a picnic to be held at Trotwood on the 15th of April 2007 to celebrate the unofficial 1-year anniversary of the Sunday Sloopers. We wish to hear any comments or ideas to be posted on the message board.
Fine Day At Eastwood
Eastwood, 1/27/07
With several Sloopers in attendance, the new markers donated by Charles were set and away we went. Earlier in the day whitecaps were reported from the North but settled down around noon. Winds still at a stiff 10-12 knots from the W-N/W, the thumbs on the controllers were busy. Several times we had to check the bilges for water. It looks like drain plugs will be a useful upgrade.
Earlier in the week Mark had visited a local shop that boast a inventers treasure chest of materials such as fiberboard, plastics, all types of electronics, connectors and more. He was able to find several lengths of roller rail that seems to be suitable for a boat launch. As he explained the ideas he had, you could see the thinking cogs turn by the rest of the group of ways to improve the idea. I truly believe R & D, (research & development), is just this very thing that makes the sport so enjoyable.
Build That Fleet
Trotwood, 1/21/07
What a day for the Sloopers, It just keeps on getting better! First lets Welcome Aboard the newest member to our group Carlos Suarez of Kissimmee, with his Thunder Tiger 1/22 Voyager 1 Meter # 69 The MGGK-1.
MGGK represents the first initials of each of his wonderful children. She is a fine looking vessels that is well suited for the 1-meter open class.
And not to take away the limelight from Carlos, Charles shows up with his two newest additions for maiden voyages, His Sea wind, the Pirate's Revenge and an AquaCraft Atlantic Harbor Tug that will be used for marker placements and rescue. It was like Christmas all over again.
To top it off, it was another beautiful day at the park. Winds up to 6-8 knots subsiding occasionally due to cloud cover. Onlookers on hand willing to man the controls wile admiring the sloops as they danced across the lake.
Happy New Year!
And
Welcome Aboard!!!!!
01/7/2007
Well it’s a new year and the Sloopers meet for the first time in 2007 at Trotwood with the Sloopers newest members. We wish to welcome aboard Charles Samaha and Tom DeHart.
Charles was present last week at an unofficial meeting so we want to welcome him in officially to our little group. Also Tom who has been at the sidelines in past meetings that is now a proud owner of a prize Vic that he had recently purchased. Her name is the Yellow Fin. Appropriately named due to her Bright Yellow sails atop a white hull.
It was an excellent turnout apart from Scott and Bill being absent. But we had enough boats in the water for a good day of sailing. Nice sunny day, winds light to moderate with a few sporadic gusts and the traditional Trotwood wind shifts and lulls. .
Due to Little League tryouts, Trotwood offered some extra spectators. It gave us the opportunity to show off the Sloopers customary hospitality by allowing anyone who wanted to try his or her hand at sailing to grab the helm. We also had another gentlemen who looked up our website and stop by to see what we were about and we also hope to see again soon.
Lets Get Together
12/31/2006
Well thanks to the power of the Internet some of us decided to get together at Trotwood for a day of unscheduled sailing. Darrel and Bill had travel plans for the New Year so it was decided at the last meeting to cancel the next meeting. But Dave sent an e-mail that he wanted to sail so some of us got together anyway. It was a beautiful day for the end of 2006; Even Scott showed up to get in the fun.
Charels Samaha who is a proud owner of a US1M carbon fiber Oracale by the name of ORACLE PIRATE greeted us. He had seen our website and was hoping to catch up with us. Markers were placed, someone said Lets Go! And off we went!
Dave’s sails were legal and we were ready to give him a run for his money. With a steady breeze of about 5 –8 knots with the typical Trotwood Park mid course wind directional change we started for the windward mark.
About midcourse two young ladies had inadvertently kicked a soccer ball in the water so us lagers, (Bud and Mark) saw an excuse to leave the race and assist by nudging the ball back into shore with our boats. What the heck we were loosing anyway. Soon everyone got into it, and a new sport was started, WATER POLO ANYONE? It looks as if the Sloopers will soon be in the market for a soccer ball.
Charles would graciously layback for a bit to give us what we thought to be a comfortable lead, and then he would unleash the Oracles fury. With a narrow hull cutting through the water like a knife, it looked like a shark was on the loose and the Vic’s were bait. Chalk up another good day of sailing!
Zig Zag Wanderer Makes Maiden Voyage
12/17/06 at Trotwood
Well everyone was in attendance at Trotwood, except for Scott who had an angelical excuse, (Singing in the quire). It was one of the harshest winter days that I can recall, Mostly Sunny, 78 degrees; winds mostly steady at about 8 to 10 Knots. Isn’t it hard to live in Florida?
Dave Whitaker shows up fashionably late with the Zig Zag Wanderer in hand and ready for her maiden voyage. BOY, She was a sight for sore eyes! Dave has done a magnificent job putting her together. With most of the Vic’s upgrades in place, and Dave’s outstanding craftsmanship quite evident, She was ready, willing, and able to hit the water. What was her most outstanding feature was her Clear Mylar Sails. Everyone referred to her as “The Phantom Ship”. Well she was no phantom because she was seen crossing the finish line every race by an outstanding margin.
Latter this week I received an e-mail from Dave confessing to a error he had made and asking for forgiveness. In hast to make the outing he had to cut and mount her sails that morning, he had cut the foot of his Main Sail a 5/8th of an inch too long giving him an increase in sail size advantage. Well all I can say is Stuff Happens and that I truly believe that it was Dave’s superb craftsmanship, choice of sail material, and his fine ability to pilot a boat that got him out front. It just would have been a 10-boat lead instead of 20 without the error. Also the fact the we let Dave win due to the fact that it was Zig Zag Wanderer’s maiden voyage.
EXTRA! EXTRA!
READ ALL ABOUT IT!
Sunday Sloopers A.M.Y.A 241st Sanctioned Club
Well we did it! Thanks to all who participated in helping us in becoming American Modeling Yacht Association 241st Sanctioned club. 2006 has been a good year, from two guys sitting by a lake having a little fun to what we are today; we have come a long way in a short time. And it is not over yet; I have been in contact with CARLOS SUAREZ who wishes to become our newest member, bringing with him our 2nd 1-meter boat a Thunder Tiger Voyager to the club (LOOK OUT BUD). And it looks like Santa will be dropping off a couple of Vic’s under the tree this year.
2007 is also looking up with trips to visit our neighboring clubs and plans to get females in to the competition. (Look out guys, this is not just a mans sport!). There is a lot to look forward to and I for one am looking forward to it.
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