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Wilmington Power Squadron Each year members of Wilmington Power Squadron (both power and sail, and even folks with no boat will drive to some land-based activities) get together and cruise for one week to various destinations around the Chesapeake Bay (Click here for the Itinerary). This year is no different, and the cruise committee is hard at work making reservations, designing a "cruise tee shirt", preparing agendas, etc. Check out the results of our yearly photo contests. See 2002's story of dealing with 13 kids on a cruise for a week, including tattoos, and a real live man overboard! The cruise usually includes every other night in a marina, alternating with raft-ups and on the hook nights. This caters to everyone's favorites, and makes sure we all get some shore leave! Dinners may be either ashore in a restaurant, or potluck style. Point to point sailboat races are a feature, as is the "Go-Rilla" event. Instead of round the buoy racing, races are conducted as we leave one port and head into the next. A PHRF handicap system is used to "even the odds"! Don't worry if you don't have a PHRF number for your boat. The Race Committee will come up with one for you. The "Gorilla" event is an unusual agenda item, but one from which the members learn a lot about themselves, their boats, and safety. This event usually involves leaving for your next port of call with a sealed envelope with instructions to open the envelope at a specific time (after making sure you aren't in a channel or other hazard). The envelope contains information describing some onboard emergency which you are now experiencing (pretend of course). You need to figure out how to deal with that emergency, and actually do it (short of calling in a Mayday). At the conclusion of the episode (you will have either a definite time limit or have fixed the problem), and at the end of the day, you may be asked to share your experiences with the others. This could be in verbal exchange, or the committee has been known to get creative and ask for poetry! Members of your crew may also receive their own envelopes with instructions and their own emergency. This can make it interesting. For example, one year supposedly the steering broke. The captain was busily investigating how to either figure out what the problem was by tracing cables or hydraulics or whatever. The crew was to wait fifteen minutes, open their envelope, and discovered their emergency was supposedly a tanker bearing down on them. The crew had strict orders not to interrupt the captain. They were to mimic (but not actually do it) a call to the mythical tanker on the VHF and explain what was happening. Some captains "found" leaks or broken cables and "fixed" them with spare parts. Some dug the emergency tiller out of the deepest reaches of the hold. Some crews were able to figure out how to work the VHF, and some discovered they need practice. All in all, it was a very educational experience! Everyone who has attended even a part of the cruise comes home excited, has stories to tell, and is anticipating next year's cruise. This is a great way to cruise around the bay, having fun, and enjoying the safety of others traveling with you.
Cruise
Itinerary for 2008 Summary results of the Cruise Survey Thursday, June 5. 7:00 PM - Cruise Skipper's Meeting. Brandywine Hundred Library. Details and cruise kits. Click here for the Registration Form
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