Commodore's Column - August 2008

by Tom Sokoloski
Catalina 36 International Association

On Wednesday nights during the summer, I race sailboats. Not my boat, but OPB (other people’s boats). It starts right after Memorial Day, and it ends just before Labor Day. I’ve been doing it for many years, and my family and friends know better than to plan something for me on a Wednesday night. It’s such a wonderful break during the work week. At promptly 4:30 we meet at the local commuter parking lot, and drive 48 minutes to the yacht club in New London, CT. Our only stop is for some cold beer. The launch takes us out to the boat (currently a C&C 36), and by 5:45 the gear is stowed and the sails are up. The gun for our class goes off at 6:10. Sometimes the weather is perfect, sometimes the weather is awful, but unless there is lightning or gale force winds, we always race. The race finishes anywhere between 7:00 and 8:00, and then we hop back in the car to grab a bite to eat on the way home. Through the years I’ve been fortunate to sail on a number of different boats. An Express 35, J24, Tartan 40, C&C 30, Baltic 43, J29, Little Harbor 44, C&C 36, Catalina 30, and of course, more than one Catalina 36. Each boat was different, and each boat was fun in its own way. The reason I tell this story is because I am sure I’m a better sailor because of the racing. Out on the race course I learned about jib car placement, backstay, halyard, and outhaul tension, battens and tell-tales, vangs and cunninghams, setting, gybing, and dousing spinnakers, and a whole bunch more. I kept my eyes and ears open, especially when we had a guest “rock star” on board. Not every racing tactic translates into a cruising lifestyle, but I have yet to meet any sailor, anywhere, who doesn’t want to sail just a little bit faster (especially if he/she comes upon another sailboat going in remotely the same direction!). You might want to let it be known at your marina or yacht club that you are available to crew. There are always skippers looking for crew. You just might learn something new!

Saturday October 11, 2008. Mark the date in your calendar right now. C36IA will be holding its first general membership meeting. This meeting will coincide with the Annapolis Sailboat Show, and we have reserved a room near the show from 0800 to 1000 hours. Centrally located on the east coast, we hope to have a large number of members attend. Meet the officers. Make your voice heard. More details are in this issue of Mainsheet, in JibSheet, and also on our website. Speaking of which, have you checked out our new website, www.c36ia.com? Alex Lynch, our webmaster, has been putting in huge hours making it better and more functional.
Hope you are having a great summer of sailing.