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Date: 4/10/2020
Subject: Email To The PPYC Membership
From: Communications Director



PPYC Newsletter
 
Commodore's Corner
I was telling my friend the other day that I have found a peaceful place (when it doesn’t rain) out on my patio every couple of hours since it’s been so warm, just listening to the birds chirping. She remarked, “at least you can hear them”.  I forgot she is hearing impaired – just a gentle reminder of everyday things we may take for granted, especially in these most challenging times.

So that you know, even though all our sailing activities have been temporarily suspended, your Board continues to meet and work on the current calendar of events and other club needs, hoping each month we have to push it forward, that eventually we will be able to get back out on the water and be a part of socializing together.  I know we are all having sailing withdrawal. These air hugs for me just aren’t cuttin’ it either!!  We have been conducting our monthly meetings via ZOOM, and at our meeting last Monday, April 6th, the Board voted to: (A) extend the cancellation of all PPYC events through end of May; (B) tentatively resume PPYCU classes in June; (C) tentatively resume Wednesday night racing in June; (D) cancel the Luau and move the 50th anniversary celebration to a later date to be determined; and (E) postpone LATH until further notice. The Board will reassess these dates at our May 4th meeting. Depending on the Covid-19 situation at that time and the social distancing requirements/recommendations, we will re-evaluate these actions and decide whether additional postponements are necessary. Our concern regarding the LATH program is that since skippers/crews would be unable to engage in any level of “social distancing” we should not start this program until (A) government restrictions/recommendations are such that the LATH program can take place; and (B) even if the requirements/recommendations may allow the LATH program to take place, our LATH skippers can be comfortable sailing in close proximity with the participants. We must wait and see.
 
I am throwing out two volunteer possibilities that are really important to our club and would ask you to consider your future participation by emailing me your name and contact info and in which task you are specifically willing to participate:
  1. We need some volunteers willing to be placed on a schedule to come out and check our 2 chase (safety) boats.  Cpt. Hook says every time it rains, the covers get filled with water that eventually will tear them (about $500 each I think he said to replace).  Would you be willing to either step up to coordinate this task and organize volunteers with an assigned person each time it rains (maybe take a month at a time) or come out to the marina and move the rain water off the covers?
  2. Eventually, the chase boats will need to be power-washed and de-winterized. With the weather beginning to warm up, we hope this task could be done in mid-May with safe distancing.
  3. We need volunteers on perhaps a monthly basis, or as needed, as we resume sailing, who would go into the shed and take the gas cans to be filled with non-ethanol gas and returned to the shed.  Since we don’t have an official Boat Maintenance Committee yet, I sure would like someone to step up to chair this and oversee these very important tasks on our boats and organize the volunteers.  There is not a lot of work to be done often, but there are tasks very important to the preservation of our boats. The Club Boat Committee oversees our 2 club boats’ maintenance with volunteers who are members of that program. That’s not to say any of those members could not be part of the general Boat Maintenance Committee and we would welcome them.  If you don’t want to chair, that’s fine.  If you only want to get on the list to help, I’d be very pleased if you will email me your names and contact info (cell phone and email).
We regretfully had to cancel the Galen Freeman Clinic/Regatta scheduled for 5/14 - 5/17.  However, our Social Director, Cpt. Hook, just advised me today that he is working on combining some of our lost events into the Fall and Winter planning for the Equalizer, Wednesday Night Racing and our 50th anniversary celebration. For those of you who know Hook, whatever he puts together is always spectacular (he loves our club and our members), and I heard today some pretty exciting things that are going to help incorporate what we missed into upcoming events.  I’m excited, and you will be, too!  Stay tuned as he and his committee are working hard to lift our spirits!!
 
Kathy Ware, Commodore
Upcoming Events And Other Items Of Interest
 
Since all of our activities are cancelled through May 31, the only thing we'd like to communicate here is the importance of keeping in touch with us regularly on the overall Coronavirus situation -- as it relates to us, specifically.
 
All of our scheduled activities for 2020 remain on the Events Calendar, with “CANCELLED” in the titles of those up to and including May 31 and “TENTATIVE — To Be Re-Evaluated May 4“ for all items in June and July.
 
Please see the note Charles added in the Communications Corner section below about a special page we've added to keep you regularly and frequently updated on the overall status of the Coronavirus situation, including its impact on our Events schedule.
 
Communications Corner
Congratulations to Jim Vaillancourt on winning the Grab Bag drawing for those who completed the Members' Survey!! The current situation makes it difficult to find a forum for giving him his burgee and two cocktail glasses, but we just wanted you to know the drawing was done and Jim was the lucky winner. And thanks so much to all of you who completed the survey. The information obtained from these surveys is very useful to the Board and others in Club leadership, and we really appreciate your taking a few minutes to provide that information.
 
On a personal note, I’m definitely among those experiencing the “sailing withdrawal” Kathy mentioned. One of the things that I enjoy most about my PPYC and Club Boat Program membership is that for the first time in my life — the last 35 years of which has included sailing several times each year on every U.S. coast and on very large inland lakes — I can be on the water under sail about an hour after leaving my home for HCSM. The instant I feel safe doing so and won’t be violating any mandates, I’ll be back to doing that at least once a week — serving as a LATH Skipper again, and going out for some daysailing with family and friends. About the only thing I enjoy as much as sailing is music, and Christopher Cross’ song Sailing explains very succinctly why I love sailing: “Well, it's not far down to paradise, at least it's not for me, and if the wind is right you can sail away and find tranquility. Oh, the canvas can do miracles, just you wait and see. … Sailing takes me away to where I've always heard it could be. Just a dream and the wind to carry me.”
 
Well, since I’ve gotten personal, I might as well confess that my wife and I were two of the seven people in a theater in Charleston WV watching the movie Wind in 1992 [it was about Dennis Conner’s campaign to win back the America’s Cup after being the first Skipper to ever lose it.] I thought it was great, but it was good that we saw it the day after it hit theaters — it was gone after a few days of short crowds 🤷‍♂️. Anyway, when things get back to some degree of normalcy, the chorus of one of Rod Stewart’s songs describes where you’ll find me often: “Where the ocean [lake] meets the sky [tree-line,] I’ll be sailing!

Please Note. We’ve added a special Coronavirus Updates page to the Member Resources section.  We will post the most current PPYC-specific information we have about the Coronavirus situation there. You can access it through the Member Resources Menu, by clicking the link in the top banner on this page, or by clicking here: Coronavirus Updates

Charles Jones, Communications Director
communications@ppyc.org
Thanks for reading this communication. We'll see you around.

Percy Priest Yacht Club  .  PO Box 290485  .  Nashville, TN 37229